Author: Vasik Rajlich
Date: 03:51:35 08/31/04
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On August 30, 2004 at 16:10:58, Russell Reagan wrote: >On August 30, 2004 at 14:57:40, David H. McClain wrote: > >>So is the argument valid that Hydra is a better chess program, or is it better >>because of its hardware? > >It's apples and oranges. Hydra is a different approach than normal "chess >playing software". It's more like a "chess playing computer". They can both play >chess very well. The point of the chess match is not "Who has the better >software?" It is "Who finishes with more points?", and nothing more. > >Think of it this way. Let's have a race. Everyone starts in New York and the >first person to Los Angelos is the winner of the race. Lance Armstrong enters >the race and decides to ride his bike. Jeff Gordon enters with his racing car. A >military fighter pilot enters with his fighter jet and finishes days before the >other participants. > >After the race all of the cycling hobbyists are chatting on their message board >saying, "But the fighter pilot is clearly not a better cyclist than Lance!" The >NASCAR fans are all chatting on their message board saying, "But the fighter >pilot is clearly not a better race car driver than Jeff Gordon!" > >And here we have all of the computer chess software hobbyists chatting on a >message board saying, "But Hydra is not the best chess software!" The point of >the contest was not, "Who has the better chess software?" It was, "Which >participant finishes with more points?" > >A lot of people miss the point of computer chess contests. They think they are >only about chess software, and that is not the case. Superior software is only >one means to an end. There are other means to reach that end, if you are >fortunate enough to be in a situation to make use of those means. Keep in mind that it's very normal in sports to have rules limiting the equipment used. Baseball bats cannot be corked. Formula-1 engines must conform to specifications. Football players cannot throw spears at the quarterback. Open-hardware is indeed an interesting, legitimate contest - but so is limited-hardware. Vas
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