Author: Melvin S. Schwartz
Date: 11:52:47 06/16/99
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On June 16, 1999 at 13:28:24, Dan Homan wrote: >On June 15, 1999 at 23:47:07, Melvin S. Schwartz wrote: > >> >>I disagree. They're running programs on different hardware and that doesn't make >>for intelligent evaluations of program vs. program. Furthermore, I didn't say >>they shouldn't do it, but rather what is to be accomplished by testing program >>against program on various types of hardware that is not of equal stature. They >>can do it - but is it truly meaningful??? >> > >Depends on what you mean by meaningful. This contest is to find the >best artifical chess player. I think that is pretty meaningful. > >Notice that I said "player" not program. Clever algorithms are only >one component of a chess player. Hardware is important too. Some >artifical players use special purpose hardware.... Deep Blue for >example. The question is: "What is the best artifical player?" > >Now, if you want to use the results to say something about the >relative strength of the algorithms you can buy for your home >computer, you are out of luck.... The results from this contest are >not meaningful in that particular way, but they are meaningful >in other ways. > >If you still are doubtful, we could turn this around. Suppose that >you have organized a tournament. In your tournament all the same >kinds of computers are used and all the newest commercial software >is playing. Now, I could critize your tournament as not being >meaningful because it doesn't tell us what the best "artificial >chess player" is. By not including other kinds of artificial chess >players and other types of hardware, I could say that your results >were tainted. > >If I said these things about your hypothetical tournament, I would be >dead wrong because I would be putting my meaning into your results >rather than looking at what you were trying to do. Your results would >tell us which commercially available program is best on the hardware >you selected. Hello Dan, If the programs were running on the same type of hardware, I believe that would yield results which could be intelligently evaluated. If you run program A at 600 MHz and program B at 200 MHz, what possible intellectual conlusion could you come to if program A defeated program B? Mel > > - Dan > > >>Mel >> >>>TP
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