Author: Christophe Theron
Date: 08:19:13 04/08/00
Go up one level in this thread
On April 08, 2000 at 10:18:21, O. Veli wrote:
> I plan on updating my Sapphire II this summer and would like to have some
>information on my choices.
> My first choice is the upcoming Novag Star Sapphire which is rumored to be 200
>points stronger than Sapphire II. 200 Elo improvement sounds nice but I have
>some doubts on that.
You should indeed wait for some test matches before believing such claims.
I don't think the microprocessor of the Star Sapphire is faster than the one in
the Sapphire II, so it's very hard to believe that an already good program has
been improved by 200 elo points without significant hardware improvement.
>Even if they manage 100 points, it would be rated above
>2200 SSDF. 300 USD is a lot for that machine, the current price of 200 USD will
>make it much more attractive. Of course Novag went out of bussines, but the new
>company hopefully will make the Star Sapphire.
> My second choice is to buy a Palm and Chess Genius. Genius is, if I remember
>correctly, the Roma program rated 1970 by SSDF and ranked 131st on their list.
I think ChessGenius for Palm would be rated higher. As you maybe know, the
PalmIIIx and above (PalmV, etc.) can be very easily overclocked by software. You
just have to download a little utility on the net, and your Palm can run much
faster. It is very easy and harmless, it can be done in 10 minutes.
The standard PalmIIIx runs at 16.58MHz, but mine runs at 26MHz since months. The
program I use for overclocking allows to select an additional speed
optimization, and consequently my Palm runs 2.5 times faster!
So I expect ChessGenius for Palm to be rated clearly above the Roma on 68000
12MHz. I would say 2050 FIDE elo.
I have a Palm, and I have bought ChessGenius for Palm. After trying it for some
time, I would say the playing strength is really above 2000. The only problem is
that the opening book is a little bit small, but the program is smart enough to
avoid blundering right out of the book anyway.
>Other programs by Mephisto on the 68000 processor are Vancouver, Lyon and
>Almeria, all stronger than the Roma program. I assume these are not Mr. Lang's
>programs, since he would have used them instead of the Roma program in the first
>place.
ChessGenius for Palm and the Mephisto Vancouver, Lyon and Almeria are all
programs written by Richard Lang. He apparently has chosen to port the Roma code
because it is impossible to use hash tables on the Palm architecture, and the
Roma program was his last program not using hash tables. The Almeria, Lyon and
Vancouver programs are based on hash tables, and are all designed for computers
with much more memory than the Palm has.
What is important to know, is that on the Palm almost all the available RAM is
reserved for STORAGE and cannot be accessed directly (like a hard disk on a PC).
Programs have very little memory available to work with. Actually the amount of
available RAM is microscopic: 12.5Kb for variables, and 2.5Kb for the stack!!!
So probably the Roma program, which has been written originally in 68000
assembler and is very well optimized for the Palm's processor and memory
requirement, was the best, logical, choice.
> So the software part will not improve drastically in the near future.
> I think that the Palm uses the 68000 processor or some new version of it.
Right. It is the Motorola DragonBall for PalmIII and DragonBall EZ (enhanced
version) on the PalmIIIx and above. It is fully compatible with the 68000, and
has plenty of built-in features for managing the stylus, the LCD screen, and
power savings.
>How often do the Palm processors update?
It is very difficult to say. It is not the philosophy of the Palm platform to
have faster and faster microprocessors.
The key of the success of the Palm is that it is a cheap device, with enough
power for what it is designed to do, but not too much computing power in order
to be able to run for weeks on 2 AAA alkaline (or rechargeable) batteries.
If Motorola produces a successor for the DragonBall EZ processor, with total
compatibility and the same power consumption, then they will probably be used in
the new Palms. Otherwise, I don't think Palm will move to other, faster but
incompatible, micoprocessors.
However, due to the success of the device, Motorola has maybe plans to improve
the DragonBall family.
I think this processor is also used in mobile phones, which is a growing market.
>Are they like the Intel processor or does
>it take longer for a new Palm processor to come to the market? Is there any
>information on an upcoming Palm processor that would make the Genius program
>closer to Sapphire II? Roma on 68020 is rated 2030, still below than Sapphire
>II's 2112. I assume there is not going to a big change in the hardware part
>either in the Palm + Genius choice.
> Palm + Genius makes more sense since you can use the Palm for other stuff, but
>I am interested purely in the strength of the chess program. I am sure in the
>future a Palm + Genius will be stronger than a hardware solution such as
>Sapphire, but when I have no idea. I am leaned towards the Star Sapphire but am
>very interested in your comments. Thank you for taking time to read this
>somewhat long post.
The Palm+Genius solution is a good choice IMO. The playing strength is very
close to the Sapphire. It is much cheaper than the Sapphire. You can buy a Palm
for $150 (PalmIIIe). ChessGenius for Palm costs $25. Also check the Handspring
company (www.handspring.com): they have bought the PalmOS licence and they
produce cheaper Palm computers that are totally compatible with the original
Palm.
It is very pleasant to play on the LCD screen of the Palm. The board is big
enough, and moving the pieces and even setting up a position with the stylus is
as easy as with your hand (and anyway much easier than with a mouse).
You can play in the dark, as the Palm has a backlit screen.
And you cannot lose the chess pieces. :)
And... You can do thousands of other things with a Palm. Not just playing chess.
A Palm computer is an addictive companion, really.
Christophe
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