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Subject: Re: Opinions and campaigns...

Author: Dave Gomboc

Date: 00:55:57 01/05/98

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On January 01, 1998 at 11:06:20, Chris Whittington wrote:

>Can we look forward to Rebel team continuing to 'fix' its book next
>year, and Mchess team 'cooking' its book next year ?
>
>So it'll be Mchess-bad, Rebel-good for 1998, 1999 etc. etc ?
>
>Perhaps you'll forgive me for seeing the fixing and cooking as part of
>the same process. Or then again perhaps you won't.

I think the difference between "cooking" and "fixing" is as follows:

To cook is to actively seeking lines which refute the play of opponent
programs and add them into the book, thereby guaranteeing wins in games
against those programs should the particular opening variation be
entered.

To fix is to edit your book, which has been already cooked by another
program, so that the book now varies from the precomputed win.  "Fix" in
this sense is different from "cook" -- fix is not synonymous with
counter-cook.

(Fix is perhaps a poor word choice since "fixing the result" is the
whole point of book-cooking.  I would call it anti-cooking myself.)

I have no comment regarding the "morality" of the situation.  I suggest
that program authors provide free opening book updates on the internet
for older software revisions, and instruct the SSDF to use the revised
books for future games.  An updated book every three months or so should
be enough to make the book-cooking not worth the hassle.

Dave Gomboc



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