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Subject: Re: Why do we like it?

Author: James Long

Date: 16:47:18 02/01/98

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On January 31, 1998 at 02:36:31, Stuart Cracraft wrote:

>I've been asked by people unfamiliar with computer chess why
>I enjoy it.
>
>The usual question I give is that it creates "busy work"
>and we all know that the idle mind is the devil's playground. :-)
>In other words, the program seems to have no real ending.
>
>Anyway, why do you like to program computer chess? Do you think
>you could translate some of this into programming another board
>game like Go, Backgammon, Checkers, etc.? Or no?
>
>--Stuart

I've been thinking about this question for the last couple
of days.  Here's what I came up with:

Maybe our fascination with computer chess lies in our
inability to solve what is a solvable problem. (Given
the resources, which we will never have....)
So, since it's practically unsolvable, we have to
make "good guesses."  The programs that perform the
best are the "best guessers."  Given this, there
is always *some way* to make a chess program better,
no matter how good it gets.  Faster search, better
evaluation, whatever.... It's a constant challenge to
improve, no matter what level your program is at.

Personally, I don't think I could dedicate the same
amount of time or energy into another game.  I was
addicted to chess before computer chess...

---
James





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