Computer Chess Club Archives


Search

Terms

Messages

Subject: Re: Strength of the engine in chess programs

Author: Rolf Tueschen

Date: 16:53:14 05/21/02

Go up one level in this thread


On May 21, 2002 at 17:05:22, Robert Hyatt wrote:

>On May 20, 2002 at 12:22:40, Uri Blass wrote:
>
>>On May 20, 2002 at 10:15:44, Rolf Tueschen wrote:
>>
>>>Excuse me if I ask a question already answered a hundred times or more in this
>>>forum. Could someone explain, perhaps in understandable numbers of percentages,
>>>how important the strength of the engine is in chess programs, are there
>>>differences between commercial and amateur programs?
>>>
>>>Let me demonstrate a little thought experiment. If I would gauge (in 2002) the
>>>actually most known chess programs against say 1000 human chess players (first
>>>step) to get some insight into the Elo numbers, I would expect that the top
>>>programs would at best get Elo performances of 2200 - 2350, if I let the engines
>>>play without books and implemented book-like tricks.
>>
>>I expect the best programs with no book to do better than 2200-2350 if the
>>humans also do not prepare special lines against the machines.
>
>But +if+ the humans know the computers are not using a book, the humans
>will play opening lines that require deep analysis to avoid traps.  The
>Marshall.  The Evans.  The Goring.  The King's gambit.  Etc.  This used to
>be a common ploy in the 1970's against computers because back then the books
>were very small.

Thank you for your fair input of historical facts. Some of us see the "numbers"
of 2700 and even more and so they thought that I must have lost my mind with my
2200-2350. Althought I mentioned that ist was more a resulting number after
human players began the real fight. Of course this would only happen with a lot
money at stake. I find it very important that the readers always kept in mind
while watching events like Gurevich vs Junior that all this is not yet part of a
real battle human chessplayers vs computers. Actually it's more fun than battle.
And the player gets some money no matter if he'll loose.

Rolf Tueschen

>Ken Thompson had the biggest book in 1978, with all of
>400K positions in it.  We were next with about 40K.  The rest were far
>smaller.
>
>A gambit or sacrifice where the best move it to ignore it would be a good
>trap for a bookless computer...
>
>
>
>>
>>I think that book is overestimated
>>If you do a sweningen tournament between the top program on A1200 and no book
>>against the same programs on p200 with book I expect the program with no book
>>and better hardware to win(you need to do only 2 games between every 2 programs
>>in order to prevent repeating the same win again).
>>
>>I say the following:
>>
>>1)rating of top programs with no book on A1200 is bigger than rating of program
>>with book on p200(unless you do a match of many games)
>>
>>2)rating of programs on p200 with book is better than 2200-2350.
>>
>>
>>I even believe that for the ssdf list it may be better to have 3 times faster
>>hardware and always change the first move and play with no book later.
>>
>>The number of possibilities in the first move is 20 so the program need to lose
>>21 games in the same color in order to repeat the same loss twice.
>>
>>There may be some stupid blunders like 1.e4 b5 or 1.e4 f6 or 1.e4 f5 but it is
>>possible to order this possibilities as number 18,19,20 so the program needs to
>>lose 17 games against 1.e4 in order to do it and this is not going to happen in
>>one match of 40 games.
>>
>>If the tester delete all learning after every match I expect the programs with 3
>>times faster hardware but no book to win.
>>
>>Maybe I am exagarating here but I am almost sure that at least A1200 with this
>>idea is better than P200 with no book.
>>
>>Uri



This page took 0.01 seconds to execute

Last modified: Thu, 15 Apr 21 08:11:13 -0700

Current Computer Chess Club Forums at Talkchess. This site by Sean Mintz.