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Subject: Re: Comments of latest SSDF list - Nine basic questions

Author: Andrew Dados

Date: 21:02:18 05/31/02

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On May 31, 2002 at 21:00:44, Rolf Tueschen wrote:

>On May 31, 2002 at 20:35:38, Dann Corbit wrote:
>
>>On May 31, 2002 at 20:24:35, Rolf Tueschen wrote:
>>
>>>On May 31, 2002 at 20:02:37, Dann Corbit wrote:
>>>
>>>>On May 31, 2002 at 19:22:27, Rolf Tueschen wrote:
>>>>
>>>>>On May 31, 2002 at 19:01:53, Dann Corbit wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>>>Since people are so often confused about it, it seems a good idea to write a
>>>>>>FAQ.
>>>>>>Rolf's questions could be added, and a search through the CCC archives could
>>>>>>find some more.
>>>>>>
>>>>>>Certainly the games against the old opponents is always a puzzle to newcomers
>>>>>>who do not understand why calibration against an opponent of precisely known
>>>>>>strength is of great value.
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>No pun intended, but excuse me, you can't mean it this way! Are we caught in a
>>>>>new circle? How can the older program be precisely known in its strength?
>>>>>Of course it it isn't! Because it had the same status the new ones have today...
>>>>>
>>>>>And the all the answers from Bertil follow that same fallacious line. It's a
>>>>>pity!
>>>>>
>>>>>Also, what is calibration in SSDF? Comparing the new unknown with the old
>>>>>unknown? No pun inded.
>>>>>
>>>>>Before making such a FAQ let's please find some practical solutions for SSDF.
>>>>
>>>>The older programs have been carefully calibrated by playing many hundreds of
>>>>games.  Hence, their strength in relation to each other and to the other members
>>>>of the pool is very precisely known.
>>>>
>>>>The best possible test you can make is to play an unknown program against the
>>>>best known programs.  This will arrive at an accurate ELO score faster than any
>>>>other way.  Programs that are evenly matched are not as good as programs that
>>>>are somewhat mismatched.  Programs that are terribly mismatched are not as good
>>>>as programs that are somewhat mismatched.
>>>>
>>>>If I have two programs of exactly equal ability, it will take a huge number of
>>>>games to get a good reading on their strength in relation to one another.  On
>>>>the other hand, if one program is 1000 ELO better than another, then one or two
>>>>fluke wins will drastically skew the score.  An ELO difference of 100 to 150 is
>>>>probably just about ideal.
>>>
>>>I don't follow that at all. Perhaps it's too difficult, but I fear that you are
>>>mixing things up. You're arguing as if you _knew_ already that the one program
>>>is 1000 points better. Therefore 2 games are ok for you. But how could you know
>>>this in SSDF? And also, why do you test at all, if it's that simple?
>>
>>No.  You have a group of programs of very well known strength.  The ones that
>>have played the most games are the ones where the strength is precisely known.
>
>I can't accept that.
>
>>
>>Here is a little table:
>>
>>Win expectency for a difference of 0 points is 0.5
>>Win expectency for a difference of 100 points is 0.359935
>>Win expectency for a difference of 200 points is 0.240253
>>Win expectency for a difference of 300 points is 0.15098
>>Win expectency for a difference of 400 points is 0.0909091
>>Win expectency for a difference of 500 points is 0.0532402
>>Win expectency for a difference of 600 points is 0.0306534
>>Win expectency for a difference of 700 points is 0.0174721
>>Win expectency for a difference of 800 points is 0.00990099
>>Win expectency for a difference of 900 points is 0.00559197
>>Win expectency for a difference of 1000 points is 0.00315231
>>
>>Notice that for 1000 ELO difference the win expectency is only .3%.
>
>I see. So, that is the Elo calculation of Elo for human chess, right? What is
>giving you the confidence that it works for computers the same way?
>
>

This above is the DEFINITION of any ELO system, we start with those numbers.
-Andrew-

[snipped]



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