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Subject: Re: Why set Ponder=off in a comp to comp match?

Author: Kurt Utzinger

Date: 00:01:00 10/08/02

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On October 07, 2002 at 23:11:32, Robert Hyatt wrote:

>On October 07, 2002 at 18:33:43, Jeremiah Penery wrote:
>
>>On October 07, 2002 at 18:29:35, Uri Blass wrote:
>>
>>>On October 07, 2002 at 18:19:29, Jorge wrote:
>>>
>>>>This may be a dumb question, but could someone tell me the reason for setting
>>>>Ponder=off in comp to comp matches? If two computers with the same hardware with
>>>>different, each with a program playing each other, why set ponder off?
>>>>
>>>>thnx,
>>>>jorge
>>>
>>>Usually the people who play games with ponder off use only one computer and not
>>>2 computers.
>>
>>Why set ponder off with one computer?
>
>
>The basic idea is that one computer matches are not very informative.  You have
>two
>choices:
>
>1.  Ponder=on.  Engines can "steal" time from each other since both will be
>computing most
>of the time.  Unless one is unlucky enough to not have anything to ponder.  For
>that move, the
>opponent runs twice as fast.
>
>2.  Ponder=off.  This might cause poor time utilization as it is an unnatural
>way to run and
>is not always very well tested.
>
>Either way causes problems.  Moral?  Use two computers or else don't pay a
>significant amount
>of attention to the results.


Previous and still running tests with quite a lot of games in Germany prove that
there is no significant difference in results between matches played with either
ponder on/off. And most surprisingly - contrary to your assumption - this also
refers to Crafty.
Kurt


The running test



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