Author: Keith Ian Price
Date: 19:31:33 09/15/98
Go up one level in this thread
On September 15, 1998 at 17:47:23, Robert Hyatt wrote:
>On September 15, 1998 at 17:19:30, Roberto Waldteufel wrote:
>
>>
>>On September 15, 1998 at 10:57:31, Robert Hyatt wrote:
>>
>>>Below is some excerpts from the current xboard/winboard interface standard
>>>that can serve as a jumping-off point for developing an autoplayer that should
>>>finally be able to connect windows and unix boxes together using serial or
>>>network connections.
>>>
>>>========================================================================
>>>Chess Engine Communication Protocol
>>>========================================================================
>>>
>>>1. Commands to the engine
>>>
>>>All commands from the interface to the engine end with a newline (\n), even
>>>where that is not explicitly stated. All your output to the interface must
>>>be in complete lines; any form of prompt or partial line will cause
>>>problems.
>>>
>>>draw
>>> The engine's opponent offers the engine a draw. To accept the draw,
>>> send "draw". To decline, ignore the offer, or send "decline".
>>> Note that it's possible for the draw offer to have been withdrawn by
>>> the time you accept it, so don't assume the game is over because you
>>> accept a draw offer. Continue playing until the interface tells you the
>>> game is over.
>>>
>>> [snip]
>>
>>Hi Bob,
>>
>>In fact, the laws of chess are very specific about draw offers.
>>
>>1) It is only allowed to offer a draw when it is your turn to play, not while
>>your opponent is thinking (or searching).
>>
>
>correct. the issue is, however, "asynchronous communication". In the case
>of Crafty, it makes a move, offers a draw, and starts thinking based on what it
>expects for you to play. The "retraction" was a simple term for you making a
>move without saying "yes". If I offer you a draw, you can say "accept" and the
>game ends or you can say "decline" and keep playing, or you can make a move and
>press the clock, which is the same as saying "decline"..
>
>
>
>>2) Having made a draw offer, you do not have the right to retract it. The
>>opponent may think as long as his clock permits before either accepting the
>>offer or making a move. Once he makes a move and presses his clock, he loses the
>>right to accept your draw offer (unles you make a new draw offer).
>
>right. I worded that poorly, but it's worded like that because of playing
>on ICC. Because I can get confused with draw offers when there is lots of
>lag...
>
>
>
>>
>>I think that this actually simplifies the task for an autoplayer compared to
>>what you suggest, since the program that has been offered the draw does not need
>>to check if the offer has been rescinded, since that would be illegal. Although
>>it is only a minor point of the FIDE laws, I do think it is important to get
>>this sort of thing right at an early stage, otherwise in years to come it will
>>remain an embarrasing anomally once multiple programs support the standard. This
>>is how we come to rely on arrangements that ignore rare but important situations
>>like underpromotions, for example.
>>
>>Can you explain how the engine and the interface communicate in the set-up you
>>propose? I imagine it would be quite simple, but I don't really know anything
>>about communications programming, so I'm not quite sure what extra code t
>>Best wishes,
>>Roberto
>
>
>
>
>communication is easy. To send something to the interface, you simply
>do a "printf("move %s\n",move_text)"... ie normal I/O to stdout goes to
>the interface. To read a command or move, just read from stdin, like you
>would if in a dos window...
>
>That code is easy...
What about the fact that DOS/Windows programs' newlines will have carriage
returns attached, and the Unix ones will only have the line feeds? It should be
made standard that either case is acceptable, or is that handled well enough by
modern compilers?
kp
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