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Subject: Re: about using killers in Rebel and about programming

Author: Dave Gomboc

Date: 22:44:59 12/31/02

Go up one level in this thread


On January 01, 2003 at 01:03:14, Robert Hyatt wrote:

>On December 31, 2002 at 23:03:03, Dave Gomboc wrote:
>
>>On December 31, 2002 at 20:32:28, Uri Blass wrote:
>>
>>>On December 31, 2002 at 19:50:43, Robert Hyatt wrote:
>>>
>>>>On December 31, 2002 at 17:49:52, Uri Blass wrote:
>>>>
>>>>>From Ed programmer stuff
>>>>>
>>>>>Killer-One [current ply]      110
>>>>>Killer-One [current ply-2]    108
>>>>>Killer-Two [current ply]      106
>>>>>Killer-Two [current ply-2]    104
>>>>>
>>>>>I until today used only
>>>>>
>>>>>Killer-One [current ply]
>>>>>Killer-Two [current ply]
>>>>>
>>>>>I am interested to know if using 4 killers is a new idea or maybe this idea is
>>>>>known to be used by other programs.
>>>>
>>>>It was known in 1975.  Chess 4.0 used this.  You can find it mentioned in
>>>>the chess 4.7 chapter of "Chess Skill in Man and Machine."
>>>>
>>>>We did that in Cray Blitz, but we also did more killers, going back to the
>>>>root in fact...
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>I did try part of the idea that Ed suggested without clear results.
>>>>>
>>>>>I changed the order of moves in movei to
>>>>>
>>>>>Killer-One [current ply]
>>>>>Killer-One [current ply-2]
>>>>>Killer-Two [current ply]
>>>>>
>>>>>instead of
>>>>>
>>>>>Killer-One [current ply]
>>>>>Killer-Two [current ply]
>>>>>
>>>>>I found that it is better only in part of the cases and have not clear results
>>>>>if it is better or worse than previous order but I had a bug in the
>>>>>implementation and I checked killer[ply-2] even in cases when ply-2<0.
>>>>>
>>>>>It is surprising that the program did not crush and even performed better in
>>>>>part of the cases.
>>>>>
>>>>>I still do not use check bound software.
>>>>>I asked in a previous discussion about checking bounds but I solved the
>>>>>problem that caused me to ask about it and I also read a claim that if a
>>>>>varaible is out of bound the program should crush.
>>>>>
>>>>>I also looked for a software that will help me under visual C++ but after I
>>>>>asked to get it for free evaluation and I only got an email that suggest me to
>>>>>contact them by fax or telephone I did not respond(I responded by email but my
>>>>>email was blocked for some reason and I decided that the subject is probably not
>>>>>very important).
>>>>>
>>>>>I think now that it may be important because a chess program may even play well
>>>>>inspite of the fact that it calls killer[-1] so it is possible that I have more
>>>>>mistakes like that.
>>>>>
>>>>
>>>>That probably won't hurt a thing.  That move probably would not pass your
>>>>legality check, so even a garbage move would just waste a tiny bit of time
>>>>as you notice it is not legal in the current position.
>>>
>>>Yes but I can still imagine problems.
>>>
>>>1)If I am unlucky a garbage move may be legal so it can be counterproductive.
>>>
>>>2)I thought that garbage may do something worse than giving a random
>>>number.
>>>I thought that if my program try to look at some place that does not exist the
>>>program may crush and not give me a random number or may change another array.
>>>
>>>I also cared not to have -1
>>> A[x]=1; and not
>>>if (x>=0)
>>>A[x]=1;
>>>
>>>If you are right then it means that there are cases when I can save time by
>>>doing something like
>>>
>>>A[x]=1; instead of
>>>if (x>=0)
>>>A[x]=1;
>>>
>>>The point is that if I understand correctly then I understand from your post
>>>that a[x]=1 when x=-1 can not change relevant information.
>>>
>>>If I assume that the condition x>=0 happen in most of the cases then it seems
>>>clear that A[x]=1 is faster.
>>>
>>>Uri
>>
>>Referencing A[-1] will likely give you intermittent problems that are hard to
>>track down.  If you really think you can't afford the check, though, then do
>>something like this (C++ code below:)
>>
>>int PADDED_A[102];
>>...
>>const int & A = PADDED_A+2;
>>
>>Now you can reference A[i] where i is an int in the range -2 to 99 without
>>trashing memory that doesn't belong to you.  AFAIK this hack technically invokes
>>undefined behaviour, but it's safer than not having the padding at all, where
>>you might change the value of another variable by accident.  Personally, I'd
>>just test for the condition.
>>
>>Dave
>
>
>I assume you mean const int *A = PADDED_A + 2;
>
>:)

Yep, whoops. :-)

Dave



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