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Subject: Re: Rebel 10 is one hell of a program!!!!!

Author: Larry S. Tamarkin

Date: 11:38:31 10/24/98

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I sort of agree with you, except on the point of 'go out an buy it'. (now).

I bought Rebel7 & 9, and had the same situation that my hard disk would 'grind'
a lot during the programs operation, and sometimes the program would just exit
from windows without reason, at least for no reason that I understand.  Also,
the program's clock stops for several seconds when I exit book, and neither side
is moving & the mouse disappears.  I find this quite irritating!  4 different
computers now, and the Rebel programs (except, free Decade), demonstrate the
same behaviors...

I don't have these problems with any of my Windows chess playing programs, nor
with the TASC Base 'King' program, and (paradoxically),I don't have this problem
with Rebel Decade 2, also by Shroeder, which is a joy to play at its 2350
strength. (on a 200MzH, MMX machine).

Of course, I just play speed chess with these things, & occasionally analyze
some tactics positions, or a GM game with them. I almost never play any kind of
serious chess with them, and in fact I'm kind of the 'insane type', that
Fernando talks about in his review of Comet A96. - I want to have always, the
latest and coolest new program out there, which is certainly true of Rebel10,
and Junior5, and many of the other's that will be coming out during the next
months.

So we have here a paradox of sorts.  The Shroeder company gives away a
tremendous good program that is stable, and never crashes, and its free!

And it also continues to improve a tremendously complicated, superior,
entertaining, and yet flawed program on the other.  I wonder if they are as
frustrated by this, as I am?  Happily, they are working furiously on the first
windows version of the Rebel program, so when that comes out I will buy it
immediately. (Even though we'll have to worry about the usual bugs).

mrslug - the inkompetent chess software addict!




On October 24, 1998 at 13:49:53, Timothy J. Frohlick wrote:

>Rebel 10 is far superior in what it offers to the chess loving public.  The
>complexity of the program is what is causing it to crash.  I find that in order
>to avoid long waits while the program starts after exiting the opening book it
>is necessary to set the hash tables to "0 k ". This makes sense because you
>really don't need hash tables in the opening or even the mid game.  Ed will
>probably offer an automatic fix for this in his next release. You can set the
>hash tables to a reasonable 13 Megs later on.  I don't think that most of us
>have the time to wait for a period of an hour or more for each move and so 100
>Meg hash tables while nice will make your hard drive overwork.
>
>It is also apparent that the Encyclopedia of Chess when utilized will freeze up
>the computer when the rating program is started. Just don't have EOC on at that
>point and you won't have problems.  When you think about it Ed Schroeder has
>done us a magnificent favor.  The damn thing plays like a human.  It has put the
>fun back in computer chess.  The truth is that this is one quirky program but at
>the price I think  that with a little effort and Eds' help we will have the
>dream program of a lifetime.  Go out and buy it.



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