Author: Stephen Ham
Date: 12:43:20 10/16/03
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On October 16, 2003 at 15:07:33, Art Patterson wrote: >Thinking about purchasing Rebel 12, what's most important to me is that rebel >still plays in the human style that made it famous, not interesting in just >another fast stupid program, my question is rebel 12 completely rewritten from >say Rebel4 or rebel 12 dos? Thanks Hi Art, I'm a little embarrased to post here since I'm clearly not a computer chess expert. Still, I may be able to answer some of your questions. I recently acquired Rebel 12 - just a few days ago, in fact. I then began to test it out on some of the positions that I've experienced in correspondence chess; positions where I felt that a human is superior to a silicon chip. I performed similar tests when I reviewed Shredder 7 at the ChessCafe web site. http://chesscafe.com/text/review365.pdf My very preliminary prognosis is that Rebel 12 seems far more "human" in its approach to chess than Shredder 7 or Fritz 7. As Ed Schroeder explained to me, Shredder and Fritz are successful against other engines because they're faster searchers. Indeed, while a ply to ply comparison between engines is meaningless, it does seem that Rebel is a slower searcher. But I like Rebel for it's more human move selection. It made generally better choices in closed positions than either Shredder 7.04 or Fritz 7 (I don't own Fritz 8). Fritz and especially Shredder are always looking for a tactical solution - a short term solution. Instead, Rebel seems willing to search for a long-term resolution that may be beyond its search horizon. This is much like a human who acquires small positional advantages, knowing that at some point in the future he will have a critical mass of advantages that he can eventually exploit. I like this human approach. Therefore, my preliminary feeling is that you should buy Rebel 12. It may not be the strongest engine in the world in engine-engine matches, but I suspect that this an engine that might make you a stronger player. So although I'm awed by the strength, speed, and calculation skills of Shredder 7.04, I think Rebel 12 may soon be my favorite engine. I think I can learn from this engine too, since it plays like a human. So count me as a new Rebel supporter. I truly think you should buy Rebel 12, Art. Since you stated that you wanted a human-like engine, this is the closest one that I've ever seen. All the best, Stephen
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