Author: Robert Hyatt
Date: 09:51:53 12/03/03
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On December 03, 2003 at 11:55:37, Dieter Buerssner wrote: >On December 03, 2003 at 09:43:38, Robert Hyatt wrote: > >>On December 03, 2003 at 05:08:14, Matt Thomas wrote: >> >>>I want to create a chess engine and am starting with the input/output routines. >>>I can handle output, but am not sure about how to implement input. I am >>>thinking to use ReadFile() to be unbuffered, and for pipes. I could implement a >>>loop to poll for input, but wouldn't that be a drag on CPU cycles? > >The typical method would be, to poll for input not all the time, but say for >example every 10000 nodes. The overhead will be small. The number 10000 can be >dynamically adjusted to the CPU and the time left. I would suggest, to not use >system specific functions for reading the input (for seeing if input is >available, system specific means are needed in C). So, instead of ReadFile, >perhaps fgets() or fgetc() (which are Standard C functions and portable to any >system). I use mainly fgets(). > >>1. use Read(). > >I guess Robert means read(). As said above, I would prefer Standard C functions >(if possible). read() is not a Standard C function. I'm not sure what that means. read() is in every C implementation I have ever used. As are the others such as getc/putc, gets/puts, scanf/printf, fread/fwrite, read/write, etc... read/write are specifically non-buffered calls, and they even worked on MSDOS just fine. >When using Standard C >functions, you probably must also set the buffer method for stdin to >non-buffered (perhaps line buffered is sufficient, because the WB-protocol uses >whole lines for all commands). For example with the Standard C function >setvbuf(). > >If done slightly careful, a WB-engine could be written with Standard C means >besides the input polling and some time function (practically a good resolution >of the times will be needed, especially when playing faster time controls). > >Regards, >Dieter
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