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Subject: Re: Time Management: "Life Expectancy" of a Chess Game

Author: Bob Durrett

Date: 12:17:32 01/16/04

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On January 16, 2004 at 14:38:33, KarinsDad wrote:

>I think a good time management function would take into account the amount of
>time remaining, the evaluation of the current position, the amount of material
>(especially non-pawns) remaining on the board, and the average number of moves
>per half ply.
>
>Being up a knight in the opening (once out of book) might equate to the same
>overall evaluation as in the endgame (pre getting into egtbs), but a program
>might be able to use less time to search in the endgame, the programmer knowing
>that even second or third best moves will probably end up in the same overall
>result (i.e. winning or losing the game). For example, KNPKP is hard for the
>advantaged side to draw or lose the majority of the time even without an egtb.
>
>The converse is also partially true. The fewer pawns on the board, the more
>legal moves (as long as there are multiple major pieces on the board) and hence,
>the more nodes to search per half ply.
>
>It would seem that the best use of time is to search more when there are more
>possibilities and to decrease those number of possibilities whenever possible as
>long as the program is still making very good moves (especially when winning),
>just as insurance.


It seems to me that the above is some good thinking on this topic.

Two details:

(1) How to take into account non-engine time usage?  Example:  tablebases

(2) If behind on the clock, how to get caught up before it's too late? [or does
it really matter if behind?]

Bob D.



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