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Subject: Re: More on Static Evaluation Tests:

Author: Bob Durrett

Date: 05:25:13 02/22/04

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On February 21, 2004 at 22:05:52, Jaime Benito de Valle Ruiz wrote:

>Hi,
>
>I'm sure we can all improve lots of things here.
>However, I'd like to point out something: Most engines give a score between
>-2.00 and -4.00 more or less, in a position where the side to move (black) is
>hopelessfuly lost. Your engine gives a high positive score for white (if I
>understood, the side to move). This, in my opinion, is the reason for we started
>this experiment: To find flaws.
>My engines is still too weak to be compared to most engines here, and my scores
>would only polute the whole thing, rather than help others. But still, I've
>already found uncountable ideas to improve it. I find all this unvaluable.
>Keep giving suggestions, and we'll all find a way to make all this more fruitful
>for everyone: Soon enough, we'll split the eval function into themes (or parts),
>so we can refine our own work. Until then, we still have a long way to go.
>Regards,
>
>  Jaime

If the "eval score" outputted to the user is what you are talking about, then
the user perspective surely must be the desire for accuracy.  Ideally, all
strong engines should give the same eval score for a given position if the
engine is allowed to think long enough.

Also from a user's perspective, eval scores mean something different if the
engine has NOT had enough time to find the best move.  Instead, it is an
indication to the user that the engine needs more time.  The eval scores
outputted to the user in the first few seconds an engine is examining a position
[infinite analysis mode if you have one] really does not reflect the true
evaluation of the position.

The above two paragraphs are from the user's perspective.

What does the engine do with the eval score internally? If the programmer is
actually using this rapidly changing value to help shape the search tree, then
maybe there is mass confusion inside the engine?

I doubt that there is much correlation between what is output to the user and
what is used internally during "tree shaping," but I don't actually know.

Bob D.



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