Computer Chess Club Archives


Search

Terms

Messages

Subject: Re: Thinker 4.6b third after 1st round!

Author: Robert Hyatt

Date: 08:52:50 06/01/04

Go up one level in this thread


On June 01, 2004 at 02:33:18, Sune Fischer wrote:

>On May 31, 2004 at 20:06:37, Robert Hyatt wrote:
>>
>>I don't understand all this "fiddling".  IE oddball books.  ponder=on vs
>>ponder=off, endgame tables on, endgame tables off.  Learning on.  Learning off.
>>Etc.
>>
>>I would have no objection if someone plays a long match, crafty vs program S,
>>then clears the learning data and plays a long match crafty vs program T.  But
>>not disabling learning completely.  Then I _know_ the book will cause a
>>problem...  Because it isn't hand-tuned whatsoever...
>
>I don't see what is so interesting in trying to win the same games over and
>over. That kind of book cooking hasn't got very much to do with smarts of the
>engine, IMO.
>
>Most programmers are interested in real algorithmic progress, not in whether
>they can win every game just by getting the same couple of completely won
>positions out of the book.
>
>As for pondering you obviously can't play with ponder on at a uni-processor, so
>I don't see how that can come as a surprise.

I do it all the time with no problems whatsoever.  So what if each program gets
1/2 of the processor?


>
>TBs, well, they are nice but unless you distribute them as part of the engine
>package you can't really expect all users to have them or even demand that the
>engine always have access to them.
>They are an add-on that might or might not be there.
>If you are dead set on Crafty always playing with TBs, then you can just have
>Crafty exit if it doesn't find the TBs :)


I'm not "dead set".  But how many posts do you see her where some commercial
engine can't mate with some simple ending like KBN vs K, when the tables are
missing?  I can handle no tables just fine, myself...  but if someone relies on
them, they ought to be able to rely on them all the time.




>
>-S.



This page took 0 seconds to execute

Last modified: Thu, 15 Apr 21 08:11:13 -0700

Current Computer Chess Club Forums at Talkchess. This site by Sean Mintz.