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Subject: Re: question about fixing the time management of movei

Author: Sune Fischer

Date: 11:43:06 07/27/04

Go up one level in this thread


On July 27, 2004 at 13:33:40, Robert Hyatt wrote:

>On July 27, 2004 at 09:42:46, Sune Fischer wrote:
>
>>On July 27, 2004 at 09:33:13, Anthony Cozzie wrote:
>>
>>>On July 27, 2004 at 03:18:50, Sune Fischer wrote:
>>>
>>>>On July 25, 2004 at 22:01:31, Robert Hyatt wrote:
>>>>
>>>>>Bad idea.  Start the next iteration even if you don't think you will have time
>>>>>to finish it.  You might fail low.  Wouldn't that be nice to know?  :)
>>>>
>>>>This may or may not be a good idea.
>>>>
>>>>I think if it is a good idea, then you should always try and search the next
>>>>iteration for a short time to see if you get a quick fail-low.
>>>>
>>>>On the other hand, if it is a bad idea it is better to save the time that will
>>>>probably be wasted anyway.
>>>>
>>>>From what I can tell you propose to do a mixture, i.e. to use extra time if the
>>>>time manager tells you to?
>>>>
>>>>I really doubt this is the best way, because it will be extremely random when
>>>>you get to begin the next ply.
>>>>
>>>>-S.
>>>
>>>It seems you have 3 options here:
>>>
>>>Optimism: Hope that a move you haven't searched yet will fail high; terminate
>>>after searching all moves.
>>>
>>>Pessimism: Make sure that the move you want to play won't fail low: terminate
>>>after searching the first move.
>>>
>>>Don't Care:  Just exit whenever time runs out ;)
>>
>>I think you have more choices, e.g. search the next ply, when time is about to
>>run out, with a null window around the fail-low bound.
>
>I don't think any of that is reasonable.  I have seen searches where the first
>move takes 1 second to resolve a true score.  I have seen searches where the
>first move will talk almost forever to resolve the score.  KISS is a good idea
>here, IMHO.

...which is why you shouldn't try and resolve the score. :)

>>
>>Just to assert as quickly as possible that it doesn't fail horribly low.
>>
>>Little sense in trying to resolve an exact score for the next ply if you only
>>15% time left.
>
>
>Often that is more than enough time to resolve the score.

I think 15% is rarely enough time.

If the whole last ply took 70% and the first move on the last ply took 60%, then
you can probably expect to use about twice that, i.e. 120% time, to resolve the
score on the first move.

That's pretty hopeless unless something dramatic happens.

-S.



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