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Subject: Re: Book Learning

Author: greg moller

Date: 16:52:52 12/31/98

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On December 31, 1998 at 08:00:37, Thom Perry wrote:

>On December 31, 1998 at 02:13:55, greg moller wrote:
>
>>On December 30, 1998 at 09:13:52, Dan Kiski wrote:
>>
>>>On December 30, 1998 at 07:25:29, Thom Perry wrote:
>>>
>>>>On December 30, 1998 at 05:38:41, greg moller wrote:
>>>>
>>>>>On December 30, 1998 at 03:39:09, Komputer Korner wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>>>On December 29, 1998 at 16:20:06, Dan Kiski wrote:
>>>>>>
>>>>>>>The following game is from Fritz 5.16 v MCP8
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>Fritz 5.16 white
>>>>>>>MCP8       black
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>1.  NF3......NF6
>>>>>>>2.  D4.......E6
>>>>>>>3.  C4.......B6
>>>>>>>4.  NC3......BB7
>>>>>>>5.  A3.......D5
>>>>>>>6.  CD.......ED
>>>>>>>7.  QA4 +....C6
>>>>>>>8.  G3.......NBD7
>>>>>>>9.  BG2......BD6
>>>>>>>10. 0-0......0-0
>>>>>>>11. BF4......QE7
>>>>>>>12. BXD6.....QXD6
>>>>>>>13. RFD1.....RFD8
>>>>>>>14. E3.......A5
>>>>>>>15. RAE1.....BA6
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>Fritz is now out of book but chooses NH4, MCP8 is still in book expecting QB3.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>Now the postion after 16. NH4 i have played through countless times at varying
>>>>>>>time controls yet MCP8 seems to always choose 16.......NG4.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>It has lost from this position over and over but always chooses 16.....NG4 and
>>>>>>>after Fritz's 17. E4 replys with 17......QF6 it might from this point try to
>>>>>>>change the odd move yet according to Fritz it was already way in front, can
>>>>>>>someone explain how this book learning works and how many losses will it take
>>>>>>>before the computer in this case MCP8 varies it's responce, in this case most
>>>>>>>likely remove 16........NG4 since this seems to be the start of its problems.
>>>>>>>At one point it added 16......NG4 to book after 6 straight losses using it.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>I wait until it is 7 points behind claim the win and then scroll back. Play 16.
>>>>>>>NH4 then carry on again. Am I doing something wrong with this method.
>>>>>>
>>>>>>Maybe MCP8 doesn't learn if you claim a win.
>>>>>>--
>>>>>>Komputer korner
>>>>>
>>>>>Well, it would be interesting to test this hypothesis, since somehow i always
>>>>>had the impression that the older MCP7 was adding book moves in the lines it was
>>>>>LOSING with (!) At this point in time I'm suspicious about this whole learning
>>>>>algorithm. How exactly does it work, and can it be verified ?
>>>>>
>>>>>Regards, greg
>>>>
>>>>I too have been wondering about the learning feature in MCP8.  I remember back
>>>>in MCP4/5 that once you analyzed a position/game, if you wanted to repeat the
>>>>original results, it was necessary to turn off the learning features.
>>>>Otherwise, the second time around, the evaluation score(s) and response time(s)
>>>>(time it takes for the program to make a move) were usually slightly different.
>>>>I attributed this to the learning features.  However, with MCP8, I have played
>>>>several positions where the evaluation score changes drastically (downward)
>>>>after MCP8 has selected a move, yet MCP8 will continue to make the same move,
>>>>over and over.  This doesn't look like learning to me.
>>>
>>>I have no doubt that I do have it set correctly I have been through the manual
>>>countless times, my only doubt was when I claim the win when 7 pts in front then
>>>scroll back if it accepts that and learns from it, from what I have seen is it
>>>accepts it since as stated at one point it added 16. NH4.....NG4 to book, yet
>>>don't learn from it. Maybe 16.....NG4 is ok maybe the problem is with
>>>17........QF6 in reply to 17. E5.
>>>
>>>Yet as of yet I haven't been able to get it to make another move at time
>>>controls of up to 3 min\move it just keeps walking into losses even with Fritz
>>>5.16 set at 10 secs\move from this position.
>>
>>  I hope that Marty Hirsch, the programmer, gets wind of this problem somehow.
>>What I find odd is that I read in KK's(I think) review of MCP8 that book
>>learning had supposedly been improved (!) , this according to Marty, and now it
>>boasted the best such learning feature. Then there was a report (in CCC?-not
>>sure) by someone who tested Nimzo98 vs MCP8 and noticed that Nimzo's learning
>>feature was superior. This cast further doubt on the MCP8 claims.
>>
>> Unfortunately, until there's more rigorous testing done, we won't be able to
>>take these claims for granted. IMO if this is a bug it should be fixed ASAP,
>>since Mchess is a really fine program.
>>
>>
>>regards, greg
>
>I copied this thread and sent it to Marty this morning.  One of the reasons I
>have been buying from him since MCP4 is because he does provide good support for
>his program.  He puts his e-mail address in the owner's manual, and he has
>always (with only one exception!) promptly responded to my questions about MCP.

I'll try to look up his email, too. Should you get any interesting feedback from
Marty, I hope you could share it with us. :-)

regards, greg



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