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Subject: Re: Has anyone done a Crafty version tournament?

Author: Robert Hyatt

Date: 19:01:36 09/07/04

Go up one level in this thread


On September 07, 2004 at 21:57:06, David Dahlem wrote:

>On September 07, 2004 at 21:15:45, Robert Hyatt wrote:
>
>>On September 07, 2004 at 20:07:42, David Dahlem wrote:
>>
>>>On September 07, 2004 at 19:37:56, Robert Hyatt wrote:
>>>
>>>>On September 07, 2004 at 19:05:11, David Dahlem wrote:
>>>>
>>>>>On September 07, 2004 at 18:56:11, Mathieu Pagé wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>>>On September 07, 2004 at 18:15:54, David Dahlem wrote:
>>>>>>
>>>>>>>On September 07, 2004 at 15:25:47, Robert Hyatt wrote:
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>On September 07, 2004 at 14:26:10, David Dahlem wrote:
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>On September 07, 2004 at 13:29:58, Robert Hyatt wrote:
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>On September 07, 2004 at 12:26:59, David Dahlem wrote:
>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>On September 07, 2004 at 11:46:59, Axel Schumacher wrote:
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>>On September 07, 2004 at 10:38:25, Cliff Sears wrote:
>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>>>Has anyone done a tournament  Crafty's to see if maybe one of the older versions
>>>>>>>>>>>>>may be better than the newer versions?
>>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>>>I seem to recall someone awile ago saying they thought Crafty 18.13 was one of
>>>>>>>>>>>>>the best.
>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>>Here the Crafty-Version I tested in my Tournament (after 133.000 games, Blitz):
>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>>Crafty 16.1		2539	94
>>>>>>>>>>>>Crafty 17.13		2646	867
>>>>>>>>>>>>Crafty 17.14		2627	125
>>>>>>>>>>>>Crafty 18.10		2651	665
>>>>>>>>>>>>Crafty 18.12		2657	359
>>>>>>>>>>>>Crafty 18.13		2585	231
>>>>>>>>>>>>Crafty 18.14		2625	242
>>>>>>>>>>>>Crafty 18.15		2632	327
>>>>>>>>>>>>Crafty 19.00		2486	117
>>>>>>>>>>>>Crafty 19.01		2616	304
>>>>>>>>>>>>Crafty 19.03		2640	350
>>>>>>>>>>>>Crafty 19.03 Nimzovich	2427	15
>>>>>>>>>>>>Crafty 19.03 Petrosian	2662	48
>>>>>>>>>>>>Crafty 19.03 Stein	2668	198
>>>>>>>>>>>>Crafty 19.04 Fischer	2685	231
>>>>>>>>>>>>Crafty 19.04 Stein	2672	136
>>>>>>>>>>>>Crafty 19.04b Stein	2615	47
>>>>>>>>>>>>Crafty 19.05		2634	80
>>>>>>>>>>>>Crafty 19.06		2646	110
>>>>>>>>>>>>Crafty 19.07		2628	92
>>>>>>>>>>>>Crafty 19.07 SE		2610	57
>>>>>>>>>>>>Crafty 19.08 SE		2630	89
>>>>>>>>>>>>Crafty 19.09		2652	143
>>>>>>>>>>>>Crafty 19.10 CCT6	2663	126
>>>>>>>>>>>>Crafty 19.11		2643	105
>>>>>>>>>>>>Crafty 19.12		2627	302
>>>>>>>>>>>>Crafty 19.13		2632	196
>>>>>>>>>>>>Crafty 19.14		2616	259
>>>>>>>>>>>>Crafty 19.14 nonsmp	2586	108
>>>>>>>>>>>>Crafty 19.15		2672	373
>>>>>>>>>>>>Crafty 19.17		2621	70
>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>>Cheers
>>>>>>>>>>>>Axel
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>Hi Axel
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>Which build of Crafty 19.17 did you use in this test? I am currently testing two
>>>>>>>>>>>builds by Peter Skinner, an all-processor build, and a build optimized for a P3.
>>>>>>>>>>>Both versions surely seem to be doing much worse than previous versions. :-(
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>Regards
>>>>>>>>>>>Dave
>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>You need to be sure and clear position learning files before a match, and be
>>>>>>>>>>sure that the two versions use different book.bin files or learning will
>>>>>>>>>>definitely be broken.
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>Thanks. But i am not testing one Crafty version against another Crafty version.
>>>>>>>>>I am testing against different engines. And i don't use the Crafty book. I use a
>>>>>>>>>custom pgn book with the Arena pgnbook option, so both engines play both sides
>>>>>>>>>of each fairly equal line.
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>Dave
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>Different flaw then.  Crafty has learning code.  You are playing without using
>>>>>>>>it....  What difference would the book make since if a commercial program plays
>>>>>>>>against crafty in a real tournament, crafty will _not_ be using some half-baked
>>>>>>>>book that might not fit its playing style very well?
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>However, I only care about "best" vs "best" myself, others might be interested
>>>>>>>>in some other sort of comparison, but I will never play in a WCCC event without
>>>>>>>>having a reasonable book, so any other kind of match won't give much useful
>>>>>>>>information IMHO...
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>Well, it's just my personal opinion, but if both engines are using the same
>>>>>>>book, in fact, play both sides of each line, then it's a fair match. :-)
>>>>>>
>>>>>>In Fact it is not, since Crafty has been handicaped. In my opinion, if you realy
>>>>>>want to compare two engines you have to let them compete with all their
>>>>>>functionalities enabled (Or anything the engine creator think is the best
>>>>>>combination).
>>>>>>
>>>>>>In this case it is clear that Robert think that Crafty should use it's own book,
>>>>>>since anything else would just be "Crafty without optimal opening book".
>>>>>>
>>>>>>I don't really understand why people think it is not fair to let the enginnes
>>>>>>use any techniques they can in order to win. I have seen post here of people
>>>>>>thinking that a fair match would have to be played without openings books,
>>>>>>without endgames database. I even see people arguing that the memory print of
>>>>>>the engines should be limited to some undreds Kb.
>>>>>>
>>>>>>Hey ! We are programming "Automated chess players", not only AlphaBeta searcher,
>>>>>>so anything not involving human intervention during the game should be allowed
>>>>>>(Humman intervention between the games of a match or a tournements are
>>>>>>questionable).
>>>>>>
>>>>>>Mathieu Pagé
>>>>>
>>>>>Hi Mathieu
>>>>>
>>>>>I have to respectfully disagree with everything you say. And i don't see how
>>>>>anyone can call using tablebases in a match as "playing", since it is only
>>>>>looking up moves in a list, not playing or even thinking about the moves!
>>>>>
>>>>>Of course, you're entitled to your opinion, and me to mine, it's my time. And my
>>>>>method of testing has proven itself over a long period of time. :-)
>>>>>
>>>>>Regards
>>>>>Dave
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>So?  :)
>>>>
>>>>15th century naval explorers proved the world was flat.  18th century people
>>>>proved that we could never travel to the moon because they could not fire a
>>>>projectile fast enough to reach there.  The list goes on and on about things
>>>>that have been "proven".  But if the experimental setup itself is flawed, about
>>>>all that is proven is that you can prove anything you want if you overlook
>>>>enough important details...
>>>
>>>Testing the "thinking" strength of engines is flawed?
>>
>>When is the last time _you_ played someone a serious game by starting off in
>>some oddball position from an opening you _never_ play?
>>
>>About the same time that I did that I'll bet...
>>
>>>Why not just have human
>>>created opening books that will reach the endgames, and then have tablebases
>>>finish the games without any requirement for the engines to think at all!!
>>>
>>
>>
>>Math makes that impossible.  But it doesn't make it impossible to at least have
>>the opening book leave the program in a position that it understands reasonably
>>well.  IE if the engine is better in endgames, then openings that lead to quick
>>endgames are better.  If the program is better at attacking, then openings that
>>lead to attack possibilities are better.  Etc.  Openings _can_ favor one engine
>>over another.
>>
>>I used to use this strategy regularly to beat a player that was at least one
>>USCF class above me.  But he was stubborn enough that even though he was an
>>excellent endgame player, he would let me take us into wild tactical games where
>>I often out-calculated him and won.
>>
>>I _clearly_ wasn't better than he was, unless I could sucker him into something
>>he really didn't like, due to "macho" issues he had. :)
>>
>>If you don't see the "problem" I doubt there is anything I can say to make it
>>clearer.  But there _is_ a problem with garbage books.
>
>I'm not using garbage books with oddball positions. Give me credit for being
>smarter than that. I'm using standard opening lines from eco.pgn, with all
>"oddball" unequal lines removed.
>
>Regards
>Dave


Please pay close attention.

1.  Crafty never plays any Najdorf openings from _either_ side.

2.  Crafty never plays castle opposite openings.

3.  etc.

"oddball" -> openings that Crafty will _not_ play under normal circumstances.

For example, did your book have crafty play the Sicilian as black?  It will
_never_ do that in real games.  Did it have crafty play 1. e4 as white?  It will
_never_ do that in real games.  The list goes on and on.

And that is my _point_.

I would personally _never_ play serious games using your favorite opening books,
any more than you would do the same with _my_ opening choices.  Why, then,
should a program that was written/tuned by me, for the specific kinds of
openings I think it wil play, then have to play _other_ openings, perhaps
opening systems that I don't play and therefore I don't try to handle in
opening-specific code such as EvaluateDevelopment()???

I think this is an open and shut argument about producing results that are not
very meaningful...




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