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Subject: Re: What does your program play in this position?

Author: Matt Frank

Date: 13:02:08 02/06/99

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On February 05, 1999 at 20:06:05, Djordje Vidanovic wrote:

>On February 05, 1999 at 18:05:02, Robert A. Basham wrote:
>
>>My CM-4000 shows B e6 here....however, most other programs play
>>
>>B x c3... (just as in the game you posted)...
>>
>>IMHO, I do not see that this move makes a very good "test move" for
>>new chess programs to evaluate... :-)
>>
>>It did not "lose the game" right at move 8...
>>
>>Robert
>
>I disagree with you.  Chess programs usually do not lose games through tactics
>but by being outplayed strategically.  This is a typical position of the latter
>kind -- meaning that the programs that capture the Knight on c3 simply do not
>possess the knowledge of what might happen if the the black g7 bishop is off the
>board, what with all the weak and gaping black squares on Black's kingside.  The
>strategic decision not to capture on c3 has apparently been made on the basis of
>some sophisticated knowledge and that is what programmers should do.
>
>I believe that the game is as good as lost after 8...Bxc3, especially if the
>opponent is a GM. It is not lost right away after a single tactical shot, but is
>lost, after White starts taking advantage of the weak black squares.
>
>Frankly, I must say that I had expected Wchess to avoid the obvious weakening of
>the kingside by playing 8...Nf6.  My expectation was based on the PSH algorithm
>of Dave Kittinger's (Pre Scan Heuristics) used in the good old Super Connie.
>However, it seems that even Dave has opted for speed in the meantime.
>
>So now I will set up this position to test the knowledge based programs such as
>CSTal, Hiarcs 7 and Gandalf 3.  I haven't done that yet hoping that someone else
>would do the job :)) What do you folks expect that these three sages will come
>up with?
>
>PS: Meantime I did try Shredder 2, Hiarcs 7 and CSTal.  All of them wish to play
>8...Bxc3 :(( Where have all the idealists gone?? Haven't tried Gandalf 3 yet
>because this otherwise fine program has one very nasty shortcoming:  can read
>neither pgn's nor epd's... I just wonder what Thorsten Czub would say about this
>position with regard to the non-materialist CSTal?
>
>Regards,
>Djordje


Djordje this is a great position to run these progrrams on!!! I ran Hiarcs 7 for
hours on this position and it found that the position leading up to 8...Bxc3? is
played poorly by black prior to that. For example, after 6, h3 Be6 7. O-O c4
black is essentially even.

Matt Frank



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