Computer Chess Club Archives


Search

Terms

Messages

Subject: Re: Hunting Hydra

Author: Sandro Necchi

Date: 12:37:12 06/28/05

Go up one level in this thread


On June 27, 2005 at 16:14:26, Uri Blass wrote:

>On June 27, 2005 at 13:19:49, Peter Skinner wrote:
>
>>On June 27, 2005 at 10:56:28, Uri Blass wrote:
>>
>>
>>>It was not a non stable version but a version with bugs.
>>>The reply to your question why was already given.
>>>
>>>SMK did not know that it is buggy version.
>>
>>In fact in a thread below Sandro stated it was a beta version that had bugs. And
>>that it was 150 elo weaker. One _has_ to assume that they _knew_ it was beta,
>>and that it had bugs.
>
>No
>
>I believe that
>Stefan believed that it is the best version that he had in that time.
>He made some change that he believed to be an improvement and he did not notice
>that he deleted some part.
>
>I think that this was a failure of both stefan and sandro.

No, I did my best to convince Stefan, but he believed in the result of the 2004
WCCC and on the blitz tests.

As you know I look the programs play and evaluate them depending on how they
play and other things I have learned in more than 28 years experience on
computer chess and chess programs.

Most programmers believe in tests and on statistics. I believe in what I
see...and how I do it...

I have been able several times to estimate almost correctly how much a new
version was better out of a few games.
I already told you, but you do not believe this.
I do not care if people believe me or not. I get fun on doing this and I'll do
it until I will get fun.

It was my system against std. testing systems and once again I was correct.

I tell you another secret:

do you remember when we lost to Junior in 2001 WCCC (I think) a won game only
because the program understimated a passed pawn?

Well, just before the 2004 WCCC I told Stefan I was worrying about our program
(Shreder 6 preliminary version) not handling the passed pawns correctly in many
positions...he said that I was exaggerating a little on this...who was correct?

Even a very smart guy like Stefan is sometimes difficult to convince and only
evidence can make him change his mind.

I do not like to have to demostrate things as I say things only when I am sure,
no matter how I do to get these info.
My system may be an old system, but I like it and so I do not want to change it
as has been correct so far...

>
>Sandro could probably do a better job in explaining stefan that Shredder is
>weaker by showing him positions that the new shredder is weaker than the old
>shredder.

You should know that programmers are not so easy to convince when they like to
believe in something...

Sandro

>
>If we want to talk about examples then I think that the fail low of shredder
>against falcon in WCCC could be a good example and based on my memory commercial
>shredder is clearly better in solving the fail low.
>
>I read in the israeli chess newspaper that shredder needed almost an hour to
>solve some fail low in that game and Falcon used that time to find the reason
>that shredder failed low.
>
>Maybe Falcon could not find some good move in case that shredder played it
>faster.
>
>Uri
>
>
>
>
>>
>>>Junior is a positional program?
>>
>>Yes it is. Junior and Hiarcs are probably the best positional chess programs
>>around.
>>
>>
>>>I do not believe it for a moment.
>>>Junior is a fast searcher.
>>
>>Exactly. Faster search = deeper depth = more positional play.
>>
>>>Fast searcher cannot have a lot of knowledge in it's evaluation so Junior >cannot be a positional program.
>>
>>Programs can become positional without knowledge but by deeper search. This has
>>been stated many times on this very board.
>
>deeper search can help to find better positional moves but I cannot define fast
>searcher as a positional program and there are a lot of things that you cannot
>find by deeper search.
>
>For example if you do not understand the fortress concept then there are cases
>when no search can help you to avoid a draw by fortress.
>
>Shredder shows some understanding of the fortess concept and there are fortress
>position that it evaluates as 0.00 or close to it(of course this understanding
>can be improved and there are a lot of fortress positions that shredder does not
>understand but at least stefan tried to do something in that direction).
>
>Junior shows no understanding of the fortess concept.
>
>Uri



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.