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Subject: Re: simple position not easy for most engines

Author: Will Singleton

Date: 17:29:29 10/03/05

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On October 03, 2005 at 17:24:41, Robert Hyatt wrote:

>On October 03, 2005 at 16:04:51, Will Singleton wrote:
>
>>On October 03, 2005 at 11:43:22, Robert Hyatt wrote:
>>
>>>On October 02, 2005 at 13:49:37, Will Singleton wrote:
>>>
>>>>White wins easily by promoting and exchanging queens, but most comps can't see
>>>>it.
>>>>
>>>>[d]8/5p1P/8/8/6K1/5P2/1k6/q7 w - -
>>>>
>>>>Amateur failed to exchange queens, and drew the game.  I'm not quite sure why,
>>>>seems like a simple search should be enough to handle this.  Oddly, if the
>>>>exchange is forced, the win is seen immediately.  This happens with other progs
>>>>as well.  I thought I had taken steps to eliminate root-position dependencies in
>>>>the search, but maybe something else is happening.
>>>>
>>>>Will
>>>
>>>
>>>Here is what you need:
>>>
>>>Your program probably understands that if you remove the black queen, white is
>>>winning because of the "outside passed pawn"???  (ignore the fact that the pawn
>>>promotes instantly for now).  If so, you need one more critical piece of
>>>knowledge.
>>>
>>>Your program needsd to realize that if things are not obvious, no pawn to
>>>promote, no distant passer on the board, but its king is closer to the remaining
>>>pawns than the enemy king, the game is _still_ won.
>>>
>>>Set up a position like white/black pawns locked up at a4/a5, white passer at h2,
>>>both kings near the center of the board.  The easiest way to win is to push the
>>>h-pawn.  Black has to go over and stop it, and once it is gone, white is too
>>>close to the remaining black a-pawn and the game is over.
>>>
>>>If you don't catch this case, you will play for a distant passer, but then
>>>refuse to give it up, and once your king gets to the distant passer to defend
>>>it, you can't force the promotion, and when you wait too long, as your king
>>>finally gives up the passer, black eats it and then follows you across the board
>>>and hems in your king on the a-file or else black gets to the a-file and the
>>>game is a draw.  But if you just push and get the black king too far away, you
>>>win easily...
>>>
>>>Crafty plays this move instantly with no endgame tables of any kind, and shows a
>>>big +score for white immediately, due to the above...
>>>
>>>
>>
>>Thanks for the info, it will be helpful in other situations.  This one is
>>different.  After h8=Q a1=Q, we get this position:
>>
>>[d]7Q/5p2/8/8/6K1/5P2/k7/q7 w - -
>>
>>From here, Crafty takes 15 ply (over a minute on my comp) to see the exchange,
>>then another ply to get a winning score.  This is the problem I was referring
>>to, albeit clumsily.
>>
>>Will
>
>
>Here is crafty's output on my box, no endgame tables of any kind:
>
>                3     0.07   1.84   1. Qxa1+ Kxa1 2. Kf5 Kb1 3. Ke5
>                3->   0.08   1.84   1. Qxa1+ Kxa1 2. Kf5 Kb1 3. Ke5
>                4     0.09     +1   1. Qxa1+!!
>                4     0.10   2.82   1. Qxa1+ Kxa1 2. Kf5 Kb1 3. Kf6 Kc2
>                                    4. Kxf7
>                4->   0.12   2.82   1. Qxa1+ Kxa1 2. Kf5 Kb1 3. Kf6 Kc2
>                                    4. Kxf7
>                5     0.14   2.82   1. Qxa1+ Kxa1 2. Kf5 Kb1 3. Kf6 Kc2
>                                    4. Kxf7
>                5->   0.16   2.82   1. Qxa1+ Kxa1 2. Kf5 Kb1 3. Kf6 Kc2
>                                    4. Kxf7
>                6     0.18   2.82   1. Qxa1+ Kxa1 2. Kf5 Kb1 3. Kf6 Kc2
>                                    4. f4 Kd3 5. Kxf7
>                6->   0.20   2.82   1. Qxa1+ Kxa1 2. Kf5 Kb1 3. Kf6 Kc2
>                                    4. f4 Kd3 5. Kxf7
>                7     0.22   2.82   1. Qxa1+ Kxa1 2. Kf5 Kb1 3. Kf6 Kc2
>                                    4. f4 Kd3 5. Kxf7
>                7->   0.24   2.82   1. Qxa1+ Kxa1 2. Kf5 Kb1 3. Kf6 Kc2
>                                    4. f4 Kd3 5. Kxf7
>                8     0.26   2.72   1. Qxa1+ Kxa1 2. Kf5 Kb1 3. Kf6 Kc2
>                                    4. f4 Kd3 5. Kxf7 Ke4
>                8->   0.31   2.72   1. Qxa1+ Kxa1 2. Kf5 Kb1 3. Kf6 Kc2
>                                    4. f4 Kd3 5. Kxf7 Ke4
>                9     0.32     -1   1. Qxa1+
>                9     0.34   1.66   1. Qxa1+ Kxa1 2. Kf5 Kb1 3. f4 Kc2
>                                    4. Ke5 Kd3 5. f5 Ke3 6. f6
>                9->   0.48   1.66   1. Qxa1+ Kxa1 2. Kf5 Kb1 3. f4 Kc2
>                                    4. Ke5 Kd3 5. f5 Ke3 6. f6
>               10     0.51   1.30   1. Qxa1+ Kxa1 2. Kg3 Kb2 3. Kf2 Kb3
>                                    4. f4 Kc3 5. Ke1 Kd3 6. f5 Ke3
>               10->   2.90   1.30   1. Qxa1+ Kxa1 2. Kg3 Kb2 3. Kf2 Kb3
>
>
>And it never changes its mind...
>
>It is certainly possible that you have a version with an evaluation bug.  I have
>been going over the thing line by line, and have completely re-vamped its
>"organization" before we start a complete "re-do" of many features, particularly
>king safety.  But it should always trade queens, so long as the endgame code is
>being utilized correctly, as above....


Odd.  I'm using the 20.0 BH 32-bit compile, 96mb hash.  Here's the output from
winboard:

24828 >first : analyze
24843 <first : Analyze Mode: type "exit" to terminate.
25625 <first : 	 9    138      79 1139276  1. Qa8+ Kb2 2. Qb7+ Kc2 3. Qxf7 Qg1+
4. Kf5 Qc5+ 5. Kg6 Qg1+ 6. Kf6 <HT>
26140 <first : 	10    136     131 1907238  1. Qa8+ Kb2 2. Qb7+ Kc2 3. Qxf7 Qg1+
4. Kf5 Qc5+ 5. Kg6 Qg1+ 6. Kf6 Qd4+ 7. Kg5 Qg1+ 8. Kh6 Qh2+ 9. Kg7 <HT>
26718 <first : 	10    136     189 2732686  1. Qa8+ Kb2 2. Qb7+ Kc2 3. Qxf7 Qg1+
4. Kf5 Qc5+ 5. Kg6 Qg1+ 6. Kf6 Qd4+ 7. Kg5 Qg1+ 8. Kh6 Qh2+ 9. Kg7 <HT>
26843 >first : .
27640 <first : 	11    136     281 4087310  1. Qa8+ Kb2 2. Qb7+ Kc2 3. Qxf7 Qg1+
4. Kf5 Qc5+ 5. Kg6 Qg1+ 6. Kf6 Qd4+ 7. Kg5 Qg1+ 8. Kh6 Qh2+ 9. Kg7 Qe5+ 10. Qf6
Qd5
28843 >first : .
28859 <first : 	11    136     403 5874947  1. Qa8+ Kb2 2. Qb7+ Kc2 3. Qxf7 Qg1+
4. Kf5 Qc5+ 5. Kg6 Qg1+ 6. Kf6 Qd4+ 7. Kg5 Qg1+ 8. Kh6 Qh2+ 9. Kg7 Qe5+ 10. Qf6
Qd5
34718 <first : 	12    124     989 14769539  1. Qa8+ Kb2 2. Qb7+ Kc3 3. Qxf7 Qg1+
4. Kf5 Qc5+ 5. Kg6 Qg1+ 6. Kf6 Qd4+ 7. Kg5 Qg1+ 8. Kh6 Qh2+ 9. Qh5 Qf4+ 10. Kg6
Qd6+ 11. Kg5 Kd2
39015 <first : 	12    124    1418 21059912  1. Qa8+ Kb2 2. Qb7+ Kc3 3. Qxf7 Qg1+
4. Kf5 Qc5+ 5. Kg6 Qg1+ 6. Kf6 Qd4+ 7. Kg5 Qg1+ 8. Kh6 Qh2+ 9. Qh5 Qf4+ 10. Kg6
Qd6+ 11. Kg5 Kd2
43890 <first : 	13    124    1906 28434837  1. Qa8+ Kb2 2. Qb7+ Kc3 3. Qxf7 Qg1+
4. Kf5 Qc5+ 5. Kg6 Qg1+ 6. Kf6 Qd4+ 7. Kg5 Qg1+ 8. Kh6 Qh2+ 9. Qh5 Qf4+ 10. Kg6
Kd3 11. Qg4 Qe5
49375 <first : 	13    124    2454 36483094  1. Qa8+ Kb2 2. Qb7+ Kc3 3. Qxf7 Qg1+
4. Kf5 Qc5+ 5. Kg6 Qg1+ 6. Kf6 Qd4+ 7. Kg5 Qg1+ 8. Kh6 Qh2+ 9. Qh5 Qf4+ 10. Kg6
Kd3 11. Qg4 Qe5
76218 <first : 	14    118    5139 75528628  1. Qa8+ Kb2 2. Qb7+ Kc3 3. Qxf7 Qg1+
4. Kf5 Qc5+ 5. Kg6 Qg1+ 6. Kf6 Qd4+ 7. Kg5 Qg1+ 8. Kh6 Qh2+ 9. Kg7 Qg3+ 10. Kh8
Qh3+ 11. Kg8 Kd3 12. f4 Ke2
96406 <first : 	14    164    7157 105056493  1. Qxa1+!!
96422 <first : 	14    180    7159 105069619  1. Qxa1+ Kxa1 2. Kf5 Kb1 3. f4 Kc2
4. Ke5 Kd3 5. f5 Ke3 6. f6 Kd3 7. Kd6 Kd4 8. Ke7 Ke5 9. Kxf7
96437 <first : 	14    180    7159 105076538  1. Qxa1+ Kxa1 2. Kf5 Kb1 3. f4 Kc2
4. Ke5 Kd3 5. f5 Ke3 6. f6 Kd3 7. Kd6 Kd4 8. Ke7 Ke5 9. Kxf7
96437 <first : 	15    180    7160 105094633  1. Qxa1+ Kxa1 2. Kf5 Kb1 3. f4 Kc2
4. Ke5 Kd3 5. f5 Ke3 6. f6 Kd3 7. Kd6 Kd4 8. Ke7 Ke5 9. Kxf7
135218 <first : 	15    180   11039 165103321  1. Qxa1+ Kxa1 2. Kf5 Kb1 3. f4 Kc2
4. Ke5 Kd3 5. f5 Ke3 6. f6 Kd3 7. Kd6 Kd4 8. Ke7 Ke5 9. Kxf7
135218 <first : 	16    220   11039 165115199  1. Qxa1+!!
135234 <first : 	16    320   11040 165126491  1. Qxa1+!!
135234 <first : 	16    520   11040 165141365  1. Qxa1+!!
135265 <first : 	16    442   11043 165169592  1. Qxa1+ Kxa1 2. Kf5 Kb2 3. f4 Kc3
4. Ke5 Kd3 5. f5 Ke3 6. f6 Kd3 7. Kd6 Ke3 8. Ke7 Ke4 9. Kxf7 Ke5 10. Ke7 <HT>



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