Author: Reinhard Scharnagl
Date: 13:54:55 01/13/06
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On January 13, 2006 at 15:58:57, Robert Hollay wrote: Hi Robert, >Shareware. Test SMIRF free until 2006-01-31. the beta still shows to be intended to become shareware. But I am not sure about that. There is no big interest facing those Rybka or top-engine hype. About since a year there repeatedly have been unrestricted beta versions, limited in lifetime to secure vanishing of old beta prereleases. But the echo has been very small and only one person asked, how to purchase a full version. >What will happen after that date? The beta version still could be tested, but the program would answer nearly immediately then, not reaching higher thinking levels, nag screens included. >I looked around the SMIRF site, but didn't quite understand it's licencing >model. Part of the text is written in German, especially the shareware licence. >What should we do to get it permanently? A sold / donated version would have texts also translated into English. SMIRF is now in a stage, where it should be rewritten completely to dense its data structure and to incoorporate made experiences. I am against open source programs for end-user applications like a chess engine. Arguing for that had raised a banning from the most visited german chess forum. I think, that freeware chess programs are dumping the whole scene, killing any respect and refund of creative programmers. So I am very demotivated and now about to start with programming the game of Go instead of improving the SMIRF chess program. If you would know, that there is nearly no nullvove heuristic yet working in SMIRF engine, you might be able to imagine, that this program would have some potential to become stronger. But as I already have told, there is not much interest in it, especially the 8x10 variants, where SMIRF is already a top engine. People are fixed to 8x8 and already make trouble with Chess960 / FRC, for what I have written a german language booklet. >I find it's an interesting GUI + Eng. Is the goal to make it commercial? Probably it would become a sort of donationware. Who will make a serious dona- tion, would get an unlimited personalized key set, which enables also to use coming downloadable follower versions of SMIRF. SMIRF will never become freeware or opensource, because of respecting the efforts of other creative chess engine authors. Nevertheless big sponsors always would be welcomed and have access to a "we can do more than others" project. Regards, Reinhard.
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