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Subject: Re: 4 games! and my comment to these "games"

Author: KarinsDad

Date: 14:32:41 09/01/99

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On September 01, 1999 at 16:45:45, Thorsten Czub wrote:

>On September 01, 1999 at 09:32:38, Harald Faber wrote:
>
>>>>AMD-K6-200, most out of 64MB RAM, 3min/move.
>>>
>>>????
>>>
>>>3 min/move ?? 40/120 or average 3 minutes ?
>
>>EXACTLY 3min/move EACH.
>
>What is the sense to give them 3 moves each exactly ???
>CSTal plays weaker in this time-control than in 40/120.
>so you weaken it.

Yes, but the other programs had the EXACT same limitation. Obviously, if this
configuration weakens CSTal (as it should), it will also weaken it's competitors
(as it should). The test is still valid. It's just a different type of test AND
people have to take it for what it is and not try to make any other assumptions
about it. One cannot assume from a test like this that CSTal is weaker than
these particular opponents if permanent brain is turn on and/or the program
decides when how much time to spend on each move (which I believe is an
assumption Harald has made) because it lost games where these features were
turned off.

>
>>>Also : played on ONE machine or played on 2 machines ??
>>>permanent brain on/off ?
>
>>2 machines pb=off as they were played via e-mail.
>
>pah - than the games are nonsense ! you do not test the programs,
>you test something different.

The games are not nonsense (you like that word I guess). Neither are the tests.
If you test G5 in your "prefered" configuration of permanent brains on and
program decided time per move, it would still be a valid test of JUST THAT
configuration (and no other configuration). It wouldn't tell you how well CSTal
or any other program would probably due in standard game times.

What is it with this notion that testing MUST be done under x y z conditions and
cannot be done under p q r conditions? Results of any testing must take into
account the conditions set up, but that does not mean that a non-standard test
has no validity. Granted, if the two programs had different conditions, then
your point would be valid. But, the conditions were the same for both opponents.

What tests like these CAN show (if enough games are played) is that there could
be configurations that are good for one program, but bad for another program.
But, that does not mean that the games are nonsense.

KarinsDad :)



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