Author: Ratko V Tomic
Date: 13:14:12 09/27/99
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> I think they have tested 4 ChessBase programs on K6-450 because > these programs were leading the P200MMX list, and they wanted to > know how much rating points a program would gain from this new > processor. If they had limited number of fast machines, hence limited number of games they could play, they certainly could have distributed these games evenly between the top ten or so programs, so that the final ratings reflects program strengths on equal average hardware. The way they did it is capricious at best. You can find equally well, if not better, how much K2-450 increases generally the strength of chess programs compared to P-200, by playing 100 games with 10 top programs on that hardware (and the rest of games on the slower hardware) as you would by playing 250 games by 4 CB programs only. While the increase for those 4 wouldn't be as accurate in 10x100 scenario, the general increase over the spectrum of different programs would be more accurate (since the spectrum tested is wider). So, in 10x100 case one would at worst need some extrapolation to find out more accurately how would, say, Fritz 5.32 perform in 250 games vs Fritz 5.32 in 100 games on K2-450. Now, is that a greater extrapolation than one needs to make to figure out how would, say, Chess Tiger or Rebel etc perform on K2-450 (as one does with the current SSDF approach)? Surely not. By far the chief effect (and therefore the likely reason behind) of the approach chosen by the SSDF is to give the person(s) picking the progams for given hardware the flexibility to hand-pick which 4 programs will be on the top of the SSDF list (which was known as soon as s/he picked the 4 to run on K2-450). Now, why would one wish such amazing flexibility and why would one use it in that peculiar way? I think discovering a benevolent reason requires a bit greater stretch of common sense than the more natural reasons (as are prevalent in any other product evaluation process which has effect on product sales). Well, if this were the first and isolated SSDF/CB controversy, one might go for the stretch.
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