Author: Manuel Monasterio
Date: 18:34:19 11/22/99
I have followed the very interesting chat about the real strength of commercial chess software. I totally agree. I would not follow the advice of the programs, they just cannot get it right from the strategic-positional point of view. I have worked with Fritz 5.32, Hiarcs 7.32, Junior 5.0,Rebel 9, Crafty 16.15, Chessmaster (5500,6000 and 7000), and Ctal II. The only use they have for a player level candidate-master above, is: 1) To practice openings 2) to check very tactical lines (and this with the upmost care!)3) to study and play 5 pieces endgames. As a clear example, I will show the kind of game that is only possible for a human player (of course, we all know that sooner or later the machines will get it right and will be unbeatable). This is a far from obvious positional combination, that seems to be out of sight for all the software that I mentioned (running at a AMD K6-350MHz with 64 MB Ram): 1.e4 d6 2.d4 Nf6 3.Nc3 g6 4.Be3 c6 5.Qd2 Bg7 6.Nf3 Qa5 7.h3 b5 8.Bd3 b4 9.Ne2 Bb7 10.e5 dxe5 11.dxe5 Nd7 12.e6 fxe6 13.Ned4!! c5 14.Nxe6 Bxb2 15.O-O Bxa1 16.Rxa1 Bxf3 17.gxf3 Now, just try this position and you shall see. I will not bother you with the miriad of variations, to make it short, every software gives a huge advantage for black when the rook is taken. White puts the rook at d1 and the bishop at c4 in many of the lines (play may change according to black's moves), but White has a very powerful bind. After a couple of moves the programs began to see it right and give white the advantage, but at first they are completely blind to the "spirit over matter" affair(and of course, they don't even "dream" about the possibility of this combination when I played 10.e5, by the way, if I don't have the whole line ready I am busted, so you must calculate the complete sacrifice to be able to play e5) This game comes from an e-mail match that I played a couple of weeks before, and the combination came to me after I squeezed my mind trying to "punish" black for his "too lateral" development and neglect of center(all the natural moves available besides 10.e5 lead to nothing for white) The programs will get to the top, eventually, maybe soon. I don't mind about it, we tend to forget that they are projections of our own conscience, so, they are also human at last! Their achievement is our achievement, and not at all a menace to our "pride", at least that is my humble opinion. Manuel Monasterio
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