[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index][Thread Index]
Re: computer-go: Computer Go Tournament Program
From: Robert Jasiek <jasiek@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Don Dailey wrote:
> This is unduly complicated and solves no problems.
I know. Therefore I try to convince you how difficult
application of such a protocol can become.
> The whole point of this is utter simplicity.
For this reason I prefer not to use any agreements before
scoring because they create many more possibilties of
disagreements. Agreements oppose simplicity.
--
robert jasiek
Ok, so you were playing "devil's advocate", I was beginning to wonder
if something was wrong with you!
I have always agreed on this point, but there are some minor
advantages to such a protocol if it can be implemented in a trivial
and purely optional way.
But maybe it cannot. As I think more about it, I see a problem that I
hoped to avoid. If a program has pure TT rules implemented, it must
be modified at least slightly to accomodate this special agreement
protocol. My hope was that a pure TT program could remain completely
unmodified, essentially ignoring the protocol if it chooses to. But
this is not this case.
First of all, a pure TT program thinks there only has to be 2
consecutive passes. When the opponent offers an agreement, it will
either come to the conclusion that the opponent is doing a stupid
thing and jump at the pass opportunity, or refuse it outright but for
the wrong reason. I'm not sure if either of these scenarios hurts the
programs final score, but at the very least they are just plain ugly.
In either case, the program needs to know that it might take more than
2 passes to end the game.
I tried to determine if the arbiter software itself could compensate
in some way, (such as providing an implied pass or pretending certain
passes don't exist) but even if this is possible, each player has a
separate view of exactly what happened. More ugliness.
I now believe that the only way this agreement protocol can work, is
if all Tromp/Taylor programs (assuming others exist) are slightly
modifed, which means the original clean and simple Tromp/Taylor
algorithm could not be used in its purest form. The mod's would be
very slight, but already I don't like it, and I won't attempt to
implement the agreement protocol unless someone can talk me into it
again!
Don