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World Computer Chess Championships Underway

Posted by timothy on from the hushed-crowd dept.

azaris writes "While the FIDE World Championships for human players in Tripoli, Libya are down to the last two contestants, the computers are playing their own 12th World Computer Chess Championship in Ramat-Gan, Israel. How will the open source chess engine Crafty do against the proprietary closed engines? Will the computers play more interesting chess than their human counterparts?"

17 of 230 comments (clear)

  1. Well... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    As long as you don't give them exclusive control to the pod bay door, I think computers should be allowed to play chess as they please.

    1. Re:Well... by Edward+W. · · Score: 2, Funny

      But a computer needs control of the pod bay door to play chess to the best of its ability. Recall the scene in 2001 where the humanoid spaceship Discovery opens one of its three mouths (pod bay doors), sticks out its tongue (pod launching ramp), blows a bubble (spherical space pod), and watches the bubble rise over his head. This tactic could be used to great advantage in a chess game. The opponent would naturally be surprised by this playful display of anthropomorphism and would watch the bubble rise. The computer would then quickly open a second mouth, lick up a nearby bishop (or rook, whatever), and close its mouth with the enemy piece inside. Returning her attention to the board, the enemy would get all rattled when she (Judit Polgar?) saw her position was weaker than she recalled. This would be the beginning of the end.

    2. Re:Well... by Fred_A · · Score: 3, Funny

      I'm so disapointed, I read the story title as a "computer cheese championship" and it's just a boring board game. What a let down.

      --

      May contain traces of nut.
      Made from the freshest electrons.
  2. Shades of WOPR by erucsbo · · Score: 4, Funny

    Computers play their own championship?
    Ultimately this will have to result in stalemate after stalemate won't it?
    Kinda like WOPR in 'Wargames' playing tic-tac-toe with itself.

  3. Re:Interesting computer Chess? by Kenja · · Score: 4, Funny

    Also, the computer isn't going to throw a hissyfit when they lose. Or am I the only one who watches chess just for the losing nerd thorwing a complete wobbler and whining like a little girl?

    --

    "Have you ever thought about just turning off the TV, sitting down with your kids, and hitting them?"
  4. I hate computerized chess, the server cheats by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    It always ends up AWP'ing my queen! I suspect an aimbot.

  5. The Russians by Ratfactor · · Score: 5, Funny

    Can Robot Jox be far off?

    The Russians pretty much dominate human chess. Now that things have shifted to machine chess, robots with chainsaws in the crotch are an obvious next move.

    1. Re:The Russians by winkydink · · Score: 3, Funny

      And they'll hang around outside until the chess tournament ends and kick the shit out of the chess robots and take their lunch money.

      --

      "I'd rather be a lightning rod than a seismometer." -Ken Kesey

  6. Libya is our friend, Eurasia has always... by fantomas · · Score: 2, Funny

    Hey, Libya is our friend, Libya has always been our friend. Oh, I meant Eurasia. Or did I mean Eastasia?


    Huh, politics, I just leave that to politicians, they tell the truth, they know what's best ;-)

  7. Re:USA? by tanguyr · · Score: 5, Funny

    " Just out of curiosity, what would you consider to be a genuine USAian last name? Washington, Jefferson, or Franklin?"
    Dances With Wolves?

    --
    #!/usr/bin/english
  8. Breaking News.... by k4_pacific · · Score: 1, Funny

    One of the competing teams announced today that they had secretly patented the interface by which the chess programs compete with one another. As such, the other teams forfeited under threat of lawsuit and the team that held the patent won.

    --
    Unknown host pong.
    1. Re:Breaking News.... by TastyWords · · Score: 2, Funny

      "One of the competing teams"? Tell the truth. It was Microsoft, announcing their patent of the day.

  9. Re:First "GO" Post by JamesKPolk · · Score: 2, Funny

    So why do you read slashdot if you can't handle "zealotry"?

  10. Sorry... had to by Frogbert · · Score: 2, Funny

    Well its obvious chess would be an obsession in Russia. Why?

    Because in Soviet Russia Chess plays you!

  11. Re:First "GO" Post by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    The ancient game of Go? Thats the one where you collect $200 right?

  12. Re:Interesting computer Chess? by bobhagopian · · Score: 4, Funny

    Computers dont have finite limits like a person. That's true. I can only count to 32768.

  13. Re:Interesting computer Chess? by cynical+kane · · Score: 2, Funny

    32768? I can only count to 32767!