[computer-go] 19x19 CGOS

[Gunnar Farnebäck]

Don Dailey wrote:
> Who is running gnugo 10?    You must using the right options.  Here is
> how I run it:
> 
> gnugo --mode gtp --score aftermath --capture-all-dead --chinese-rules 
> --positional-superko

You can skip "--score aftermath", it has no effect when "--mode gtp" is 
used. (Without "--mode gtp" it would instead try to score the position 
but complain that no position was loaded with the "-l" option.)

> There is also a min-level and max-level setting - not sure what that
> does but I think this puts in some default level mode which is reasonbly
> strong.

When playing without time controls you only have to specify "--level n" 
to play at level n, where level 10 is default.

When playing with time controls GNU Go doesn't have infrastructure to 
spend a specific amount of time or abort the move generation based on 
time constraints. Instead it adjusts its playing level after each move, 
decreased level if it plays too slowly, increased level if it plays 
unnecessarily fast. This control is kind of crude and it's advisable to 
limit how high the level may become. Also a lower limit is sometimes 
useful as GNU Go tends to be rather erratic (more so than usual, that 
is) at really low level.

Thus "--min-level" and "--max-level" sets these lower and higher limits 
that the time control is allowed to adjust the level between. By default 
min-level is 0 and max-level is 10 or the value set by "--level", 
whichever is highest.

/Gunnar