[Computer-go] KGS bot tournaments for 2011

[Nick Wedd]

Ingo wrote

>One question, in the light of the possibility that
>9x9 in the next computer olympiad has some chance
>to become a tournament with integral komi (= 7.0 ).
>Is there a way to let at least some of the 9x9-KGS
>bot tournaments be played with integral komi?

Thank you.  That is a good idea.  I can run the April and July 9x9 
tournaments with 7.0 komi, as practice for Bordeaux*.

Petr wrote

>  One thing to consider, can the KGS tournament system even handle jigo
>results? Won't we be hitting strange bugs etc.?

We might hit strange bugs, it will be interesting to find out.

>  Hmm, thinking of it, maybe Nick even mentioned once that he cannot
>change the komi settings in tournament setup... but I'm not sure of
>that.

I can set the komi to 7.0.  That is, I can set it to 7.0 in the 
tournament definition file which I upload to KGS.  Whether the KGS 
tournament system will respond correctly, I don't know.  Finding out, in 
advance of Bordeaux, would be a good idea.  Maybe not just with the 
official KGS April and July tournaments, but an informal test 
tournament, using some of Aloril's pathological bots, and fast time 
limits, just to see what happens.

Here are three things which I already know the KGS tournament system 
handles wrongly - or at least, not the way I would like.

1.
I cannot set a tournament to more than 20 rounds.  This is deliberate, 
If I try to set it to 24 rounds, it explicitly refuses, and tells me 
that 20 is the limit.  I would like to run KGS 9x9 bot tournaments with 
more than 20 rounds.

2.
If I specify certain overtime settings, it uses different overtime 
settings, without any warning.  For example if I specify Canadian 
overtime of 10 moves in 30 seconds, it uses 25 moves in 30 seconds.

3.
If two players are paired for the second time in a tournament, their 
colours are again chosen randomly.  They ought to be the reverse of the 
previous pairing.

All of these have been reported, more than once, to William Shubert 
('wms'), who is the only person able to fix them.  He has not fixed 
them, but has said that he can fix 3.

He often rejects proposed changes to KGS (e.g. Fischer time) because 
they require changes to the user interface, and this will involve 
communicating with users.  I sympathise with this;  but none of the 
items listed above will involve any changes to the user interface, so I 
am hoping that he will agree to fix them.

Olivier Teytaud will be running the bot events in Bordeaux.  We have 
agreed that the 19x19 and 13x13 tournaments will be played on KGS, using 
the KGS tournament scheduler;  I will assist him with this, though I 
will not actually be in Bordeaux.  Olivier does not plan to use KGS for 
the 9x9, because of 3.  I am hoping to see 3 fixed, so that KGS can be 
used for all three Bordeaux tournaments.

Best wishes,
Nick

* Bordeaux is the city in western France where the European Go Congress 
will be held this summer.  See http://www.egc2011.eu/index.php/en
-- 
Nick Wedd    nick at maproom.co.uk