Not
all chess is equal, nor does time treat it as such. Correspondence
chess and over-the-board (OTB) chess, while similar to each other in
some respects, are dissimilar in many other respects. For example, the
time limit is a more pressing consideration in OTB chess, and many
errors and blunders are committed when time is short on the clock. A
second difference between OTB chess and correspondence chess is the ban
on trying moves before playing them during OTB chess. The correspondence
player does not face this limitation. The quality of chess also differs
between correspondence chess and OTB chess. Of particular interest for
this article are the different impacts computer chess has had upon
practical play and the historical development of both formats.
Cecil Purdy, the 1st
World Correspondence Chess Champion, recalled his transition from OTB
chess to correspondence chess where he, a professional OTB player at the
time, was soundly beaten by an amateur correspondence player. Purdy
wrote:
“What
was I to deduce? I … had been trounced by an amateur … not because I
had played below my strength, but simply because he had played more
strongly. I realized that he had given the games more study than I had,
but – this is the point – I had never before suspected how much
difference that extra study might make.
I
was forced to conclude that the game I had been playing over the board
was relatively superficial. I now know that this applies even to the
great crossboard players; I have proved it and accept it as commonplace,
but in 1936 it was a new thought to me.
I had been writing of the ‘machine-like accuracy’ of the wizards of the game. I now realize that this is purely an illusion.” 1
A
lot has changed in the chess world since Purdy’s epiphany in 1936.
Neither have the differences between the two formats stayed constant;
time has allowed additional factors to differentiate the two formats.
The introduction and widespread availability of personal computers,
mobile devices (e.g., cell phones, tablets), and of grandmaster strength
chess engines (e.g., Droidfish & Stockfish) is one such major
change. The chess of yesteryear was a pure battle between minds. The
chess of today is a hybrid of human creativity and computer calculation,
though the extent and impact of computer influence may be quite
disproportionate between the two chess formats, OTB vs. correspondence.
Modern
chess is influence by chess engine analysis in OTB chess whenever a
player plays a move he/she remembers from home study using engine
analysis. We’ve also seen a number of incidents of more straightforward
and direct use of engines, as in recent allegations of cheating. The
Bulgarian Master, Borislav Ivanov,
has been accused of using mobile devices to propel his rise in rating.
Similarly, Georgian chess champion Gaioz Nigalidze was expelled and
banned from the Dubai Open Chess Tournament. For interesting discussion,
please see Garry Kasparov is a Cyborg, or What ChessBase teaches us about technology
Computer
analysis pervades modern correspondence chess. The International
Correspondence Chess Federation allows for the use of computer analysis
as an aid during the game. The USCF, however, prohibits the use of
engines during play; but it does allow for players to consult books and
previously published material during the game.
It
is through this published material that computer analysis seeps into
USCF correspondence chess. It is becoming increasingly common for chess
books to include computer evaluations. One such book is Fundamental
Chess Endings by Karsten Muller and Frank Lamprecht. This book “makes
full use of endgame tablebases and analytical engines that access these
tablebases; where previous authors could only make educated guesses.”
Books on chess openings also provide an avenue through which published
computer analysis can influence chess even in forums where engine use is
not allowed.
Computers
will continue to shape chess in the coming years. Over time, computer
analysis in reference material will cover an increasing number of
individual, unique chess positions. The progression will continue from
positions where computer analysis is of the most value such as familiar tabiyas
especially in positions where tactics are king, or where forcing
sequences abound. Critical positions in hotly debated variations will
also increasingly become available in reference material.
Naturally,
through this piecemeal process, a pattern of computer analysis of
individual positions will continue to spontaneously develop. The pattern
itself will not develop in an entirely random fashion; instead, it will
have a tendency to proceed according to the perceived value of computer
analysis in individual positions – from highest value to lowest.3 The
unplanned, spontaneous, piecemeal process describes above will continue
to unfold without the need for any central planning, yet it will
continue to show definite signs of order and structure.
Ordinary
correspondence players will also play a major role in this process
whereby computer analysis enters into the public domain. Correspondence
players have long realized the benefits of writing analysis down.
Speaking of the amateur correspondence player who gave Cecil Purdy a
sound beating, Purdy wrote that his “most
important hint was to write down all your analysis at every move. When I
began playing CC competitively, I followed this advice and found it
extremely useful. You inevitably write down many moves that turn out to
be bad, but this at any rate saves you from looking at them again, for
you have recorded the refutations." 2
Today,
the analysis written down is often computer analysis of the highest
quality. Much of this analysis remains in the private collection of an
individual correspondence player; however, options are available to
share one’s own analysis with the world. One such option is the Open Encyclopedia of Chess Openings,
which is an attempt compile computer analysis of individual chess
positions. This website is my own approach for consolidating computer
evaluations of individual chess positions. I spend a portion of my time
uploading relevant computer analysis that I’ve produced and/or collected
over the years. There is plenty of room for improvement upon my
methods. Moreover, this process could be fully and seamlessly automated. For example, a
Droidfish-like application could 1) produce the analysis, 2) translate
the analysis into wikitext, and finally 3) save the analysis turned
wikitext into an online wiki. I’ve made some progress towards these
goals, but it remains a hobby that frequently takes a back seat when
other matters are more pressing.
In
conclusion, over-the-board chess and correspondence chess are two
formats with differences and incongruence. Some of these differences are
timeless, while other factors are recent developments. Computer chess
engines are one such factor that has had a disproportionate impact on
the two formats of chess. Though the extent of computer influence may
differ between OTB and correspondence chess, the common theme is that
computer analysis is becoming increasingly influential, even where
real-time computer engine use is prohibited. There are theoretical
reasons to suggest that the pattern by which computer evaluations and
moves enter into the public domain will do so in a non-random way
according to a perception of value of individual positions and
variations. Freak possibilities such as, say, 1.f3 f6 2.Kf2 Kf7 3.Ke3 Ke6
will tend to be among the last positions for which computer analysis
enters into the public domain, while well-trodden lines in the Ruy
Lopez, Marshall Variation are already published and available to the
general public. Lastly, one resource devoted to consolidating computer
analysis of chess positions is the Open Encyclopedia of Chess Openings.
1. Purdy, C.J.S. How Purdy Won: The Correspondence Chess Career of a World Champion, pp. 17-18
2. Ibid. p.19
3.
“As an apple falls from a tree and the stars move according to the laws
of gravity, one Robinson Crusoe and an empire of 100 million obey the
same law of value when it comes to economic activity” - Emil Sax, http://tinyurl.com/kj9ndyp
