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HI, Are you saying the openings of the Sapphire are bug free or the whole computer is bug free? The Sapphire instruction manual downloadable from chesshouse.com states that there is a bug in the average time controls setting and instructs the user to use programmable time controls if one wishes for AT settings.
Does anyone know if this bug was corrected in later Sapphire units? I also wonder if the bug was carried over to the Obsidian since something does not pan out when I use the Obsidian on AT controls, its seems to make 80-90% of moves instantly. Either the Obsidian has a bug or its permanent brain has awesome predictive powers and must store multiple possible moves for opponents in memory? I guess I just need to turn pondering off to get my answer.
And speaking of openings, for computers which have an openings trainer function, such as the Excalibur Grandmaster and others. If these computers have 16 or 32 openings stored, why would they not be programed to randomly use some of them instead of having such limited opening play? If seems all the information the computer needs is already in the chip but is just not being used to the extent that it could be.
RadioSmall wrote:
SirDave wrote:
RadioSmall wrote: The Novag Sapphire is also worth mentioning. It has one of the most varied opening responses I have ever seen for a dedicated Computer or otherwise.Without the need the push the Random Key as White it plays 1.e4 , 1.d4 , 1.Nf3 , 1.c4 , 1.b4 , and 1.g4. As black in response to 1.e4 and 1.d4 it plays almost everything imaginable under the sun, too numerous to mention here. I know this from over one hundred games I have played throughout the years pitting it against both other dedicated machines and full PC programs. It would be interesting to know why this design Philosophy did not carry over to the Obsidian.
It would be interesting to know how the Sapphire compares to the other portables above. I'm surprised that over all the years that chess boards have been manufactured and during which so much attention has been given to things such as processor speed and number of stored opening moves that there has been practically no mention of openings diversity.
It would seem to me that openings diversity would be one of the most important things to support one's learning the various openings and also to increase the interest in any particular game. Why would I want to keep seeing E5 in response to E4 when advanced or club players that I might play are responding with a lot of different 'surprise' openings? Seems to me that, as in the case of the Jade, it is a waste of a 12,600 book if only a few responses to E4 and D4 are offered.
I am a big fan of the Novag Sapphire .I would say that the Sapphire compares very favorably to the above portables.It is the most diverse in terms of Openings and completely bug free in every respect .In the case of the Novag Obsidian as white it has a diverse opening , playing lots of stuff other than 1.e4 and 1.d4.The main problem with it is the with black , in response to 1.d4 it always plays 1...d5 and after 2.c4 it always plays 2....dxc4. One could get rid of this tendency by pushing the random key
, however there is a big catch.Although the random key does diversify the opening it also has a negative effect on middle game play, weakening it.With the Obsidian the Random option being on during middle game play creates the bizzare tendency of minor pieces going back to their original squares during game play.for example moves like Nc6-b8 or Bg4-c8 or Nd7-b8 will be quite common. It also plays 1....e5 95% of the time in response to 1.e4 playing 1...c5 the other 5%. With the RadioShack brands of dedicated chess Computers you cannot go wrong in terms of opening diversity.Thus I consider RadioShack to be superior to Novag in general.For example even the RadioShack 1650 which has a very small opening library is very diverse with both black and white.Also it seems that all RadioShack Chess Computers have a large random factor built into them by default since during middle game play and also during analysis one does not always get the same moves after equal thinking time, in the same positions. This is very important since sometimes a weak player can find an opening or formula to beat a stronger dedicated machine that does not have this randomness.
I knew this would raise a flag with you Yes, I realize, but yesterdays posts show up in today's internet searches and I wander right into these situations. I'll try to get with the times...
JMark wrote:I knew this would raise a flag with you Yes, I realize, but yesterdays posts show up in today's internet searches and I wander right into these situations. I'll try to get with the times...
actually you raised a few good points JM
no problem responding to older posts
just wanted to alert you that when doing that..you might not get any replies as some of the folks posting at the time in an old thread might no longer be alive or as in my case... today ..show signs of advancing Senility
Steve B wrote:... folks posting at the time in an old thread might no longer be alive or as in my case... today ..show signs of advancing Senility
Senior Moments Regards
Steve
LOL, Please, I can relate to what you are saying and that makes me feel older than I am...besides the fact that replying to these old posts is kind of like talking to myself
My God, what a scholarly endeavor are made here!
I feel myself as a bug in the middle of so many Nobel Prize candidates.
In my carelessness I doubt very much If I ever has seen what is the use of many of the functions of my comps.
Since I just added yet another Novag Jade II (my 3rd) to my collection which for the first time is in near new condition and comes complete with everything, I decided to return to more frequent playing of the Jade II and Amber, my two favorite portables. Thus, I thought I would review their Openings Diversity that I researched almost a decade ago.
Unfortunately, I left the batteries in my Novag Jade I and they leaked. It’s still playable, but some of the option keys don’t work. (The keys are right in front of the battery case so I guess some of the acid crept onto the circuit board.) I may be wrong, but my impression is that the batteries left in Novag portables have a special tendency to leak. Note to self: remove batteries if unit is not going to be played for a long time.
Regarding leaking batteries, the earlier chess comps did not have
the later non leaking button type batteries, but rather cylindrical
batteries soldered to the main board. Of course they will eventually
leak onto the circuitry and it’s off to the landfill with that computer.
This would explain the increasing rarity of Connies and Super Connies
in spite of a fair sized production run. The backs are hard to get off
until you know how. My Connie and SConnie have both had their
internal batteries snipped, and I suggest the same happens to yours,
or else in the years ahead you will try to power up and get
strange things happening, if anything at all.
I was pleasantly surprised the other week when I had to replace
the Berlin Pro battery. Turns out it’s as easy as posting a letter, just pull
out the old one and in with the new. No soldering needed.
L
Thanks Larry. Lucky for me, it wasn’t the Jade II or the Amber. Btw, regarding using a portable chess unit on a plane, it turns out that, even though the Jade II is the epitome of pocketable chess computers, it turns out that the Amber is far better on a moving vehicle. The Jade II pieces tend to fall out easily if the unit is tilted a bit and you have be quick to catch them before they hit the floor, whereas the Amber tiny board sits at the bottom of a little box so dislodged pieces don’t go anywhere.
Yes, I realize, but yesterdays posts show up in today's internet searches and I wander right into these situations. I'll try to get with the times...