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What happened to chess enthusiasts when chess was "solved"?

by fiatjaf 10y ago

exolymph 10y ago
They kept playing chess with each other.
- cybertronic 10y ago
  and chess was not "solved"
jm547ster 10y ago
Computer aided chess became a game in and of itself
olalonde 10y ago
The best computers now consistently beat the best humans but "solved" has a precise definition in game theory and it isn't completely solved under that definition[0]. With regards to your question, I can't say for sure but my impression is that interest in chess has declined a lot. [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solving_chess https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solving_chess
- andrepd 10y ago
  >With regards to your question, I can't say for sure but my impression is that interest in chess has declined a lot. It hasn't, in the slightest. The fact that computers playing at full strength can beat top humans makes no difference in the enjoyability of the game for people.
- espadrine 10y ago
  > my impression is that interest in chess has declined a lot. I don't think it has. Much like horseback riding has not made olympic races obsolete, human competition remained fascinating. I for one very much followed the rise of Magnus Carlsen.
  - olalonde 10y ago
    That was a poorly chosen example since interest in horseback riding has declined a lot, at least in relative terms, compared to the pre car days. Today, auto racing as a competitive sport is probably more popular too. Personally, the fact that computers are better at chess than humans makes me less interested in the game so I'm a bit biased.
    - dmoy 10y ago
      The argument is that the presence of horseback riding (and now race car driving) doesn't necessarily diminish the popularity of foot races. Not that horse racing is less popular now (though that my be, simply because it's no longer anyone's preferred method of transportation...)
      - olalonde 10y ago
        Ah, I missed that. It's hard to say with certainty whether horseback riding diminished the popularity of foot races since it happened such a long time ago and at a time where probably neither was considered a sport or entertainment. I do think that technological advances in general affect the appeal of certain games and sports by rendering them less mysterious or by bringing them further from a real world activity/situation. Of course, I'm talking about relative, not absolute, popularity. Chess and horseback riding will remain popular for a long, long time.
- imaginenore 10y ago
  That's an understatement. The best computer algos beat humans at chess by a huge margin, to the point a regular PC beats Carlsen (and I heard even the best smartphone apps beat him). Carlsen's ELO rating = 2853 Top chess program ELO rating = 3381 The number of DIFFERENT programs stronger than Carlsen = 59 http://www.computerchess.org.uk/ccrl/4040/ http://www.computerchess.org.uk/ccrl/4040/ https://ratings.fide.com/top.phtml?list=men https://ratings.fide.com/top.phtml?list=men
partycoder 10y ago
Solving chess would mean having the perfect move as a response to every move. In that sense, chess is far from being solved.

What happened to chess enthusiasts when chess was "solved"?

by fiatjaf 10y ago

What happened to chess enthusiasts when chess was "solved"?

exolymph 10y ago

They kept playing chess with each other.

cybertronic 10y ago
and chess was not "solved"

jm547ster 10y ago

Computer aided chess became a game in and of itself

olalonde 10y ago

The best computers now consistently beat the best humans but "solved" has a precise definition in game theory and it isn't completely solved under that definition[0]. With regards to your question, I can't say for sure but my impression is that interest in chess has declined a lot. [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solving_chess https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solving_chess

andrepd 10y ago
>With regards to your question, I can't say for sure but my impression is that interest in chess has declined a lot. It hasn't, in the slightest. The fact that computers playing at full strength can beat top humans makes no difference in the enjoyability of the game for people.
espadrine 10y ago
> my impression is that interest in chess has declined a lot. I don't think it has. Much like horseback riding has not made olympic races obsolete, human competition remained fascinating. I for one very much followed the rise of Magnus Carlsen.
- olalonde 10y ago
  That was a poorly chosen example since interest in horseback riding has declined a lot, at least in relative terms, compared to the pre car days. Today, auto racing as a competitive sport is probably more popular too. Personally, the fact that computers are better at chess than humans makes me less interested in the game so I'm a bit biased.
  - dmoy 10y ago
    The argument is that the presence of horseback riding (and now race car driving) doesn't necessarily diminish the popularity of foot races. Not that horse racing is less popular now (though that my be, simply because it's no longer anyone's preferred method of transportation...)
    - olalonde 10y ago
      Ah, I missed that. It's hard to say with certainty whether horseback riding diminished the popularity of foot races since it happened such a long time ago and at a time where probably neither was considered a sport or entertainment. I do think that technological advances in general affect the appeal of certain games and sports by rendering them less mysterious or by bringing them further from a real world activity/situation. Of course, I'm talking about relative, not absolute, popularity. Chess and horseback riding will remain popular for a long, long time.
imaginenore 10y ago
That's an understatement. The best computer algos beat humans at chess by a huge margin, to the point a regular PC beats Carlsen (and I heard even the best smartphone apps beat him). Carlsen's ELO rating = 2853 Top chess program ELO rating = 3381 The number of DIFFERENT programs stronger than Carlsen = 59 http://www.computerchess.org.uk/ccrl/4040/ http://www.computerchess.org.uk/ccrl/4040/ https://ratings.fide.com/top.phtml?list=men https://ratings.fide.com/top.phtml?list=men

partycoder 10y ago

Solving chess would mean having the perfect move as a response to every move. In that sense, chess is far from being solved.