Spark 1.0 - A Chess Engine with Alternative Search and Evaluation Strategies
Spark 1.0 - A Chess Engine with Alternative Search and Evaluation Strategies
Spark 1.0 is a chess engine developed by Allard Siemelink, written in C++. It is compatible with both the Chess Engine Communication Protocol and the UCI protocol, which means it can be used with various chess GUIs such as Arena, Chessbase, or Winboard. Spark 1.0 was released in December 2010 and has participated in several chess engine tournaments, such as the WCRCC 2009, CCT12, ICT 2010, DOCCC 2010, DOCCC 2011 and ICT 2012.
Spark 1.0 Chess Engine
Spark 1.0 is based on a bitboard framework that was created by Siemelink in 2008, after he found it hard to improve his previous 0x88 engine Bright. Spark 1.0 has a completely new search and evaluation module that tries to use alternative strategies and terms for the ones that are found in Bright. For example, Spark 1.0 uses late move reductions that are not history based and can reduce all moves except the first one by up to two plies depending on static criteria. Spark 1.0 also uses an evaluation function that is data mined from a database of 700,000 high quality games.
Spark 1.0 Features
Some of the main features of Spark 1.0 are:
It supports up to 16 CPU cores and can search in parallel using the Young Brothers Wait Concept.
It uses a transposition table with Zobrist hashing and a replacement scheme based on depth and age.
It uses null move pruning with adaptive reduction and verification search.
It uses internal iterative deepening and aspiration windows.
It uses quiescence search with delta pruning and SEE pruning.
It uses static exchange evaluation (SEE) for move ordering and capture pruning.
It uses killer moves, history heuristic, countermove heuristic, and relative history heuristic for move ordering.
It uses futility pruning and extended futility pruning at pre-frontier and frontier nodes.
It uses singular extension search for checking moves that are much better than the second best move.
It uses razoring for pruning moves that are much worse than the alpha value.
It uses pawn hash table for storing pawn structure evaluation.
It uses evaluation terms such as material, piece-square tables, mobility, king safety, passed pawns, pawn structure, bishop pair, rook on open file, etc.
It can be compiled to run under Windows, Linux and Mac OS.
Spark 1.0 Performance
Spark 1.0 has shown a good performance in various chess engine tournaments and rating lists. Some of its achievements are:
It won the 12th League JCER edition 33 in 2020 with a score of 9/10.
It drew against Rybka and HIARCS in the DOCCC 2010 with a score of 4/9.
It reached the quarterfinals of the ICT 2012 with a score of 5/7.
It has a rating of about 2900 Elo on the CCRL 40/4 rating list.
Conclusion
Spark 1.0 is a chess engine that offers a different style and approach to chess playing. It is based on a bitboard framework and uses alternative search and evaluation strategies that are derived from data mining and experimentation. It can run on multiple CPU cores and supports both the Chess Engine Communication Protocol and the UCI protocol. It has participated in several chess engine tournaments and has achieved good results against strong opponents. Spark 1.0 is a chess engine that deserves attention and respect from chess enthusiasts and programmers alike.
Spark 1.0 Download and Installation
If you want to try Spark 1.0 for yourself, you can download it from the official website of the author, Allard Siemelink. You can find the link in the external links section below. You can also find the source code of Spark 1.0 on GitHub, in case you want to modify it or compile it for a different platform.
To install Spark 1.0 on your computer, you need to have a chess GUI that supports either the Chess Engine Communication Protocol or the UCI protocol. Some examples of such GUIs are Arena, Chessbase, or Winboard. You need to copy the Spark 1.0 executable file to a folder of your choice and then configure your chess GUI to recognize and load Spark 1.0 as a new engine. You can also adjust the settings of Spark 1.0 according to your preferences, such as the number of CPU cores to use, the size of the hash table, the strength level, etc.
Once you have installed and configured Spark 1.0 on your chess GUI, you can start playing games against it or use it for analysis. You can also play against other chess engines or human players online using Spark 1.0 as your engine. You can also participate in chess engine tournaments or rating lists using Spark 1.0 as your engine.
Spark 1.0 Strengths and Weaknesses
Spark 1.0 is a chess engine that has its own strengths and weaknesses, like any other chess engine. Some of the strengths of Spark 1.0 are:
It has a fast and efficient parallel search that can utilize up to 16 CPU cores.
It has a unique and original search and evaluation module that uses alternative strategies and terms for the ones that are found in other engines.
It has a data mined evaluation function that is based on a large database of high quality games.
It has a good performance in chess engine tournaments and rating lists against strong opponents.
Some of the weaknesses of Spark 1.0 are:
It has a relatively small opening book that can be improved by adding more lines and variations.
It has a limited endgame knowledge that can be enhanced by using tablebases or adding more evaluation terms.
It has a tendency to overestimate its position and miss some defensive resources of the opponent.
It has a high memory consumption that can cause problems on some systems or platforms.
These strengths and weaknesses of Spark 1.0 can be seen as challenges and opportunities for further improvement and development. Spark 1.0 is a chess engine that is constantly evolving and learning from its own experience and feedback from the chess community.
Conclusion
Spark 1.0 is a chess engine that offers a different style and approach to chess playing. It is based on a bitboard framework and uses alternative search and evaluation strategies that are derived from data mining and experimentation. It can run on multiple CPU cores and supports both the Chess Engine Communication Protocol and the UCI protocol. It has participated in several chess engine tournaments and has achieved good results against strong opponents. Spark 1.0 is a chess engine that deserves attention and respect from chess enthusiasts and programmers alike. ca3e7ad8fd