SMIRF Engine: .
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I have watched the Smirf progress at 10x8 variants all these years and i've said, as you know, that i'm just impressed! You are doing a hell of a job with it that's why i wish you to continue with it and forget all these GO-thing.
The most interesting thing about Smirf for me is its ability to play, always speaking about 10x8 Chess, the opening with a non-computeristic way! It doesn't play the openings like a human but not like computer too. If you leave a computer alone in the opening it will screw up the game. Not Smirf! I guess this has to do with your approach.... Of course many many weaknesses are there in the opening play too but not as many as in all the other 10x8 programs i know....

I guess that Smirf's strength (that was the case in the latest Smirf beta i can play with) at 10x8 variants is sufficient for having no fear against the other programs. But i'm sure you don't speak about 8x8 Chess variants, right?
For example and since you are the only one that can test it, how it can do against Spike 1.1 at FRC?

About GO: Yes the GO-programming world is still unexplored and many innovative ideas can be implement. This obviously will give to the GO programmers the sense of a mystery, that they're swimming into uncharted places with many discoveries waiting them. And this is true. But considering the difficulty of GO-programming i don't think it's a good idea to abandon a successful project like Smirf and dive into the unknown......