Thanks guys! I guess its just gonna take some lucky dice on the end either way :)

Czuch Chuckers: I would probable make a move like that.

How I see it, your opponent is probable going to put you on the bar for awhile where you get to sit and do nothing. So now, hopefully you will get some moves in with him sitting on the bar - hopefully putting you in a beter situation in the end where a quick run can still keep you in the game.

Czuch Chuckers: I don't think it made your situation worse, but you will have to let him go anyway...

Can someone who knows how to play this game take a look at this game and tell me if my latest move was the correct thing to do?

http://brainking.com/game/ShowGame?g=864260

I have never seen it a BAD THING TO DO TO BLOCK SOMEONE IN THE KITCHEN LIKE THIS, BUT IT SEEMS i JUST MIGHT HAVE MADE MY SITUATION WORSE?

Jason and I have this one going .. http://brainking.com/en/ShowGame?g=370322

. - if I may determine the rolls for my opponent, I'd certainly need
good software to make the probability of all my winning unconspicious ... ... ~*~

it's actually not too bad, i played a 300 mover with qusar but it can get nuts. I heard there's one over on IYT that started in 2003 and is over 1000 moves, ongoing.

I'm glad I never started an anti-backgammon game.

Oh, and in case anyone wants to look at all current games:

http://brainking.com/en/StartedGameList?bms=0&tp=25

BIG BAD WOLF: huh, may be someone should create 30 days per move prize tournament with 1000$ prize. May be some would even survive until the end

BIG BAD WOLF: I guess if i and BBW play such a long AntiBackgammon game, with our regular super-quick play, we will finish when the sun becomes a red giant............!

Honorable mention (still going):

http://brainking.com/en/ShowGame?g=560197

And even a little longer then the one in the previous post (still ongoing also):

http://brainking.com/en/ShowGame?g=751978

Still going:

http://brainking.com/en/ShowGame?g=370322

Damn! 550 moves????????
This is boring of fun........?

I am wondering what was the longest anti backgammon game here so far, without prolonging for purpose. I found so far: http://brainking.com/en/ArchivedGame?g=353288
It was resigned so it would last few moves more. I know Fencer can find the longest game with one simple database operation

Thanks, I'll let you know. I may change the OS first. :)

If you are obsessed of having GNUBG i can e-mail you an old but VERY STABLE version of it. It has almost the same strength (the newer one is a little stronger) but not the newest great graphics and all the fancy things! Comparing the old with new:
Old strength = 98
New strength = 100
Old total features and graphics = 12
New total features and graphics = 100

The whole package is arounf 12 MB so my e-mail will compain with a dial-up connection but if you want it, i can send it..........?!?!?!??!

pgt: I'm on Windows 2000, which is notoriously crappy for playing games. Time to upgrade to a real operating system it seems.

Send an email to the mailing list.
http://www.gnubg.org/index.php?itemid=11
I got quick and helpful response from 2 members of the gnubg team when I used it.

grenv: I've run it on a laptop with XP SP2 with no problems.

I have the same problem. After 5-10 minutes and when i'm trying to maximize the window it crushes!
When i asked what is the possible cause of the problem they said: update your graphic card and get Windows XP! (I have ME)

Well I'm on a laptop, so the graphics card is probably strange. Anyway I've tried about a million settings changes etc etc and it crashes every time. Pity, it seems like a good game - I guess I'll never know.

Yes it doesn't........But some graphic cards probably don't "fit" with it......
Of course there are millions of other possible reasons that it doesn't run.......

Windows 2000 SP3. The game doesn't seem like one that needs a great graphics card.

What Windows version are you using........?
This is most probably a graphic card problem......

So I downloaded this software and tried playing, but it hangs after about 10 moves and the only way out is shutting it down from the Task Manager. Anyone else experience that?

All about gnubg

No, I didn't...I didn't even know it was possible...it's the first game-playing program I've ever used...LOL

Did you save the games..........?
No! (I guess--All beginners with a program don't save nothing!)

Chessmaster1000: It says "expert"... *shrugs*
Now I lost 5-2...intermediate...

I have to add that winning 12 straight 5-point matches against GNUBG in a level of more than Advanced (Expert or more) would make you the best Backgammon player on the galaxy with a huge difference from the 2nd. With few words: It's impossible!
So i guess you played with Intermediate or something like that........

<Go to SETTINGS->PLAYERS and choose Player 0 or 1 depending on where the GNUBG was playing (The other normally would say human).
Then see the Checker play what setting it has........(Expert, Advanced, Beginner.....,etc)

I have no idea what settings I have it on..I just clicked new game, set it to 5-point matches and played...where can I see the level of the computer?

I have just finished another two 5-point mathces, won both of them but now it shows that in the first one, I was playing like and Intermediate (? the Czech translation of the program is not so good so I hope it's intermediate) and like a World Class in the other one...no very bad moves this time but a few bad moves...it seems that the number of "very bad moves" is decisive as for the final determination of your level of playing...

Pedro Martínez: What settings do you have it on? As installed it plays weaker than it's capable of. However, ten 5-point matches is still hot stuff.

I usually advise people to set Supremo for Chequer play and World Class for Cube decisions in both Settings/Analysis and Settings/Evaluation. Go higher if you have plenty of patience or a stonking fast machine.

Don't forget to do Settings/Save settings afterwards otherwise it will lose the changes when you exit.

You won 10 5-point matches???????? WOW! Interesting...... And it says you play like a beginner? So your luck should be huge in these 10 5-point games! But this is really impossible (or very difficult) to have in at least 50 games, a huge luck........
On what level GNUBG was playing........? It offers a strong opponent at Expert, World class and above. Advanced or below is just bad (or not so good)..........

Pedro Martínez: Try the tutor mode. It will point out your errors while you're playing. Make sure the settings are decent.

Pedro Martínez: Keep at it, you will get better....

LOL, I have downloaded the gnubg program, played 10 5-point games with it, won all of them and the session analysis tells me I'm playing like a beginner, marking 1 or two of my moves in each game as very bad...interesting...a lot of stuff to learn I suppose...

Czuch Chuckers: A program would absolutely help a player. Because of the dice, a poor player could beat a great player (such as a the programs snowie and gnubg) in a single game. But in the long term a program will have way better results than the rest of us.

I saw where Fencer said that it is okay to play with/ use programs on this site, and that programs would not help in dice games anyway.

Is this true? It seems to me that it is possible for a program to help in a backgammon game.... just because it uses dice does not mean that the game is decided soley on luck...

AbigailII: thanks!!!

Hrqls: Read the articles at http://www.bkgm.com/rgb/rgb.cgi?menu+matchplay

frolind: ah thats a nicer way to look at it indeed :)

what are the differences in tactics whith an odd number of points from the finish or an even number of points ?

do you want to main an odd number away ?

Hrqls: The score affects your play. 0-0 in a match to 4 is equivalent to to 1-1 in a match to 5, or 55-55 in a match to 59. So when talking about a score we often say 4away-4away, making the length irrelevant.

Odd match lengths are the most common, both online and offline. I don't know why.

lovelysharon: true .. you are correct .. glad he didnt backgammon me :) *phew*

(although it wouldnt have mattered for the match ... just for my pride ;))

why are most matches an odd number of points ... yesterday i played a match (and 2 rematches) with someone for 4 points .. does that change the tactics a lot ?

Hrqls:

and if one of your pieces is stuck in your opponents home when he bears off ... its a backgammon and worth 3 points or 3 times the cube value ... your description of 2 pts is called a gammon

frolind: thanks ... a good read ... have to calculate the chances when i have a bit more time .. so i can fully understand .. nice link :)

Hrqls: http://xfriis.dk/maxfriis/bg/double.html

i learned something new for the cube!!!

i always offered a double when i was in the lead .. and sometimes to get a psychological advantage :)

but now i had my opponent in the lead .. and wondered why he didnt offer a double (he was at 2 points in a 4 points match) ... of course i would have declined as he was far in the lead .. bringing the score to 3 points for him

it turned out he was more experienced than me .. as i didnt offer the double .. but played the game to the end .. and backgammoned me to get 2 points to win the match

so for all other people who start playing with the cube ... the cube isnt the only way to get 2 points ... you can also finish before your opponent has a piece off the board .. and thereby win 2 points :)

frolind: i was confused at first as well .. but noticed when i read the pages :)

thanks