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Testing the limits of nactation

Posted By: Timothy Chow
Date: Wednesday, 5 January 2011, at 1:37 a.m.

In Response To: Testing the limits of nactation (Matt Ryder)

In case it wasn't clear, I have no problem with nactation in general and think it's a great invention. The statement I made that started this subthread was that I gave up on trying to track all the rules that Nack continues to reveal in piecemeal fashion, because they seemed too ad hoc and unsystematic. In the course of this discussion, Nack has admitted that he hasn't publicized all the rules yet, so I'll back off from my complaints about the full system until it is released. At the same time I still see scant motivation for studying each little ad hoc rule as it appears, unless I see some evidence that the full system is both comprehensive and comprehensible.

I posted my example with 637 legal moves because Nack specifically said I should feel free to come up with a realistic position with a non-triple-whopper move that seemed to defy nactation. Also I wanted to illustrate what I meant by a systematic method. In order to nactate 637 or 1637 plays, one really needs to be extremely careful and precise about what the rules are. If one builds the system by handling new issues one at a time as they arise, then the risk of a contradictory or incomplete set of rules is quite high. At minimum, the full set of rules will be very complicated and difficult for anyone to master. Anyone who has worked on a large software project that has been revised over and over again and is swarming with bugs knows what I'm talking about.

None of this is meant to detract from the value of nactation for the opening. It's just to sound a warning about problems that are likely to materialize as the system becomes more and more ambitious, if it is not carefully planned in advance.

Messages In This Thread

• How to nactate 52S-54-g 13/9 8/3*
  Philip Cherrington -- Monday, 3 January 2011, at 4:04 p.m.
  • How to nactate 52S-54-g 13/9 8/3*
    Timothy Chow -- Monday, 3 January 2011, at 5:16 p.m.
    • How to nactate 52S-54-g 13/9 8/3*
      Nack Ballard -- Monday, 3 January 2011, at 7:51 p.m.
      • How to nactate 52S-54-g 13/9 8/3*
        Timothy Chow -- Tuesday, 4 January 2011, at 12:03 a.m.
        • How to nactate 52S-54-g 13/9 8/3*
          Nack Ballard -- Tuesday, 4 January 2011, at 1:42 a.m.
          • How to nactate 52S-54-g 13/9 8/3*
            Matt Ryder -- Tuesday, 4 January 2011, at 4:51 a.m.
            • How to nactate 52S-54-g 13/9 8/3*
              Nack Ballard -- Tuesday, 4 January 2011, at 6:15 a.m.
              • How to nactate 52S-54-g 13/9 8/3*
                Matt Ryder -- Tuesday, 4 January 2011, at 8:21 p.m.
                • Assumption in Nactation
                  Nack Ballard -- Tuesday, 4 January 2011, at 11:41 p.m.
                  • Assumption in Nactation
                    Matt Ryder -- Thursday, 6 January 2011, at 6:06 a.m.
                    • Assumption in Nactation
                      Nack Ballard -- Thursday, 6 January 2011, at 8:47 a.m.
                • How to nactate 52S-54-g 13/9 8/3*
                  Stick -- Wednesday, 5 January 2011, at 11:20 a.m.
                  • How to nactate 52S-54-g 13/9 8/3*
                    Timothy Chow -- Wednesday, 5 January 2011, at 3:53 p.m.
                    • How to nactate 52S-54-g 13/9 8/3*
                      Nack Ballard -- Wednesday, 5 January 2011, at 9:22 p.m.
              • Nactating irregular doublets
                Matt Ryder -- Sunday, 9 January 2011, at 7:41 a.m.
                • Nactating irregular doublets
                  Nack Ballard -- Sunday, 9 January 2011, at 6:43 p.m.
                • Nactating irregular doublets
                  Nack Ballard -- Monday, 10 January 2011, at 4:49 a.m.
                  • Thanks Nack! *NM*
                    Matt Ryder -- Tuesday, 11 January 2011, at 3:57 a.m.
          • Testing the limits of nactation
            Timothy Chow -- Tuesday, 4 January 2011, at 3:15 p.m.
            • Testing the limits of nactation
              Casper van der Tak -- Tuesday, 4 January 2011, at 4:20 p.m.
              • Testing the limits of nactation/ STICK question on search
                Bob Koca -- Wednesday, 5 January 2011, at 7:24 p.m.
                • Most number of legal plays?
                  Tom Keith -- Thursday, 6 January 2011, at 2:41 p.m.
                  • Most number of legal plays?
                    Casper van der Tak -- Thursday, 6 January 2011, at 2:49 p.m.
                  • Most number of legal plays?
                    eXtreme Gammon -- Thursday, 6 January 2011, at 3:09 p.m.
            • Testing the limits of nactation
              Matt Ryder -- Tuesday, 4 January 2011, at 7:39 p.m.
              • Testing the limits of nactation
                Timothy Chow -- Wednesday, 5 January 2011, at 1:37 a.m.
                • Testing the limits of nactation
                  Matt Ryder -- Wednesday, 5 January 2011, at 6:25 a.m.
                  • Testing the limits of nactation
                    Timothy Chow -- Wednesday, 5 January 2011, at 3:47 p.m.
                    • Testing the limits of nactation
                      Nack Ballard -- Wednesday, 5 January 2011, at 10:53 p.m.
                    • Testing the limits of nactation
                      Matt Ryder -- Thursday, 6 January 2011, at 5:30 a.m.
            • Testing the limits of Nactation
              Nack Ballard -- Tuesday, 4 January 2011, at 9:42 p.m.
            • Testing the limits of nactation
              Christian Munk-Christensen -- Wednesday, 5 January 2011, at 7:49 a.m.
  • How to nactate 52S-54-g 13/9 8/3*
    Nack Ballard -- Monday, 3 January 2011, at 5:32 p.m.
    • How to nactate 52S-54-g 13/9 8/3*
      Nack Ballard -- Monday, 3 January 2011, at 7:34 p.m.
  • Why use Nactation?
    leobueno -- Sunday, 16 January 2011, at 4:49 p.m.
    • Why use Nactation?
      Timothy Chow -- Sunday, 16 January 2011, at 5:24 p.m.
    • Why use Nactation?
      Rich Munitz -- Sunday, 16 January 2011, at 5:48 p.m.
    • Why use Nactation?
      Nack Ballard -- Sunday, 16 January 2011, at 5:50 p.m.
      • Why use Nactation?
        Art Grater -- Friday, 21 January 2011, at 7:56 p.m.
        • Why use Nactation?
          Nack Ballard -- Friday, 21 January 2011, at 9:07 p.m.
    • Why use Nactation?
      Tom Keith -- Sunday, 16 January 2011, at 6:46 p.m.
    • Why use Nactation? / backgammon informator
      higonefive -- Sunday, 16 January 2011, at 7:24 p.m.
    • Why use Nactation?
      Frank Berger -- Monday, 17 January 2011, at 9:42 p.m.