Comments by CarlosCetina

The problem happens not only with Open Invitations but also with Personal Invitations, such as those recently launched by Tim O'Lena:

Error: The logfile at ../pbmlogs/bear_chess/tim_olena-playtester-2023-343-632.php is missing, or something is misspelled

Error: The logfile at ../pbmlogs/bear_chess/tim_olena-alienum-2023-343-635.php is missing, or something is misspelled.

Error: The logfile at ../pbmlogs/mccooeys_hexagonal_chess/tim_olena-bosa60-2023-343-637.php is missing, or something is misspelled.

Error: The logfile at ../pbmlogs/mccooeys_hexagonal_chess/tim_olena-sissa-2023-343-641.php is missing, or something is misspelled.

With so many cases, it is evident that there is some bug in the Game Courier software. And it is probably related to the fact that since several days ago the logs of finished games have been duplicated, and when trying to review or print them, the software warns of the same type of error: "the logfile is missing, or something is misspelled". See, for example, this: https://www.chessvariants.com/play/pbm/play.php?game=Pocket%2BMutation%2BChess&log=olbog-gwduke-2006-234-653

@HG:

I'm sorry. Bothering you again. In the Symmetric Sissa preset (which was edited using the Play-test applet) the software does not properly declare checkmate for either side (white or blue); instead it warns on a new page:

Please report any bugs or errors to H.G. Muller

blue wins

Use your browser's BACK button to go back to the previous page, then reload if necessary.

For general reference, here is the complete list of moves:

1. P h2-h3
1...n h8-i6
2. A g1-h2
2...n i6-h8
3. A h2-c7

If this is your settings file, you may edit it at https://www.chessvariants.com/play/pbm/play.php?game=Symmetric+Sissa&settings=9x8-enforced&submit=Edit

Apart from this problem, the preset works perfectly fine. I don't think I made any mistakes when applying the Play-test applet.

I have confirmed that the problem has been resolved. Thank you very much HG and Fergus.

@HG:

It seems that there is a bug in the Coherent Chess preset (which was edited using the Play-test applet), since upon reaching the position shown in the following diagram the software declares checkmate after 11... Sh7+, it being evident that White can block the check with either 12.Bh5, 12.Qh6, 12.Qg3 or 12.Qf2.

This critical position can be accessed by following these movements:

1.Gfg3    Ggg7
2.Gdc3   Qh7
3.G2h3   Qxe4
4.Gf3      Qg6
5.Gi4      Qxg1
6.Qxg1   Sc7
7.Ge4      Sxi4
8.G2d3   Bh4
9.Bc5       Bxf2+
10.Qxf2   Gfe7
11.Qe3     Sh7+

Could you please take a look at this? Thanks in advance!

I could not try anything out myself; if I follow the link to the preset page, it doesn't allow me to enter any move; if I click the highlighted destination square it just reverts to the (unhighlighted) original position. Probably because I am not one of the players.

Thanks for answering, HG. I was waiting for an answer from Fergus to your question. Apparently he didn't see it. What you are referring to is somewhat strange, since anyone who accesses the Sissa Chess preset must be able to reach the critical position in which the bug arises using the "MOVE pieces by yourself" resource, carrying out the following movements:

1. P e2-e4     P e7-e5
2. P d2-d4     P e5-d4
3. Q d1-d4     N b8-c6
4. Q d4-a4     P f7-f5
5. P e4-f5      P d7-d5
6. Q a4-i4      N h8-f7
7. S f1-d5      N c6-e7
8. Q i4-a4      S d8-c6
9. S d5-c5

Checking all the possible legal moves of the Blue side one by one, I found that the software rejects all but two: 9... B c8-d7 and 9... P b7-b5.

Curiously, both moves fall on the a4-e8 diagonal, with which the mystery of what causes the bug becomes more acute.

Does this give you any clues about what's going on?

@HG:

Could you please take a look at the problem before mentioned in this comment thread? Thanks in advance!

Thank you Kevin. Playing the game using the "PLAY someone at the same location" resource, I actually find said message. I don't know if the bug is related to the fact that the following alert appears at the top of the page:

Your FEN Code has fewer ranks than are indicated in Rank Labels.

EDIT: I just corrected the discrepancy in the Rank Labels so the alert has disappeared but the bug remains.

Could you please specify what the software "says"? Since the preset was edited using HG Muller's Play-Test Applet, we're going to need him to help us. I hope he finds out about this message.

@HG

When trying to reinforce the Sissa Chess preset rules using the Play-test applet, I get stuck with the conversion parameter: something is wrong with it. The conversion rule does not fully apply, since if I normally move a bishop, the other would necessarily convert on its first move, which does not happen. The same thing happens in reverse.

Could you please take a look at this issue to try to see what's going on?

You commented on this matter on 2021-12-01:

All that is now required is define the bishop with an extra initial iW move, and add a parameter conversion=N, where N is the number of the piece table of the piece to which the rule applies. (So here N=3). The first moves of pieces of this type are then forced to go to different square shades.

Where does it come from that 3 is the number that corresponds to the bishop?

Thanks in advance for your help.

I think I made the adjustments you indicated correctly, however something must be wrong since the bishops lost the W option when they start on squares of the same color. It strangely happens that after moving one of them, the other can no longer be moved at all.

Now that the Asymmetric-Enforced preset is accessible, it seems that the added code 

set b1 findpiece B first spaces;
set b2 findpiece B last spaces;
if & 1 - file b1 file b2:
  setflag #b1;
  setflag #b2;
endif;
set b1 findpiece b first spaces;
set b2 findpiece b last spaces;
if & 1 - file b1 file b2:
  setflag #b1;
  setflag #b2;
endif;

is not having an effect since the conversion rule is not fulfilled. I await further instructions.

Okay. I have changed, in the two presets that I am using for testings, the definitions of B and b according to your instructions, being like this:

def B cond #0 (cond flag var ori 104 cond == 1 var wstart 104 cond var wstart 124 104) 0;

def b cond #0 (cond flag var ori 104 cond == 1 var bstart 104 cond var bstart 124 104) 0;

I repeat the links to the mentioned presets:

asymmetric-enforced does not have the code you pointed out added; it isn't broken but the conversion rule is not fully fulfilled.

Asymmetric-Enforced does have added the code but it's broken.

I wish Fergus could take a look at this matter.

OK, I found a solution to the shuffle problem. At the end of the PreGame section, add the code

set b1 findpiece B first spaces;
set b2 findpiece B last spaces;
if & 1 - file b1 file b2:
  setflag #b1;
  setflag #b2;
endif;
set b1 findpiece b first spaces;
set b2 findpiece b last spaces;
if & 1 - file b1 file b2:
  setflag #b1;
  setflag #b2;
endif;

This will mark both Bishops as non-virgin in the starting position when their distance is an odd number of squares (i.e. when they are already on different shades). And non-virgin Bishops can never use the Wazir move.

 

Something is still wrong since after adding that code I get a blank page saying only

Please report any bugs or errors to H.G. Muller

I am doing the tests with two settings names:

asymmetric-enforced  does not have the code you pointed out added.

Asymmetric-Enforced does have added the code.

Both have functions B, b defined as

def B cond #0 104 0;

def b cond #0 104 0;

What are we going to do with the following lines?

def B cond #0 (cond flag var ori BBB cond == 1 var wstart BBB cond var wstart WWW BWBWBW) 0;

def b cond #0 (cond flag var ori BBB cond == 1 var bstart BBB cond var bstart WWW BWBWBW) 0;

Will we not use them?

It seems you have removed the lines, and the error has now disappeared. What are BBB, WWW and BWBWBW supposed to be anyway? They did not seem to be defined anywhere; their only occurrence was in those two functions.

I copied and pasted those lines from the following paragraph taken from A Wizard for Game-Code Generation:

Another example where this technique can be useful is the Bishop Conversion Rule. This rule specifies Bishops can move on their initial move as either a Bishop or Wazir, but the two Bishops cannot start in the same way. One way to implement that is by having separate definitions of a Bishop, a Wazir and their compound in the legdefs table, and let the Bishop function dynamically decide for virgin Bishops which of the definitions to use. You would need an extra variable for each player to remember whether one of the possibilities has already been used up by the other Bishop, and if so, which one. If nothing has been done yet, a virgin Bishop moves like the compound. But if a Wazir move was done, it should move like a Bishop, and vice versa. Non-virgin Bishops would always move like a Bishop.

// in the Pre-Game section:
set many wstart 0 bstart 0; // indicate no Bishop has moved yet
// in the Post-Move sections, after the gosub HandleMove
if == B #mover and not flag #ori:                // a virgin Bishop moved
set wstart cond checkleap #ori #desti 0 1 1 2; // 1 = as Wazir, 2 = as Bishop
endif;

That is for the Post-Move 1 section (white moves); in Post-Move 2 you would use b and bstart instead of B and wstart. The 'flag' on a square tells you whether the piece on there has moved before, mover, ori and desti are the label for the piece that moved, the origin square and the destination square, respectively, all left by HandleMove. You can then change functions B and b in the Pre-Game code to

def B cond #0 (cond flag var ori BBB cond == 1 var wstart BBB cond var wstart WWW BWBWBW) 0;

and a similar function for black, where BBB, WWW and BWBWBW are the index of the Bishop, Wazir and BW compound moves in legdefs. The expression between parentheses would return BBB when the flag on the square of origin was set (meaning this Bishop had moved before, so that it should keep moving as a Bishop), or when wstart=1 (meaning the other Bishop has already started as a Wazir). Otherwise, when wstart=0 it returns the index for the moves of the compound (as this then is the first Bishop we move in this game), and if none of that is the case, it moves like a Wazir (as the other Bishop must have started as a Bishop, wstart=2).

 

The error disappear when removing those lines but now the conversion rule is broken. You can check it by clicking here and doing some moves by using the "PLAY someone at the same location" resource.