Valentín's website update thread - comments and appreciation

[J-F Garnier]

If you are regularly monitoring the publication of Valentin's archives, you may have noticed the mention of "Easter eggs" in the updates.
And if you are keeping track of the file updates, you surely noticed that the "Easter eggs" files are not part of the "Latest Additions" list.

I don't know what Valentin exactly means by "Easter eggs" (maybe is it a challenge to find them :-)
but some basic arithmetic may help here:
The update #36 says "There's now 1,042 files available ..."
but HP Calculators (460 files)
+ HP Computers (18 files)
+ Sharp Pocket Computers (112 files)
+ Other Brands (67 files)
+ Assorted Miscellaneous (215 files)
make 872 files.
Obviously, there is more than we can see (if we trust arithmetic of course :-)

I was able to locate a few extra links, some are not part of my main interests but others are nice reminiscences of the time when I started programming on a PC.

There is something in the latest update that I (as a HP-71B addict) can see as a true Easter egg:
in the section HP Book Covers, the file HP-71B Manual del Usuario has been updated and now includes a HP sheet (in english) about the bug of version 2CCCC.
The bug itself is already known and described in the same terms on my HP-71B bug page (from a HPX publication), but it's the first time I see the official HP sheet.

So Easter eggs or not, it's worth the effort to explore Valentin's huge material !

J-F

[Edit: removed the now pointless PS].

[Ángel Martin]

I'm probably missing the point completely but the ARTICLES Forum could have been a better place; the postings there seem to have the desired attributes: can't be replied to, yet they can be updated by the original author - to include those site updates announcements... no?

ÁM

[EdS2]

(01-21-2022 12:10 PM)Ángel Martin Wrote:  ... the ARTICLES Forum could have been a better place; the postings there seem to have the desired attributes: can't be replied to, yet they can be updated by the original author - to include those site updates announcements... no?

Interesting thought. I think it solves half the problem - the wish to publish without the clutter of various conversations following. But it doesn't solve the other half - the wish to get positive feedback about the post and the work behind it.

It feels to me that if you want a conversation, you need to allow for, and facilitate, and encourage a conversation.

[EdS2]

(01-21-2022 09:10 AM)J-F Garnier Wrote:  If you are regularly monitoring the publication of Valentin's archives, you may have noticed the mention of "Easter eggs" in the updates.

Interesting notes... one way to look at this, perhaps, is that the Easter egg is a puzzle, a challenge to the reader. And like all puzzles, it will need to be easy enough to be solved, but difficult enough to be rewarding. One solution to that balance, which we see in these forums a lot, is to follow the puzzle, after some time, with a hint or two, and then after that, perhaps a more direct pointer to the solution.

In this way, the audience is trained on the style of puzzle being presented, and over time more people might tackle and solve the puzzles.

[Eddie W. Shore]

Always grateful for Valentin's website.

[Valentin Albillo]

.
Hi, all,

J-F Garnier Wrote:I don't know what Valentin exactly means by "Easter eggs" (maybe is it a challenge to find them :-)

That's the idea. Easter eggs usually feature items (always documents or images, never anything executable) which would be somehow out of place relative to the regular content of my site, so only a non-descript link to them is given for each somewhere, no thumbnail, title, description or data of any sort, just the unassuming link.

The idea is to have a little fun locating them if interested, Pokémon-style: " Gotta Catch ‘Em All ! "

J-F Garnier Wrote:I was able to locate a few extra links, some are not part of my main interests but others are nice reminiscences of the time when I started programming on a PC.

Hehe, I sure can guess which are the former and which are the latter.

J-F Garnier Wrote:There is something in the latest update that I (as a HP-71B addict) can see as a true Easter egg: in the section HP Book Covers, the file HP-71B Manual del Usuario has been updated and now includes a HP sheet (in english) about the bug of version 2CCCC. [...] it's the first time I see the official HP sheet.

I'm glad that you found it interesting for you though that's not an Easter egg, as it's clearly mentioned in the description for that item, "HP Book Covers - HP-71 Manual del Usuario".

J-F Garnier Wrote:So Easter eggs or not, it's worth the effort to explore Valentin's huge material !

Thank you very much, J-F, I'll buy you dinner next time we meet. Perhaps it's hard to believe but J-F's the very first post that comments on some item on my site, at long last after many months and 1,046 available files.

J-F Garnier Wrote:Edit: removed the now pointless PS

Thank you very much as well for pointing that error. It sure surprised me, because I thoroughly check every new update to make sure all's Ok but that one slipped by. Corrected now, of course.

Ángel Martín Wrote:I'm probably missing the point completely but the ARTICLES Forum could have been a better place; the postings there seem to have the desired attributes: can't be replied to, yet they can be updated by the original author - to include those site updates announcements... no?

The Articles forum is wholly inadequate for my materials for a number of reasons, but the main one is that it doesn't allow for PDF documents, which are essential for the correct formatting and the inclusion of in-document images (among other elements) that most of my articles feature.

In the very distant past I asked Mr. Hicks to allow PDFs, several times, but to no avail so I discarded that possibility for good, which actually was for the better. Much better.

EdS2 Wrote:But it doesn't solve the other half - the wish to get positive feedback about the post and the work behind it.

Actually, nothing solves that. And for the record, it's not just positive feedback but any kind thereof.

EdS2 Wrote:It feels to me that if you want a conversation, you need to allow for, and facilitate, and encourage a conversation.

My bad, then. Just as the wifey's often says ! ... It doesn't work, EdS2, no matter what I do I wouldn't succeed: "The times, they're a'changing".

And there's this very thread (which I explicitly mention and link to in my site's Main page,) where everyone could post, comment and engage in conversation should they want to but nearly none do. Actually, until J-F's post above, it was just "none".

EdS2 Wrote:one way to look at this, perhaps, is that the Easter egg is a puzzle, a challenge to the reader. And like all puzzles, it will need to be easy enough to be solved, but difficult enough to be rewarding. One solution to that balance, which we see in these forums a lot, is to follow the puzzle, after some time, with a hint or two, and then after that, perhaps a more direct pointer to the solution. In this way, the audience is trained on the style of puzzle being presented, and over time more people might tackle and solve the puzzles.

An Easter egg is not a "puzzle" and so it doesn't have a "solution". It's simply some item not having a thumbnail, title or description, which you have to find, if interested, the "reward" being the item itself. And unlike real chocolate Easter eggs, your finding it doesn't preclude others doing as well.

Eddie W. Shore Wrote:Always grateful for Valentin's website.

Thanks a lot for you continued interest and always kind words, Eddie, much appreciated !

Regards.
V.

[Garry Lancaster]

As a new forum member, I'd like to add my appreciation for the great resource provided by your site, Valentin.

I have found much to enjoy there, even as a relatively recent convert to the wonders of HP RPN calculators - having initially found my way in via the SwissMicros DM16L recreation of the HP-16C - a calculator I never knew existed but always wanted

[Fernando del Rey]

Valentin has recently issued Update #38 to his website, bringing his “Project HAM” to near-90% completion.

This update features a new bunch of Vintage Letters that are a joy to read and bring back the fondest memories from the heyday of programmable calculators. Highly recommended!

There is also a quite interesting article titled “Once Upon a Pocket: Programmable Calculators from the Late 1970s and Early 1980s and the Social Networks Around Them” that many members of this forum will surely enjoy reading.

I must personally thank Valentin for scanning and publishing some of the programs I wrote for the HP-55 and HP-67, considering how minuscule they are compared to his own monumental work.

[Ángel Martin]

here's the link to the article mentioned above:

https://albillo.hpcalc.org/scans/HP%20Ra...Pocket.pdf

[EdS2]

Thanks, both - this is a good thread to use for this purpose!

[EdS2]

Just to note that Valentín has (as he said he would) continued to post updates and to note them in this last post of his announcement thread:
[VA] New updates available in my HP site

(But I for one have not made a habit or set up a mechanism for checking... perhaps we can note those updates here, when we notice them. Right now, Update 39 is the most recent.)

[pier4r]

Interesting the chess section with tests again the chess engines of the time (with the hw of the time too) https://albillo.hpcalc.org/files/misc/chesstests

It reminds me of the modern suits for current engines (that are much more monstrous but do not yet solve everything quickly): see https://www.chessprogramming.org/Test-Positions . Further related to that, the program Mater, mentioned in the chess page was also programmed for the 71B (although in a more compact way): https://albillo.hpcalc.org/articles/HP%2...0Mater.pdf

[Valentin Albillo]

.
Hi, pier4r and all of you chess lovers,

(03-17-2023 11:06 PM)pier4r Wrote:  Interesting the chess section with tests again the chess engines of the time (with the hw of the time too) https://albillo.hpcalc.org/files/misc/chesstests

Thanks for your appreciation, pier4r, here are some highlights from my site's Chess Tests Section:

Among the Basic Suite test positions, Position 38.- A. Herbstmann, 1954, White to play and win: 1. Ka3-b2 !!, was most difficult at the time (ca. 1998,) taking Crafty 12.9 running on a Pentium 100 some 34 hours to find (and 50 hours to evaluate) this unique winning move.

Out of curiosity, I did try this position using more modern hardware/software (namely Stockfish running on a 12-year-old iPad 2) and it found the correct move Kb2 at 24 plies in 32 seconds (i.e. 3,800x faster,) evaluating it as +11.9, i.e. clearly seeing it as a winning move. By the time 28 plies are reached the evaluation improves to +19.5.

Other remarkable Sections and exciting particular test positions include:

Bizarre positions

Bizarre Positions is an amazing Suite Extension where you'll find only absolutely weird positions nowhere else to be found ! For us Computer Chess fans, you'll see that some of these positions stress the chess engines to their limits, and even can help discover latent bugs.


74.- "Melee", proposed by Valentin Albillo, 1997, White to play and mate in 8: h7xg8=N !!

75.- "The Ring", proposed by Valentin Albillo, 1998, White to play and mate in 12: 1. f7-f8=Q


Heiner Marxen tried this position on his own special mate-searcher, CHEST, and was able to solve it, demonstrating that it is a mate in 12 (and no less) in some 31 hours.

The Never Concept

The Never Concept refers to a situation or action that a human chess player can perfectly see and understand that it will never happen, yet a computer chess program is absolutely unaware of this and can easily misevaluate the position completely, thus committing serious and even fatal errors, even if searching to extreme depths.

82.- V. Chekhover, 1952, White to play and draw

Unsolved positions

91.- "Mate the Royal Couple" - Proposed by V. Albillo, White to play and mate in 12

I thought (but couldn't prove) it was a mate in 12 but as you'll see in the Addendum 2020, chess fan Vincent Lejeune used ChessMaster 9000 in 2003 to try and solve this position and found that e4 is a mate in 11 !

92.- "Surrounded" - Proposed by V. Albillo, White to play and mate in 12 (?)


Still unsolved, AFAIK.

Chess Book Reviews

Over the decades I've built quite a decent library of chess books and more than 20 years ago I did review some of the best, with an emphasis in (but not limited to) Computer Chess, uploading the reviews to a chess-related website of mine ("Chess Tests"). Each review includes a position taken from the particular book and tackled with the programs of that time period, with comments.

Acknowledgements

Here's a sample from the Acknowledgements Section:

"Robert Hyatt, renowned author of world-class chess programs Cray Blitz and freeware Crafty, whose versions 12.6, 12.7, 12.8, 12.9 and 13.3 are extensively tested on this site, sent me kind e-mails, pointing several interesting things about some of my test positions, as well as listings with Crafty 13.3 analysis for some of them.

You can see them in the Addenda at Test 01, 05, 12, 13, 16, 17, 19, 22, 29, 30, 33 and B03. Also, all the results he submitted are identified in the tables with this marker [HYATT]. Many thanks, Robert."

pier4r Wrote:Further related to that, the program Mater, mentioned in the chess page was also programmed for the 71B (although in a more compact way): https://albillo.hpcalc.org/articles/HP%2...0Mater.pdf

Yes, these are the highlights of the full MATER program, as featured in my chess site:

MATER - A simple Mate Searching Program

MATER is a simple mate searching program, implemented as an MS-DOS command. Given a legal position in FEN notation, the side to move, and the maximum number of moves to give mate, it will search and output either a move which gives mate in that number of moves or less, or the fact that there's no such move.

Main features:

● Full legal move generation, including full legal castling, en passant pawn captures and underpromotions.

● Can find mates in any number of moves, up to 64, subject to available memory and time.

● Can find general mates or mates in which the mating side only gives checks. This is useful for finding much quicker long sequences of checks that end in mate.

● Accepts positions in FEN notation, and checks them for legality and syntax.

● Searches for mates recursively, and thus always finds the shortest posible mate.

● The search can be halted inmediately at any moment, simply pressing any key.

● Outputs the first move that gives the required mate, or the fact that one doesn't exist.

● Shows progress for each iteration, including time taken.

● Outputs final total time, as well as nodes examined.

Documentation and 8 awesome examples

Turbo Pascal source code, fully commented, includes a move generator which allows for castling, en passant pawn captures and underpromotions.

A sample of the Turbo Pascal source code:

PROCEDURE GenerateMoves

(*
generates moves for a given side. Options permit generation of all moves or a single move, full legal moves or pseudo-legal (own king may be left under check), etc.

All chess rules are implemented, including all five rules for legal castling, promotions, underpromotions, and en passant captures
*)

Note to readers: Please post any comments to any of this in a separate thread. Thank you.

Enough. Thanks for your appreciation, pier4r, and for posting about this Section.

Best regards.
V.

[pier4r]

Thank you for the overview!

(04-22-2023 03:36 PM)Valentin Albillo Wrote:  Unsolved positions

91.- "Mate the Royal Couple" - Proposed by V. Albillo, White to play and mate in 12

I thought (but couldn't prove) it was a mate in 12 but as you'll see in the Addendum 2020, chess fan Vincent Lejeune used ChessMaster 9000 in 2003 to try and solve this position and found that e4 is a mate in 11 !

92.- "Surrounded" - Proposed by V. Albillo, White to play and mate in 12 (?)


Still unsolved, AFAIK.

Neat problems there!

[floppy]

Is there any HP71B Forth area? (looking for root finding words)

[Valentin Albillo]

.
Hi, floppy,

(02-02-2024 03:55 PM)floppy Wrote:  Is there any HP71B Forth area? (looking for root finding words)

Sorry but no, RPL code and perhaps some FORTH code (not sure) do appear in the replies in the sections HP Calculator Challenges and Selected Threads.

Thanks for your interest.
V.

[jdd]

Hi Valentin,

First
About the Sharp pc-1360, you wrote:
Regrettably, the manual is in German so I could make neither heads nor tails about the customized program's purpose
Can you provide a scan of the manual ? Did you try a automatic translation?

Second,
Is there a living project to save programs from PC-1402 to sd-card or to a PC via BT?

Regards,
jdd