[pbmserv-dev] Re: [pbmserv] Looking for games: Go, Chess, Terrace, Hex

[Paul van Wamelen <wamelen@math.lsu.edu>]

Let's move this discussion to the pbmserv-dev list...

On Fri, 2 Dec 2005, Ezequiel Martín Cámara wrote:

> > > I can do PHP. Who is doing the development in http://www.gamerz.net/pbmserv/?
>
> > wamelen is in charge of that part.

fritzd on the server

>
> Is there anyone collaborating with him on that, or maybe he prefers to
> do it alone?

No, I don't want to do it alone! There are already other people also doing
work (sharkey, morat) and a few more have expressed interest. There seems
to be a lot of interest in some type of tournament system. Even more so
now that the abstracta marathon has died an untimely death. (what ever
happened!!!???).

> Does the application have access to the player/game database, or just
> asks for the information through emails?

It does have access to everything the c++ code has access to. I strongly
believe that whatever is done along these lines should not be purely web
based. gamerz is at hart a e-mail server and a majority of people still
use it exclusively through e-mail. Everything doable through the web
interface should also be doable through e-mail.

> if it is the second option on both, I might try my hand at a challenge
> engine by myself at home. I would like to see the code to rip off...
> ehem... learn from it.

Look at wiki.gamerz.net in particular:
  http://wiki.gamerz.net/index.php/GraphicsDev

> I would also like to see other games included in the engine, like chess.

Chess would be very easy. Just need the graphics files.

My own ideas on a tournament system:

1) One should be able to play in a tournament without ever using the web.
After all it is a pbem server!
2) I like the Little Golem championships, but I don't like the fact that
you have to play in every tournament to stay in the top division. I think
we should have championship like tournaments, that is 10 player round
robins, but the divisions should be decided purely on (established?)
ratings (of the players that sign up). That would also simplify, actually
eliminate, the demotion and promotion decisions.
3) I think they should be scheduled only twice a year. But different games
starting at different times. This would encourage people to play more
types of games. It would also make winning a tournament more "valuable".
4) There should certainly also be a web interface for signing up and most
importantly there should be a "permanent" record of who won what and when.
Again that would make it valuable to win a tournament.
5) I think it should be fairly easy to implement the above scheme.

Thoughts anyone?

Paul van Wamelen
aka fritzd