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Ideal Values and Practical Values (part 3). More on the value of Chess pieces.[All Comments] [Add Comment or Rating]

gnohmon wrote on Thu, Jul 24, 2003 04:43 AM UTC:

'ND, NA = 27
NW = 38
NF = 82 (!)'

NF is better, but not by that much. NF might be notably better when
Grandmasters play; but for normal masters, NF is barely better, hardly
notice it at all.

Your extreme results should be taken as a sign that you should distrust
the tool you used to take this measurement. Of course, lacking other tools
you will continue to use it! However, your faith in the value of its
measurements will be diminished.

The relative order is correct: NF is best, NW is second-best, NA and ND
are a bit behind. The quantification is way off. The 'quantum' of
advantage would be about 30 in your scale, and so NW is worth ND, close
enough. Eleven centipoints is nothing.

Therefore your tool has some value. If several different unreliable
measurements give the same result, one may have some degree of confidence
in the combined result.