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hardware clone: RFT SC2- Intelligent chess

Posted: Tue Mar 31, 2009 10:28 pm
by mclane
one dedicated chess computer was illegally cloned by eastern germany (GDR) and sold into the world.

With components from eastern germany they copied the Fidelity Chess Challenger 10 (we don't know which version) and made a kind of remake of Ron Nelsons Fidelity machine.

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They even copied the flickering of the oooo display between odd and even plies.

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http://www.schach-computer.info/wiki/index.php/SC_2

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my version had a slightly different box, where the red picture with the young
girl playing chess is put above the original green box picture.

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here how my box looks:
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Re: hardware clone: RFT SC2- Intelligent chess

Posted: Wed Apr 01, 2009 12:11 am
by fern
I wonder if ever, at least in this field, socialists countries produced an original piece of hardware.
AS it is known, the Ural maiframes URSS computers were pathetic copies of IBM 360.
And of course the Ylushin commercial jet was a Boeing 707 badly copied.
etc
etc
etc

What about east germany of those times?

fern

Re: hardware clone: RFT SC2- Intelligent chess

Posted: Wed Apr 01, 2009 12:33 pm
by mclane
in this article there is a picture of the inner parts of the SC2...



http://www.kc85-museum.de/diverses/vers ... seite3.jpg

the whole article can be read here:
http://www.kc85-museum.de/diverses/vers ... index.html

here another newspaper article about SC2 and finally the wikipedia article about this machine:
http://www.schach-computer.info/wiki/index.php/SC_2

Re: hardware clone: RFT SC2- Intelligent chess

Posted: Wed Apr 01, 2009 2:39 pm
by mephisto
Little bit of info about East Germa chess computer manufacturer VEB Microelectronics can be found at the following link.
http://www.economy-point.org/c/chess-co ... e-gdr.html
Bryan

Re: hardware clone: RFT SC2- Intelligent chess

Posted: Fri Apr 03, 2009 12:23 am
by mclane
the 1st game is finished...

can somebody with a fidelity chess challenger 10 try replaying with the original machine ??

Code: Select all

[Event "40/120"]
[Site "SCW"]
[Date "2009.03.31"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Intelligent Chess"]
[Black "SC2"]
[WhiteElo "2200"]
[BlackElo "2200"]
[ECO "D45"]
[Result "1-0"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 dxc4 {"} 4. Qa4+ {"} Bd7 5. Qxc4 
Nf6 6. Nc3 Bd6 7. Nb5 Bc6 8. Nxd6+ Qxd6 9. Ne5 b5 10. Qb3 
Qxd4 11. Nxc6 Nxc6 12. Qxb5 Qd6 13. Be3 a6 14. Qd3 Qb4+ 
15. Qc3 Qxc3+ 16. bxc3 O-O 17. O-O-O Rfd8 18. Rxd8+ Rxd8 
19. a4 Rb8 20. h4 Rb3 21. Kc2 Ra3 22. Bf4 Ne4 23. Bxc7 
Rxc3+ 24. Kb2 Nxf2 25. Kxc3 Nxh1 26. e3 Ne7 27. e4 Nf2 
28. Kd4 Nc6+ 29. Ke3 Nd1+ 30. Kf3 a5 31. Bc4 Kh8 32. h5 Kg8 
33. g4 Nb2 34. Bb5 Nd4+ 35. Ke3 Nxb5 36. axb5 Kh8 37. b6 e5 
38. b7 h6 39. b8=Q+ Kh7 1-0

Re: hardware clone: RFT SC2- Intelligent chess

Posted: Fri Apr 03, 2009 12:42 am
by Steve B
i can replay it in a day or so
what level was the SC2 on?

one thing i notice immediately is that the SC2 castled at move 16
the CC10(version a) never castled
this was corrected in the CC10b version
so i will use the CC10b

Steve

Re: hardware clone: RFT SC2- Intelligent chess

Posted: Fri Apr 03, 2009 12:52 am
by mclane
i think it was level 6.

the good thing with the SC2 is IMO the keys. they are very easy to press. more like the keys of a typewriter.

much better than he sensor keys of the original fidelity machine.

btw. the SC2 beeps in a cyclic number of time, similar to the "your move" of my voice. one can turn off this beeping when it is the opponent to move.

is the version 10 also having this kind of beep ? or is the SC2 maybe a voice with a beep instead of the voice ?

i can do another game (revenge) at the week end.

i wonder why the GDR version has green LEDs.
green LEDs versus red LEDs.


BTW: i read in a german forum that 2 versions of the SC2 exists. they can be identified by the production number:

G-5002.500 2.5 mhz
G-5002.501 4 mhz

i think i do have the 2.5 mhz version.

Re: hardware clone: RFT SC2- Intelligent chess

Posted: Fri Apr 03, 2009 1:01 am
by Steve B
mclane wrote:i think it was level 6.

the good thing with the SC2 is IMO the keys. they are very easy to press. more like the keys of a typewriter.

much better than he sensor keys of the original fidelity machine.

btw. the SC2 beeps in a cyclic number of time, similar to the "your move" of my voice. one can turn off this beeping when it is the opponent to move.

is the version 10 also having this kind of beep ? or is the SC2 maybe a voice with a beep instead of the voice ?

i can do another game (revenge) at the week end.

i wonder why the GDR version has green LEDs.
green LEDs versus red LEDs.
not sure of the Question
the CC10 does have a beep which can be turned on /off
Steve

Re: hardware clone: RFT SC2- Intelligent chess

Posted: Fri Apr 03, 2009 1:13 am
by mclane
when it is the opponents time, SC2 beeps after a few seconds or minutes.

this is IMO similar in the VOICE, the fidelity voice repeats after a while that you should move, that it is YOUR TURN to move. i do not exactly remember what my fidelity voice says, but it makes a comment after a while. instead of talking the SC2 beeps.

i wonder if the Fidelity 10 do also beep after a while when they are awaiting opponents move .

of course the machines have a normal beep that happens when you press a key or when the machine moves.
i am referring to the beep that comes when you do nothing.

Re: hardware clone: RFT SC2- Intelligent chess

Posted: Fri Apr 03, 2009 1:32 am
by Steve B
ok now i understand

the CC10 does not send a warning beep for the player to move
also..there is a problem with the playing levels
Both of my SC2's show level 6 to be 4 minutes and 50 seconds avg time per move
there is no equivalent level for the CC10
the two closest level's for the CC10 would be level 9..which is 6 minutes per move or level 10 which is 3 minutes per move?

Steve