Vas Commercial Future

[fern]

To date it can be safely said that everybody interested already got the latest Rybka. They already have, then, a 3000 ElO or so engine. That "everybody" is not more than, say, 2000 or 3000 thousands people. With that number of purchasers -i am being optimistic- Vas got 200-300 kbucks. That's good for keeping a little business and live well for, say , two years, perhaps three if you are tight. .
But now, what?
How many of those 2-3 thousands people will purchase just another, even stronger Rybka?
Half?
I, for certain, stopped my purchases of ANY engine. Many, I believe, has done the same thing.
I will purchase something if they offer me not a stronger engine, but an even better gui, teacher, functions, etc.
Is Vas on that?
If not, how much time you believe he has for engaging fully in this business?
My guess: two years at most from now on.
In all times people in this business could endure 10-15 years; today the cycle is lot faster.
Your opinion
Fern

[Matthias Gemuh]

To date it can be safely said that everybody interested already got the latest Rybka. They already have, then, a 3000 ElO or so engine. That "everybody" is not more than, say, 2000 or 3000 thousands people. With that number of purchasers -i am being optimistic- Vas got 200-300 kbucks. That's good for keeping a little business and live well for, say , two years, perhaps three if you are tight. .
But now, what?
How many of those 2-3 thousands people will purchase just another, even stronger Rybka?
Half?
I, for certain, stopped my purchases of ANY engine. Many, I believe, has done the same thing.
I will purchase something if they offer me not a stronger engine, but an even better gui, teacher, functions, etc.
Is Vas on that?
If not, how much time you believe he has for engaging fully in this business?
My guess: two years at most from now on.
In all times people in this business could endure 10-15 years; today the cycle is lot faster.
Your opinion
Fern

Most people shall always want to have the strongest chess engine at any time.
They shall want to use the engine for anything imaginable, except personally play against it.
Such engines shall always give us better opening books.

Matthias.

[terminator]

I, for certain, stopped my purchases of ANY engine. Many, I believe, has done the same thing.
I will purchase something if they offer me not a stronger engine, but an even better gui, teacher, functions, etc.
Is Vas on that?
If not, how much time you believe he has for engaging fully in this business?
My guess: two years at most from now on.
In all times people in this business could endure 10-15 years; today the cycle is lot faster.
Your opinion
Fern

I'm struggling to make head or tail of this "topic". If you have any questions for Vas why not ask him or ask in the Rybka forum?

Just because you have quit on chess does not give you the ill-conceived notion that others have done so or will follow you. People continue to buy chess books, chess programs, ICC membership, Playchess membership as that is their hobby. LIFE GOES ON..... even if it has stopped for some.

[Larry]

Seems to me that as long as Vas can manage to keep ahead of the
competition, even by just 20elo points, his program will keep it's
magic, and will keep selling. For every chess computer fan dropping
away another is coming into the hobby.
In life nothing is certain, except change.
regards
Larry

[Graham Banks]

For every chess computer fan dropping
away another is coming into the hobby.
In life nothing is certain, except change.
regards
Larry

Yep - some fail to accept this fact.

[fern]

Enrico:
It is not necessary to become harsh in answering my post. I am not preaching to abandon this hobby. Neither I presume I have a following about that. I just gave an opinion and I ask for some other opinions.
No head or tail to search in that simple question.
It was a question for people here, not for Vas for obvious reasons.
My best
Fern

[gerold]

To date it can be safely said that everybody interested already got the latest Rybka. They already have, then, a 3000 ElO or so engine. That "everybody" is not more than, say, 2000 or 3000 thousands people. With that number of purchasers -i am being optimistic- Vas got 200-300 kbucks. That's good for keeping a little business and live well for, say , two years, perhaps three if you are tight. .
But now, what?
How many of those 2-3 thousands people will purchase just another, even stronger Rybka?
Half?
I, for certain, stopped my purchases of ANY engine. Many, I believe, has done the same thing.
I will purchase something if they offer me not a stronger engine, but an even better gui, teacher, functions, etc.
Is Vas on that?
If not, how much time you believe he has for engaging fully in this business?
My guess: two years at most from now on.
In all times people in this business could endure 10-15 years; today the cycle is lot faster.
Your opinion
Fern

Many things to do when person hits the top in his field.
Take the money and run.(Sell out)
Write a book.
improve the program.
Put ones name on other products., etc.

Best to you,

Gerold.

.

[Norbert Raimund Leisner]

Hello members of this community,

in my opinion the Elo-points of an engine are only one thing to be considered- the technical support, distribution by ChessBase and Convekta, the actual hard-/software of an computer... are further facts.

Whom uses e.g. Deep Rybka 3 with an old Pentium 4-PC?
If you want to have the best chess software, you are "forced" to buy in periods of a few years a new computer. I think for -less experienced-chessplayers a "complete solution" with own GUI is preferred.
UCI is very common, and WinBoard support today only a few commercial
producers (Chessmaster, Genius Classic etc.)

It is easy to say: "new version is 80-100 Elo-points stronger than the previous", but: Are the testing conditions the same? Only a few testers
know that fact. And (possible) customers have to choose with commercial
products: buy it or leave it! Chess software makes therefore no exception.

The marketing strategy, especially by ChessBase, is an important point
for other programmers, too -not only for Vas. Fritz is sold by them since
over 15 years though its program was not the strongest in each case.
ChessBase distributes Hiarcs/Shredder/Junior in competion to the
UCI-engines of their programmers. And in the German forum "Schachfeld.de" is reported that user accounts are deleted if members
say critical words about ChessBase products-even a litigation is not
excluded....(theme: Holger L.- the sysop of ChessBase)

Best wishes,
Norbert

[Terry McCracken]

Enrico:
It is not necessary to become harsh in answering my post. I am not preaching to abandon this hobby. Neither I presume I have a following about that. I just gave an opinion and I ask for some other opinions.
No head or tail to search in that simple question.
It was a question for people here, not for Vas for obvious reasons.
My best
Fern

Of course it is if you know who it is...they have nothing to better to do when they themselves gave up chess and chess programming a over a decade ago.

[terminator]

Enrico:
It is not necessary to become harsh in answering my post. I am not preaching to abandon this hobby. Neither I presume I have a following about that. I just gave an opinion and I ask for some other opinions.
No head or tail to search in that simple question.
It was a question for people here, not for Vas for obvious reasons.
My best
Fern

I only responded to you in this way because of the "We are not your Papa comments" which you made in CTF. You seemed to have your "reverse gear" in this post and i was only giving my opinion. Remember you asked for opinions.