From: Larry Kaufman comcast net> Date: 21 jul 2005 Subject: Re: Changes in Elo systems low end? Your free subscription is supported by today's sponsor: ------------------------------------------------------------------- Need a Laptop? Get a Sony Vaio Laptop Free! http://click.topica.com/= caadHlxa2i6YsbnuqMaa/ProductTestPanel ------------------------------------------------------------------- My recollection about this minimum rating issue is that we switched= =20 from a minimum rating for the player to a minimum rating assumed for the= =20 opponent, except for retaining an absolute minimum rating of 1. In other= =20 words, even if your opponent is rated 1, he would count as 800 (or whatever= =20 minimum assumed rating was chosen, I forget the exact figure). We concluded= =20 that this produces much more accurate ratings than the previous policy. Thi= s=20 is all from memory, and it is possible that the final policy differs from= =20 the one I describe above. I guess Asle can fill in the details when he=20 returns from vacation. On the question of the low rating of the Japanese player described as= =20 "2-3 kyu", I would make the following observation. A player ranked as 3 Dan= =20 is probably of about the same strength, regardless of whether his rank is= =20 from Europe, USA, or Japan. But the ranks are wider in most Japanese clubs.= =20 At the largest club, Shinjuku Shogi Center, it's quite easy to become a 1= =20 Dan, and a player ranked as 3 kyu there is probably a very weak player, far= =20 below the level of a European 3 kyu. So probably his strength estimate was= =20 based on Shinjuku Shogi Center standards, which might very well equate to= =20 European 6 kyu or so. By the way, when the European and US systems were merged some years= =20 ago, this was the biggest source of controversy, because the US used "wide"= =20 ranks to try to match Japanese standards, while Europe used very narrow=20 ranks, roughly half as wide as US/Japan. So we compromised on intermediate= =20 values when we merged, but it remains the case that Pan-Atlantic ranks are= =20 substantially narrower than typical Japase ranks. Larry Kaufman, ratings officer for US Shogi Federation ----- Original Message -----=20 From: "Daniel Toebbens" gmx de> To: topica com> Sent: Thursday, July 21, 2005 5:29 AM Subject: Changes in Elo systems low end? Your free subscription is supported by today's sponsor: ------------------------------------------------------------------- Ben & Jerry's=AE or H=E4agen-Dazs=AE? Take our Nationwide Ice Cream Survey today! Receive a FREE* $100 Restaurant Gift Card of your choice or $100 worth of Ben & Jerry's=AE or H=E4agen-Dazs=AE ice cream for participating! http://click.topica.com/caadKb7a2i6Ysa7fLLna/Ice Cream Research Survey ------------------------------------------------------------------- I noticed in recent times some changes in the lower end of the elo system: During the last year a rising number of ratings below 400 has appeared, while before 400 was always the ultimate lower end of the elo scale. By now= , this lower end seems to have reached 1 (not 0 for some reasons). During the last 1/2 year even initial ratings below 400 have been given, while before they still were given at 400 minimum. While the prior point might still be in agreement with the rules stated on the FESA site, the later are not since it states "If the score [of the unrated player] is 0% the rating is set to 400." I talked shortly with Asle in Pardubice and was told, that the FESA made some changes in the system due to problems with the rating of the large number of new players in the Ukraine. But I have to say that I could not follow these reasons. Therefore, could somebody please post those new rules for calculating elo rating. Daniel --=20 5 GB Mailbox, 50 FreeSMS http://www.gmx.net/de/go/promail +++ GMX - die erste Adresse f=EF=BF=BDr Mail, Message, More +++ Your free subscription is supported by today's sponsor: ------------------------------------------------------------------- Erase wrinkles without painful injections with Nexiderm SP. Nexiderm SP is clinically proven to reduce wrinkles by 68% Click here to get your 30-day free supply. http://click.topica.com/caadHlna2i6Ysa7fLLnf/Nexiderm ------------------------------------------------------------------- Your free subscription is supported by today's sponsor: ------------------------------------------------------------------- Oreo's Take our Nationwide Oreo Survey. Receive a Free* Restaurant Gift card of your choice or a one year=20 supply of Oreo's. Hurry, limited time only!=20 http://click.topica.com/= caadJ9da2i6YsbnuqMaf/CookieSurvey ------------------------------------------------------------------- --^---------------------------------------------------------------- This email was sent to: = shogi-l shogi net EASY UNSUBSCRIBE click here: http://topica.com/u/?a2i6Ys.= bnuqMa.= c2hvZ2kt Or send an email to: shogi-unsubscribe topica com For Topica's complete suite of email marketing solutions visit: http://www.topica.com/?p=3DTEXFOOTER --^----------------------------------------------------------------