Games of Daze/Infomagic - Games of Daze (Summer 1995) (Disc 1 of 2).iso/x2ftp/msdos/rules/backgamm.faq

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From: [e-mail] (Mark Damish)
Subject: Backgammon --- Frequently Asked Questions. [monthly]
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Followup-To: rec.games.backgammon
Summary: This posting contains answers to questions about the game of
         backgammon. It also contains resources pertaining to the
         game. It should be read by anyone interested in backgammon,
         especially those posting to the rec.games.backgammon news group.
Keywords: backgammon BG FAQ reference
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Archive-name: games/backgammon-faq
Posting-frequency: Monthly, around the 13th of each month.
Last-modified: March 1995
Version: 9503


     _________________________________________________________________

                  BACKGAMMON --- FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS.

    Last modified: Thu Mar 16 09:15:17 1995
    Mark Damish <[e-mail]>


     _________________________________________________________________

CONTENTS

  SECTION 0: FORE FAQ

    Definition , Editor , Purpose , Contributions , Availability,
   Disclaimer , Editorial , Changes Gratitude , and News .

  SECTION A: ESSENTIALS
     * A1. What is backgammon?
     * A2. What are the basic rules of the game?
          + Backgammon Equipment
          + The backgammon board
          + Object of the game
          + Starting the game
          + Moving your men
          + Doublets
          + Making points
          + Prime
          + Blots
          + Closed board
          + Compulsory move
          + Bearing off
          + Gammon and Backgammon
          + Cocked dice
     * A3. What is the doubling cube for?
     * A4. What is the Crawford rule? (Why won't FIBS let me double?)
     * A5. What is the Jacoby rule?
     * A6. What is the Holland rule?
     * A7. What are those critters --- Beavers, raccoons?
     * A8. What is a Chouette?
     * A9. Basic Strategy for Beginners.

  SECTION B: ELECTRONIC BACKGAMMON: VS OTHER HUMANS
     * B1. FIBS
          + FIBS Introduction
          + FIBS Help
          + FIBS Ratings
          + FIBS Misc.
     * B2. What is the Internet and how do I get onto it?
     * B3. Are there any GUI's for FIBS?
          + Tinyfugue
          + xfibs
          + MacFIBS
          + TkFibs
          + FIBS/W
          + xibc
     * B4. Whats about LDB? (Long Distance Backgammon. BG by Email)
     * B5. What other ways are there to play people via
       nets/modems/e-mail?
          + Netgammon backgammon server
          + GEnie
     * B6. Are there any electronic tournaments?
     * B7. Do other game servers exist?
          + Backgammon , Bridge , Scrabble-like , Chinese Chess (Xainqi)
            , Othello , Chess , Go

  SECTION C: ELECTRONIC BACKGAMMON: VS MACHINE
     * C1. Are there any BG programs out there for my computer? Where are
       they?
          + JellyFish
          + Expert Backgammon
          + bg06
          + A PD mac program called ?
          + Death by Backgammon
          + xgammon
     * C2. Which programs are good? How good is good?
     * C3. Why is it so hard to write a good backgammon program?
     * C4. What is TD-GAMMON?

  SECTION D: RESOURCES
     * D1. I'm looking for a club to play in...
          + Backgammon clubs in North America
          + Playing Backgammon in the Boston area
          + Other Backgammon Clubs
     * D2. Where are the tournaments?
     * D3. I'm looking for information about newsletters and other
       publications.
          + Anchors
          + Backgammon Magazine
          + Backgammon Quarterly
          + BLITZ
          + Chicago Point Newsletter
          + European Backgammon News
          + Flint Area Backgammon News
          + GAMMON
          + Hoosier Backgammon Club Newsletter
          + Inside Backgammon
          + Norpunkt
     * D4. Backgammon books and book reviews.
          + BG books [summary] by Marty Storer
          + BG books [summary] by John Bazigos
          + How to play tournament BG [book]
          + Backgammon (Robin Clay) [book]
          + In The Game Until The End... [booklet]
          + Learning From the Machine... [booklet]
          + Kit Woolsey's "Tournament Series Backgammon"
          + The Backgammon Book
          + Playboy's Book of Backgammon
          + Other Books
          + Danny Kleinman Books
     * D5. A List of Backgammon Articles in Science and Business
     * D6. Backgammon software and software reviews.
          + BOINQ
          + Hyper-Backgammon
          + Matchqiz (and demo)
          + BG-SCRIBE
          + The Match Strategist (and demo)
          + rfibs (fibs recorder & playback)
          + LaTeX Style for BG Positions and Games
     * D7. Where does one purchase backgammon supplies and books?
          + The GAMMON PRESS
          + Carol Joy Cole
          + Danny Kleinman
          + Dansk Backgammon Forlag
          + Crisloid
          + Larry Strommen
     * D8. An index of backgammon resources available on the Internet.

  SECTION E: MISC.
     * E1. What other games can be played on a backgammon board?
          + Hyper-Backgammon
          + Nackgammon
          + Tapa
          + Narde
          + Diceless Backgammon
          + Acey-deucy
          + One Point Matches
     * E2. How does one become a better player?
     * E3. Misc.


     _________________________________________________________________


     _________________________________________________________________

Section 0: FORE FAQ

  DEFINITION

   FAQ /F-A-Q/ or /faq/ [USENET] n.  1. A Frequently Asked Question.  2. A
       compendium of accumulated lore, posted periodically to high-volume
       newsgroups in an attempt to forestall such questions. Some people
       prefer the term 'FAQ list' or 'FAQL' /fa'kl/, reserving 'FAQ' for
       sense 1.

           ---from: The jargon file, Version 2.9.12, 10 May 1993

  EDITOR

      Mark Damish   [e-mail]

  PURPOSE

      The purpose of this FAQ is to answer commonly asked questions which
      come up on the rec.games.backgammon news group and to compile a set of
      resources which might be useful to backgammon players in general.

  CONTRIBUTING

      Contributions will be thankfully accepted. Send E-Mail to the editor
      of this list for inclusion and credit in future FAQs.

  AVAILABILITY

      The FAQ will be posted on or around the 13th (13: is such a nice
      opening roll) of each month to rec.games.backgammon, rec.answers and
      news.answers.

      The FAQ is also available for anonymous ftp on:
          rtfm.mit.edu  /pub/usenet/news.answers/games/backgammon-faq

      The ascii FAQ may also be obtained vie E-mail. Just send mail to:
           [e-mail]
      with
           send usenet/news.answers/games/backgammon-faq
      in the body of the message.

      HTML version:
        An HTML (hypertext) version of the faq has been created. It is
      currently the `source' document for the ASCII version posted to
      rec.games.backgammon, and the rtfm archive. Most of the body of
      the html version has been marked up with preformatted sections.
      This is a tradeoff, as the quality of the ASCII version takes
      precedence. Within the document there are ``links'' from the
      table of contents, links within the document, and several
      links to ftp sites and other documents which make getting around
      the document, and the backgammon portion of internet quite easy.
      This version of the FAQ is called bg-faq.html, and may be downloaded
      for local reading with a Web-Browser, or may be read on line at:
         ftp.netcom.com /pub/da/damish/bg-faq.html
      The HTML version of the faq is updated at this site when the ascii
      version is posted to rec.games.backgammon.
      An HTML version is also currently (95-03) available at:
         http://world.std.com/~damish/bg-faq.html
      This site is less congested than the netcom address.


     FAQ Pointer and micro-faq:
        A `faq-pointer' and `micro-faq'. will be posted to
        rec.games.backgammon 2 or 3 times between regular faq postings.

      diff file:
        A diff file will created and posted to the rec.games.backgammon news
      group at the same time the FAQ is posted. This will contain the
      differences between successive FAQs. It will not be posted to the
      *.answers newsgroups, nor will it be archived at rtfm.mit.edu. The
      purpose of the diff file is to show recent changes without having to
      browse the entire FAQ. DO NOT use this file to update previous versions
      of the FAQ as it will have been edited!

  DISCLAIMER

      This posting is provided on an "as is" basis, NO WARRANTY whatsoever
      is expressed or implied, especially, NO WARRANTY that the information
      contained herein is correct or useful in any way, although both are
      intended.

  EDITORIAL

      Whom started rec.games.backgammon? What was its original charter?
      ...Mark

  CHANGES

      Changes may be spotted by examining the 'diff' file, which is posted at
      the same time as this FAQ. In the diff file, a '<' charactor preceding
      a line indicates that the line has been removed. Likewise, a '>'
      charactor indicates an addition. The diff file is edited and should not
      be used for updating from previous versions.

  GRATITUDE

      Major and minor contributions and suggestions from the following:
         Jeremy Bagai     Matchqiz review.
         Matthew Clegg    The entire 'What is Internet' section.
         Erik Gravgaard   This and that.
         Paul Ferguson    Mac PD BG info. FIBS Client info.
         Molly Holzschlag GEnie/RSCARDS info
         rjohnson         Additional info for rules section A2.
         Mika Johnsson    Original Backgammon article compilation.
         Rolf Kleef       Nackgammon.
         Asger Kring      Danish Newsletter, Book supply info. more.
         Andy Latto       Jacoby, Holland, Beavers, Chouette, Useful advice.
         Mel Leifer       Many critical pieces of information.
         Peter Nickless   Acey-Deucy Submission.
         Perry R. Ross    LDB (Long Distance Backgammon) mail server info.
         Mark Rozer       Inspired me to play this game.
         Gerry Tesauro    Backgammon article pointers.
         Michael Urban    Boston area playing spots.
         Kit Woolsey      Software reviews. Contributor at large.
         Michael J. Zehr  Book Review, Holland rule, Combinitorics answer.
                          More.
         Vincent Zweije   FIBS description. Narde description. Proof reader
                          deluxe.
         [I apologize if I missed anybody]

         Thanks for ALL corrections sent!

         PLUS Thanks to all who have submitted material to the
              rec.games.backgammon news group, whether or not it
              has been used here. Material from rec.games.backgammon
              is credited where used.

         May you roll above average when you need it most.

  NEWS

      Information that may or may not be included in the current FAQ:


       -- The hypertext version of the FAQ is available at a 2nd
          address. Until I get a better provider and ditch netcom,
          the HTML version of the FAQ will be available at both
          the netcom address, and the address below:
      http://world.std.com/~damish/bg-faq.html
      This site should be less congested than the netcom address.

       --   John Bazigos announced the forthcoming publication of his magazine
            "Backgammon Quarterly". If you are interested in receiving it,
            please send e-mail stating so and include your postal address.

               John Bazigos (doc on FIBS)
               e-mail: [e-mail]

       -- A new Tesauro article has been published. Check it out. There's
          actually quite a bit of backgammon discussed here, mostly accounts of
          play against several household-name human experts.

          G.Tesauro, "Temporal Difference Learning and TD-Gammon",
                      Communications of the ACM, Vol.38, No.3, 58-68
                      (March 1995)

       -- An "as is" DOS Port of rfibs/sfibs by Robin Davies (FIBS/W author)
          is available for ftp from:
              ftp.netcom.com/pub/da/damish/rfibsdos.zip
          This version will work with output saved using the '> command
          for saving matches from FIBS/W. The file currently contains
          executables only.

       -- There is a new shareware program on my ftp site that computes
          cubless equity for bearoffs with up to 15 checkers in each
          home board.   ftp.netcom.com/pub/da/damish/boa_v10.exe
          The file is quite large, and is probably downloaded easiest
          during non peak (US) hours.

       -- It looks like Garrett's Netgammon backgammon server is shut down.
          Many thanks for the service provided! Netgammon will be remembered
          and missed.

       -- FIBS address change! The name remains the same, but the new
          physical address is now  129.16.235.90 4321

       -- JellyFish Tutor 1.2 and JellyFish Analyzer are now available!
          JellyFish is a Neural Network backgammon program written by
          Fredrick Dahl. It was mentioned on rec.games.backgammon that
          JellyFish might play at or near the level of TD-Gammon!
          See the section on  JellyFish in the backgammon programs section for
          ordering information and a review by Kit Woolsey.


     _________________________________________________________________


     _________________________________________________________________

Section A: ESSENTIALS

  A1. WHAT IS BACKGAMMON?

   ``Backgammon is an obstacle race between two armies of 15 men each,
   moving around a track divided into 24 dagger-like divisions known as
   points.''

   ..The Rules


     _________________________________________________________________


   ``It's just a game.''

     -- Many


     _________________________________________________________________


   ``It's a game of skill and luck.
    When I win I can claim it's due to my good skill.
    When I lose I can claim it's due to my bad luck.''

     -- submitted by David Forthoffer [e-mail]


     _________________________________________________________________


   ``Backgammon is one of the oldest games in existence, dating back some
   5000 years and believed to have been developed by the ancient Egyptians.
   It is not a game of luck as many believe, but a strategic game of war;
   in many ways as difficult to master as chess or Go. A random element
   (luck) is certainly involved, but a champion player also uses the laws
   of probability, intuition, imagination and psychology to outwit his
   opponent''.

    -- From the foward of the Expert Backgammon (Mac) documentation.


     _________________________________________________________________


   ``There's an aesthetic to the game, a flow. People think the game consists
   primarily of math --- calculating odds and so forth. That's not true.
   It's essentially a game of patterns, a visual game, like chess. Certain
   patterns fit together harmoniously, make sense in a away that is
   nontrivial.''

     -- Paul Magriel


     _________________________________________________________________


   Answering ``Why do you play backgammon'':

   ``We have become a spectator society, one that experiences excellence
   and creativity only by watching it on television or by reading about
   it in newspapers or magazines...Perhaps the best way of becoming
   something more than a spectator is to pursue activities that do not
   receive mass media coverage. We can invent our own art forms, or at
   least re-label existing forms as art. Backgammon, though it is very
   old and very common, is an excellent art form. Patterns of points and
   blots undergo poignant mutations. The player strains to work with them,
   to control them. One's identity is not entirely intrinsic, nor is it
   purely acquired. We can shape ourselves just as we can shape our
   surroundings. By playing backgammon, that is - by creating patterns of
   blots and points - I help to shape my identity, I set myself apart from
   the spectators. I become alive.''

     -- Felix Yen (from Anchors, Jan 92)


     _________________________________________________________________

  A2. WHAT ARE THE BASIC RULES OF THE GAME?

    Backgammon Equipment

   -  A Backgammon board or layout.
   -  Thirty round stones, pr checkers, 15 each of two different colors,
      generally referred to as `men'.
   -  A pair of regular dice, numbered from 1 to 6. (For convenience,
      two pairs of dice, one for each player, are generally used.)
   -  A dice cup, used to shake and cast the dice. (Again, it is more
      convenient to have two dice cups.)
   -  A doubling cube---A six-faced die, marked with the numerals
      2,4,8,16,32 & 64. This is used to keep track of the number of
      units at stake in each game, as well as to mark the player who
      last doubled.

    The backgammon board

   Backgammon is an obstacle race between two armies of 15 men each,
   moving around a track divided into 24 dagger-like divisions known as
   ``points''.

   The Backgammon layout is divided down the center by a partition,
   known as the ``bar'' (See Diagram 1), into an outer and inner (or home)
   board or table. The side nearest you is your outer and home tables;
   the side farther away is your opponents outer and home boards. The
   arrows indicate the direction of play.

   For purposes of convenience we have numbered the points in the
   diagram.  Though the points are not numbered on the actual board,
   they are frequently referred to during play to describe a move or a
   position. Your (X's) 4-point or 8-point will always be on your side
   of the board; your opponent's (O's) will always be on his side of
   the board.

   A move from your 9-point to your 5-point is four spaces (the bar
   does not count as a space). A move from White's 12-point to your
   12-point, though it crosses from his board to yours, is but one
   space, for these two points are really next to each other.

   Diagram 2 shows the board set up ready for play. Each side has
   five men on his 6-point, three men on his 8-point, five men on his
   opponent's 12-point, and two men, known as ``runners'', on his opponents'
   1-point. The runners will have to travel the full length of the
   track, the other men have shorter distances to go. Note that play
   proceeds in opposite directions, so that the men can be set up in two
   ways. Turn the diagram upside down to see the layout if play were
   proceeding in the other direction.


      +-------------------------------------------------->
      |
      |   +-----------------------------< X moves this direction
      |   |
      |   |
      |   |    13 14 15 16 17 18       19 20 21 22 23 24
      |   |   +------------------------------------------+
      |   |   | .  .  .  .  .  . |   |  .  .  .  .  .  . |
      |   |   | .  .  .  .  .  . |   |  .  .  .  .  .  . |
      |   |   | .  .  .  .  .  . |   |  .  .  .  .  .  . |
      |   |   | .  .  .  .  .  . |   |  .  .  .  .  .  . |
      |   |   | .  .  .  .  .  . |   |  .  .  .  .  .  . |
      |   |   |                  |   |                   |  +----+
      ^   v   |   Outer Board    |BAR|     Home Board    |  | 64 |
      |   |   |                  |   |                   |  +----+
      |   |   | P  O  I  N  T  S |   |  .  .  .  .  .  . | Doubling
      |   |   | .  .  .  .  .  . |   |  .  .  .  .  .  . |   Cube
      |   |   | .  .  .  .  .  . |   |  .  .  .  .  .  . |
      |   |   | .  .  .  .  .  . |   |  .  .  .  .  .  . |
      |   |   | .  .  .  .  .  . |   |  .  .  .  .  .  . |
      |   |   +------------------------------------------+
      |   |    12 11 10  9  8  7        6  5  4  3  2  1
      |   |
      |   +---------------------------------------------->
      |
      +---------------------------------< Y moves this direction


                  Diagram 1  (Numbered from X's point of view)


       13 14 15 16 17 18       19 20 21 22 23 24
      +------------------------------------------+
      | X  .  .  .  O  . |   |  O  .  .  .  .  X |
      | X           O    |   |  O              X |
      | X           O    |   |  O                |
      | X                |   |  O                |
      | X                |   |  O                |  +----+
      |                  |BAR|                   |  | 64 |
      | O                |   |  X                |  +----+
      | O                |   |  X                |
      | O           X    |   |  X                |
      | O           X    |   |  X              O |
      | O  .  .  .  X  . |   |  X  .  .  .  .  O |
      +------------------------------------------+
       12 11 10  9  8  7        6  5  4  3  2  1

      Diagram #2  (Numbered from X's point of view)

    Object of the game

   The object of Backgammon is for each player to bring all his men
   into his home board, and then to bear them off the board. The first
   player to get all his men off the board is the winner.

    Starting the game

   Each player casts one die. The player with the higher number makes
   the first move, using the two numbers cast by his die and his
   opponent's. In the event that both players roll the same number, it
   is a standoff and each rolls another die to determine the first move.
   In the event of subsequent ties, this process is repeated until the
   dice turn up different numbers. (In some games, players double the
   unit stake automatically every time they cast the same number; others
   limit the automatic doubles to one. In tournament play, there is no
   such thing as an automatic double.)

    Moving your men

   Each player's turn consists of the roll of two dice. He then moves
   one or more men in accordance with the numbers cast. Assume he rolls
   4-2. He may move one man six spaces, or one man four spaces and
   another man two spaces. Bear in mind that, when moving a single man
   for the total shown by the two dice, you are actually making two
   moves with the one man---each move according to the number shown on
   one of the dice.

    Doublets

   If the same number appears on both dice, for example, 2-2 or 3-3
   (known as doublets), the caster is entitled to four moves instead of
   two. Thus, if he rolls 3-3, he can move up to four men, but each move
   must consist of three spaces.

      The players throw and play alternately throughout the game, except
   in the case where a player cannot make a legal move and therefore
   forfeits his turn.

    Making points

   A player makes a point by positioning two or more of his men on
   it. He then ``owns'' that point, and his opponent can neither come to
   rest on that point nor touch down on it when taking the combined
   total of his dice with one man.

    Prime

   A player who has made six consecutive points has completed a
   prime. An opposing man trapped behind a prime cannot move past, for
   it cannot be moved more than six spaces at a time---the largest
   number on a die.

    Blots

   A single man on a point is called a blot. If you move a man onto
   an opponent's blot, or touch down on it in the process of moving the
   combined total of your cast, the blot is hit, removed from the board
   and placed on the bar.

   A man that has been hit must re-enter in the opposing home table.
   A player may not make any move until such time as he has brought the
   man on the bar back into play. Re-entry is made on a point
   equivalent to the number of one of the dice cast, providing that
   point is not owned by the opponent.

    Closed board

   A Player who has made all six points in his home board is said to
   have a closed board. If the opponent has any men on the bar, he will
   not be able to re-enter it since there is no vacant point in his
   adversary;s home board. Therefore, he forfeits his rolls, and
   continues to do so until such time as the player has to open up a
   point in his home board, thus providing a point of rentry. It should
   be noted, the he doesn't loses his turn, as he still retains the
   ability to double his opponent before any of his opponents rolls,
   assuming the cube is centered or on his side.

    Compulsory move

   A player is compelled to take his complete move if there is any
   way for him to do so. If he can take either of the numbers but not
   both, he must take the higher number if possable, the lower if not.

     [Another way of saying this...]

   *  If both parts of the roll can be played legally, then this must be
      done.  Note that you may play the roll in such a way as to move fewer
      pips than the larger die indicates by playing the smaller die first ---
      this is common in bearoff situations, and legal as long as each part of
      the roll is played legally at the moment you play it.
    * If only one part of the roll can be played legally, then you must play
      the higher die if possible; if not, play the lower die.

      --kw

    Bearing off

   Once a player has brought all his men into his home board, he can
   commence bearing off. Men borne off the board are not re-entered into
   play. The player who bears off all his men first is the winner. A
   player may not bear off men while he has a man on the bar, or outside
   his home board. Thus if, in the process of bearing off, a player
   leaves a blot and it is hit by his opponent, he must first re-enter
   the man in his opponents home board, and bring it round the board
   into his own home board before he can continue the bearing off
   process.

   In bearing off, you remove men from the points corresponding to
   the numbers on the dice cast. However, you are not compelled to
   remove a man. You may, if you can, move a man inside your home board
   a number of spaces equivalent to the number of a die.

   If you roll a number higher than the highest point on which you
   have a man, you may apply that number to your highest occupied
   point.  Thus, if you roll 6-3 and your 6-point has already been
   cleared but you have men on your 5-point, you may use your 6 to
   remove a man from your 5-point.

   In some cases it may be advantagous to play the smaller die first
   before applying the higher die to your highest point (See Compulsory
   Move).  For example, suppose you have one checker on your 5 point,
   and two checkers on your 2 point.  Your opponent has a checker on
   the ace (one point) and on the bar.  You roll 6-3.  You may play the
   3 to the 2 point then the 6 to bear a checker off the 2 point
   leaving your opponent no shots (no blots for the opponent to hit).
   The alternative, using the 6-3 to bear checkers off both the 5 and 2
   points, would leave your opponent 20 out of 36 ways to hit your
   remaining blot.

    Gammon and Backgammon

   If you bear off all 15 of your men before your opponent has borne
   off a single man, you win a gammon, or double game.

   If you bear off all 15 of your men before your opponent has borne
   off a single man, and he still has one or more men in your home board
   or on the bar, you win a backgammon, or a triple game.

    Cocked dice

   It is customary to cast your dice in your right-hand board. Both
   dice must come to rest completely flat in that board. If one die
   crosses the bar into the other table, or jumps off the board, or does
   not come to rest flat, or ends up resting on one of the men, the dice
   are ``cocked'' and the whole throw, using both dice, must be retaken.


     _________________________________________________________________

  A3. WHAT IS THE DOUBLING CUBE FOR?

   The introduction of the doubling cube into the game is largely
   responsible for the leap in popularity of modern backgammon.

   Each face of the doubling cube bears a number to record
   progressive doubles and redoubles, starting with 2 and going on to 4,
   8, 16, 32 & 64. At the commencement of play, the doubling cube rests
   on the bar, between the two players, or at the side of the board. At
   any point during the game, a player who thinks he is sufficiently
   ahead may, when it is his turn to play and before he casts his dice,
   propose to double the stake by turning the cube to 2. His opponent
   may decline to accept the double, in which case he forfeits the game
   and loses 1 unit, or accept the double, in which case the game
   continues with the stake at 2 units. The player who accepts the
   double now ``owns'' the cube---which means that he has the option t
   redouble at any point during the rest of the game, but his opponent
   (the original doubler) may not. If, at a later stage he exercises
   this option, his opponent is now faced with a similar choice. He may
   either decline the redouble and so lose 2 units, or accept and play
   for 4, and he now ``owns'' the cube. A player may double when he is on
   the bar even if his opponent has a closed board and he cannot enter.
   Though he does not roll the dice, for he cannot make a move, he still
   has the right to double. Note that gammon doubles or backgammon
   triples the stake of the cube.


     _________________________________________________________________

  A4. WHAT IS THE CRAWFORD RULE? (WHY WON'T FIBS LET ME DOUBLE?)

  From the FIBS  help screens:

  If you are playing an n-point match and your opponent is ahead
  of you and he gets to n-1 points you are not allowed to use
  the doubling cube in the next game to come

   EXAMPLE:
             5 point match
                  score
     game #   You      opponent
        1      0          3
        2      0          4
        3      1          4   (you were not allowed to double in this game)
        4      3          4   (you were allowed to double again)
       ...    ...        ...


   The Crawford rule is universally used in backgammon match play.


     _________________________________________________________________

  A5. WHAT IS THE JACOBY RULE?

   The Jacoby rule is used in money games. It states, that a gammon
   or backgammon may not be scored as such unless the cube has been
   passed and accepted. The purpose is to speed up play by eliminating
   long undoubled games.

   The Jacoby rule is never used in match play.


     _________________________________________________________________

  A6. WHAT IS THE HOLLAND RULE?

   This rule applies to match games and states that in post-Crawford games
   the trailer can only double after both sides have played two rolls.  It
   makes the free drop more valuable to the leader but generally just
   confuses the issue.

   Unlike the Crawford rule, the Holland rule has not proved popular,
   and is rarely used today.


     _________________________________________________________________

  A7. WHAT ARE THOSE CRITTERS --- BEAVERS, RACCOONS?

   In money play, if player A doubles, and player B believes that he is
   a favorite holding the cube, he may turn the cube an extra notch as he
   takes, and keep the cube on his own side. For example, if A makes an
   initial double to 2, B may, instead of taking the double and holding a
   2 cube, say ``beaver'', turn the cube an extra notch to 4, and continue
   the game holding a 4 cube.

   If A believes that B's beaver was in error, some play that he may then
   ``raccoon'', turning the cube yet another notch (to 8 in the example). Cube
   ownership remains with B. B may then if he wishes turn the cube yet
   another notch, saying ``aardvark'', or ``otter'' or whatever silly animal
   name he prefers (the correct animal is a matter of controversy), and so
   forth.

   Beavers and the rest of the animals may be played or not in money
   play, as the players wish.

   Beavers and other animals are never used in match play.

   -- Andy Latto


     _________________________________________________________________


   It should be noted that the original cube turner can drop a beaver.
   For example, suppose I miscount a bearoff and double, you accept and
   say you want to beaver.  I realize something is wrong and recount.
   If I am horribly behind, I can drop the beaver, paying you the value
   on the cube before you beavered.

   -michael j zehr


     _________________________________________________________________

  A8. WHAT IS A CHOUETTE?

   A Chouette is a social backgammon variant for more than 2 players.
   One player is ``the box'', and plays against all other players
   on a single board. One other player is the captain, and rolls the
   dice and makes the plays for the team that opposes the box. If the
   box wins, the captain goes to the back of the line, and the next player
   becomes captain. If the captain wins, the box goes to the back of the
   line, and the captain becomes the new box.

   Customs vary as to the rights of the captain's partners: In some Chouettes,
   they may consult freely as to the way rolls should be played. In
   others, consultation is prohibited. A compromise, where consultation
   is allowed only after the cube has been turned, is popular.

   Originally, Chouettes were played with a single cube. The only
   decisions that players other than the captain were allowed to make
   independently concerned takes: If the box doubled, each player on the
   team could take or drop independently. Today, multiple-cube Chouettes
   are more popular; each player on the team has his own cube, and all
   doubling, dropping, and taking decisions are made independently by all
   players.

   -- Andy Latto


     _________________________________________________________________

  A9. BASIC STRATEGY FOR BEGINNERS.

   Single checkers (blots) on a point are vulnerable to enemy attack and must
   start over if hit by n opponent's checker. Two or more checkers on a point
   are safe from attack and can also be used for blocking or trapping your
   opponent.

   Essentially backgammon is a race to see who takes off all of his checkers
   first. However, the shortest distance between two points is not always a
   straight line. Most beginners, rarely leave exposed checkers and hit as
   often as they can. As you will find out, this seemingly logical approach
   is not the best strategy. The following is a simplification of some of
   the factors that you should consider in forming a winning game plan:

   1) Distribution.
        Distribution is how evenly your checkers are divided among the points
        occupied. It is usually better to have 3 checkers each on two different
        points rather than 4 checkers one and 2 on the other. You should rarely
        have six checkers on a point and almost never have any more. A player
        with even distribution will seemingly get "luckier" dice than his less
        flexible opponent.

   2) Exposure.
        Don't be afraid to leave shots early in the game to establish a strong
        offense or defense. Be more cautious as your enemy's home board gets
        stronger. The more points he has in his home board, the more difficult
        it will be for you to re-enter after being hit. Conversely, the more
        points that you control in your enemy's home board (anchors) the bolder
        you may play. Even if his board is weak, limit the number of blots
        (single checkers) to no more than four. If you are significantly ahead
        in the race or position, then restrict your exposure to maintain your
        lead.

   3) Blocking and Priming.
       Try to build points without gaps between them directly in front of the
       enemy checkers in your home board to prevent their escape. Establishing
       these critical points as early as possible in approximate order of
       importance: 5, 4, 7 to start your blockade. Six points in a row is
       called a prime. This makes it impossible for your opponent to escape
       for as long as you can maintain that structure.

   4) Hitting.
       Try to hit checkers that are the most advanced or checkers that your
       opponent would like to cover to establish an important point. Attack
       only when it is advantageous to do so. For example, if you already
       have two enemy checkers on the bar, it is more critical to make another
       point in your home board than to hit a third checker. Also refrain from
       hitting if it makes you more vulnerable than your opponent. Keep your
       objectives in mind and don't be side-tracked. However, there is an old
       backgammon adage that still carries weight,
         "When in doubt, hit."

   5) Anchoring.
       Anchoring is establishing a defensive point (anchor) in your enemies
       home board. This gives you a landing spot to come in on should you get
       hit and prevents your opponent from making his home board. Early in the
       game try to establish anchors on the higher points (20,21). If you
       become significantly behind in the race, the lower points (22,23,24)
       have more value as your strategy is to build your home board and wait
       for a shot. If you have two anchors try to keep them on adjacent
       points.

   These are just a few ideas for the beginner to get started and is not meant
   as a tutorial. There are many fine books available if you awant more
   information.

   -- From Macintosh Expert Backgammon Documentation
      by Tom Johnson [e-mail]


     _________________________________________________________________


     _________________________________________________________________

Section B: ELECTRONIC BACKGAMMON: VS OTHER HUMANS


     _________________________________________________________________

  B1. FIBS

  FIBS INTRODUCTION

    FIBS is an abbreviation for First Internet Backgammon Server.  It
    is a server program written by Andreas Schneider
    [e-mail].  Praise to him!

    You can connect to FIBS using telnet; the server runs on machine
    fraggel65.mdstud.chalmers.se (raw address 129.16.235.90).  Be sure
    to telnet to port 4321, because telnetting to the default port will
    give you a regular unix login prompt, which will be of no use to
    you since you probably have no account on that machine.  For
    instance, on a unix machine which is connected directly to the
    internet, you issue one of the following commands:

        telnet fraggel65.mdstud.chalmers.se 4321
        telnet 129.16.235.90 4321

    and then you are connected to FIBS.


    Now you have to log in to FIBS.  If you already have an account on
    FIBS, you use the login name and password you selected.  If you're
    a first time user, you must log in as guest.  Then you are granted
    a limited kind of access, until you make yourself known by choosing
    a FIBS user name and a password.  From that moment on, you can use
    FIBS to play against other players, human or otherwise, from all
    over the world.  Here is an example connect and login sequence for
    new users:

   %telnet fraggel65.mdstud.chalmers.se 4321
   Trying 129.16.235.90 ...
   Connected to fraggel65.mdstud.chalmers.se.
   Escape character is '^]'.

   WELCOME TO THE
            _______   _          ______            _____
           |  _____| | |        |  __  \          / ____|
           | |___    | |        | |__|  |        | |____
           |  ___|   | |        |  __  <          \____ \
           | |       | |        | |__|  |          ____| |
           |_|irst   |_|nternet |______/ackgammon |_____/erver

         If something unexpected happens please send mail to:
        [e-mail] (Andreas Schneider)
                      Bug reports are welcome.

       This server is on the net to meet people from all countries.
     All sorts of racists and fascists are not allowed to login here!
        Rude language will not be tolerated on this server. Be nice.

              LOGIN AS guest IF YOU ARE NEW TO THIS SERVER!
                     One account per person only!

   Friday, September 30 10:23:10 MET   ( Fri Sep 30 09:23:10 1994 UTC )
   login: guest
   Welcome to FIBS. You just logged in as guest.
   Please register before using this server:

   Type 'name username' where username is the name you want to use.
   The username may not contain blanks ' ' or colons ':'.
   The system will then ask you for your password twice.
   Please make sure that you don't forget your password. All
   passwords are encrypted before they are saved. If you forget
   your password there is no way to find out what it was.
   Please type 'bye' if you don't want to register now.

   ONE USERNAME PER PERSON ONLY!!!
   > name Newbie
   Please give your password:
   Please retype your password:
   You are registered.
   Type 'help beginner' to get started.
   >


    Once logged in, you are wise to read the help screens of FIBS.
    Read about how not to hear other people's shoutings, how the rating
    system works, how to watch other people play, how to talk to other
    people, how to invite people to play, and of couse, how to play.
    Everything you need is in the help screens.  One thing:  if you
    wish to read the help screens without logging into FIBS,
    they have been made available to WWW by Mike Quinn at
    http://www.abekrd.co.uk/Users/mike/fibs/fibs.html.
    Mark Damish made a version available for ftp or online reading from
    ftp.netcom.com /pub/da/damish/fibshelp.html.

       When you are a little accustomed to FIBS, you can enter
    tournaments, which are organised occasionally by volunteers.  Read
    newsgroup rec.games.backgammon,
    check out FIBS' login message, or listen for rumours spreading.
    Also, if you like FIBS, it will pay you to take the trouble to
    install/use a more friendly interface than a simple telnet client
    program.  Several of these are available, see section
    Are there any GUI's for FIBS?.
    FIBS description last updated on October 4th, 1994 by Vincent Zweije
    ([e-mail])


     _________________________________________________________________

  FIBS HELP

   FIBS Command Help Summary. (One liners)

     * about - Display information about the server
     * accept - accepting doubles and resigns
     * address - make your email address known to other users.
     * autologin - how the TinyMUD style autologin feature works
     * average - show average number of users
     * away - Leaving a message for other users before leaving the
       terminal
     * back - Back again after the away command was used
     * beaver - Offering an instant redouble that is a beaver
     * beginner - very short introduction to the server
     * board - Displays the board again
     * boardstyle - the various boardstyles
     * bye - leave the First International backgammon Server
     * client - one way to use a client
     * cls - Clear the screen on a vt100 terminal
     * commands
     * complaints - how to complain about cheaters
     * countries - where do the players live
     * crawford - The Crawford rule
     * date - equivalent to the time command
     * dicetest - show statistics about the dice
     * double
     * erase - How and why accounts are erased
     * formula - The formulas used to calculate rating changes
     * help - help on different topic
     * hostnames - how to interpret hostnames given by the who command
     * invite - invite another user to play a game of backgammon
     * join - accept an invitation from another player
     * kibitz - talking to players and watchers
     * last - Display information about login times
     * leave - leave and save a game
     * look - Take a short look at a game
     * man - alias for help
     * message - Leave a message for a user
     * motd - Display the message of the day
     * move - Moving pieces on the board
     * names - name completion
     * off - bear off pieces with every possible move
     * oldboard - Display the board of a saved game.
     * oldmoves - Display the moves of a saved game.
     * otter - Offering an instant redouble that is an otter
     * panic - save a game to a special file
     * password - change password
     * pip - Display pip count
     * raccoon - Offering an instant redouble that is a raccoon
     * ratings - Display information from the rating list
     * rawboard - how to interpret the raw board output
     * redouble - accepting doubles by redoubling
     * reject
     * resign - resign a game
     * roll - roll the dice
     * rules - The basic rules of backgammon
          + rule1 - how the board looks like
          + rule2 - the direction you move pieces
          + rule3 - the goal of the game
          + rule4 - rolling the dice
          + rule5 - moving pieces
          + rule6 - moving pieces
          + rule7 - bearing off pieces
          + rule8 - winning
          + rule9 - doubling
     * save - save your current toggle settings
     * say - talk to your opponent
     * screen - how to tell FIBS about your screen
     * set - how to set variables that are not toggles
     * shout - say something to all users
     * show - Display information
     * shutdown - shutdown the server
     * sortwho - how the 'who' command sorts it's output
     * stat - display system usage information about the server
     * tell - say something to a specific player
     * time - display the current time
     * timezones - How the server supports different timezones
     * tinyfugue - a few hints on using the TinyFugue client
     * toggle - display or change the value of toggles
          + toggle-allowpip
          + toggle-autoboard
          + toggle-autodouble
          + toggle-automove
          + toggle-bell
          + toggle-crawford
          + toggle-double
          + toggle-greedy
          + toggle-moreboards
          + toggle-notify
          + toggle-ratings
          + toggle-rawboard
          + toggle-ready
          + toggle-report
          + toggle-silent
          + toggle-telnet
          + toggle-wrap
     * unwatch - stop watching a player
     * version - display version number of the server
     * watch - watch a player
     * where - display full hostnames
     * whisper - say something to watchers of a game
     * who - display information about currently logged in users
     * whois - Display information about a player
     * !! - repeat the last command

     [Last updated August 1994]


     _________________________________________________________________

  FIBS RATINGS

   FIBS RATING FORMULA    (From the FIBS man pages)

   NAME   formula - The formulas used to calculate rating changes

   DESCRIPTION
          These are the formulas used to determine the ratings of a
          player: Let's say that two players P1 and P2 were playing a
          n-point match. The ratings of the players are r1 for P1 and r2
          for P2 .

          + Let D = abs(r1-r2) (rating difference)
          + Let P_upset = 1/(10^(D*sqrt(n)/2000)+1) (probability that
            underdog wins)
          + Let P=1-P_upset if the underdog wins and P=P_upset if the
            favorite wins.
          + For the winner:
               o Let K = max ( 1 , -experience/100+5 )
               o The rating change is: 4*K*sqrt(n)*P
          + For the loser:
               o Let K = max ( 1 , -experience/100+5 )
               o The rating change is: -4*K*sqrt(n)*P

   The 'experience' of a player is the sum of the lengths of all matches
          a player has finished. Every player starts with a rating of
          1500 and an experience of 0.

   SEE ALSO
          ratings


     _________________________________________________________________


   From: [e-mail] (Gerald E Mortensen)
   Subject: fibs ratings formula plots
   Date: 23 Dec 1994 22:28:16 GMT

   i made these plots from the fibs ratings formula. experience >500. if
   you can't read these try setting your font to fixed or courier.

                      P(win) vs. ratings difference
    0.8 ++-----+-------+------+-------+------+------+-------+-----++
        +      +       +      +       +      +      +       +  C   +
        |                             :                     C      |
    0.7 ++                            :                 C      B  ++
        |                             :             C       B      |
        |                             :                 B          |
        |                             :          C  B              |
    0.6 ++                            :      C   B          A  A  ++
        |                             :      B      A   A          |
        |                             :  B   A   A                 |
    0.5 ++                        A   A  A                        ++
        |                 A   A   B   :                            |
        |          A   A      B       :                            |
    0.4 ++  A  A          B   C       :           1 pt match  A   ++
        |              B  C           :           5 pt match  B    |
        |          B                  :           9 pt match  C    |
        |      B       C              :                            |
    0.3 ++  B      C                  :                           ++
        |      C                      :                            |
        +   C  +       +      +       +      +      +       +      +
    0.2 ++-----+-------+------+-------+------+------+-------+-----++
      -400   -300    -200   -100      0     100    200     300    400

              ratings change for a win vs. ratings difference
     10 ++-----+-------+------+-------+------+------+-------+-----++
        +      +       +      +       +      +      +       +      +
      9 ++  C                         :                           ++
        |      C   C                  :                            |
      8 ++             C              :           1 pt match  A   ++
        |                             :           5 pt match  B    |
        |                 C           :           9 pt match  C    |
      7 ++                    C       :                           ++
        |   B                     C   :                            |
      6 ++     B   B                  C                           ++
        |              B  B           :  C                         |
      5 ++                    B       :      C                    ++
        |                         B   B          C                 |
      4 ++                            :  B          C             ++
        |                             :      B   B      C          |
        |                             :             B   B   C      |
      3 ++                            :                     B  B  ++
        |   A  A   A   A  A           :                            |
      2 ++                    A   A   A  A   A   A  A   A         ++
        +      +       +      +       +      +      +       A  A   +
      1 ++-----+-------+------+-------+------+------+-------+-----++
      -400   -300    -200   -100      0     100    200     300    400
                   ratings diff (your rating - opponent's)

   ratings change is the same for both players if both
   have experience > than 500 (or have equal experience < 500).

   jay (wilfo)


     _________________________________________________________________


   FIBS - Rating Changes                                2/16/95

                change in rating when favorite wins
   rate                    points in match
   diff    1       2       3       5       7       9       11
   ------------------------------------------------------------
   0       2.00    2.83    3.46    4.47    5.29    6.00    6.63
   40      1.95    2.74    3.33    4.24    4.97    5.59    6.13
   80      1.91    2.64    3.19    4.01    4.65    5.18    5.63
   120     1.86    2.55    3.05    3.79    4.34    4.77    5.14
   160     1.82    2.46    2.92    3.56    4.03    4.38    4.67
   200     1.77    2.37    2.78    3.35    3.73    4.01    4.22
   240     1.73    2.28    2.65    3.13    3.44    3.65    3.79
   280     1.68    2.19    2.52    2.93    3.16    3.31    3.39
   320     1.64    2.11    2.39    2.73    2.90    2.99    3.02
   360     1.59    2.02    2.27    2.54    2.65    2.69    2.68
   400     1.55    1.94    2.15    2.35    2.42    2.41    2.37
   440     1.50    1.86    2.03    2.18    2.20    2.15    2.08
   480     1.46    1.78    1.92    2.01    1.99    1.92    1.83

                   change in rating when underdog wins
   rate                     points in match
   diff    1       2       3      5        7       9       11
   ------------------------------------------------------------
   0       2.00    2.83    3.46    4.47    5.29    6.00    6.63
   40      2.05    2.92    3.60    4.70    5.61    6.41    7.14
   80      2.09    3.01    3.74    4.93    5.93    6.82    7.64
   120     2.14    3.10    3.88    5.16    6.25    7.23    8.13
   160     2.18    3.19    4.01    5.38    6.56    7.62    8.60
   200     2.23    3.28    4.15    5.60    6.86    7.99    9.05
   240     2.27    3.37    4.28    5.81    7.14    8.35    9.48
   280     2.32    3.46    4.41    6.02    7.42    8.69    9.88
   320     2.36    3.55    4.53    6.22    7.68    9.01    10.2
   360     2.41    3.63    4.66    6.41    7.93    9.31    10.6
   400     2.45    3.72    4.78    6.59    8.17    9.59    10.9
   440     2.50    3.80    4.89    6.76    8.39    9.85    11.2
   480     2.54    3.88    5.01    6.93    8.59    10.1    11.4

                  ratio  -  points lost to points won by favorite
   rate                     points in match
   diff    1       2       3       5       7       9       11
   ------------------------------------------------------------
   0       1.00    1.00    1.00    1.00    1.00    1.00    1.00
   40      1.05    1.07    1.08    1.11    1.13    1.15    1.17
   80      1.10    1.14    1.17    1.23    1.28    1.32    1.36
   120     1.15    1.22    1.27    1.36    1.44    1.51    1.58
   160     1.20    1.30    1.38    1.51    1.63    1.74    1.84
   200     1.26    1.38    1.49    1.67    1.84    2.00    2.15
   240     1.32    1.48    1.61    1.85    2.08    2.29    2.50
   280     1.38    1.58    1.75    2.06    2.35    2.63    2.91
   320     1.45    1.68    1.89    2.28    2.65    3.02    3.39
   360     1.51    1.80    2.05    2.53    2.99    3.47    3.95
   400     1.58    1.92    2.22    2.80    3.38    3.98    4.61
   440     1.66    2.05    2.40    3.10    3.82    4.57    5.37
   480     1.74    2.18    2.60    3.44    4.31    5.25    6.25

   FIBS ratings tables submitted by William C. Bitting
   [e-mail]
   [e-mail]


     _________________________________________________________________

  FIBS MISC.

   FIBS (and FIBS/W) Instruction book.

   Hunter Jones has put together a very nice reference to FIBS and FIBS/W.
   It is nicely typeset and printed on heavy paper stock. The contents
   make a nice reference to FIBS and the FIBS/W interface. Commands are
   pre-sorted by catagory, and it makes looking for an answer extremely
   easy. It is 8 pages on 6 sheets of paper, and is especially worthwile
   for the new player. It is not just a rehash of the man pages.

   Price is $4 for U.S. addresses, $6 US for foreign addresses.
   All payments must be in US funds (check, money order or cash).
   If you wish expedited shipment, enclose suitable payment.
   (For example, $10 additional for US FedEx overnight.)  Be sure
   to enclose your address (FedEx and the like cannot deliver to
   PO Boxes.)

   Contact Hunter Jones at:  [e-mail]

   6617 Struttmann Lane
   Rockland MD
   20852


     _________________________________________________________________


   From: [e-mail]
   Newsgroups: rec.games.backgammon
   Subject: online FIBS help for OS/2 users
   Date: 7 Mar 1995 03:45:57 GMT

   For FIBS players who use OS/2:

   I recently created an online help file (.INF) for all the FIBS
   commands.  It's basically the same help you get from the FIBS server
   but with hyper-text links to related commands.

   If you're new to FIBS, I'm sure it will help - although I can't
   guarantee it will increase your FIBS rating ;)

   Email me if your interested, I can send it via uuencode mail.

   -J-


     _________________________________________________________________

  B2. WHAT IS THE INTERNET AND HOW DO I GET ONTO IT?

   [This is copied verbatim, with permission, from OK.FAQ. References to 'OK'
   are referring to the bridge server.]
   [Permission from [e-mail] (Matthew Clegg) for use here.]

   In addition to having access to a Unix system, you must also be connected
   to the Internet.  The Internet is a worldwide computer network which was
   founded for the sake of promoting research and education.  Recently,
   the Internet has been broadening its mission and it's likely that
   soon the Internet will be open for commercial as well as educational
   uses.

   Already it is possible for the general public to obtain access to
   the Internet for a modest fee in many metropolitan areas of the US.
   A few representative Internet providers include:

   Area Served    Voice No.     Email                Organization
   -----------    --------      -----                ------------
   West Coast     408-554-UNIX  [e-mail]      Netcom Online Comm. Svcs
   Boston         617-739-0202  [e-mail] The World
   New York City  212-877-4854  [e-mail]     PANIX Public Access Unix

   Many OKbridgers play from home using a PC or Mac and a modem.
   Frequently, these people have obtained access to the Internet by
   purchasing an account from a "public access Unix system connected to
   the Internet," which is the jargon describing the service provided by
   the above companies.  Having obtained such an account, it is usually a
   simple matter to obtain OKbridge and begin playing (see below).

   If you will be searching for a means to use OKbridge, it is important
   to remember the wording, "public access Unix system (directly) connected
   to the Internet."  There are a number of BBS operators who have Email
   connections to the Internet, but this is not sufficient.  Also,
   there are several network services which provide access to the
   Internet but which are not Unix based (Delphi is a notable example).

   For more information about the Internet, which is an amazing and
   wonderful resource, see the books:

   Krol, Ed, The Whole Internet: User's Guide & Catalog,
     O'Reilly & Associates, 1992.

   Kehoe, Brendan P., Zen and the Art of the Internet: A Beginner's Guide,
     2nd ed., Prentice Hall, 1993.

   LaQuey, Tracy, with Jeanne C. Ryer, The Internet Companion:
     A Beginner's Guide to Global Networking, Addison-Wesley, 1993.

   These books are filled with useful information about Unix and the
   Internet, including how to send electronic mail, how to download
   free software, and how to access some of the many information services
   which are available on the Internet.


     _________________________________________________________________


     The World Wide Web (WWW or 'Web' for short) is a system by which text,
   pictures, audio files and movies can be transmitted across the internet.
   Old resources you may have heard of -- telnet, news, gopher, ftp -- can
   all now be regarded as part of the Web.

   Many of the 'pages' on the Web are written in a language called HTML.
   This language allows basic formatting of the text, and images to be
   included within the text, but also it allows 'links' to other documents
   which may be local or on the other side of the world. For example, I
   could say 'I have information about cows' and the word 'cows' would be
   highlighted somehow (underlined or in a different colour). If you select
   that word -- typically by clicking your mouse on it or pressing Enter if
   you have no mouse -- you will be taken to a page about cows which could
   be another page of mine or of someone in Australia. It does not take much
   imagination to see how I can then hop all over the world, following these
   links and reading all manner of information.

   In order to access the Web, you need a so called 'client program' or
   'browser'. The two most popular are called Mosaic (for graphical terminals)
   and 'lynx' for text based terminals. If you have got one of these programs,
   you can start browsing the Web immediately. If not, do what you can to get
   one!

   [The Netscape browser is also now worth a mention. It was only in beta test
   at the time I originally wrote this, and a bit buggy, but now it's my
   preferred browser. You can get it via anonymous ftp from ftp.mcom.com in the
   directory /netscape : it's free for academic and non-profit use.
   S.T. 30/1/95]

   Stephen R. E. Turner
   e-mail: [e-mail]  WWW: http://www.statslab.cam.ac.uk/~sret1/home.html


     _________________________________________________________________

  B3. ARE THERE ANY GUI'S FOR FIBS?

    Tinyfugue

      Tinyfugue is a telnet client program which breaks the screen into
   separate 'panes' for input and output. A specialized version exists where
   a non scrolling backgammon board is displayed in a third pane. The
   specialized version is available for anonymous ftp from
   figment.csee.usf.edu in the directory /pub/misc/FIBS_client.

    Patches made by:

    David Eggert [e-mail]
      (window routines)
    Andreas Schneider [e-mail]
      (board printing routines and /board command)


    figment.csee.usf.edu  /pub/misc/FIBS_client


     _________________________________________________________________


   From: [e-mail]
   Newsgroups: rec.games.backgammon
   Subject: OS/2 Native FIBS-Tinyfugue Client Available now!
   Date: 11 Dec 1994 01:49:27 GMT

   I just uploaded my port of the fibs-tinyfigue client to the incoming
   directories of the hobbes and ftp-os2/cdrom OS/2 sites.  It only works
   via TCP/IP connections (SLIP/TIA are fine!) and requires the emxrt.zip
   support, so be sure to get that too.  The included text file tells about
   the port so have a look all OS/2 fibsters!

   Send along any bugs, etc, and I'll see what I can do.

   ----
   John J. Lehett
   Land-J Technologies
   [e-mail]


     _________________________________________________________________

    xfibs

   [Note: The current version of xfibs is xfibs07]

   Article: 2440 of rec.games.backgammon
   From: [e-mail] (torstein hansen)
   Newsgroups: rec.games.backgammon
   Subject: Motif-based client for FIBS available
   Date: 6 Jan 1994 13:03:58 GMT

   As some of you fibsters already know, I have been strugling with
   a Motif-based client to the FIBS -server for some time now.

   As I'll be moving away from my beloved X-terminal at the end of this
   month, and thus won't be able to do much more work on the client,
   I hereby declare xfibs as released...

   (include standing ovation here... :)

   At present, and at least for a few months the code can be fetched by
   anonymous ftp from itekiris.kjemi.unit.no (129.241.12.40) in the
   /pub-directory. The last version last time I looked was
   xfibs05-02.

    itekiris.kjemi.unit.no  /pub

   Description of the program:
     xfibs uses several seperated windows for its output. (3 to be
     excact.) At the top there is the graphical view of the
     backgammon board with dices, doubling cube etc.
     Below is two more windows, one for text coming from the server and
     the other acting like a command window.

   Nice features:
     The pieces may be moved by moving them with the mouse.

     Depending on what is happening, the right mouse button brings up
     different popup-menues with choices like roll,double,resign;
     accept double, reject double; accept move, reject move etc.
     To see what is available, just try it...

     User configurable menues. By editing a .xfibsrc file you may
     configure the menubar according to your personal taste. Look at
     the accompaning xfibsrc-example file for ideas.

     Also, look into the example app-defaults file for what resources
     that may be specified.

     \gag and \hilite commands: It seems like these commands are quite
     useful. Check out the new_in_05-02 file for an explenation for its
     use. (This file is living by itself at the ftp-site)

   Not so nice features:
     There are probably bugs...

     If the mouse stops working, try issuing the move command from the
     input window. That should do the trick. I hope it doesn't happen,
     though.

     Input window is limited in size. If you experience that your commands
     doesn't get through, try deleting some lines in the window.
     (Or try to reduce your shouting :))

     Athena widgets are not supported.

   Help needed:
     There is no man-page at present. If anyone out there with some
     knowledge on nroff, troff or whatever it's called could jot
     down something I would be more than happy.

     If you experience bugs, and actually manage to track them down,
     put patches on the ftp-server in the directory pub/patches.

     Put wishes for new or improved feautures in the /pub/wishes
     directory. I won't be able to do anything about them though, but
     there might be some kind soul out there that wants a programming
     challenge :)

   Conditions for use:
     If you actually use the program, could you send me an e-mail
     message stating so? It would be nice to know if the program is
     useful for anyone else but me...

   Final comment:
     HAVE FUN, AND A HAPPY NEW FIBS-YEAR TO EVERYONE!

   Torstein Hansen
   [e-mail]

   [pick up any patches/bugfixes as well]

   [Note: Torstein no longer maintains this package. There appears to be
    two seperate efforts by differant individuals in the "new feature"
    department for this package].


  __________________________________________________________________________



   From: [e-mail] (David Eggert)
   Subject: Patches for xfibs / New FIBS tournament coming soon
   Date: Fri, 10 Mar 1995 19:24:08 GMT

   Recently a couple of people (most notably igor), have mentioned that they
   don't use xfibs (the GUI for X windows developed by torstein) because of
   having problems. When I started looking for an interface I decided I liked
   the look of xfibs, but when I started using it I too had some problems. So I
   decided to do a little hacking.
   If you would like to get ahold of these patches, you can get them via my WWW
   home page:
      http://www.dai.ed.ac.uk/staff/personal_pages/eggertd/

   or you can get them via anonymous ftp from the machine

     figment.csee.usf.edu

   in the directory pub/misc/FIBS_client. The patches are in a compressed tar
   file as xfibs07.snoopy_patch.tar.Z.

   I hope that most of the changes will be to your liking. Enjoy.

  __________________________________________________________________________



   From: [e-mail] (Mike Quinn)
   Subject: Re: Patches for xfibs
   Date: 13 Mar 1995 13:44:08 -0000

   [...]
   It won't happen instantly, but.. I'm taking ideas for xfibs08. Is there
   anything you want to see added to xfibs? If so, drop me a line and I _might_
   even add it in :-)

   Mike (mikeq)


     _________________________________________________________________

    MacFIBS

   MacFIBS greatly enhances the virtual backgammon experience; it's
   backgammon played "The Macintosh Way".

   MacFIBS provides a multi-window, graphical front end to FIBS , vastly
   superior to the "dumb terminal" telnet scrolling text format that FIBS
   uses underneath.  It also makes excellent use of sound to reinforce
   the backgammon playing experience.

   Rather than viewing backgammon positions as a series of X's and O's in
   a crude character-based text window, MacFIBS offers a full color
   backgammon board. Instead of typing cryptic commands like 'm 24 22 15
   14', you drag colored checkers around the board, exactly like playing
   a real game.  The user can select from two board sizes and choose
   which color and direction to play.  Real-time pip count information
   is also displayed.

   Other windows include: a Player window to invite, get info, or watch
   other players, an elegant Chat window for conversing with other
   players, and a Terminal window for full access to FIBS and telnet.
   The user can color code and keep private notes about other players
   (the color coding is also used in the Chat window).

   MacFIBS is freeware and is my contribution to the 'net.  The program
   requires a color Macintosh and MacTCP, and is available via ftp at
   the Info-Mac Archives (sumex-aim.stanford.edu) as well as numerous
   mirror sites around the world.

   MacFIBS 1.0 is a self-extracting archive file:
    /info-mac/game/brd/mac-fibs-10.hqx

   --fergy
     Paul Ferguson [e-mail]

   [MacFIBS is also available on AOL, as well as Info-Mac mirror sites.


     _________________________________________________________________

    TkFibs

   From: [e-mail] (Keith Vetter)
   Subject: TkFibs - an X interface to FIBS  available
   Date: 4 Apr 1994 19:31:41 GMT
   Organization: University of California, Berkeley

   Announcing TkFibs, an X based, graphical user interface to Fibs.

   TkFibs is a tcl/tk client that provides a better interface to Fibs. It
   displays two windows: one a graphical depiction of the board, the other
   session window with Fibs ala the bottom two windows in tinyfugue.

   I've been using the program for over 5 months now so it should be very
   solid. I've run it on DecStations, SparcStations, HP 735 and Alphas.

   The biggest caveat is that it requires TCL/TK to run. TCL/TK is a
   very nice scripting / user interface package for X. It is available
   from ftp.cs.berkeley.edu in /ucb/tcl.

    TkFibs is located at shuksan.cs.berkeley.edu  /pub/tkfibs

   Send comments, suggestions, bugs, etc to:
     [e-mail]

   Enjoy
   keith vetter


     _________________________________________________________________

    FIBS/W

   FIBS/W is a Microsoft Windows(TM) based client for FIBS. FIBS/W provides a
   graphical game board and mouse-driven  interface to the FIBS server. Most
   operations required to play a game can be executed using mouse, keyboard,
   menus or toolbar buttons.

   Powerful configuration options for many common Internet host systems,
   and communications service providers, and a built-in communications
   scripting language allow FIBS/W to automatically dial and connect
   to FIBS via the Internet with a single mouse click.

   To use FIBS/W you must be able to satisfy one of two conditions:

   -  You must have modem access to a host computer providing telnet
      services. If you can connect to the Internet using Windows
      Terminal, you can probably use FIBS/W.

   -  You must have access to the internet via network TCP/IP, PPP or
      SL/IP via the Winsock software interface. If you can find the
      file WINSOCK.DLL on your system, you can probably use FIBS/W.


   FIBS/W requires version 3.1 or later of Microsoft Windows, or any
   version of Windows for Workgroups or Windows/NT. FIBS/W will also run
   as a Windows application under OS/2 2.X. FIBS/W does not currently support
   OS/2 Warp, or Netcom Netcruiser accounts (although Netcom shell accounts
   do work).

   FIBS/W is provided as Shareware. The registration fee is US$40. This
   version of FIBS/W includes a Nag Screen (a mildly annoying dialog
   which is displayed every time the program is run) but is otherwise
   fully functional.

   FIBS/W is available via anonymous FTP at:
   resudox.net in the directory  /pub/pc/windows/games/fibsw.


   A WWW page for FIBS/W is available at
      ftp://resudox.net/pub/pc/windows/games/fibsw/html/fibsw.html

   v1.30 of FIBS/W is primarily intended to be a maintainance release
   in order to update the default FIBS server Internet address.
   However a few new features seem to have snuck in....

   New features in FIBS/W v1.30: toggle greedy button; double-click to
   move checkers; save and copy text board positions; a new dialog for
   modifying the FIBS server address ;->.

   ----

   I have posted a version of FIBS/W that *appears* to work correctly
   when running under OS/2 Warp. The file has been posted temporarily,
   pending confirmation from OS/2 users.

   Just to clarify, FIBS/W v1.33 will run as a Windows application under OS/2
   Warp.

   This release should be considered experimental, until posted officially in
   all the usual places. If you are not using OS/2 Warp, you probably don't
   want this version. :-), although this release may also correct problems
   encountered when running FIBS/W under PC/NFS Winsock stacks in Windows
   (unconfirmed).

   The updated version of FIBS/W is available at

      ftp://ftp.nstn.ns.ca/in.coming/fibsw133.zip.

   Best regards,


     Robin Davies.
     [e-mail]
     FIBS: Q


     _________________________________________________________________

    xibc

   From: [e-mail] (Jesper Blommaskog)

   "xibc" is an X11 client to the First Internet Backgammon Server (FIBS). It
   is using the freeware packages Tcl, Tk and Expect. Normally, you have
   to fetch and compile those to be able to run xibc, but not anymore
   (provided you have a SunSparc!).

      ftp.cd.chalmers.se:pub/xibc/xibc-X.XX.tar.Z
      ftp.cd.chalmers.se:pub/xibc/xibc-X.XX.README

        ftp.cd.chalmers.se  /pub/xibc/


   # If you need an executable (Sun-SparcOS 4.1.x only):

     ftp.cd.chalmers.se:pub/xibc/binREADME
     ftp.cd.chalmers.se:pub/xibc/BX.enc

   # If you need an executable and don't have a Sparc, then you need
   # to compile Tcl, Tk and Expect on your own. Here's the ftp addresses:

      sprite.berkeley.edu:/tcl/tcl7.3.tar.Z
      sprite.berkeley.edu:/tcl/tk3.6.tar.Z
      sprite.berkeley.edu:/tcl/tk3.6p1.patch
      ftp.cme.nist.gov:/pub/expect/alpha.tar.Z

      (all but the patch are present at cme.nist.gov)

   Features of xibc include:

    * Log out from FIBS but keep the interface on the screen (maybe
      iconified). Permits you to start xibc in your X startup files
      and keep it up all time.

    * X resource Tk*xibcLogfile that names a file where to log match
      results. Example from my own file ~/.Xdefaults:

   Tk*xibcLogfile:   ~/spel/backgammon/xibc.log

    * Resource Tk*xibcDelay that sets the programmed delayes in the
      interface (the time interval between the different moves in a
      sequence). Time is in milliseconds. May also be changed during
      a session from a menu (but may not be saved).

      Example: Tk*xibcDelay:   500

    * The command line has some emacs/tcsh-style "cooked" line features:
           C-n next line in history
           C-p previous line in history
           C-a first on line
           C-e last on line
           C-u delete whole line
           C-d delete the character after the insertion marker
   and also
           C-s toggle "autoscroll" mode of the text window
           C-l toggle logging of game to a log file
           C-c log out from server and quit the interface

    * There is a menu option called "Emergency". It may also be invoked
      with "M-e". It reloads the whole board position from the server.
      Nice when the interface screws up (it does sometimes).

    * A menu option "Empty textwindow" will delete all rows in the text
      window in access of 500. May someday become an X resource.

   Don't try to push the interface to hard, that is, don't try to break
   it. You will most definitely succeed (not hard at all, I guess). Since
   I'm sort of an artist, I don't like breaking my own things so I
   haven't really tried to find the bugs.

   Special features (also called known bugs):
    * Try the "look" command.
    * Play a game against "You".
    * Do several things at "the same time".
    * Answer questions like "Accept double" or "join/leave" from the
      command line, not by using the interface.
   If you try them out, remember there's always the "Emergency" command
   around.

   -Jesper Blommaskog, author of "xibc"

   -----

   [Just a reminder to client writers. Some of us live behind 'firewalls',
    or can only obtain phone access. Please remember us!]


     _________________________________________________________________

  B4. WHATS ABOUT LDB? (LONG DISTANCE BACKGAMMON. BG BY EMAIL)

   - ldb   - Long Distance Backgammon. Play backgammon by E-mail.
             Program written by Perry R. Ross ([e-mail])

   From the ldb man page:

   Ldb allows two people to play backgammon over a network using electronic
   mail.  It runs on character-oriented terminals, or emulators thereof, using
   the curses screen package. It will run on most UNIX dialects, as well as
   VAX-C under VMS 5.0 and above.  Ldb handles all aspects of starting,
   playing, checking, and scoring games.  It enforces all normal game rules,
   as well as several optional rules, and will not let you make an illegal
   move. When you have made your moves, ldb will automatically package your
   move and send them to your opponent.

   -----

   The latest version is 1.3.2. Version 1.3 can be found in directory
   volume36. Patches can be found in subsequent volumes at your favorite
   comp.sources.misc archive site. Patch 1 is in volume 39. Patch 2 is in
   volume ??.  Use:
                           'unix_prompt$ archie ldb'
   to locate the sources.

   [from Perry]
   I mentioned in that patch that, for people who can't figure out
   how to get ldb or how to apply patches, I'd be happy to send
   them a complete copy of the latest version.  You might want
   to put the same offer into the faq.

   [Has anybody written a PC/Mac version using CC-mail via a Novell network?]

   [from Perry...]
   Well, I'd always intended to do a PC port, but just never got around to it.
   I was a bad boy, 32-bit wise, so there would be a little effort involved
   making it 16-bit clean.  There's a package that simulates curses on a
   PC, I've heard.  As far as the particular mail transport, ldb doesn't
   really care.  It puts outgoing messages into a text file and executes
   a user-defined command to send the message.  Incoming mail can be read
   from a user-defined file (or pattern, to read multiple files), which
   ought to be pretty transport-independent.  It wouldn't be that hard
   to port, I don't think.

   [Anybody have a little ambition?]

   The ldb 'game starter' operated by [e-mail]
   (Leo Gestetner) has been shut down. [ Are there others? ...Mark]


     _________________________________________________________________

  B5. WHAT OTHER WAYS ARE THERE TO PLAY PEOPLE VIA NETS/MODEMS/E-MAIL?

    Netgammon backgammon server

   Garrett has shut down Netgammon as of late February 1995. It will be
   remembered and missed.


     _________________________________________________________________

    GEnie

   RSCARDS Backgammon on GEnie--

   GEnie (General Electric's Consumer Information Service) offers on-line
   multi-player games in RSCARDS including:

                                   BACKGAMMON!
   Features:

   -Graphic User Interface (GUI) is available for the following computers:
      IBM, Atari ST, Apple IIgs, Macintosh Mono, Macintosh Color,
      Amiga and Commodore 128 Mono
   -TTY [text only] for non-supported formats.
   -Friendly and fun atmosphere.  Peak playing times are evenings and
    weekends.
   -Regular monthly prizes for eligible, high-score players.
   -Regular tournaments (see below).
   -Game transcripts available immediately.
   -Technical support and gaming discussion available in the Multiplayer
    Games RoundTable.
   -Access to other on-line multiplayer games including RSCARDS chess,
    checkers, reversi, poker, blackjack and bridge.

   How to Access RSCARDS Backgammon on GEnie:

   To sign up to GEnie, just follow these simple steps:
    1. Set your communications software for half duplex (local echo), at
       300, 1200, 2400 baud.
    2. Dial toll free: 1-800-638-8369, or in Canada, 1-800-387-8330.
       Upon connection, enter HHH
    3. At the U# prompt, enter JOINGENIE then press <RETURN>
    4. When asked to enter a code enter:  MMC524
       [This will waive your first $8.95 month subscription fee and give you
       an additional $50.00 online credit during your first month on GEnie!]
    5. Have a major credit card ready. In the U.S. you may also use your
       checking account number.


   For additional information including subscriptions and fees call:
   1-800-638-9636
     Once you have a GEnie account, simply type RSCARDS from any GEnie prompt.

   This will take you to the main area, where you can download GUI's and get
   general information on RSCARDS.
     You can reach the Backgammon page directly by typing M877.  This will
   bring you to a menu with specific backgammon information and access to
   play.
     For questions and technical support, visit the Multiplayer Games
   RoundTable.  Type M1045 from any GEnie prompt and set to CATegory 29.
   There are a variety of Backgammon, GUI and RSCARDS TOPics available.

   TOURNAMENT INFORMATION:

   - GEnie Backgammon Tourneys are held quarterly.  Sign-ups start:
        January 1st, April 1st, July 1st and October 1st

           Tourney play starts the third Wednesday of those months

    [Section on tourney rules is available online at GEnie]

    [Note: GEnie is a service like compuserve... They have a monthly fee
     and you pay by the hour for use. Contact GEnie for rates.]


     _________________________________________________________________

  B6. ARE THERE ANY ELECTRONIC TOURNAMENTS?

   There are tournaments on FIBS  and GEnie.

   Tournements on FIBS have been organized by David Escoffery (davide), and
   David Eggert (snoopy).

   contact: [e-mail]
            [e-mail]

  __________________________________________________________________________



   GEnie has a quarterly single elimination tournament. $25 entry fee. Cash
   and credit prizes for first-fourth place. Hourly fee in effect while you
   play. The draw is non random, in that previous winners are placed such that
   they do not play each other in the first several rounds.


     _________________________________________________________________

  B7. DO OTHER GAME SERVERS EXIST?

    Backgammon

   There are no servers other than FIBS in operation on the internet at
   present.


     _________________________________________________________________

    Bridge

   Get 'OK.FAQ' from rec.games.bridge or rtfm.mit.edu for info
   on the Internet bridge server.

   Reported servers:

           telnet [e-mail] 4321
              login: okbridge  password: okbridge

           telnet bridge:[e-mail]
              login: bridge    pasword: bridge.0

   [The above servers have been reported to have an annual fee.]

           telnet vanderbilt.okbridge.com

   [Free guest trials are availble for the above server.]

   A further source of information is available at:
   http://www.cts.com/~okbridge/


     _________________________________________________________________

    Scrabble-like

       telnet seabass.st.usm.edu 7777
       telnet 134.53.14.112 7777


     _________________________________________________________________

    Chinese Chess (Xainqi)

      USA:     telnet coolidge.harvard.edu 5555       or 128.103.28.15 5555
      Sweden:  telnet hippolytos.ud.chalmers.se 5555  or 129.16.79.39  5555
      Taiwan:  telnet 140.112.50.160 5555


     _________________________________________________________________

    Othello

   Othello(tm)/Reversi: telnet faust.uni-paderborn.de 5000


     _________________________________________________________________

    Chess

   rafael.metiu.ucsb.edu 5000    128.111.246.2 5000
   anemone.daimi.aau.dk 5000     130.225.18.58 5000
   chess.lm.com 5000             129.15.10.21 5000

   It has been reported that the chess servers now charge an anual fee.


     _________________________________________________________________

    Go

      igs.nuri.net 6969     203.255.112.3 6969

   information: [e-mail]
                [e-mail]

   It has been mentioned that it is possable to play chinese chess on this
   server.


     _________________________________________________________________


   [Add pointer to generic games web pages here]


     _________________________________________________________________


     _________________________________________________________________

Section C: ELECTRONIC BACKGAMMON: VS MACHINE

   C1. ARE THERE ANY BG PROGRAMS OUT THERE FOR MY COMPUTER? WHERE ARE THEY?

    JellyFish

      Ever since Gerry Tesauro finished TD-Gammon, it was only a matter
   of time before a neural network program would become available to the
   public.  That time has come.  Fredrik Dahl's masterpiece, Jellyfish,
   is a breakthrough for backgammon.  Both the checker play and cube action
   of the program are at an expert level, making Jellyfish a truly enjoyable
   and challenging competitor.  In addition the program looks over your
   plays and points out when you have made a serious error, making it
   extremely valuable for learning purposes.

      Jellyfish is run under Windows for the PC.  Moves are made with
   the mouse, and can be done very quickly and efficiently.  The display is
   nice and easy to see.  Some additional features of the program:

   Plays both single games and matches (yes, it understands match equities).
   Allows the user to construct positions and save them.
   Gives the user the program's evaluation of the equity of a position upon
   request, and the evaluation function is surprisingly accurate.
   Tells the user when he has made an error in checker play or cube
   decision, making the program the most valuable tutor in the world.

      In addition, a separate version is expected which will also permit
   the user to roll out positions.  In the past computer rollouts were always
   suspect because the program didn't play well enough so the results could
   be very distorted.  This is no longer the case, since Jellyfish definitely
   plays well enough to handle almost any position adequately.  Results from
   its rollouts can be trusted, and we will be able to find the answers to
   many backgammon questions which we previously did not know.

      For the casual player, Jellyfish provides an excellent opponent
   and a way to improve while playing.  For the serious student of the game,
   this program is an absolute must.  Our knowledge of the game is about to
   take a quantum leap, and the player who does not have access to Jellyfish
   will be left far behind.

                        Kit Woolsey

   JellyFish Tutor 1.2 for MS-Windows.     US$ 110.
   JellyFish Analyzer 1.0  for MS-Windows  US$ 220.
     The Analyzer, will in addition to the Tutor, contain a rollout module
     It will be release Jan 16 1995. If you own the Tutor, the Analyzer
     may be purchased for the difference in price. If you order the Analyzer
     before Jan 16 1995, the Tutor will be shipped immediately, followed by
     the Analyzer when ready.

   Order from:
     EFFECT Software A/S
     P.O. Box 56 Skoyen
     N-0212 OSLO
     Norway.
   Please use International Postal Money Order, or Visa. If you use
   Visa, send the account number, date of expiration, amount and
   signature. You may also send a check, but in that case please add
   $10 for expenses.
   Hardware requirements:  386sx or better,
   Software requirements:  Windows 3.1
   The JellyFish programs come on 3.5'' diskettes.

   Also available from:
   The GAMMON PRESS , Carol Joy Cole and  The Dansk Backgammon Forlag.

   The program, and technical support are also available from Larry Strommen
   within the USA.  Contact:
       L. A. Strommen; 6866 Meadow View Dr.; Indianapolis, IN 46226
       Tel: [phone]  E-mail: [e-mail]

   Fredrik Dahl may be contacted at [e-mail]


     _________________________________________________________________

    Expert Backgammon

               Expert Backgammon 2.1 for PC: List of features.

                    Mark Damish  E-Mail: [e-mail]


   Here is some initial information on Expert Backgammon version 2.1 for
   the IBM PC.

   Intro:

         I remember November 92, the first time I walked into a backgammon
      club to participate in a tourney. After playing on FIBS for a month,
      I thought that I was already a decent player. Wrong. I won a match,
      and lost a match.  Afterwards, I played a few games for $1/point. I
      reached a simple and common holding game position where I was
      doubled, and thought surely it was worth 25%, and took. My opponent,
      being helpful to a newcomer, pointed out that the position was only
      worth about 15%. Later, I was able to verify his claim using Expert
      Backgammon, and had my first 'benchmark' position. I have since used
      Expert Backgammon to benchmark many other simple positions, as well
      as to play hundreds of games against it.

   What it is:

         Expert Backgammon, (EXBG), is a program which allows you to play
      backgammon against the computer either in a 'money' or 'tournament'
      format. It also allows you enter a position, and let the computer
      'roll it out' --- that is, to let it play both sides many times, and
      show you the results. Expert Backgammon is currently the strongest
      computer program available commercially, and the game version is
      quite affordable! Only TD-GAMMON might lay claim to being the
      strongest program in the world, but alas, it is not available
      commercially.

   Brief Description of EXBG versions:

         Expert Backgammon is currently available in two releases:  1.61,
      and 2.1.  Release 2.1 has 3 different versions, with different
      features

      EXBG 2.1  GAME VERSION    $50.  Plays the game of backgammon.
      EXBG 2.1  EXPERT VERSION $150.  Plays BG, and Rolls out positions.
      EXBG 2.1  PRO VERSION    $300.  Plays BG, and Rolls out positions. Has
                                      some advanced rollout features.

      EXBG 1.61 EXPERT VERSION $100   Plays BG, and Rolls out positions.

      Upgrades from EXBG 1.61[expert] to EXBG 2.1[expert]  $60
      Upgrades from EXBG 1.61[expert] to EXBG 2.1[pro]    $200
      There are other upgrades available for the other versions as well.


   Some Random Features (pro version):

      -- Fast non mouse interface for moving the checkers.
      -- Match or Money play options.
      -- Optional Jacoby rule.
      -- Cube profile statistics.
      -- Save positions for future evaluation.
      -- Save games to be played back later.
      -- Computer can suggest a move.
      -- Shot counter.
      -- Computer can finish game, when it becomes routine.
      -- Woolsey or 35% (Friedman?) match equity table for matches.
      -- Pip count.
      -- Quick or Extended cube searches. Speed vs. accuracy.
      -- Rollouts:
         -- Random dice.
         -- Sequenced dice for one or two sides. That is all 36 possible
            starting combinations for one or two sides.
         -- Rollout multiple positions simultaneously in batch mode.
         -- Duplicate dice when rolling out multiple positions.

   Performance:

      Speed: Less than 5 seconds per game to play a game from the starting
             position on a 486DX2-66 processer. This assumes that the
             graphical display is disabled. ie: moves and rolls are not
             shown.

      Strength: Seems stronger than 1.61.

         Strength is also a somewhat controversial subject. Can the machine
      play a complex prop as well as a human who is familiar with the
      position? Does the machine have any 'blind spots' in early game play?
      Can it 'work a prime' to get a second checker when needed? Does it
      blitz too often, not enough? 'Seems stronger' is as far as I'll
      venture until I learn more about how to play the game myself!
         See the section on  How good is good? for Bill Roberties
   ratings of backgammon programs.

   Copy Protection:

         The program is copy protected. The distribution disks will allow
      you to install the program to two hard disks, as well as allowing you
      to run the program from the floppy. You may 'uninstall' the program
      from the hard disk, back to the floppy for installation on another
      disk/machine if required. It is best to uninstall the program before
      using backup programs, or reformatting your hard disk/partition, as
      you can loose your installation.
         Early versions of 1.61 used a differant scheme. They simply stopped
      running after a certain date. The authur supplies free updates to those
      with the early protection scheme.

   Sample Cube Analysis Screen:

                   B L A C K   C U B I N G   A N A L Y S I S

      C  U  B  E    Game won by - lost by    Gammons    Backgammons  Equity
   location  size   cube  play  cube play  won   lost  won    lost   /Game

     Center    1    47     3    22    8     4     9     0      0      0.108
     Black     2     8     0     0   11     0     0     0      1     -0.600
     Red       2     0    21     2    2     4     0     2      0      2.000
     Black     4     1     0     0    1     0     0     0      0      0.000
     Red       4     0     1     1    0     0     0     0      0      0.000
     Black     8     0     0     0    1     0     0     0      0     -8.000


                   01-21-1994  The Jacoby Rule was NOT USED
                   Only Money Play with Extended Cube Search
                   MARK won 61.074% of the games played

              Equity for MARK = 0.349 per game for 149  games
              Cubeless equity for MARK = 0.228

              Net equity when Black took a 2 cube = -0.870 per game
              Net equity when Red took a 2 cube  =  1.879 per game

      [An above average performance in this set.]

   Help Screen:

           F1 = MENU OF AVAILABLE OPTIONS - Professional Edition
   A - Automatic Double                  Ctrl+A - Automatic Concession
   B - Beaver                            Ctrl+B - Clear Board
   C - Checker Setup                     Ctrl+C - Cube Setup
   D - Double the Cube                   Ctrl+D - Manual Dice Entry
   E - Extended Cube Search              Ctrl+E - Match Equity
   F - New Player Name                   Ctrl+F - File - Alternate Path
   G - Game - Money or Match Play        Ctrl+G - Delete Game
   H - On-Line Help Service              Ctrl+H - Using Option Defaults
   I - Invert Position                   Ctrl+I - Alter the Starting Position
   J - Jacoby Rule                       Ctrl+J - Title for Rollout
   K - Monitor Type                      Ctrl+K - Player Cube Profile
   L - Level of Difficulty               Ctrl+L - Listing of Game
   M - Take Back Move
   N - Sound                             Ctrl+N - Start New Game
   O - Options Currently Selected        Ctrl+O - Open Position
   P - Player on Roll                    Ctrl+P - Print Position
   Q - Show PiP Count                    Ctrl+Q - Black Shotcounter
   R - Replay Game                       Ctrl+R - Rollout Position
   S - Speed of Checker Movement         Ctrl+S - Save Position
   T - Suggest Move for Black            Ctrl+T - Match Win % Table
   U - Skip Save Game/Position           Ctrl+U - Delete Position
   V - Black Detailed Shotcounter
   W - Expert to Finish the Game         Ctrl+W - Write Rollout to Disk
   X - Cancel Move and Reroll Dice       Ctrl+X - Print Disk Rollout
   Z - Zero the Score
   Spacebar - Roll the Dice              Escape - Leave EXBG


   Rollout summary printout:

                      EXPERT BACKGAMMON ROLLOUT SUMMARY

    Date: 12-12-1993                              Games viewed = 0
    File: 65_21_A                                 Summary only = 1296
    Version: 2.1                                  1296 games rolled out at
    Used Hrs:Min:Sec 1:37:41                      4.522 seconds per game.
                    Batched Duplicate Rollout of 1296  games.
                    No doubling allowed - Cube at 1 level

    [ Diagram of board position was cut from here...]

               O on roll.

                 O won
      45.83%     games        594
      11.42%    gammons       148
       0.46%  backgammons       6
      ---------------------------
      57.72% of the games     748
      +0.170 points per game.

                 X won
      32.18%     games        417
       9.41%    gammons       122
       0.69%  backgammons       9
      ---------------------------
      42.28% of the games.    548
      -0.170 points per game.

     The dice rolls were generated randomly.


     Note: There is also a screen which shows the results of several games
           rolled out simultaniously.

     Note: Above screens were 'captured' by redirecting my printer port to
           a file, and have been edited slightly.


   Ordering Info:

      Tom Weaver
      Expert Backgammon
      8063 Meadow Road, # 108
      Dallas, Texas
      75231

      Call: Expert Backgammon [phone]   M-F 10am-10pm Central US time.
                                               An answering service answers
                                               when Tom isn't around.

      Tom also has an email address: [e-mail]

      Also available from Carol Joy Cole  and The GAMMON PRESS.

      A Macintosh version of Expert Backgammon is also available. Contact
   the sources above, or Tom Johnson (auther) directly at [e-mail].
   A demo of the Macintosh version is available for anonymous ftp from:
   ftp.netcom.com /pub/da/damish/exbgdemo.sea.


     _________________________________________________________________

    bg06

   Backgammon for Windows version 0.6

   Most PD/Shareware backgammon programs are currently weak. The strongest
   that I have played has been bg06.zip for windows. This _looks_ an awful
   lot like the commercial program "BG by George". I've also seen the
   Spinnaker program sold as public domain, even though it is still being
   sold commercially.

   bg06 is available for anonymous ftp from ftp.cica.indiana.edu in the
   directory /pub/win3/games/


     _________________________________________________________________

    A PD mac program called ?

   There is a backgammon game for the Macintosh by Stephen Young, Debra
   Willrett, and David Young.  The 1.0 version is fairly widespread, although
   there is a 2.0 version (dated May 25, 1989) available on America Online.
   The play is pretty weak, and the graphics are designed for the original
   small B&W Mac screen, but if you're really bored and can't find a human
   opponent, it works.  The game is freeware, and you get what you pay for.
     -- Paul Ferguson


     _________________________________________________________________

    Death by Backgammon

     For those interested in a good bg game for Windows, why not try Death By
   Backgammon for Windows.
     It runs under Windows 3.1 or OS2/2.1, and features animated dice/game
   pieces, comprehensive help, move undo, suggest move, speed control over
   all motion, and is fully resizeable.
     Best of all, its strategy is very competitive (I wrote the thing, and
   have a roughly 50:50 average against it over many hundreds of games).
     If you are interested, I would be happy to send out a shareware version
   for evaluation.  The shareware version is fully functional, except that
   the computer's moves are painfully slow.
     There is also a DOS version, which is a bit older, but still features
   animation and VGA graphics.
     To get hold of the program there are two options:
       1. To get the shareware version, (free of charge) let me know and I can
          email you a zipped uuencoded version of the shareware. Alternatively,
          I can send you a floppy if you provide your mailing address.
       2. To get a registered copy of the program, send a cheque made out to
          Chris Kanaris, and I will email or post as above.
     Prices: Shareware - Nil
             Registered: WIN $AS 35.00, $US 30.00.
                         DOS $AS 20.00, $US1 5.00.
     My Postal address is: Chris Kanaris
                           PO Box 495
                           Essendon,
                           Victoria, 3040
                           Australia.

    A demo has been reported available for transfer at:
     http://baugi.ifi.uio.no:80/~paalf/BG

     [ People who have tried the shareware version claim that the program
       plays a pretty weak game. Hopefully computer bg game writers will
       continue to make their games stronger and stronger. Not and easy
       task! ]


     _________________________________________________________________

    xgammon

   From:  [e-mail] at SMTP-Post-Office
   Subject: contribution to FAQ

   xgammon.0.96
   xgammon is a BG-playing programm originally written for Linux.
   The authors are Lambert Klasen ([e-mail]) and
   Detlef Steuer ([e-mail], blotstorm on FIBS)

   Features:
   xgammon is Freeware under the Gnu Copyright.
   xgammon has nice graphical interface, you move by clicking on mousebuttons.
   You can do a maildump for a position, that means you get a file with
   a FIBS  style board with current position in it.
   You can do money game or tournament game.
   You can edit positions via mouse on the board or via ascii plain text files.
   You can turn doubling on and off.
   You can do rollouts with doubling turned on and off.
   The programm uses an endgame database for perfect bearing off (and for
   reasonable running game).
   There is an compi_finish for shorten the boring part of the game.
   and and and ....
   You can have fun with xgammon.
   Give xgammon a chance getting compiled on your machine.
   We'd like any reactions, especially porting reports to OS different
   from Linux.
   (heard of AIX and Sun OS compiling), especially bug reports .
   Send a mail if you use it, please!

   You find the latest Version of xgammon, at the time xgammon.0.96.tar.gz,
   at ftp sunsite.unc.edu /pub/Linux/X11/games/strategy/xgammon.0.96.tar.gz.

   Detlef Steuer
   [e-mail]
   (blotstorm on FIBS)


     _________________________________________________________________

  C2. WHICH PROGRAMS ARE GOOD? HOW GOOD IS GOOD?

     Program Name        Source      Type        Score
     -----------------   ------      ------      ------
    *TD-GAMMON 2.1        N/A         N/A         -0.05
     JellyFish 1.0       Dahl        IBM-PC/Win   -0.15
     Expert BG 2.1       Weaver      IBM-PC       -0.20
     Expert BG 1.61      Weaver      IBM-PC       -0.35
     Championship BG     Spinnaker   IBM-PC       -0.66
     Expert BG           Komodo      Macintosh    -0.82
     Sensory BG 2        Scitek      Portable     -0.94
     Backgammon          Odesta      IBM-PC       -1.20
     BG by George        GS Labs     IBM-PC/Win   -1.52
     Video Gammon        Baudville   IBM-PC       -1.61
     PC-Gammon           Repsted     IBM-PC       -3.67
     Gammon              Gakken      Portable    -12.40
     Windows BG          Baudville   IBM-PC/Win  -13.83
     Gammon Pal          Fidelity    Portable    -15.63
     Micro BG            Fidelity    Portable    -15.53
     Games People Play   Toolworks   IBM-PC      -26.60

   [ From the 1994 The GAMMON PRESS catalog. ]

    *  Not available commercially, but may sometimes be played on FIBS.

   Score is the number of points won per game, on average, against a top
   flight human player. Very large numbers are caused by bad doubling
   algorithms which cause a program to double when behind (typically when
   primed but ahead in the race), causing the computer to lose some very
   large cubes.

   TD-Gammon, a neural network backgammon program by Gerry Tesauro,
   plays at the level of human experts. It is not, alas, available
   commercially. See 'What Is TD-Gammon' for more details. The most
   recent version, 2.1, has been estimated to play at -0.05 points
   per game against a top flight human expert, making the program
   the best anywhere, and one of the strongest players in the world;
   period! How strong will it become with a 3-ply lookahead?


     _________________________________________________________________

  C3. WHY IS IT SO HARD TO WRITE A GOOD BACKGAMMON PROGRAM?

   There are two basic ways that a computer can play a game as well as or
   better than humans.  One is to be really smart, the other is to do an
   awful lot of work.  The general strategy most game-playing programs use
   is to use an evaluation function that isn't very smart, but to make up
   for it by looking ahead a lot of moves (doing a lot of work).

   With chess, there are typically 20-30 moves by each player per turn.
   With backgammon, there are 21 unique rolls and often 4-6 ways to play
   each one (not counting doubles with could have 10 or more ways of
   playing).  This makes it very difficult to look ahead very many levels.
   Looking ahead 3 moves by both players examining all possibilities when
   there are 25 choices at each play requires evaluating "only" 244 million
   positions.  If there are 90 ways to play each move, there are 530,000
   million, positions.

   With a game like chess, one can discard all but the best 5 or 10 plays
   per person.  With backgammon, there are always 21 different choices of
   best plays, depending on the dice.  This makes it crucial to have an
   excellent evaluation function.

   The difficulty in doing this is that factors such as the race have a
   different effect on the value of the position depending on what stage
   the game is in.  Consider the concept of timing -- hard enough for
   people to grasp, extremely difficult for computers.

   Another example of the difficulty of evaluating plays:  It's almost
   always beneficial to close out your opponents checkers.  But if you've
   hit one checker and you almost have to hit a second to be able to win,
   closing out your opponent is very bad.

   -michael j zehr


     _________________________________________________________________

  C4. WHAT IS TD-GAMMON?

   Newsgroups: rec.games.backgammon
   From: [e-mail] (Gerry Tesauro)
   Subject: TD-Gammon paper available by FTP
   Sender: Gerald Tesauro ([e-mail])
   Date: Wed, 2 Jun 1993 18:06:35 GMT
   Disclaimer: This posting represents the poster's views, not necessarily
               those of IBM.

   The following paper, which has been accepted for publication
   in Neural Computation, has been placed in the neuroprose
   archive at Ohio State. Instructions for retrieving the paper
   by anonymous ftp are appended below.

   ---------------------------------------------------------------
      TD-Gammon, A Self-Teaching Backgammon Program,
             Achieves Master-Level Play

                 Gerald Tesauro
        IBM Thomas J. Watson Research Center
                  P. O. Box 704
            Yorktown Heights, NY 10598
             ([e-mail])

   Abstract:
   TD-Gammon is a neural network that is able to teach
   itself to play backgammon solely by playing against
   itself and learning from the results, based on the
   TD(lambda) reinforcement learning algorithm (Sutton, 1988).
   Despite starting from random initial weights (and hence
   random initial strategy), TD-Gammon achieves a surprisingly
   strong level of play.  With zero knowledge built in at the
   start of learning (i.e. given only a ``raw'' description
   of the board state), the network learns to play at a strong
   intermediate level.  Furthermore, when a set of hand-crafted
   features is added to the network's input representation, the
   result is a truly staggering level of performance:
   the latest version of TD-Gammon is now estimated to
   play at a strong master level that is extremely close to the
   world's best human players.
   ---------------------------------------------------------------
   FTP INSTRUCTIONS

        unix% ftp archive.cis.ohio-state.edu (or 128.146.8.52)
        Name: anonymous
        Password: (use your e-mail address)
        ftp> cd pub/neuroprose
        ftp> binary
        ftp> get tesauro.tdgammon.ps.Z
        ftp> bye
        unix% uncompress tesauro.tdgammon.ps
        unix% lpr tesauro.tdgammon.ps


   [ In the November/December 93 issue of Inside Backgammon, there is an
   article by Kit Woolsey, which rates ALL of the moves made by 3 programs
   for an entire 31 game series. TD-GAMMON was the strongest! I think that
   this is enough to officially call it the strongest backgammon program
   currently in existence!!!!  ...Mark ]

   For a list of articles written by Gerry Tesauro, check out:
   A List of Backgammon Articles in Science and Business


     _________________________________________________________________


     _________________________________________________________________

Section D: RESOURCES

   D1. I'M LOOKING FOR A CLUB TO PLAY IN...

    Backgammon clubs in North America

   Below is a list of backgammon clubs in North America. It was taken from
   the January/Febrary 1995 issue of the Chicago Point newsletter. It may
   be copied for noncommercial purposes as long as you give full credit to
   "CHICAGO POINT, 2726 West Lunt Avenue, Chicago, IL 60645-3039."

   Information for this listing has been obtained directly from the featured
   backgammon clubs. Changes are inevitable and we suggest that you always
   call before attending. As a service to our readers, CHICAGO POINT would
   like to maintain an accurate listing of Backgammon Clubs In North
   America. Please send information including updates, club closings, and
   new clubs to:
                  CHICAGO POINT
                  277 W. Lunt Ave
                  Chicago, IL 60645-3039
   Or FAX:
                  312/338-6384

   (FORMAT)

   CLUB NAME.......................  LOCATION..................
   CITY & STATE........  MEETING ON................  TIME...
   CONTACT.............  TELEPHONE...
   MAIL INQUIRIES TO...................................


   (WEST)

   Backgammon Club of San Diago     Java House
   Delmar, CA            Sunday                      2:00 PM
   Mike Fujita           619/294-2007
   P.O Box 178119; San Diago, CA 92177

   Backgammon Club of San Diago     II Forno
   La Jolia, CA          Wednesday Monthly           6:30 PM
   Mike Fujita           619/294-2007
   P.O Box 178119; San Diago, CA 92177

   San Francisco Backgammon          Golden Gate Grill
   San Francisco, CA     Tuesday                     7:45 PM
   Doug Adsit            415/931-4600
   3200 Fillmore Street; San Francisco, CA 94123

   San Francisco Bridge & BG Club    Clubroom
   San Francisco, CA     Wed., Fri.                  9:00 PM
   Augie Hunt            415/776-6949
   777 Jones Street; San Francisco, CA 94109

   Gammon Associates                 Grand Slam Bridge & BG Club
   Woodland Hills, CA    Tuesday                     7:00 PM
   Patrick Gibson        818/901-0464
   7641 Orion Avenue; Van Nuys, CA 91406

   Gammon Associates                 Grand Slam Bridge & BG Club
   Woodland Hills, CA    Sunday                      7:00 PM
   Patrick Gibson        818/901-0464
   7641 Orion Avenue; Van Nuys, CA 91406

   Prime BG Club of Las Vegas        Jockey Club
   Las Vegas, NV         Tuesday                     7:00 PM
   Howard Markowitz      702/893-6025
   2620 S. Maryland Pkwy; Box 230; Las Vegas, NV 89109

   No. Nevada Backgammon Assn.       Rapscallion Seafood House
   Reno, NV              Thursday                    7:30 PM
   Jim Allen             702/329-1227
   449 W. Plumb Lane; Reno, NV 89509

   Oergon Backgammon Club            Lacey's
   Lake Oswego, OR       1st & 3rd Tuesday           7:00 PM
   Henry Moss            503/636-6258
   2360 Greebtree Road; Lake Oswego, OR 97034

   Pacific NW Backgammon Assn.       Shakey's Pizza
   Bellevue, WA          Monday                      7:00 PM
   Chuck Breckenridge    206/778-8181
   18204 Olympic View Drive; Edmonds, WA 98020

   Puget Sound Backgammon Assn.      European Connecktion
   Seattle, WA           Tuesday                     7:30 PM
   Guy Thurber           206/244-6737
   428 SW 127th Street; Seattle, WA 98146


   (CENTRAL)

   Bloomington-Normal BG Club        Ride The Nine
   Bloomington, IL       1st/3rd/5th Tues.           6:15 PM
   Lane O'Connor         309/454-1947
   108 Riss Drive; Normal, IL 61761

   Games People Play                 Alexander's
   Chicago, IL           Monday                      6:30 PM
   J.A. Miller           312/768-5523
   P.O. Box 8630; Chicago, IL 60680

   Chicago Bar Point Club            Golden Flame
   Chicago, IL           Tuesday                     6:15 PM
   Bill Davis            312/338-6380
   2726 W. Lunt Avenue; Chicago, IL 60645

   Chicago Bar Point Club            Braxton Seafood Grill
   Oak  Brook, IL        Sunday bimonthly           12:30 PM
   Peter Kalba           312/252-7755
   2510 W. Iowa Street; Chicago, IL 60622

   Pub Club                          Crickets Pub & Grill
   Glendale Heights, IL  Monday                      7:30 PM
   V.W. Zimnicki         708/924-8632
   P.O. Box 72216; Roselle, IL 60172

   Prime BG Club of Chicago          TJ's Lounge/Radisson Hotel
   Lincolnwood, IL       Friday                      7:00 PM
   Joann Feinstein       708/674-0120
   8149 Kenton; Skokie, IL 60076

   Central Illinois Backgammon Club  Cummins Family Restaraunt
   Peoria, IL            Thursday                    6:30 PM
   Ed Bauder             309/686-6662
   1115 E. McClure Avenue; Peoria, IL 61603

   Sangamon Valley BG Assn.          Parker's Sports Bar
   Springfield, IL       2nd & 4th Tuesday           6:00 PM

   Sangamon Valley BG Assn.          Parker's Sports Bar
   Springfield, IL       1st Sat./Nov.-Apr.         11:30 AM
   Randy Armstrong       217/528-0117
   2012 N. 20th Street; Springfield, IL 62702

   Winnetka Backgammon  Club         Winnetka Community House
   Winnetka, IL          Wednesday                   7:00 PM
   Trudie Stern          708/446-0537
   4200 W. Lake 302C; Glenview, IL 60025

   Summit City Backgammon League     Alumni Club
   Ft. Wayne, IN          Wednesday                  7:00 PM
   Ken Bruck              219/639-6898
   P.O. Box 6546; Fort Wayne, IN 46896

   Hoosier Backgammon Club           Spats
   Indianapolis, IN      Thursday                    7:00 PM
   Butch Meese           317/845-8435
   7620 Kilmer Lane; Indianapolis, IN 46256

   Flint Area Backgammon Club        Ramada Inn
   Flint, Ml             Thursday                    7:00 PM
   Carol Joy Cole        810/232-9731
   3003 Ridgecliffe Drive; Flint, MI 48532

   Plymouth Backgammon Club          Box Bar & Grill
   Plymouth, MI          Wednesday                   7:30 PM
   Dean Adamian          313/981-5706
   42954 Barchester; Canton, MI 48187

   Cavendish North BG Club           Clubhouse
   Southfield, MI        Daily except Sun.           1:00 PM
   Joe Sylvester         810/642-9616
   30065 Greenfield Road; Southfield, MI 48076

   Minneapolis Backgammon            Minneapolis Athletic Club
   Minneapolis, MN       Monday                      5:00 PM
   Fred Kalantari        612/682-1716
   4701 Valley View Road; Edina, MN 55424

   Cleveland Area Backgammon         Boulevard Sports Tavem
   Cuyahoga Falls, OH    Wednesday                   6:30 PM
   Irv Taylor            216/663-7332
   P.O. Box 28515; Cleveland, OH 44128

   Dallas Backgammon League          Scoreboard
   Addison, TX           Wednesday                   7:45 PM
   Rich Weaver           214/620-7462
   2682 Hearthstone; Dallas, TX 75234

   Austin Backgammon Assn.           Bombay Bicycle Club
   Austin, TX            Monday                      7:30 PM
   Jackie Seiders-Smart  512/261-8518
   30 Hightrail Way, Austin TX 78738

   American Backgammon Club          Vickery Feed Store
   Dallas, TX            Sunday                      6:00 PM
   Kati Pratt            214/827-8403
   5631 Ellsworth; Dallas, TX 75206

   Houston Backgammon Club           Abdallah's
   Houston, TX           Tuesday                     7:00 PM
   Jack Butler           713/774-9439
   5931 Reamer Street; Houston, TX 77074

   San Antonio Backgammon            Dad's
   San Antonio, TX       Friday                      8:00 PM
   Marcel Mommers        210/606-0025
   3812 Greenridge Drive; Cilbo, TX 78108

   Milwaukee Backgammon  Club        Gas Lite North
   Milwaukee, WI         Wednesday                   7:00 PM
   Marv Amol             414/355-8805
   9031 N. 70th Street; Milwaukee, WI 53223

   Milwaukee Backgammon              John Hawks Pub
   Milwaukee, WI         Sunday Bimonthly           11:30 AM
   Merril Schrager       414/463-2498
   9043 W. Grbaosa Druve; Milwaukee, WI 53225


   (NORTHEAST)

   Beltway Backgammon Club           Promenade Cardroom
   Bethesda, MD          2nd & 4th Sunday           12:00 N
   Barry Steinberg       301/530-0604
   5712 Quebec Street; Benwyn Hts. MD 20740

   Cavendish Club of Boston          Clubroom
   Brookline, MA         Thur. & Sat.               1:00 PM
   Carl Saldinger         617/734-2230
   111 Cypress Street; Brookline, MA 02146

   New England Backgammon Club       Sheraton Commander Hotel
   Cambridge, MA         Sunday monthly [Sep-Jun]   12:30 PM

   New England Backgammon Club       Sheraton Commander Hotel
   Cambridge, MA         Monday                      7:00 PM
   Seth Towle            508/486-0668
   29 Robinson Rd; Littleton, MA 01460

   New Jersey Backgammon Assn.       Best Western Oritani Hotel
   Hackensack,NJ         Tues. & Fri.                7:45 PM
   Ron Whitney           201/833-2915
   279 Glen Court; Teaneck, NJ 07666

   Ace Point Backgammon Club         Clubroom
   New York, NY          Daily                       3:00 PM
   Michael Valentine     212/753-0842
   41 E. 60th Street; New York, NY 10022

   Coterie                           Clubroom
   New York, NY          Daily                       1:00 PM
   Louise Goldsmith      212/371-5151
   Private club. Telephone for information.

   New York Chess & Backgammon       Office Building
   New York, NY          Daily, Tour. Sunday        12:00 N
   Steve Manning         212/302-5874
   120 W. 41st Street 3; New York, NY 10036

   Saratoga Backgammon Club          Waterfront Restaraunt
   Saratoga Springs, NY  Friday                      1:00 PM
   Lee Hoge              518/584-1714
   P.O. Box 563; Saratoga Springs, NY 12866

   Greater New York BG Club          Woodbury Ramada Inn
   Woodbury, NY          Sunday monthly             12:30 PM
   Dr. Bob Hill          718/341-3779
   194-22 115th Road; Jamaica, NY 11412

   Cavendish Club of Philadelphia    Clubroom
   Philadelphia, PA      Mon, Wed, Thu, Sat          1:00 PM
   Ken Relver            215/878-5777
   3801 Conshohocken Avenue; Philadelphia, PA 19131

   Pittsburgh Backgammon Assn.       Murphy's Tap Room
   Pittsburgh, PA        Tuesday                     8:30 PM
   Steve Hast            412/823-7500
   3560 Ridgewood Road; Pittsburgh, PA 15235


   (SOUTH)

   Suncoast Backgammon Assn.         New York, New York Lounge
   Clearwater, FL        Monday                      7:00 PM
   Drew Giovanis         813/726-1398
   25350 U.S. Hwy 19 N. 67; Clearwater, FL 34623

   South Florida Backgammon          Big Apple Sports Club
   Ft. Lauderdale, FL    Sunday                      1:00 PM
   Elayne Feinstein      305/785-1282
   2621 NE 7th Terrace; Pompano Beach, FL 33064

   Backgammon Club of N.W. Florida   Olde English Pub
   Lynn   Haven, FL      Tuesday                     7:30 PM
   Rick Bieniak          904/773-2013
   P.O. Box 416; Wausau, FL 32463

   Orando Backgammon                 Coach's Locker Room
   Orando, FL            Tuesday                     7:30 PM
   David Thomas          904/736-2844
   P.O. Box 803, Deland, FL 32721

   Backgammon Society of Sarasota    Bath & Raquet Club
   Sarasota, FL          Tuesday                     7:00 PM
   Frank Shank           813/792-3992
   5320 86th St. W.; Brandenton, FL 34210

   Atlanta Backgammon Association    Cabo Wabo & Grill
   Atlanta, GA           Wednesday                   7:00 PM
   Dave Cardwell         404/682-1969
   P.O. Box 956547; Duluth, GA 30136

   Atlanta Backgammon Association    CafFiends Coffee Bar
   Atlanta, GA           Sunday Monthly              7:00 PM
   Dave Cardwell         404/682-1969
   P.O. Box 956547; Duluth, GA 30136

   Louisville Backgammon Club         Encore Restaurant
   Louisville, KY        2nd & 4th Tuesday           6:30 PM
   Quint McTyeire        502/896-9783
   4906 Crofton Road; Louisville, KY 40207

   Raleigh Backgammon Club            Western Bowling Alley
   Raleigh, NC           1st & 3rd Friday            7:30 PM
   Frank Bommarito       919/552-2291
   401 St. John Court; Holly Springs, NC 27540


   (CANADA)

   Vancouver Backgammon             Jo-Anne's Place
   Vancouver, BC         Tuesday                    8:00 PM
   Marty Jensen          604/688-8317
   1339 Burnaby St. 402; Vancouver, BC V6E 1R2; CANADA

   Nat'l Capital Backgammon Club     Lunergan's Pub
   Vanier, ON            lst Sun./Sep.-Jun.        12:30 PM
   Eden Windish          613/741-2530
   396 Talbot Street; Ottawa, ON KlK 2N6; CANADA

   Le Gammon                         Clubroom
   Montreal, QB          Daily                       3:30 PM
   Michel Medifti        514/845-8370
   552 St. Catherine East, Montreal, OB H2L 2E1; CANADA

    Playing Backgammon in the Boston area

   From: [e-mail] (Michael A Urban)
   Date: 19 Oct 1993

   Frequently, membership fees are waived for initial participants.
   For complete details, contact the club of interest.

   Cavendish Club                         617-734-2230
   111 Cypress St.
   Brookline, MA  02146        USA        Fee:  $150/year

   The Cavendish runs chouettes on Thursday evenings and Saturday
   afternoons.  The club also has duplicate and rubber bridge.


     _________________________________________________________________


   New England Backgammon Club            617-643-8154
   c/o Sheraton Commander Hotel           President:  Seth Towle
   16 Garden Street
   Cambridge, MA 02138-3609    USA        Fee:   $35/year

   The NEBC runs weekly Monday tournaments starting at 7pm and
   monthly Sunday tournaments beginning at 1pm.  No smoking is
   permitted in the tournament room.  The NEBC publishes, "Anchors",
   a monthly newsletter.

   [Note: There are no Sunday tournaments in July or August]
   [Note: Some Sunday tournaments start at noon. Nov and May in 94/95 season]


     _________________________________________________________________

    Other Backgammon Clubs

   The Danish BG Federation  Phone: [phone])

   The Danish Backgammon Federation is maintaining two extensive national
   ratinglists (all matches and tournament matches). As far as I recall we
   are currently rating more than 50,000 matches a year !!

   Furthermore the DBgF is offering a variety of things stretching from a
   monthly magazine, live tournaments EVERY DAY, international tournaments
   (NORDIC OPEN every Easter) and many more things.

   For your information: The DBgF is a democratically governed organisation.
   We encourage all other nations to form national organisations. It is the
   only way if we really want to promote the game in a serious manner.


   Erik M. Gravgaard
   President of the Danish BG Federation
   erikg on FIBS


  __________________________________________________________________________



   [94-12] A new Backgammon club has opened in Raleigh, NC.

   It currently meets at the Western Bowling alley across the road from North
   Carolina State University.

   Time 8:00 P.M. starting
   Day  Friday night at this point - club participants are deciding if this
   night will become "the night"


  __________________________________________________________________________


   [95-03]
   In your FAQ you have details of backgammon clubs ... can you include
   ours please? Several fibsters come to it regularly.

   Rose and Thistle, Argyle Road, Reading, UK.
   Weekly Wednesdays from 8:30 pm.
   Informal - no officers, but contact number: Marina 01734 612814

   Thanks. :-)
   --
   *  Marina Smith   *  Reading, U.K.  *
   marina on FIBS.


  __________________________________________________________________________




   From: [e-mail] (Paul McMillan)
   Newsgroups: rec.games.backgammon
   Subject: New Weekly BG Site in San Francisco
   Date: 27 Feb 1995 15:55:35 -0800

   The Baja Cantina will begin hosting weekly BG tournaments on Wednesdays at
   8:00 p.m. starting March 8, 1995.

   The format will largely resemble that of the tournaments formerly held on
   Tuesdays at the Golden Gate Grill.

   The Baja is located across the street from the Golden
   Gate Grill at 3154 Fillmore, corner of Greenwich.   The
   phone number there is 415 885-2252.

   Please bring your boards.


  __________________________________________________________________________



   Date: Thu, 8 Dec 1994 09:02:22 -0800 (PST)

   [...]
   While I'm writing you, I should probably also tell you that the
   Backgammon Club of San Diego now meets at the Java House in Del Mar at 2
   p.m. on Sundays.  The contact phone number remains the same (and Mike
   Fujita should be online soon, so I'll have him send you an email contact
   address).


  __________________________________________________________________________




     _________________________________________________________________

  D2. WHERE ARE THE TOURNAMENTS?

   -- Look for ads in backgammon newsletters.
   -- Check backgammon clubs.
   -- Sometimes announcements are posted to the news group
      rec.games.backgammon.
   -- Various WWW pages are now posting schedules.


     _________________________________________________________________

  D3. I'M LOOKING FOR INFORMATION ABOUT NEWSLETTERS AND OTHER PUBLICATIONS.

    Anchors

   Anchors: Newsletter of the New England Backgammon Club
      Monthly except July, usually 8 pages, two devoted to local news
      with remaining to analytical material and backgammon related
      stories with minimal advertising.
      Subscription: USA/Canada/Mexico: $15/year.
                    Overseas: $25/year (check drawn on U.S. bank).
      Contact: NEBC
               c/o Sheraton-Commander Hotel
               16 Garden Street
               Cambridge, MA 02138-3609


     _________________________________________________________________

    Backgammon Magazine

   Backgammon Magazine
     Lately this has been published quarterly in a combined  German/English
     edition.

     Vertrieb (sales/marketing)
     Edith Johanni
     Emil-Nolde-Str. 26
     90455 Nurnberg
     Tel.: [phone]

     Redaktion (Editor)
     Harold Johanni
     Hochstr. 7
     90429 Nurnberg
     Tel.:[phone]


     _________________________________________________________________

    Backgammon Quarterly

   [...]
   I will provide details of all these, and more, things in my forthcoming
   magazine "Backgammon Quarterly", for which I have been collecting and
   working through ideas for the last four years (If you are interested in
   receiving it, please send me e-mail stating so and including your postal
   address).

   -- John Bazigos
      e-mail: [e-mail]
      FIBS-handle: doc


     _________________________________________________________________

    BLITZ

      Bi-monthly, 24 A5 sized pages. in Danish. It is a newsletter/magazine
      for a BG club in Copenhagen. 4-6 pages are directed towrds the members
      of the club, the rest is general analysis, commentated matches,
      articles, problems etc. There is a quiz a la Inside BG's quiz. 4
      problems each issue, with the answers taking 4-6 pages.
      Subscription:  Scandinavia      Danish kr. 120
                     Europe                 Dkr. 140
                     Overseas (USA/Canada)  Dkr. 160
      Contact:       Asger Kring ([e-mail])
                     Lykkesholms Alle 4B,3 th.
                     1902 Frederiksberg C.
                     Denmark
                     tlf: 3131 1439


     _________________________________________________________________

    Chicago Point Newsletter

   Chicago Point Newsletter - A Prime Source of Backgammon Information
      Monthly newsletter, 10 pages:
      Subscription: USA/Canada/Mexico: $25/year.
                    Overseas: $35/year airmail in USD check drawn on
                              U.S. bank.
      Contact: Chicago Point
               Bill Davis, Editor
               2726 West Lunt Avenue
               Chicago, IL 60645


     _________________________________________________________________

    European Backgammon News

      Contact: European Backgammon News
               Apartado 81
               E-04630
               Garrucha (Almeria)
               Spain

      Fax:     [phone]


     _________________________________________________________________

    Flint Area Backgammon News

      Monthly newsletter, 10 pages: Problem analysis, book and software
      reviews, tournament schedules and complete results, local, national
      and international backgammon news and views.  Full page catalog of
      backgammon merchandise.
      Subscription: USA/Canada/Mexico: $20/year or $200 lifetime.
                    Overseas: $25/year or $250 lifetime subscription.
      Contact: Carol Joy Cole, Editor
               3003 Ridgecliffe Drive
               Flint, Michigan 48532-3730 USA
               Phone/Fax: [phone].


     _________________________________________________________________

    GAMMON

   Members magazine for the Danish Backgammon Federation.

   A5 sized. Published 6 - 8 times a year with a circulation between 1,800 and
   10,000 (10,000 during Carlsberg Backgammon Cup).

   32 to 44 pages with articles, rating lists, tournament invitations and
   reviews, general BG theori, "ask the experts"-coloumn, annotated matches
   etc. Mainly in Danish, with occasional English articles.

   Subscription can also be obtained by non-members for DKK 180 per year (US$
   30).

   Advertisement: Please contact Chris Ternel for prices.

   Editor:
          Chris Ternel
          Danish Backgammon Federation
          Gersonsvej 25
          DK-2900  Hellerup
          DENMARK
          Tel. [phone]
          Fax. [phone]

   or you can contact:

         Erik Gravgaard, president of DBgF
         e-mail: [e-mail]


     _________________________________________________________________

    Hoosier Backgammon Club Newsletter

      Bi-monthly, 8 pages: Articles/problems plus very issue
      non-annotated matches of todays best players.
      Subscription: USA: $12/years Canada/Mexico: $14/year.
                    Overseas: $16/year (cash or check drawn on US bank.)
      Contact: Butch & Mary Ann Meese
               Hoosier Backgammon Club
               7620 Kilmer Lane
               Indianapolis, IN 46256 USA


     _________________________________________________________________

    Inside Backgammon

      Bi-monthly, 24 pages: Technical magazine with quizzes, articles and
      annotated matches by the best backgammon players today.
      Subscription: USA: $40/years
                    Canada/Mexico and oversea ground: $45/year.
                    Overseas airmail: $60/year (US funds).
      Contact: INSIDE BACKGAMMON
               P. O. Box 294
               Arlington, MA 02174  USA

               [phone]


     _________________________________________________________________

    Norpunkt

      Norpunkt is the magazine of the Norwegian Backgammon Federation
      (Norges Backgammon Forbund). It's published quarterly, but only
      written in Norwegian.
      A sample of articles written in Norwegian appears at WWW site:
        http://www.ifi.uio.no/~steinw/norpunkt.html
      The WWW page for the Norwegian Backgammon Federation is:
        http://www.ifi.uio.no/~steinw/NBgF.html
      For Further information send E-mail to Stein Welle at
         [e-mail]


     _________________________________________________________________


   Are there any other backgammon newsletters or magazines out there? Please
   help to keep the faq up to date. (thanks!)


     _________________________________________________________________

  D4. BACKGAMMON BOOKS AND BOOK REVIEWS.

    BG books [summary] by Marty Storer

   (From rec.games.backgammon)
   From: [e-mail] (Larry Hunter)
   Subject: Bibliography
   Date: 21 May 92 20:11:35 GMT
   Sender: [e-mail] (usenet news poster)

   One more for the FAQ.  Before Marty Storer left the list, I pestered him
   for an annotated bibliography.  He came through in grand style.  Here it
   is:

   Must have:

   _Backgammon_, Paul Magriel, NY Times/Quadrangle Press, New York 1976.
     The best introduction to the game.  Covers basic checker play very well.
     If you read and thoroughly understand this book, you'll play a decent
     game.  Weaknesses--skimpy treatment of the doubling cube.

   _Genud_vs_Dwek:_The_1981_World_Backgammon_Championship_ (or similar
   title), Bill Robertie, The GAMMON PRESS, Arlington, Mass. 1982.
     Very thorough coverage of the 25-point finals of the 1981 Monte Carlo
     tournament.  Goes into quite a bit of detail about ins and outs of match
     play.  Excellent section on backgames.  I've referred to this as
     Robertie(red) since it has a red cover 8-).

   _Backgammon_With_The_Champions_, Kent Goulding, ~1980-82.
     Series of annotated matches between good players.  Forget how many in
     all.  Excellent material, giving very good insight into how top players
     think.  Commentary by Goulding, often in collaboration with Kit Woolsey;
     both of these guys are very, very strong players.  Let's see, the
     matches are Seidel vs. Hodis; Magriel vs. Sconyers; Genud vs. Posner;
     Pasko vs.  Motakhasses; two (?) 5-point matches in one volume:  Lester
     vs. Horan and Woolsey vs. Pasko; Robertie vs. Senkiewicz; Goulding vs.
     Maxakuli; Dwek vs. Chafetz; Ballard vs. Lubetkin; Eisenberg vs.
     Magriel(?); and more I can't remember.  I can't recommend this series
     too highly (though Genud vs. Posner was a lousy match).

   _Advanced_Backgammon_ (2nd edition; two volumes), Bill Robertie,
     The GAMMON PRESS,  Arlington, Mass. '91.
     I haven't seen this yet--only the first edition of one volume.  Series
     of problems, giving very good introduction to truly advanced concepts.
     Errors in first edition are supposedly corrected.  The first edition is
     what I call Robertie(blue); the second is Robertie(white).

   _Backgammon_Times_, all back editions.
     This was a very good backgammon newspaper that was around in about
     '82-'83.  A lot of interesting articles by top players and analysts.
     Probably hard to get these days.

   _Reno_1986_, Bill Robertie, The Gammon Press, Arlington, Mass. 1987.
     Two annotated matches from the very strong Reno tournament of '86.
     Semifinal match is between Nack Ballard and Mike Senkiewicz; an
     excellent match, well annotated.  Finals between Ballard and Howard
     Markowitz.  The book is in quiz format, so you can test your skill
     against Ballard's (well, kind of:  Ballard had to find his moves
     over-the-board under great pressure--nothing like the finals of a big
     tournament to get the adrenalin flowing!).  I've only found a couple of
     mistakes in the annotations.  This book is referred to as
     Robertie(yellow).

   _World_Class_Backgammon_,_Move_By_Move_, Roy Friedman, 1989 or 90;
     forget other publication info.  Annotated matches between Robertie and
     "international star" Rick Barabino (Barabino is strong, but
     "international star"--I dunno...).  Three 9-point matches with some
     excellent games (check out the second game of the first match
     particularly).  Annotations are very good; Friedman put a lot of work
     into rolling out many of the diagrammed positions.  The annotation style
     is terse; Friedman takes a very scientific approach.

   _Vision_Laughs_at_Counting_ (two volumes), Danny Kleinman, ~1978.
   -all other material by Kleinman is "must have"--write to him at 5312-1/2
   Village Green, Los Angeles, CA 90016 and tell him I sent ya.
     Seminal work on match play, money play, doubling cube, races, and more.
     Kleinman is very prolific.  His analyses are often more mathematical
     than the average reader can handle, but Real Mathematicians [tm] and
     even the layperson with math aptitude shouldn't be fazed.  A Real
     Mathematician wouldn't call Kleinman's math "deep", but it sure is
     accurate, and you won't find anything similar anywhere else.  He does
     the important work of formulating the right problems the right way,
     where many others couldn't.

     Drawbacks:  his books are self-published with lousy layout and graphics.
     He's supposedly not that great a player (I've never seen him play), so
     his analyses often lack the world-class insight into the thought
     processes of the strong practical player that you could get from a
     Goulding or a Robertie.  In particular, his middle-game intuition seems
     less than world-class.  But these drawbacks are more than made up for by
     the wealth of information in his books, which I still haven't completely
     soaked up after many years.  Kleinman is a subtle thinker and a
     meticulous analyst of the countable, and he does a lot to develop
     backgammon "vision."  His stuff is often uproariously funny, but
     sometimes one gets impatient trying to filter out what's relevant to the
     practical player from the humor.

     I repeat--all his books are "must have's" for the serious player.
     They're a bit expensive since I think he bears all the production costs
     himself, but for the serious player they're worth every cent.

   Pretty Good Books But Not "Must Have's":

   _Backgammon_For_Profit_, Joe Dwek, Stein and Day, New York 1975 (out of
   print)
     Problems that would now be considered fairly basic.  Almost all
     solutions are right.  Tables of replies to opening moves show how badly
     people played in 1975.

   _Paradoxes_and_Probabilities_, Barclay Cooke, Random House, New York 1978.
     This is almost a "must have."  168 problems, most of which are very
     interesting.  Current thinking is that solutions to about a third of them
     are wrong, but the analysis gives very good insight into how Cooke, a
     first-generation world class player, thought about backgammon.

   _The_Doubling_Cube_In_Backgammon_, Jeff Ward, Aquarian Enterprises,
   San Diego 1982.
     Goes into basic doubling-cube concepts and gives some benchmark
     positions with equities derived from rollouts.  Gives some bearoff
     tables, etc.  Analysis of benchmark positions is pretty good but
     sometimes skimpy; Ward only admits to having done 100-200 rollouts to
     derive his equities.  Worth having.

   _Backgammon_Master_Games_, Bill Kennedy and Chuck Papazian, 1982 (forget
   other publication info).
     Annotated games and positions from master match play.  Analysis is
     largely based on intuitive concepts, and isn't well grounded in
     match-equity considerations etc.  Not well supported by rollouts; a fair
     amount of errors, but the analysis overall is pretty sound.

     Other books that I've read aren't worth much, including
     _Competitive_Backgammon_ Vol._II_, Mike Labins, Marty Storer, and Bill
     Tallmadge, Competitive Backgammon Publications, Syracuse 1981.  (It was
     good for the time but would be considered lousy now.)

   As I mentioned before, you can reach Gammon Press at [phone],
   fax: [phone] or PO Box 294 Arlington, MA 02174 USA

   Larry
   --
   Lawrence Hunter, PhD.
   National Library of Medicine
   Bldg. 38A, MS-54
   Bethesda. MD 20894
   [phone]
   [phone] (fax)
   [e-mail] (internet)


   [Note: Fax number edited to reflect the current number.]


     _________________________________________________________________

    BG books [summary] by John Bazigos

   Article: 1666 of rec.games.backgammon
   Newsgroups: rec.games.backgammon
   From: [e-mail] (MIKA JOHNSSON)
   Subject: BG BOOKS INFO
   Date: Thu, 1 Jul 1993 10:20:19 GMT

   HI !

   Many people (last Snoopy) have asked about good BG books, well here is and
   answer that i got from John Bazigos (Doc), when I asked him about books

   -Mika

   BG BOOKS BY JOHN BAZIGOS

   The two best introductory books are Paul Magriel's "Backgammon" (New York
   Times Quadrangle Press; New York, NY; USA; 1976) and Enno Heyken's and
   Martin B. Fischer's "The Backgammon Handbook" (The Crowood Press;
   Ramsbury, Marlborough, Wiltshire SN8 2HE; Great Britain; 1990).

   The advantages of Magriel's "Backgammon" are, first, Magriel was a
   clear-minded, distinguished mathematician at the top of the backgammon
   world when he wrote it; second, it was the only truly analytic book on
   backgammon since Oswald Jacoby's and John R.  Crawford's "The Backgammon
   Book"; third, it rendered all backgammon texts preceding it (including
   "The Backgammon Book"), and even some subsequent backgammon texts,
   obsolete as introductory texts; fourth, it systematically elucidates
   backgammon strategy, from fundamental to intermediate to advanced; fifth,
   it does great justice to its topics in its well-diagrammed over-400 pages;
   and sixth, it has passed the test of time as an introductory text, having
   been commonly referred to as "The Bible" of backgammon.  Its disadvantages
   are, first, some important details of some advanced topics (e.g.,
   desirable back-game points), and even some major points of some
   beginning/intermediate topics (e.g., tradeoffs between positional and
   racing equity) are obsolete; second, the prose, though very readable, is
   structurally and stylistically weak; third, the text has been out-of-print
   since some time last year, though is well worth a search of *all* your
   local used/out-of-print bookstores; and fourth, though the publication
   price was $24.95, the only mail-order list on which I have found it prices
   it at $80, which makes a used/out-of-print bookstore an even better source
   -- since it is typically discounted to about $15 there, in my experience
   (here in the San Francisco Bay Area).

   The advantages of "The Backgammon Handbook" are, first, like "Backgammon",
   it systematically elucidates backgammon strategy; second, it contains the
   complete score, with some annotations, of the very illuminating, 26-game
   match between two-time World Backgammon Champion and leading bg theorist
   Bill Robertie and now-inactive international master Nack Ballard (Reno,
   1987) that the former described as "...perhaps the most interesting one
   I've ever played in my life!"; and third, it is still in print with a
   publication price of about $35.  Its disadvantages are, first, Heyken
   --though an International Master in chess-- does not have an international
   backgammon rating, and Fischer does not have a master rating in
   backgammon; second, it contains only about 60% as much text as
   "Backgammon", while not being significantly terser; and third, the
   authors' lack of qualifications is evidenced in some of their misleading
   and/or naive analyses.

   I think that you should search your local, or even not quite local,
   used/out-of-print bookstores for "Backgammon", and pay up to about $50 for
   it -- though if you find it in such a store, it is likely to be discounted
   to about $15; and then, if you cannot find it at a reasonable price, buy
   and read "The Backgammon Handbook" -- after which your time won't be best
   spent reading Magriel soon thereafter.


   [ Note:
     The Backgammon Handbook is still in print and can be ordered direct from
     the (very small) publisher:
          The Crowood Press
          Ramsbury
          Marlborough
          SN8 2HE, U.K.
     Or from any decent bookshop. The price is UKP 15.95 ]

   > are you familiar with Danny Kleinmans books,

   I have read most of his "magnum opus" "Vision Laughs at Counting", which
   contains much sound advice on the practical aspects of bg play (e.g.,
   sections on bg hustlers, bg cheaters, chouette money management), seminal
   advice on handling the doubler, and even a few unprecedented mathematical
   characterizations of certain aspects of certain positions (e.g., how many
   pips to penalize a player for having one or more checkers on the bar).

   > are they good ?

   "Vision Laughs at Counting" is  generally insightful and often very
   amusingly written, but not suitable as an introductory text, sometimes
   obsolete, and sometimes simply wrong; and though it is the only text by
   Kleinman that I have read, I have good reason to believe that that
   judgment applies to Kleinman's other texts, as well.

   Ok; then after finishing "Backgammon" or "The Backgammon Handbook", study
   Jeff Ward's "The Doubling Cube in Backgammon" -- which has long been
   offered through Carol Joy Cole.

   Magriel's "Backgammon" routinely used to be, and sometimes still is,
   referred to as "the Bible (of backgammon)"; but since the publication of
   Robertie's three books on backgammon --i.e., "Lee Genud vs. Joe Dwek"
   (1982), "Advanced Backgammon" (1984 and 1991, the latter edition in two
   volumes), and "Reno, 1986" (1987)-- I think that it's more appropriate to
   refer to "Backgammon" and collectively those three as the Old and New
   Testaments of backgammon, respectively.  Given that you have already
   finished studying "The  Backgammon Handbook" and "The Doubling Cube in
   Backgammon", I think that you should read one or more books of Robertie's
   "New Testament" fairly soon after finishing Roy Friedman's "World Class
   Backgammon, Move-By-Move" -- which I, also, recently received a copy of
   from Carol Joy Cole, and is the backgammon book that I intend to read next.

   Well, from the quality perspective, I was significantly more impressed
   with it when perhaps the only bg literature I had read was typical junk
   from the 1970s (i.e., Bruce Becker's monumentally horrible "Backgammon for
   Blood", and Barclay Cooke's often-misleading "The Cruelest Game" and
   slightly-better "Championship Backgammon"), "The Backgammon Book", and
   Magriel's "Backgammon"; and from the price perspective, the decision is
   strictly yours, though I hereby make the following three interrelated
   claims:
    1.  If you read enough backgammon books, there will quite possibly
       come a time when "Vision Laughs at Counting" will be the best book
       for to read next to improve your technique maximally.
    2.  You are probably at least seven books from that point: "World Class
       Backgammon, Move-By-Move", the four volumes of backgammon's New
       Testament, and both volumes of Kent Goulding's "Backgammon With
       The Champions" are presently better for that purpose (and you can
       perhaps most profitably read them in that order).
    3.  "Vision Laughs at Counting" is the most entertaining
       instructional backgammon book that has been published to date.

   > BTW are there other good bg newspapers or magazines ?

   Last year was an unprecedentedly good one for backgammon periodicals, in
   that it saw the first issues of what I strongly believe were and still are
   the two best periodicals for backgammon theory ever --i.e., Bill Robertie'
   and Kent Goulding's bi-monthly "Inside Backgammon", and Roy Friedman's
   almost bi-monthly "Leading Edge Backgammon".  The former is still being
   published (I recently received my copy of the fourth issue of its second
   volume), and publication of the latter was suspended at the end of last
   year (due to some personal problems that Roy was having); but it was
   possible to order either or both of them from Carol the last time I
   checked (Please inform me if you need ordering information on either or
   both of them).

   Those are the only three backgammon periodicals to which I (have ever)
   subscribe(d), though that may change soon; more on that in a forthcoming
   e-mail message from me.

   > Do you know any technical papers about BG,

   One of the best features of both "Inside Backgammon" and "Leading Edge
   Backgammon" is they consist mostly of (what I would consider) technical
   papers on backgammon.

   >I have read Keelers and Spencers "optimal doubling in BG"

   So have I, but I have also read a paper co-authored by Zadeh, titled "On
   Optimal Doubling in Backgammon", that explicitly rendered that paper
   obsolete.  I'll provide you with more information on both that and other
   technical papers from the 1970s in a forthcoming e-mail message.

   > and in one AI-magazine was an article about Tesauros TD-gammon (about
     20 p)

   The second volume of "Inside Backgammon" contains about one article per
   issue on TD-Gammon, two of which document (recent) sessions that Robertie,
   Magriel, and at least one other bg master had against it; more on that,
   also, in an forthcoming e-mail message from me.


     _________________________________________________________________

    How to play tournament BG [book]

   "How to play tournament BG" by Kit Woolsey

   This is an excellent introduction to how play and particularly cube
   handling varies in games.  It shows how to compute push and cash points,
   recube equity, how to figure gammon costs, etc.  It gives Kit's latest
   match equity chart and gives a method for remembering most of it fairly
   well.  If you play matches games and don't immediately recognize any of
   these terms, I strongly suggest reading it.

   -michael j zehr


     _________________________________________________________________


   Here is an outline of the book:

    0. Introduction
    1. Crawford Game Strategies
    2. Post-Crawford Play
       2.1. The Free Drop
       2.2. Mandatory Doubling
    3. The Two-Away versus Two-Away Score
    4. The Match-Equity Table
    5. Learning the Table
       5.1. The Janowski Formula
    6. Using the Table
       6.1. Gain-Loss Tables
       6.2. The Doubling Window
    7. Initial Cube-Decisions at Various Scores
    8. Redoubles and Cube-Leverage
    9. Cube-Leverage in Gammonish Positions
   10. Gammon Potential and Checker Play
   11. Five Practical Examples
   12. An Illustrative Game: Woolsey-Robertie, Reno 1993

   -- John Bazigos ("doc" on FIBS)


     _________________________________________________________________

    Backgammon (Robin Clay) [book]

   Backgammon by Robin Clay  $7.95  NTC Publishing Group

   I was surprised to see this book for sale recently at a local book shop.
   This book was 'skimmed' by two intermediate players, and both immediately
   found that the some of the concepts and advice given were grossly
   incorrect. One of these 'reviewers', went as far as to say: "If your
   opponent says that he has just read this book, immediately raise the
   stakes!".

   ...Mark


     _________________________________________________________________

    In The Game Until The End... [booklet]

   In The Game Until The End: Winning In Ace-Point Endgames by Bob Watchel

   You've played an ace-point game; Your opponent is down to his last
   few checkers. Should you run? Should you stay? If your opponent wants
   to settle, what's the game worth? How aggressively should you try to
   pick up a second checker?

   If you don't know the answers to these critical questions, you need
   this book. In Chapter 4 alone you'll discover the secrets of the
   famous "Tino Road Position," an endgame so complicated that - once
   you know how to play it - you can take the position from either side
   and win. Olympiad Champion Bob Watchel has thoroughly analyzed
   hundreds of ace-point game positions to generate a complete picture
   of what's really going on in these common yet widely-misplayed
   situations.

   Soft bound, 112 Pages.  Level: Advanced and Serious Intermediate.
   Available from The GAMMON PRESS.  US$25 + Shipping

   [From a flyer from The GAMMON PRESS]


     _________________________________________________________________

    Learning From the Machine... [booklet]

   Learning from the Machine: Robertie vs. TD-GAMMON by Bill Robertie

   For years, computer backgammon was a languishing sideshow, with the
   best computer programs barely able to rise to the intermediate level.

   This all changed in 1991 with the emergence of TD-Gammon, an
   experimental neural network program developed at IBM's research
   labs. TD-Gammon taught itself to play, starting with a knowledge of
   the rules of the game. After playing thousands of games against
   itself, the program reached strong Open player level; within months,
   it became world-class. TD-Gammon plays like a strong human player in
   many parts of the game. In some areas, it plays quite unlike what has
   generally been accepted as "correct strategy" leading increasing
   numbers of top players to begin to experiment with some of
   TD-Gammon's unconventional plays. Here is your chance to see for
   yourself.

   Bill Robertie played two long matches against TD-Gammon as part of
   its evaluation process. "Learning from the Machine" is the complete
   account of the 31 games of the first match, with annotations by
   Robertie.

   Soft bound, 56 Pages.  Level: All.
   Available from The GAMMON PRESS.  US$20 + Shipping

   [From a flyer from the GAMMON PRESS]

   [Note: This is most likely TD-GAMMON Version 1.0]


     _________________________________________________________________

    Kit Woolsey's "Tournement Series Backgammon"

   In December 1994, The GAMMON PRESS announced its publication
   of the first three (of 18) volumes Kit Woolsey's Tournement Backgammon
   Series. These are text versions of Kit's instructional Match Qiz software.
   There are many diagrams, which means a board is not required to study
   the material. The typesetting is elegant. The comments are elequent.

   Book  1:  Joe Sylvester vs. Nack Ballard          150 pages US$20
   Book  2:  Philip Marmorstein vs. Michael Greiner  240 pages US$25
   Book  3:  Mika Lidov vs. Hal Heinrich             220 pages US$25


     _________________________________________________________________

    The Backgammon Book

   [Authers: Oswald Jacoby and John R. Crawford]

   There are many who will be quick to dismiss _The BG Book_ because it was
   written in 1970 and knowledge has come very far since then.

   However, I recommend this book to players who are just beginning to study
   the game seriously because it offers an excellent overview of several
   central features of backgammon thinking and analysis. Although the anaysis
   doen't go very FAR, a reader will get clear introductions to:
           -Basic probability (how dice work)
           -Pip Counting (the basis for evaluating racing chances)
           -Doubling Cube theory (the 25% rule)
           -Settlements (useful concept even if you never settle)
           -general strategic categories (backgames, etc).

   I think this book is a fine place to start, but if you hope to get anywhere
   you will need to follow up with some more sophisticated books.  Magriel if
   you can find it, of course.  Dwek's _BG for Profit_ is a good next step,
   too. Avoid Barclay Cooke's _Paradoxes & Probabilities_ and _Championship
   BG_, though, because those books are wrong in their evaluation of many
   common positions.

   Good luck in your studies!

   Albert Steg


     _________________________________________________________________

    Playboy's Book of Backgammon

      One of my favorite books on BG is Lewis Deyong's _Playboy's Book of
   Backgammon_, becasue he alternates chapters on  tactics and strategy with
   sections recounting various stories from major tournaments all over the
   world : California, Las Vegas, Munich, Athens, Johannesburg, Beirut.

      Reading it, you get a pretty vivid picture of the BG "scene" in the
   60's and 70's.  You also get some understanding of how Calcutta Auctions
   work, and may learn some good anecdotal lessons about the psychology of the
   game: steaming, taking insurance, etc.

   -- Albert Steg


     _________________________________________________________________

    Other Books

   Other books seeking write-ups:

   -- Fascinating Backgammon by Antonio Ortega, Edited by Danny Klienman,
      forwarded by Carol Joy Cole and Neil Kazaross (English Version)

   -- Backgammon For Winners by Bill Robertie.  $6.95  Cardoza Publishing


     _________________________________________________________________

    Danny Kleinman Books

   A list of Danny Kleinman books (Backgammon)

                                                          Pages  Price (US$)
                                                          -----  -----------
   VISION LAUGHS AT COUNTING with ADVICE TO THE DICELORN    438  $64
   WONDERFUL WORLD OF BACKGAMMON                            132  $18
   MEANWHILE, BACK AT THE CHOUETTE                          142  $29
   DOUBLE-SIXES FROM THE BAR                                135  $19
   IS THERE LIFE AFTER BACKGAMMON?                          148  $21
   HOW CAN I KEEP FROM DANCING?                             134  $19
   THE DICE CONQUER ALL                                     228  $33
   HOW LITTLE WE KNOW ABOUT BACKGAMMON                      168  $25
   THE OTHER SIDE OF MIDNIGHT                               142  $20
   ... BUT ONLY THE HOGS WIN BACKGAMMONS                    244  $37
   A Backgammon Book For Gabriel.                           144  $24


     _________________________________________________________________

  D5. A LIST OF BACKGAMMON ARTICLES IN SCIENCE AND BUSINESS

   [Original list submited by Mika Johnsson]
   [sorted by date]

   Hans Berliner: " A Program that Plays Backgammon", SIGART
                        Newsletter  No. 54, October 1975

   E.B. Keeler, J. Spencer: "Optimal doubling in Backgammon", Operations
                            research Vol. 23 No. 6, November-December 1975

   N. Zadeh: " On Doubling in Tournament Backgammon ", Management
                              Science 23, 986-993  (1977)

   P.J. Orth: " A Comment on "Optimal Doubling in Backgammon'",
                   Operations Research 24, 1179 (1976)

   David Levner: "is Brute Force Backgammon Possible ?", SIGART newsletter
                 No. 58, June 1976

   N. Zadeh and G.Kobliska: "On optimal doubling in backgammon" , Management
                             science 23, 853-858 (1977)

   Hans Berliner: "Backgammon computer program beats world champion",
                  Artificial intelligence 14 (1980), 205-220

   Hans Berliner: "Computer Backgammon", Scientific American 243:1, 64-72
                  (1980)

   G. Tesauro: "Neurogammon wins Computer Olympiad.", Neural computation 1,
               321-323 (1989)

   G.Tesauro, T.J.Sejnowski: "A parallel network that learns to play
              Backgammon", Artificial intelligence 39 (1989) 357-390

   G. Tesauro, ``Neurogammon: a neural network backgammon program.''
              IJCNN Proceedings vol. III, 33-40 (1990).

   G. Tesauro, ``Practical issues in temporal difference learning.''
              Machine Learning vol. 8, 257-277 (1992).

   G. Tesauro, ``TD-Gammon, a self-teaching backgammon program,
              achieves master-level play.'' Neural Computation, vol. 6,
              215-219 (1994).

   G. Tesauro, ``Temporal Difference Learning and TD-Gammon'',
                Communications of the ACM, Vol.38, No.3, 58-68
                (March 1995)


     _________________________________________________________________

  D6. BACKGAMMON SOFTWARE AND SOFTWARE REVIEWS.

   NOTE: Programs that play backgammon are in the section:
  Are there any BG programs out there for my computer? Where are they? "
   ie: JellyFish & Expert Backgammon.

    BOINQ

      Boinq is a program which analyzes bearoffs.  It can handle any
   position where both sides have all their men in the inner board.  All
   results are cubeless.  For any position you enter, you can get the
   probabality of each side winning, equity on a 1-cube, proper way to play
   any roll of the dice, and a distribution of probabality of bearing off in
   any number of rolls.  The results are displayed virtually
   instantaneously, since they are read directly from a data file rather
   than done by simulation.  Very user friendly and easy to use -- I use it
   a lot for a quick check on bearoff problems.  Program takes about 4 meg,
   so have some room on your hard disk.  Produced by Hal Heinrich -- cost is
   $100 I think.  Can contact Hal at:


              Hal Heinrich
              #203, 215 14th Ave. SW
              Calgary, AB
              Canada T2R 0M2


   Phone: [phone]
   E-mail address: [e-mail]

   Kit

   [Note: Also available from Carol Joy Cole]
   [Note: As far as I know, this is a PC program ...Mark]


     _________________________________________________________________

    Hyper-Backgammon

      Hyper-Backgammon is a short version of backgammon where each side has
   three checkers.  In initial position, these checkers start on opponent's
   ace, two and three points.  From then on normal backgammon rules apply.
   Cube is in play, Jacoby rule, gammons and backgammons count (and are quite
   frequent).  Proper play is much more subtle than might be imagined.  The
   program produced by Hugh Sconyers plays the game perfectly, since Hugh has
   established a full data base which has the equities for all possible
   positions, and the program will tell you if you make an error.  It can be
   a lot of fun to play, the games go quickly, and by playing the program
   you learn pretty quickly the correct strategies.

   Kit

   [Note: Also available from Carol Joy Cole and The GAMMON PRESS]
   [Note: The distribution is a CD-ROM for the PC ...Mark]


     _________________________________________________________________

    Matchqiz (and demo)

        With the MatchQiz software, Kit Woolsey (long time contributer
   to Inside Backgammon and Backgammon with the Champions, author of
   How to Play Tournament Backgammon, and currently ranked #9 in the
   world) has added his name to the short list of backgammon
   indispensables.  The very short list.  Magriel, Robertie, Woolsey.
   I think that's all you really need.
        MatchQiz is more than very good; it is the single best tool I
   know of for transforming your game from intermediate to expert.
   First let me describe the format:
        You choose a match from a menu, and the computer shows you the
   starting position and opening roll.  *Then you choose your play.*
   Now you get to see the actual play, plus Kit Woolsey's commentary.
   This happens for every play, every cube decision.  It is an
   improvement over printed annotated matches in several ways:
        Convenience and speed.  How many times have you followed a
   match on your own board only to find that the moves and commentary
   have stopped making sense?  Perhaps you moved the wrong piece two
   rolls ago?  Or was it three rolls ago?  Maybe you should just start
   this game over.  Never again with MQ.
        How many hints do you receive when going over printed matches?
   You can see that the player drops the cube because a new game
   begins next page.  Or did the index card you use to cover the
   bottom of the page slip, denying you the chance to come up with
   your play without seeing Svobodny's?  Not with MQ.
        Perfect use of default options.  Do you have a tendency to
   forget the cube in complex positions?  MQ will let you make that
   mistake -- but will chide you for it.

        Of course the format wouldn't mean much if the annotations
   weren't up to par.  But they are exquisite.  Woolsey is complete,
   concise, and entertaining.  He covers all aspects of play, from the
   most elementary opening moves to the most subtle match equity
   considerations.  Here is one small sample:
        "This is an expert play which many players would not find.  If
   Magriel quietly plays 13/5, O'Laughlin will be free to make any
   point that his dice dictate, and Magriel will be poorly placed in
   the upcoming prime vs. prime battle since he will have two men back
   will O'Laughlin will have only one man back.  Magriel's play forces
   O'Laughlin to attack on the bar point whether he wants to or not,
   thus preventing him from making optimal use of such point making
   numbers as 42 or 51.  It is thematic when you have the better board
   and your opponent has one man back to split your runners to make it
   difficult for your opponent to catch up in the board-building
   battle."  You get this level of analysis after every nearly every
   play.
        One final benefit that might go unnoticed is volume.  Woolsey
   has 18 matches available now, and volume four is due soon.  That is
   quite a library.  Often an annotater will mention some general
   theme or principle and show how it applies it to a specific
   position.  But would that principle apply if the position were
   slightly different?  With the MQ library, you will be able to
   compare similar positions and examine if the same principles apply.
   This is especially true for the opening phase of the game, where
   the same sorts of decisions come up all the time.
        Woolsey sells one match for $20, or a set of 6 for $100.  This
   is a fantastic deal considering that most printed annotated matches
   go for $20 or so, and I guarantee that you'll get more use out of
   these.  Write to:

              Hal Heinrich
              #203, 215 14th Ave. SW
              Calgary, AB
              Canada T2R 0M2


   or call [phone]


   Jeremy Bagai


   [Note: Also available from Carol Joy Cole  and The GAMMON PRESS]
   [Note: This program is written for the IBM-PC, but it 'should'
    run under "Soft-PC" for the Macintosh, any level, as the graphics
    are CGA (640x200x2) ...Mark]


     _________________________________________________________________


   From: [e-mail] (Kit Woolsey)
   Subject: Matchqiz Demo
   X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.2 PL1]

   As many of you know, Hal Heinrich and I have produced several annotated
   matches which run on computer (PC only -- sorry, you MAC users).  Hal is
   the programmer, I wrote the annotations.  We have a demo match which we
   give away for free, so I thought it would be a good idea to make it
   available on the net both for the enjoyment of R.G.B. readers and, of
   course, to entice you to purchase the other annotated matches.  This is
   my first effort at doing this so I may have screwed up somewhere -- if
   so, please let me know what went wrong.

   The program can be gotten via an anonymous ftp to netcom2.netcom.com. go
   to the directory /pub/kw/kwoolsey/gammon/matchqiz  -- there you will find 2
   files.  One is: readme, which is instructions for retrieving and running
   the program.  The other is: mqizdemo.exe, which is the program and
   necessary files.

   Feel free to distribute this demo package to any friends who may be
   interested.  If you run into any problems, please    contact me at:
   [e-mail]

                Kit Woolsey


     _________________________________________________________________

    BG-SCRIBE

          Software Review: BG-SCRIBE, A Program By Walter Trice.

                 Mark Damish (E-mail: [e-mail])


    BG-Scribe -- A system for editing, replaying, and printing
                 backgammon matches for the IBM-PC by Walter Trice.

    This is a program which I consider essential for myself. It will:

      --  Allow one to enter matches from books and magazines, or from those
          personally recorded, to be played back and studied later. Entry is
          done using the numeric keypad. After a while, you end up being able
          to enter a match very quickly, and become quite proficient at
          touch-typing the keypad to boot. An `AT' style keyboard is
          preferable for entering matches.

      --  Play back matches purchased from Walter. Watching great matches
          between the masters is definitely enlightening. My favorite matches
          are the ones from annotated books. It shouldn't be hard to
          write a program to convert a match from one format to another, if
          already have a collection of matches. I've converted matches posted
          to Internet by Butch Meese using nothing more than simple editor
          macros. The matches are currently stored as plain ASCII files---one
          directory per match, and one file per game.

      --  Print out matches to disk or printer. I like to: print out to disk,
          annotate my comments using a simple editor, then print the resulting
          file to a printer. The program will also embed diagrams of positions
          to the printout, but it uses IBM graphics characters, which might
          have to be changed if your printer doesn't support them. The diagram
          feature is especially useful for diagramming doubling decisions.

    The program is run from one of two screens. The first is a text
    screen with options for creating a new match, loading, saving, etc.

    The second screen displays the backgammon board using a CGA 4 color,
    40 column text mode. Trust me here---this mode, with its X's and O's,
    looks a lot better than backgammon boards I've seen drawn using the CGA 2
    color graphics mode. Why CGA text mode? Probably because it will run on
    any portable or palmtop machine, and likely on most PC emulators on other
    platforms. It also runs fine in a window under MS Windows, without having
    to mess around with a .pif file.

    The second screen is where matches are entered or played back. When
    playing back a match, you may see the dice, then the players choice, and
    then see the move when the screen is updated. It is possible to go forwards
    or backwards in a game. Although you may have entered your rolls in
    `landing spot' format, the program can optionally display them in
    `from/to' format. It only prints in the format which it was entered
    though. You may also mark positions which you would like to have
    diagrammed.

    As stated above, the user interface consists of two screens. Unlike
    modern X/Windows/Mac programs which do a lot for you, this program
    assumes that what you tell, or don't tell the program is exactly what you
    want. I.E.: You can enter data, then quit the program. If you didn't save,
    the program won't prompt you. It is like driving a standard after getting
    used to cruise control. The program does a lot, you have to remember to
    tell it what to do though! The learning curve has a slight incline, but
    the program is well worth the time it takes to become familiar with it.
    I found the instructions clear.

    I want to start bringing pen and steno paper to local events to record
    some `master games' for later entry/playback. I also want to review
    some of my `bad games', searching for weakness. There is a lot to be
    learned!

    The price of the program is $50, including 11 matches. Additional matches
    are available from Walter.

    I am not affiliated with BG-SCRIBE in any way, except for being a very
    satisfied customer.  Please mention where you saw this article if you
    should contact Walter. I did mention to him that I was going to write
    a review---Last spring!


    ...Mark


    Contact:     Walter G. Trice
                 549 Wachusett St.
                 Holden, MA 01520

                 [phone]


     _________________________________________________________________

    The Match Strategist (and demo)

   Tom Johnson ([e-mail]) has written a progam which is best
   described as a match equity calculator. Given: Match length, Score,
   Gammon chances, Cube value, and wether the cube is on the last roll,
   last two rolls, or a normal cube, the program will will calculate
   the information shown in the sample screen shown below.


                                     BLACK     WHITE      Menu
Input data                        ---------------------   -----
   match length (2 - 25)          |    3    |    3    |   L) Match length
   score (0 - 2)                  |    0    |    0    |   S) Score
   cube value                     |    1    |         |   C) Cube value
   chance of winning the game     |   35 %  |   65 %  |   W) Winning chance
   chance of winning a gammon     |   20 %  |   20 %  |   G) Gammon chance
   cube situation (1 - 3)         |    3    |    3    |   V) Cube situation
                                  ---------------------   N) New table
Static match winning chance with  ---------------------   X) Exit
   no double this game            |  45.99% |  54.01% |   A) About demo
   double and take                |  41.00% |  59.00% |
   double and drop                |  60.44% |  39.56% |   Cube situations
   double, take and redouble      |  35.00% |  65.00% |   ---------------
Dynamic data (game win %)         ---------------------   1) Last roll
   minimum give point             |  50.00% |   N/A   |   2) Last two rolls
   optimum give point             |  61.63% |   N/A   |   3) Normal cube
   minimum take point             |   N/A   |  30.43% |
   doubling window (size)         |  19.57% |  19.57% |   N/A = Not applicable.
                                  ---------------------
Strategy:  Black should not double.
           His position is not strong enough.


      THE MATCH STRATEGIST DEMO - copyright(c) 1994 Komodo Software


   The demo program is limited to 3-point matches and is available for
   anonymous ftp from:

   machine:   ftp.netcom.com
   directry:  pub/da/damish
   file:      matstrat.zip

   The program runs on a MS-DOS machine, and the file needs to be 'unzipped'
   with pkunzip 2.04 or later.

   A comercial version, which gives equities up to a 25-point match may be
   obtained from the auther for $45 + S&H.

   [Now (3-95) advertized by Carol Joy Cole for $25.]


     _________________________________________________________________

    rfibs (fibs recorder & playback)

   Newsgroups: rec.games.backgammon
   From: [e-mail] (Jan Spitzkowsky)
   Subject: Recording and replaying games played on FIBS
   Date: Wed, 31 Aug 1994 10:00:21 GMT

   Hello fibsters,

   I wrote two utilities for FIBS and i want to distribute them. The tools are
   able to record (rfibs) own games and watched games and to replay (sfibs)
   them.
   I observe a lot of discussions about interesting positions in this group.
   With 'rfibs' and 'sfibs' it is possible to extract special positions played
   on FIBS (or even a whole game) and to comment it.
   I am interested in a collection of good and interesting games, commented or
   not, to improve my own playing. If someone wants to get these utilities
   for collecting and sharing some games, too, the address of our ftp-server
   is:

   ftp.irb.uni-hannover.de
   File: pub/spitz/bg/bg.tar.gz

   Below I give a short description of the two tools:

   Hope to find much interest for my work and many good games,

                                         Jan (hotspot on FIBS)

   Version 26th August 94:

   Any bug reports, comments ... etc.

   rfibs [<record file>] [-c]

   'rfibs' records games played on FIBS and filters the textual output.
   Therefore the setting boardstyle must be set to 3 and the stdout of
   FIBS must be piped through 'rfibs'. The correct call for 'rfibs' is:
   'telnet <...> | rfibs <args>'.
   Two additional FIBS-commands are available with 'rfibs':
   - bstyle <b>: switches the board display. Additional board displays can be
     created and added in the source 'boards.c' and 'fibs.h'. <b> currently
     ranges from 0 to 1.
   - switch: switches the player and the board.
   - recinit: stops recording of the actual game.
   - comment <comment>: A comment is inserted into the record file.
   Every started, resumed or watched game will be stored in
      <record file>.
   Every talk of the players or watchers will be included in the game as a
      comment.
   The argument '-c' suppresses recording the talks as comments.
   The created file has the same syntax like the output of the FIBS-command
   'oldmoves'.

   Bugs:
      The prompt '>' is missing
      Prompts for login and password are missing, too.

   sfibs { <gamefile> [-g] | -p } [-y<b>] [-s]

   'sfibs' shows a recorded game given in <gamefile>. The gamefile can
      be created with 'rfibs' or with the FIBS-command 'oldmoves'.
   Argument '-g' suppresses interaction: The whole game is printed.
   Argument '-y' gives the boardstyle. The available boardstyles are the same
      as in 'rfibs'.
   Argument '-s' puts player O on the downside. Default is player X on the
      downside.
   Argument '-p' doesn't show a game. It enables the user to create and to
      print his own positions.

   'rfibs' and 'sfibs' are given in the following files:
      readme, makefile, fibs.h, sfibs.c, rfibs.c, boards.c

  __________________________________________________________________________



   An "as is" DOS Port by Robin Davies (FIBS/W author) is available for
   ftp from:
       ftp.netcom.com/pub/da/damish/rfibsdos.zip
   This version will work with output saved using the '> command for saving
   matches from FIBS/W. The file currently contains executables only.


     _________________________________________________________________

   LaTeX Style for BG Positions and Games

   I have just finished the first version of a LaTeX style to print out
   positions and matches.

   The main features are:

   - Boards produced with a special font made with metafont, no inclusion
     of Postscript files needed (i.e. every dvi previewer should be able
     to display the boards).

   - Two different environments for single positions and complete matches.

   - Board layout customizable in both environments.

   - Automatic generation of the current board at arbitrary places in the
     game environment. Only the moves have to be entered, the state of the
     board is maintained internally by the style.

     I have uploaded my LaTeX package to ftp.dante.de as a CTAN submission and
     was told that it's installed under

     macros/latex209/contrib/backgammon

     It should be available on every CTAN Server (these are if I am right
     informed: ftp.dante.de, ftp.shsu.edu and ftp.tex.ac.uk)

     Joerg


     _________________________________________________________________

  D7. WHERE DOES ONE PURCHASE BACKGAMMON SUPPLIES AND BOOKS?

    The GAMMON PRESS

       The GAMMON PRESS (Bill Robertie)
       PO Box 294
       Arlington, MA
       02174
       U.S.A.

       PHONE: [phone]
       FAX:   [phone]

       Books, software, video, backgammon sets, precision dice, ++.
       The GAMMON PRESS publishes Inside Backgammon, as well as books
       and booklets.


     _________________________________________________________________

    Carol Joy Cole

       Carol Joy Cole
       3003 Ridgecliffe Dr.
       Flint, MI
       48532
       U.S.A.

       [phone].

       E-mail: [e-mail]

       Books, software, backgammon sets, precision dice, cubes, ++.
       Carol Joy Cole is also the editor of the Flint Area Backgammon News.


     _________________________________________________________________

    Danny Kleinman

       Danny Kleinman
       5312 1/2 Village Green
       Los Angeles, CA
       90016
       U.S.A.

       Books on Backgammon, Bridge, O'Hell, and life.


     _________________________________________________________________

    Dansk Backgammon Forlag

       Dansk Backgammon Forlag (Danish Backgammon Press)
       Gersonsvej 25
       dk-2900 Hellerup
       Denmark
       phone: [phone]

       or contact Erik Gravgarrd at [e-mail]

       Books, sets, dice and generel backgammon equipment. You can get all
       the modern books there, plus some of the old ones from the seventies,
       among them 'Backgammon' (Magriel). Also some software.


     _________________________________________________________________

    Crisloid

      Crisloid INC.
      P.O. Box 2205
      Providence, Rhode Island
      02905

      tel: [phone]
      fax: [phone]

      They require a minimum order of $100 to obtain wholesale prices.


     _________________________________________________________________

    Larry Strommen

       L. A. Strommen
       6866 Meadow View Dr.
       Indianapolis, IN 46226

       Tel: [phone]
       E-mail: [e-mail]

      Precision Dice and JellyFish sales & support.


     _________________________________________________________________


     _________________________________________________________________


   A source for hard-to-find BG books.

   John C. Rather
   --------------

   Old & Rare Books
   P.O. Box 273
   Kensington, MD 20895  USA
   Telephone: [phone]

   John is a longtime book collector and dealer who specializes in hard-
   to-find out-of-print BG books. He usually has a copy or more of
   Magriel's "Backgammon" (aka "The Bible"), for sale at a fair price.
   A carefully annotated book price list is available upon request.
   John's other book specialities are chess, magic and mountaineering.


     _________________________________________________________________

  D8. AN INDEX OF BACKGAMMON RESOURCES AVAILABLE ON THE INTERNET.

   By Site:

   http://www.statslab.cam.ac.uk/~sret1/backgammon/main.html
     Stephen Turner's World Wide Web backgammon page.

    http://www.ifi.uio.no/~steinw/NBgF.html
     WWW page of the Norwegian Backgammon Federation.

   http://baugi.ifi.uio.no:80/~paalf/BG
     Pal Fladstrups Index of Backgammon files.

   http://www.ifi.uio.no/~paalf/backgammon.html
     Paal's Backgammon Page.

   http://www.utu.fi/harrastus/bg/
     BACKGAMMONSIVU WWW page in the Finnish language

   http://hdirisc9.kfk.de/matawww/mata/mata93/mat0m6/bg/bg.html
     Marco Lau's Backgammon-Seite (German and English)

   http://www.abekrd.co.uk/Users/mike/fibs/fibs.html
     Michael Quinn's FIBS help document.

   ftp://ftp.netcom.com/pub/da/damish/fibshelp.html
     Mark Damish's FIBS help document.

   ftp.netcom.com  /pub/kw/kwoolsey/gammon/matchqiz/matchqiz.exe
     matchqiz.exe      Match Qiz demo for DOS. Self extracting.

   ftp.netcom.com  /pub/pa/pattib/backgammon/
      kvj_*.ps.gz      Kit Woolsey vs. Jeremy Bagai match. Postscript format.
                       Typeset by [e-mail]
                                    (Joerg Richter)

   ftp.netcom.com  /pub/da/damish/
    File Name    Type Notes
    ------------ ---- -----------------------------------------------------
    .message        A  File that contains this message.
    bg-faq-ptr      A  Location of the backgammon FAQ (ASCII version).
    bg-faq.html     A  Hypertext version of FAQ. Read with Mosaic.
    bg-matches      D  Directory containing backgammon matches.
    bg-rules.html   A  Backgammon Rules in formated hyper-text.
    bg_1.0.tar.gz   B  Joerg Richter's LaTeX style & font for documenting
                       backgammon positions and games.
    boa_v10.exe     B  Bearoff program. Gives cubeless probability of
                       winning, and best move for up to 15 checkers on
                       each side in the home board. Shareware.
    bqdemo.zip      B  Walter Trices Bearoff Quizmaster Demo. (MS-DOS)
    exbgdemo.sea    B  Demo of Expert Backgammon for the Macintosh.
                       Change type to "APPL", creater to "aust"
                       would a .hqx (binhex) be better?
    fibshelp.html   A  Formated HTML of FIBS help screens. AUG 94
    kw_jb.tar.Z     B  Kit Woolsey vs. Jeremy Bagai match. Text version.
    matstrat.zip    B  MS-DOS demo of 'Match Strategist'.
    pubeval.tar.Z   B  Gerry Tesauros backgammon 'benchmark' function.
    race.tar.Z      B  2 bearoff programs: 'race2' & 'race4'. No makefile.
    rfibsdos.zip    B  Robin Davies DOS port of rfibs and sfibs.


   figment.csee.usf.edu  /pub/misc/FIBS_client
     tiny-fugue        text interface to FIBS.

   itekiris.kjemi.unit.no  /pub
      xfibs07          X interface to FIBS.

   shuksan.cs.berkeley.edu  /pub/tkfibs/
      TkFibs           X Tk/Tcl interface to FIBS.

   resudox.net  /pub/pc/windows/games/fibsw/
      fibsw            MS Windows interface to FIBS.

   ftp.cd.chalmers.se  /pub/xibc/
      xibc-X.XX.tar.Z   X Tcl/Tk/Expect interface to FIBS.

   ftp summex-aim.stanford.edu   /info-mac/game/brd/mac-fibs-10.hqx
     MacFIBS           Mac interface to fibs.

   ftp ftp.statslab.cam.ac.uk /pub/users/sret1/backgammon/
     bg2fig            Board description to fig converter.
     matches           Backagmmon matches.
     printmatch        FIBS `oldmoves' to ascii bg boards converter.
     psboards          --> bg2fig

   ftp ftp.irb.uni-hannover.de /pub/spitz/bg/
    bg.tar.gz          FIBS recording/playback tools.


     _________________________________________________________________


     _________________________________________________________________

Section E: MISC.

   E1. WHAT OTHER GAMES CAN BE PLAYED ON A BACKGAMMON BOARD?

   - Acey-Deucy
   - TricTrac
   - Jacquet
   - Moultezim
   - Plakoto  (Portas)
   - Fevka (spelling?)
   - Narde
   - Gioul (Turkish variation)
   - Three Checker Hyper-Backgammon
   - Nackgammon
   - Cubeless, one point backgammon games.
   - Many versions of 'diceless' backgammon.
   - Hyper-Backgammon
   - On some boards, you can flip it over, and play checkers or chess. :-)


     _________________________________________________________________

    Hyper-Backgammon

   Newsgroups: rec.games.backgammon
   From: [e-mail] (Michael A Urban)
   Subject: Re: 3-Checker Hyper Backgammon
   Date: Thu, 14 Oct 1993 02:23:24 GMT

   Each side starts with 3 checkers on their respective 24, 23, and 22
   points.  The cube is in play.  Jacoby rule in effect.  Matches will start
   at 7 points and work their way up in later rounds.  All other normal
   backgammon rules apply.


     _________________________________________________________________

    Nackgammon

   From: [e-mail] (Rolf Kleef) at SMTP-Post-Office 10/15/93

   Nackgammon: The same as backgammon, but with a different starting
   position:  instead of five men on both your midpoint and 6-point, you just
   put four there.  The remaining two men end up at the 23-point:

       13 14 15 16 17 18       19 20 21 22 23 24
      +------------------------------------------+ X:
      | O           X    |   |  X           O  O |
      | O           X    |   |  X           O  O |
      | O           X    |   |  X                |
      | O                |   |  X                |
      |                  |   |                   |
     v|                  |BAR|                   |
      |                  |   |                   |
      | X                |   |  O                |
      | X           O    |   |  O                |
      | X           O    |   |  O           X  X |
      | X           O    |   |  O           X  X |
      +------------------------------------------+ O:
       12 11 10  9  8  7        6  5  4  3  2  1

   This was invented by Nack Ballard (hence the name), to force his bg
   students to practice positional play. Games tend to be much longer, since
   you can't easily start a race with a 65 or 66 opening-phase roll.  In July
   this year, we hosted the first European Championship Nackgammon during our
   series of Kater Cup tournaments. Teun Ruardy from Groningen, The
   Netherlands became the first EC Nackgammon!

   [What are the cube and gammon rules for Nackgammon?]


     _________________________________________________________________

    Tapa

   From: [e-mail] 1/24/95
   Subject: Tapa (yet another kind of backgammon)

   The word "tapa" means "bottle cap" and it's an apt name because one seeks to
   block out the opponent's pieces. The starting position is as shown below

             13 14 15 16 17 18       19 20 21 22 23 24
            +------------------------------------------+
            |                  |   |                OOO|
            |                  |   |                OOO|
            |                  |   |                OOO|
            |                  |   |                OOO|
            |                  |   |                OOO|
     O     v|                  |BAR|                   |
   moves    |                  |   |                XXX|
    this    |                  |   |                XXX|
    way     |                  |   |                XXX|
            |                  |   |                XXX|
            |                  |   |                XXX|
            +------------------------------------------+
             12 11 10  9  8  7        6  5  4  3  2  1

   The move direction and game objective are the same as in BG. There is one
   important difference:

     Blots (single men) are not taken out when hit. Rather, the opponent's man
     rests on top of the blot and thus forms a point. Points can also be formed
     in the usual way, by placing two or more of your men at the same slot.

   If you leave a blot at your home slot (1 or 24) and it gets covered, you
   certainly lose a backgammon (unless your opponent has done the same, in
   which case it's a tie).

   A long doublet (5 and 5 or 6 and 6) in the initial stage of the game can be
   very useful because usually the opponent would have some blots in their home
   quadrant and you may cover them. The closer this happens to their home slot,
   the better, because the later you will free the blot when you are bearing
   off.

   Tapa is very much a game of strategy. Even if you get caught very close to
   your home row, you may be able to force the opponent to free it by blocking
   enough of his men, so that he doesn't have any other move. During most of
   the game it better to move SLOWER rather than faster. Primes are not
   necessarily useful, eg when the opponent has enough space for short moves
   behind the prime.

   If nobody gets caught in the early stage, the two players try to advance
   their men in "almost primed" formations. Then the passing-through of the two
   armies can be a rather dramatic clash.

   Tapa is quite popular in Bulgaria. In fact people play three games --BG,
   Gul Bara, and Tapa-- in a row. The cube isn't used and there are no
  backgammons (although there are gammons, called "mars"). I think these games
   (or at least the names) have come to Bulgaria from Turkey. Some people
   (esp. the older ones) use Turkish names for the rolls, eg "shesh-besh" is
   "6 and 5". I'd say backgammon is the favorite recreation of Bulgarian
   pensioners.
     Gul Bara is similar to Narde (the actuall name is Nardy where "y"
   signifies the Russian letter "ery" as in "byk" (bull)), but double rolls
   are very powerful, eg if you roll 1 and 1 then you get to move 4 ones,
   4 twos, 4 threes, ..., 4 sixes.


     _________________________________________________________________

    Narde

   From: [e-mail] (Vincent Zweije)

   In Kazachstan, and probably Russia too, people play a game called
   "Narde" on a backgammon board.  It is also played with 15 checkers
   each, in the following starting position (point numbering is taken from
   backgammon).

         O's side

          13 14 15 16 17 18       19 20 21 22 23 24
         +------------------------------------------+
         |                  |   |                OOO|
         |                  |   |                OOO|
         |                  |   |                OOO|
         |                  |   |                OOO|
         |                  |   |                OOO|
        v|                  |BAR|                   |^
         |XXX               |   |                   |
         |XXX               |   |                   |
         |XXX               |   |                   |
         |XXX               |   |                   |
         |XXX               |   |                   |
         +------------------------------------------+
          12 11 10  9  8  7        6  5  4  3  2  1

         X's side

   Do to language problems I never got a formal introduction to the game.
   I'll have to write down the rules out of my head.  It is played like
   backgammon, with the following exceptions:

    1: Both players move in the same direction.  X moves from 12 down to
       1, then to 24 and down to 13, and finally off; O moves from 24 down
       to 13, then to 12 and down to 1, and finally off.

    2: A point is already made with one checker on it.  There is no
       hitting in the game.

    3: Doublets are not special.  If you roll 3-3, you get to move a
       checker three pips twice.  Possibly the same checker.

   Bearing off is like backgammon.  Moving is mandatory when possible.  I
   don't know whether, like in backgammon, you have to move the higher of
   the dice if you have to choose.  It never happened during actual play.

   The game is almost fully one of chance.  The main thing is to take care
   not to get blocked by a six-point prime (already made with six checkers
   in a row!).

   [ There seems to be quite a few games with this starting postion,
     going the same direction, where 1 blot is a blocker, and there is
     no hitting. The rules vary with how many may be in a row, doubles,
     and starting criteria. It seems to be a game where 'blocking' is
     the predonimant strategy. Some games have double games, triple
     games, quad games, depending upon what quadrant the opponent has
     his remaining checkers in. I've never seen this played in the USA.
     ...Mark ]


     _________________________________________________________________

    Diceless Backgammon

    From: [e-mail] (Igor)
    Newsgroups: rec.games.backgammon
    Subject: Re: Diceless Backgammon?
    Date: 27 Mar 92 00:48:51 GMT
    Organization: Society of connoiseurs of female beauty

    In fact, there's a version of backgammon, which is much more popular
    than regular bg in USSR, especially in Azerbajdzhan and Uzbekistan.
    Main features are following:
    -both players go same direction ( namely counterclockwise )
    -starting position is different
    -you're not allowed to hit ( which changes strategy a lot).
    And, as far as I know, there are tournaments, where people play
    this version without dices, i.e. calling their rolls. Consequently,
    there exist time control in this tournaments.


     _________________________________________________________________

    Acey-deucy

      In this game all the men start off the board. They enter and move
   around the board in the same way as men sent home in regular backgammon.
   In other words, the white men enter in black's home board and move around
   through black's outer board and white's outer board until all are gathered
   in white's home board; then white can start to bear them off. Black enters
   his men in the white home board and moves around in the same manner.
      Rules are the same as for backgammon, except that you can move any man
   you want to at any time, whether or not you have men to bring in.
      In addition, the roll of 1-2 -- acey-deucy -- is an especially valuable
   roll. You begin by playing your ace-deuce. Then you play any number four
   times (in other words, you pick any double you wish). Then you get an
   extra roll. and if this extra roll is also 1-2 you get the same extras
   with it.
      Early game strategy in acey-deucy is to try to establish advanced
   points as quickly as you can, and if possible also establish adjacent
   points as base for a prime. If both sides develop primes right smack up
   against one another, the advantage lies with the prime that is farther
   advanced. Even if the man with the farther-advanced prime has to break his
   first, he will probably win the game; if he can hold his prime longer, he
   almost surely will win.
      Credit: The Backgammon Book, Oswald Jacoby/John Crawford

   My own comments: Acey-deucy is a fun game, with a much greater element of
   luck or chance than regular backgammon. 1-2 rolls are deadly. You are
   never out-of-it right to the end. The pace is fast and furious (at least
   compared to regular backgammon -- which, incidentally, I still prefer, but
   Acey-deucy makes a nice change of pace once in a while). One key point of
   strategy -- block your opponent from a play of 1 or 2 if you can. This
   opportunity only occasionally presents itself, but watch for it. If you
   can't play your lowly 1-2, you lose the bonus double and extra roll.


      -- Acey-Deucy typed/submitted by Peter Nickless
         ([e-mail])


     _________________________________________________________________

    One Point Matches

   This variant is played the same as `regular' backgammon with two exceptions;
   the cube is not used, and gammons/backgammon don't exist. This often
   leads to very strategicaly played games, where a back-game is more of
   an option than in the regular version since staying back forever never
   leads to losing more than one point. Since all games are played to
   to completion, `slime vigorish' to turn a game around suddenly occurs
   more frequently since you cannot cube your opponent out.
      Why play `one point matches'? Well, similar games occur all of the
   time in tournament play. Double match point, and crawford to an even
   score are examples.
      One point matches have been labled the `Crack' of backgammon at
   the New England Backgammon Club (NEBC), and the opium of the game by
   others.


     _________________________________________________________________

  E2. HOW DOES ONE BECOME A BETTER PLAYER?

   [Suggestions/articles from ALL levels sought for this space]

   ----

   [Edited from a message about proper cube handling. ...Mark]

     Always play backgammon for affordable but meaningful stakes.  This
   is surprisingly important.  If you play "just for fun" you'll take
   doubles "to see how they'll turn out" and win some of those games
   anyway, giving yourself incorrect reinforcement.  Likewise you'll drop
   doubles you should take because "you dont' feel like playing it out."
   If something is riding on the game, you're much less likely to do that.
   In short, it hones the senses and makes you think about the cube all the
   time.  There is also definite penalties and rewards for correct cube
   action.

   Practice practice practice.

      -- michael j zehr


     _________________________________________________________________


      I think the first step in becoming a good player is to realize what a
   game backgammon is. Many people think they're unlucky when they lose,
   and don't realize that it is actually also a game of skill.
      The first thing I learned from backgammon was to lose, even from the
   most incredible positions. You shouldn't spend your energy whining
   about your bad rolls, spend it on making good moves (and cube
   decitions!) instead.
      Other than that, it's simple to describe how to become a good
   backgammonplayer:  Study, and read all books you can get your hand
   on. If you go to a club or a tournament, watch the good players. One
   of my friends did that a lot when he started. Also, don't be afraid
   to ask strong players questions about a move you made, a move HE made
   or something like that. Most of the strong players are very friendly
   when people ask them about their opinion.
      You can also record matches. This can be matches between two good
   players, or you can have ask a friend to record one of your matches.
   There's a big difference in what you can learn from the former compared
   to the latter.
      I played a tournament in Chicago in '92 and recorded a couple of
   matches, one between Rick Barabino and Dean Muench. Afterwards I went
   through the match myself, and noted the plays I would certairnly not have
   made myself. I asked Dean Muench about why he did this and that, and he
   explained it in a very logical way to me. He asked me which flight i
   played in, I answeared 'Intermediate', and he said 'You won't be that for
   much longer if you keep studying like that!' I was also lucky to get an
   extremely interesting game in that match.
      If you get one of your friends to record your match, you get a chance to
   analyse your own play. This can particularly helpfull if you do it a while
   after the match has played, to see how (if) your game has evolved.

     -- Asger Kring


     _________________________________________________________________


   [...]
   But a must if you want to reach a high level of backgammon skill is to
   build a positions database.  Study positions, and remember as many
   benchmark positions as you can.  The most costly mistakes are bad
   middlegame cube actions, and the more benchmarks you have available,
   the better your equity estimates can be, and the more accurate will be
   your related match-equity calculations.  Also, the less time you have to
   spend grunting and sweating over equities, the more time you'll have for
   figuring out your opponent--and you'll just have more energy, which is at
   a premium in long tournaments or money sessions.

        --Marty Storer


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   Just study and play. What else is there?

        -- Roy Friedman


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   [...]
   One last thing: someone remarked that the best way to learn bg was to
   play and observe on FIBS. I might argue. Get a hold of the matches
   Heinrich sells. Go through them. Many times. Roll out positions. Try and
   see the line of thought behind a play. Second only to playing countless
   hours, those matches were some of the most useful studying I've done.

     -- Kim Scheinberg


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   Exerpts from `A Talk with Paul Weaver' by Walter Trice from
   `Anchors' (The New England BACKGAMMON CLUB Newsletter) Oct 1994

   [Paul Weaver was rated number 1 on Kent Goulding's International
    rating list in June 1992, and June 1993.]

   [...]
   WT: What do you have to say to the up-and-coming intermediate who has
   decided that he is absolutely determined to win the 1996 World Cup? What
   would he have to do?

   PW: Well there's no way that he can ENSURE winning it without cheating.
   Even if you're the best player in the world the chances that you're going
   to win this tournament are actually quite small.

   WT: Okay, let's just say that he wants to give himself a damn good shot at
   it.

   PW: Well, first of all he needs to be in excellent shape physically. You
   need to have a lot of stamina. If you're in good enough shape to go out and
   run 5 miles a day, then you're probably in good enough shape to play.
   Stamina is a very important ingredient of success in this kind of
   tournament, and if you look at Sylvester and Horan, both of them have a lot
   of stamina.
      In addition to stamina, technical knowledge is important, so how do you
   get to be a good player technically? Read the newsletters, read the books
   including Kit Woolsey's MATCHQIZ material, and start doing all you can to
   analyze positions and roll out positions. When I say roll out positions, I
   don't just mean feed them to your computer, I mean sit down and move the
   checkers yourself. When you roll something out yourself you learn an awful
   lot more than just the raw numbers. You get an insight into the variations
   that develop in the position, and you start figuring out for yourself what
   checker strategies work and what strategies don't. You see fluky ways that
   you can lose the game, and when you start seeing them over and over again,
   you realize that maybe they aren't so fluky and that you should find ways
   to prevent them. So my advice to any intermediate who wants to improve his
   game would be to get your hands dirty and do some work and roll out
   positions. When I did this my game began to improve immensely.

   WT: You've certainly rolled out a lot of positions. How many is it at this
   point?

   PW: Well, the number has got to be over a thousand.

   WT: Do you think it's important to actually play?

   PW: Oh sure. Rolling out positions by itself is not going to make you a
   good player. It's important to play, and also to play the strongest
   competition available. To play in the toughest tournaments that you can,
   and to play heads-up sessions with the strongest players that are
   available. Play for enough to make it meaningful.

   WT: So it's read, roll out, play. Plus jog.

   PW: More than jog -- I would say run. Get yourself in good shape. Diet and
   rest are also important.

   WT: How much time do you devote to backgammon during the average week? Is
   it like a full-time job?

   PW: Well, I suppose it is. It varies -- sometimes very little, sometimes as
   much as 40 or 50 hours. But lately my life has changed and with all the
   travelling I'm doing and being in Brazil, I don't spend nearly as much time
   rolling out positions. And I've decided that my time has come to stop
   rolling things out and start playing the game for real. But I constantly
   review my material. I have close to 1000 reference positions.

   WT: So you don't see yourself having any more major improvements in your
   game? You've just about "got it?"

   PW: No! Not by a long shot. For one thing, the computer software... I
   believe that within a few years someone is going to come up with a piece
   of software that will nail down the equity of any backgammon position
   to within 1/100 of a point. It's conceivable that it has already happened.

   WT: You think maybe there's a perfect backgammon machine out there?

   PW: Not just one. Enough different people are working on it that there's a
   good chance that this thing will be solved by more than one person. And
   since a lot of people are working on it it won't be kept a secret for
   long. And when this tool becomes available I'll learn a lot, for example
   about backgames. I'll learn whether it's true that different match scores
   will affect your opening plays and responses. We'll get all the openings
   and responses nailed down, and pretty much all the 3rd roll things will be
   committed to memory.
   [...]


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   [...]
   What is it that makes the better player better?  It is his ability to play
   through a full game making fewer mistakes than the weaker player.
   [...]

   From a posting to rec.games.backgammon by Kit Woolsey


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   IMHO, FIBS is the single best learning took for backgammon right now.
   Hang around, play, watch better players... you can't help but improve
   your game.
              Patti Beadles [e-mail]


     _________________________________________________________________


   I have personally developed my skills in backgammon partly by reading the
   available literature, but also by playing fairly high stakes money games.

   One of the single most developing activities has been my money game session
   with another Danish player. We have invoked our own very special rule that
   sharpens your game considerably and hence improves your performance.

   The rule is:

   In case of any cube action -
   Any player has the option of demanding the other player to accept a
   proposition to be played five times.

   For instance:
   Peter doubles me. I drop. Peter thinks that I should have accepted. Now he
   can demand to be paid one point five times, each time setting up the same
   position with him accepting i.e. he owns the cube on 2.

   With this rule in effect you have to consider any cube action much more in
   depth, because you also have to consider the other side. And also there will
   be no "cheap" drops where you might want to "play it safe" on the score
   sheet. A drop that really is a take can prove very costly indeed.

   For my friend and myself it has been a very efficient learning tool
   as well as a great gambling add-on to normal backgammon.

      --- Erik Gravgaard


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  E3. MISC.


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     _________________________________________________________________


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