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Kombilo vs. Master Go
Keywords: Software
I recently saw a demonstration of MasterGo, and it is really neat (Chuck Robbins actually claims that MasterGo has features that Kombilo "would never dream of"). Now, since the asking price of MasterGo is twice that of GoGoD + Kombilo, I think it would be helpful if people who have used both systems compared them here. Differences that come to mind (just from hearsay): 1) MasterGo runs only on Windows (or an emulator such as virtual PC or Wine) while Kombilo is Python-based and open-source, and hence quite portable; 2) MasterGo uses a proprietary format for pattern matching while Kombilo uses a non-proprietary format (does this make it easier to import the GoGoD database into the MasterGo engine than to export the MasterGo database to SGF format?); 3) GoGoD has additional material, while MasterGo claims to have a search engine with more features; 4) and so on... - Migeru Please be careful if you respond. Kombilo is a **free** program and so should not really be compared to anything commercial. It is also independent of GoGoD. Furthermore, MasterGo is a database only (I believe - I have not seen it). GoGoD is also a database (almost 25,000 games now) but is mainly an encyclopaedia. So again comparison would be between apples and pears. And don't leave BiGO? out of the frame. John F.
I beg to differ. Kombilo and MasterGo both try to satisfy some of the same "needs" of go players. The commercial software vs Open Source software issue is a separate matter.
I don't have MasterGo either, but as far as I could see (from their description and the demo), MasterGo is just two thing: faster, because it's completely native code, and nicer graphics. Just a comment: Migeru, you said at the beginning, Kombilo searches the SGF-Files. That's wrong, but Kombilo creates it's database from SGF-Files - a search only in raw SGF would last forever. - gimpf MasterGo stores its data in a proprietary format. One can add games to the set shipped with MasterGo. The MasterGo game database is compiled by purchasing Go books in Japan, China and Korea; copying game records from those books into the MasterGo game database. The makers of MasterGo regard this as a legitimate activity. (See kifu copyright discussion.) However, extracting games from the is regarded by the makers of MasterGo as a copyright violation. This is interesting. Copying by computer (from MasterGo or GoGoD) is regarded as a copyright violation. Velobici - edit Charles Matthews This is a copy of the living page "Kombilo vs. Master Go" at Sensei's Library. ![]() |