The Fourth FOST Cup
World Open Computer Go Championship
Tournament Dates: 28(Fri.) and 29(Sat.), August 1998
Tournament Place: The Nihon Ki-in (Ichigaya, Tokyo)

The FOST Cup is a World Open Computer Go Tournament which started
in 1995. It was designed to measure the scientific advances in
artificial intelligence as it grows every more human-like by
combining Go, a traditional and intellectually challenging Asian
game, with personal computers, the forerunner of microelectronics
technology.

Sponsor : The Foundation for the Fusion of Science & Technology(FOST)
Joint Auspices: The Computer Go Forum(CGF), Koei Co.
Cooperation : The Nihon Ki-in
Supporters : Apple Computer Inc.,
Epson Hanbai Corporation, Compaq K.K., Japan IBM Ltd.,
NEC Corporation, Hitachi Ltd.,　Fujitsu Ltd., and so on
　　　　

The Foundation for the Fusion of Science & Technology was established in
April of 1994 to support activities that improve the combination of
science and technology, such as research on simulations and gaming.
The FOST Cup is an event FOST plans to sponser annually for that purpose.

1.Schedule of events

Application Deadline : June 20
Confirmation of Receipt: July 15
System Testing : August 27
Tournament Dates : August 28, 29
Social Gathering : August 28(For Players and Staff)
Award Ceremony : August 28(After the Tournament)

2.Registration

(1)Eligibility
a)Open to all nationalities, both genders and all ages.
b)Individual, team and group participation is accepted.
c)If plagerism is proven, all prize money and awards will be confiscated.
d)Participants are encouraged to implement the Standard Go Modem
Protocol(SGMP).
All participants are subject to the same time limits, whether programs
implement SGMP or not.
(2)Participation Fee: None
(3)Application deadline: June 20, 1998
(4)Cancellation:
Cancellations must be reported by July 31, 1997.
If the participant is absent from the tournament without giving prior
notice or viable justification for absence, he/she will be barred from
all future participation.
(5)Fill out The Application Form for the FOST Cup and mail it to FOST.
(Applications may also be sent by E-mail) If you would like FOST to
reserve a hotel room,
please indicate so on the application form.
(6) Only 50 applications will be accepted. FOST will select participants
after the
application deadline on the basis of past participation in the FOST cup and
each
achievement. FOST will notify all applicants promptly of the result.
(7)FOST office will send confirmation of application receipt in early July.
If you haven't received confirmation by July 15, please contact FOST
office.
(8)Applications should be sent to:
Foundation for the Fusion of Science & Technology(FOST)
1-4-24, Hiyoshi-Honcho, Kohoku-Ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa 223-0061 JAPAN
Phone: 045-562-5432(International +81-45-562-5432)
Fax: 045-562-6132(International +81-45-562-6132)
E-mail Address: fujimoto@koei.co.jp
(9)Parking Place:
Participants who will come to the Tornament by car should recognize that
there is no parking
lot at The Nihon Ki-in.

3.Computer and System testing

(1)Participants are strongly urged to bring their own computers. If you
have
　 trouble in bringing the computer, you should indicate on your application
that you wish to be provided with a computer. Any requests received
after
the application deadline, July 15, 1997 will be refused.
(2)Computers with communication capability, one per participant, will be
provided by FOST upon request.
(3)FOST is able to provide the following computers only; IBM compatible,
Machintosh and NEC98 series. (Supporters' machines only)
Only one computer will be available per participant. Those participants
who have not implemented SGMP in their programs will be expected to bring
their own computers for competition.　　
(4)FOST will provide computers, but does not guarantee that all machines
will meet each participant's specifications. FOST assumes no
responsibility
should a participant's software not run on the machine provided.
(5)Participants are encouraged to implement the Standard Go Modem Protocol
(SGMP). All participants are subject to the same time limits whether
programs implement SGMP or not. Operators of a computer without SGMP
must use a PC provided by the organizer as an input machine to
communicate
with opponent.
SGMP is available publicized;
ftp://igs.nuri.net:Go/prog/protocol.Z
　　　 ftp://imageek.york.cuny.edu/nngs/Go/prog/protocol.Z
Communication programs can be found at;
URL(http://www1.odn.ne.jp/~cag79530/cgf/index.html）
All participants should have finished communication testing by tournament
day.
(6)FOST will provide communication testing from July 20 to 31, 1998. If you
would like
FOST to test your programs, please send your programs on floppy disk or
CD-ROM. If you decide to compress your program files, please use ZIP
format. All other formats are unacceptable. Test results will be returned
along
with your program. You may submit your program for testing as many times
as you feel is necessary.
(7)Computer testing will be provided at 13:00p.m.-21:00p.m. on the day
before the
tournament at Nihon Ki-in. Participants are not obliged to perform
computer testing, but agree to take full responsibility for any
disadvantages that arise as a result of not testing. FOST assumes no
responsibility for problems arising
from lack of propertesting. Those who wish to modify their programs on the
site must prepare the
necessary software including language processors.

4.Operation during Competition

(1)All operators must be registered participants in the tournament. If the
registered participants are unable to attend, they must signify a
substitute at the time of registration.
(2)Program Modification:
Participants are barred from making any changes to programs or program
parameters during rounds of play. Participants will not be allowed to
touch the keyboard or the mouse without prior permission during play.
(3)Participants will be given a chance to fix program related problems that
interrupt a game in play, if the judge deems it. Tournament judges
reserve
the right to set time limits on such fixes. Should a participant fail to
meet the time limit, the contest will be awarded to the challenger.
(4)Participants who have not implemented SGMP in their program must use the
input PC with SGMP program provided by the contest organizers. Any
mistakes made during input will result in a forfeit of the match.

5.Number of Games and Pairing

(1) The first day will consist of preliminary matches and will be conducted
in
Swiss-style. The total number of games will be approximately 7. Afterwards
competition
will be played by a league of finalists, 8 winners from the preliminary
matches. 4 teams
of 8 will be seeded. Participants who loose the preliminary matches will not
play on the
second day. Further details will be placed on the Computer Go Forum WWW page
after the
application deadline. Pairing is subject to change during the tournament
due to participant
absence and other circumstances.
(2)Participants will be paired after registration on the day of the
tournament.
If the event that there is an odd number of participants, those
participants who performed well in the Third FOST Cup will not be paired,
and will be
awarded a win by default based on their past performance. The tournament
director reserves the right to determine the pairings.

6.Tournament Rules

(1)All games will be played on even, with Black giving White 5 1/2 points
komi
at start of the game. The side taking black will be determined by the
operator playing nigiri.
(2)Each program will be allowed 50 minutes to complete its moves. If one
side
runs out of time before it has completed 250 moves, it loses the game on
time. If the game has progressed past the 250th move and one of the
programs runs out of time, the tournament director will give the decision.
(3)Participants are granted a 15 minute leeway regarding tardiness, however
all tardy time will be subtracted from the time limit. Any participant
who is
more than 15 minutes late for a game automatically forfeits the game.
(4)If participants must play a game right after another game, they will be
allowed a brief 10 minute rest period. Any break longer than 10 minutes
will be treated as a tardy time.
(5)Mirror: Participants must cease mirroring within a span of 200 moves.

7.Tournament Placement and Prizes

(1)Tournament results will be determined by applying rules in order listed
below.
1) Number of wins
2) Sum of all oponent's scores
3) Sum of defeated opponent's scores.
4) Result of head to head competition
In the event of tie, the prize money will be equally divided.
(2)Prizes:
First: \１,000,000
Certificate of Merit, Trophy (presented by FOST)
Commemorative Plaque(presented by Nihon Ki-in)
Second: \４00,000
Certificate of Merit
Third: \300,000
Certificate of Merit
Fourth: \250,000
Fifth: \200,000
Sixth: \150,000
Seventh: \100,000
Eighth: \80,000
Technique Award: Certificate of Merit
Commemorative Plaque(presented by CGF)
Prize money are transferred to winner's Bank Account.
Winners are responsible for paying taxes on their prizes.

8.All games will be played according to Japanese Rules of Go.
Please refer to CGF WWW page for the details.
URL(http://www1.odn.ne.jp/~cag79530/cgf/index.html）

9.End of games and Judgements

(1)Games will end based on the following conditions:
a)Both programs send a pass message to its opponent.
b)The operator or the program decide to resign.
c)The time limit passes for one side.
d)A competitor breaks the rules.
e)The tournament judges decides it is necessary to end the game.
(2)Dead Stones:
Programs must be able to mark dead stones on the monitor screen.
If there exists any disagreement concerning the status of stone by either
of the programs, the tournament judges will decide whether a stone is
dead or alive.
(3)Judgement:
After the game, operators decide the winner of a contest. Any disputes
will be settled by the tournament judges.

10.Program Crashes

(1)If a program crashes during a game, the tournament director and judges
will decide whether or not to allow the program to reboot. The clock
will remain active during deliberations. No changes to the go-playing
algorithm or pattern database are allowed. However, if there is a
problem with the network protocol, play will progress without the
protocol.
(2)When a game is interrupted due to the power failure or other hardware
related problems, games will be adjudicated by the tournament judges if
126 moves or more have already been played. Otherwise the game will be
replayed. In case of a major disaster or unexpected problems, the
tournament director will decide the outcome of the contest.
(3)Any participant found to be cheating will be disqualified from the
tournament and the game will be terminated immediately. All remaining
games will also be scored as losses.
(4)Any disputes arising from circumstances not mentioned above will be
settled by the chief director of FOST. Participants are bound to this
decision.

11.Miscellaneous

(1)In order to run the tournament smoothly, the sponsors reserve the right
to make minor changes or additions up until the day before the
tournament.
If any changes are made, all participants will be notified simultaneously
and promptly.
(2)Any disputes arising due to circumstances not mentioned above will be
settled by the tournament director. This decision will be final.
(3)Please refer to the CGF home page for schedule details:
URL(http://www1.odn.ne.jp/~cag79530/cgf/index.html）

12.Game Records

(1)Each participant is required to make a retrievable record of each games
whatever means his/her choice. The recommended format of the game
records is SGF(Smart Go Format) and the specification for SGF can be
found at;
ftp://igs.nuri.net/Go/info/smartgo.def.Z
Every program must be able to save and replay games. Every program
should
be able to start from any play listed in the records. The tournament
organizers reserve the copyrights to all game records, but participants
may use them freely in any non-profit affair.
(2)Game records will be released on the following home pages.　
URL(http://www1.odn.ne.jp/~cag79530/cgf/index.html）

13.Interaction with the Gallery and Press

(1)All participants are expected to assist the press as much as possible.
(2)All participants are requested to allow members of the gallery to play
their software. Tournament promoter will ask professional go players
and journalists to evaluate their programs in this presentation session.
CGF prize will be awarded to participants whose programs were introduced
during this presentation.
Other Go and Shogi related software may also be presented during this
session, but if there are many participants, tournament officials will
select which programs will be shown.

Note: In order to receive CGF prize, programs must have been entered in the
tournament as well as the presentation session. Prize will be awarded
on the basis of tournament results and the spread of computer go
research.

(3)Each participant is requested to submit by either floppy disk or E-mail,
a document describing their program(a sheet of paper A4 or letter size).
It should be
submitted with the participant's tournament application.

14.Tournament Board Members

Chief director of FOST: Yoichi Erikawa
Tournament Director : Koichiro Ishihara
Secretariat : Yoshio Maruyama (FOST)
Tournament judges : Takao Kojima/9th Dan(Nihon Ki-in)
Masahiro Okazaki(The Association of Go Culture)
Organizer : Computer Go Forum

15.Smart Go Format

SGF describes a Kifu by a series of nodes that begins with ; and the
nodes are written in ().
The first node is called root node and includes the property which
relates to the whole game.
The second node next to the root node indicates the first move.

(;
GM[1]FF[1] /GM indicates the variation of the game. Go shows 1, and
FF shows the
version of SGF(1〜4)
　 SZ[19] /board size

PB[player black] /name of the black player
PW[player white] /name of the whote player
DT[date] /date of the play
PC[place]　　　　/place of the paly
KM[komi]　　　　 /komi
TM[time for each player] /allowed time(minutes)
RU[rule]　　　　 /the rule used Japanese
RE[result]　　　 /result　B+10.5 means black won by 10.5. B+R means
black won by resignation
EV[event]　　　 /event 4th Fost Cup
GN[game name] /game id. round 1 etc.
;B[aa];W[bb];B[cc]../upper left corner seen from black side is aa, upper
right corner is sa
Insert RETURN every other 10 moves.
;B[tt]W[tt]) /pass represented by tt

Example
(;
GM[1]FF[1]
SZ[19]
PB[HandTalk]
PW[Many Faces of Go]
DT[08/27/97]
PC[Nagoya]
KM[5.5]
TM[60]
RU[Japanese]
RE[B+0.5]
EV[3 FOST Cup]
GN[round 1]
;B[dd];W[pd].....
;B[tt];W[tt])