On Fri, Jan 11, 2002 at 02:39:27PM +0100, Yann Dirson wrote: > Games/Puzzles is defined as "tests of ingenuity and logic". This > definition, unfortunately, includes many board games, and some board > games get incorrectly classified as "puzzles" (eg: g5). A better > definition could be given. For example:
I don't think it's a major problem to have some overlap between the categories. I tend to think of "board" as being a category for traditional board games which have been ported to the computer. I'm not sure that g5 (my program) actually qualifies under that definition. (OTOH, I'm not sure it doesn't.) > Board: > games with several players, played on a board (possibly only > against the computer) Technically, no computer games are played on a board -- they're played on a computer! :-) Nitpicking aside, though, if you really want to clarify things, I would say that there are other categories more worthy of attention: "strategy" vs. "board" "strategy" vs. "simulation" "simulation" vs. "board" "arcade" vs. "tetris-like" "puzzles" vs. "toys" All of these, it seems to me, have potential for ambiguity and overlap. In some cases, more than "puzzles" vs. "board". As for the case of g5 (5-in-a-row), although I've never seen it played on a board (which is why I originally put it in Games/Puzzles), I agree that it could be played on a chess or go board, so I am willing (and planning) to move it to Games/Board. Which should resolve at least part (if not all) of the current dilemma. But as for the proposal itself, I think there's a danger in over- specification of categories here too. If the categories overlap, then someone may put a program in a less-than-optimal category, but if the categories have fixed and very distinct boundaries, then there may be cases where something doesn't fit into *any* category. Which, IMO, is a worse result than the status quo. In any case, I neither support nor oppose this proposal, but I do feel that if we're going to do something about our categories, it should be a little broader in scope. Frankly, I'm more worried about the "arcade" category, which is rather over-full on my system. cheers -- Chris Waters | Pneumonoultra- osis is too long [EMAIL PROTECTED] | microscopicsilico- to fit into a single or [EMAIL PROTECTED] | volcaniconi- standalone haiku
