Is there a stop to Internet Backgammon cheaters?

Unfortunately I think it is you who fails the entry requirements for the group 'those with a brain'.   No one is cheating at backgammon and to think they are shows a lack of maturity and a poor understanding of both the game of backgammon and the nature of microprocessors.

 

 

The device that generates the numbers for the die is unsophisticated and very reliable.  The device that interprets the data (your brain) is very unreliable and tends to operate with a mixture of logic, intuition, emotion and degrees of chemical imbalance.

 

 

If you think losing to someone who rolls incredible numbers is frustrating just wait until you understand the game really well and try being beaten by someone that thinks it is possible to cheat!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Really????? A lack of maturity?  Is that what I have?   Following your logic that must be the case, as I do believe that there is a tool out there that allows players to manipulate the dice in Microsoft's Internet Backgammon.   I have always been a particularly good player.  My strategies are sound, and have proven to be successful over the course of my backgammon experience going back to 1979.   During play it is obvious to me when a player is cheating.  Don't get me wrong I don't believe everyone is cheating and I'm sure there have been occasions when I have suspected a completely inocent player. 

  I believe there are two types of cheaters those who cheat all the time and those who only cheat when they really need to...  Let me explain why I believe this to be the case.   During play when I put someone in a position where it becomes obvious that they are not going to win  if a player who has taken his turns in a timely fashion all game long, (who I have not suspected of cheating during that time) suddenly takes a long time to roll but when he does, rolls exactly the perfect roll to start down the path to recovery, and then continues to roll the perfect roll each subsequent turn until he is victorious i call "RAT"  If this had only happened to me once or twice I wouldn't think much about it; however,  it happens far too often for me to consider it happenstance. It has gotten to the point that by the second game with some players that I can predict what the opponents dice are going to be before I even see them.  I remember once predicting a 3 5 roll only to be surprised that it was a 2 4 I remember thinking "man, I guess I was wrong" but then I started watching his stones bouncing back and forth as he tried to figure out what went wrong. (he miss counted- also during the whole game leading up to this indecent he hadn't taken back any moves.

My question is:  Where does the code run for die rolls?  I am willing to bet the die roll happens on the computer of the person who is moving.  That is to say that you roll your own dice.  If that is the case how hard is it to isolate the memory addresses that hold the values for the die rolls?   Not hard at all. So writing some code that will manipulate that block of memory could be done fairly easily.  I can think of several methods to accomplish this....

But I don't think cheating is the biggest problem with this game.....  Quitters are the biggest problem.   I would say 2 in 3 to 4 in 5 players quit when they realize they are not going to win.....  I wish Microsoft would give us the ability to filter players who's stats indicate a propensity to quit or a significant history of being nudged.

Flagoff, if you don't have anything smart to say, then don't say anything at all.

MCP

I recorded the first roll of my opponent for 2221 games.  The opponents rolled a 6  861 times or 39% of the time.

The probability of rolling a 6 is 16.7%

The dice are not random or some opponents have control of their roll.

And, yes, there is a way to stop cheaters - don't play them. 

Here's my way of telling a potential cheat (play experts and make them roll first):

1. Their come out roll is a 6 or you have equal rolls and must roll again.
2. Their first free (2 dice) roll is a double or a 65.
3. There is a long pause before their roll.  (They are busy recording moves)
4. There is a long pause after their roll and especially before an obvious move like a 31, 61, 55, etc.
5. They double before their first foll.  (A win is insured for them)
6. When losing severly, they roll 2 life-saving doubles in a row.

The down side is that you will be playing only about 10-20% of the games to the end, win or lose.  It is very difficult to find a non-cheater based on the above.  But, almost guarenteed, if you play them, you will lose.  So why bother.

New study results.  This time I counted (using a program I developed) their come out roll of a 6 or equal rolls.

The expected probability is 33% (1/6 + 1/6)

I got 242/344 or 70%

One more thing...try playing as a beginner, not an expert.  They tend not to use the cheat programs against beginners.

You are absolutely right on about the cheating.  I sat one whole afternoon and pulled my hair out over this. I started keeping track of rolls, doubles, and percentages. When you play as many games as I did in one day, and only win one...with a real person, who actually resigned and played another game, you know something is up.

For a while there, I couldn't believe what was happening.  I just kept saying things about how it seemed I was being forced to move my stones according to what the other player wanted and it was getting crazy.  It was then that I found this forum.

If someone gets as nasty as the guy who insulted you, you can bet he's one of the cheaters himself!!!!  I am not really familiar with computer players or how that works, but I would prefer to play the computer than a cheater!!!

THIS NEEDS TO STOP.  You should see my board go crazy...when they start moving my stuff around!!!

WINDOWS FIX THIS PROBLEM!!!!