I want to learn about neural nets and how gnubg uses them to learn to play better backgammon. I've read Tesauro's paper "Temporal Difference Learning and TD-Gammon" and this gave me some insight. Specifically, this was my first time reading about TD learning, MLPs etc.
I understand that machine learning is a vast subject that requires years of study to properly appreciate, so I guess what I'm looking for is more of a practical introduction on how to implement a neural net for some practical purpose. I've googled for neural net tutorials but come up empty handed. I know reading the code is one option, but I'd prefer to do this _after_ I've learnt the basics. Could someone on this list be so kind as to point me in the right direction? Any information that is easy for a layman to digest would be much appreciated.