What is a good chess program

[Hermskii]

Scriveners:

A scrivener (or scribe) was traditionally a person who could read and write. This usually indicated secretarial and administrative duties such as dictation and keeping business, judicial, and history records for kings, nobles, temples, and cities. Scriveners later developed into public servants, accountants, lawyers and petition writers, etc.

Based on all of that, I'd suggest that it makes sense that you'd like Chess. I loved it as a kid but never got to play much since other kids didn't play it at all. I don't think I'd play well now with my never stop charging forward attitude. LOL.

[Helen]

I just played the black side and I beat it on the hardest level. It was odd, it was slowly winning positionally, but then it made a gargantuan error, basically GIVING me checkmate in one move. So the high end chess on this one isn't too good. Another weird thing, I initially started the hardest level as white, but after I made the first move, it never moved after that. So that's when I started as black.

So I really like the simple board, and the board positioning is great, but as the girls becomes pros, you'll need something tougher

[Helen]

I just played the black side and I beat it on the hardest level.

Correction, it was only the second highest level. On the hardest level, it doesn't even move, just sits there.

This was decent, play online against the computer:
http://www.learn4good.com/games/board/3 ... -chess.htm

[a nameless entity]

On the highest level chess programs often take hours and hours to make each move. I had a program called "Chessmaster 2000" on my Commodore Amiga years ago, and on the highest level it would just sit and think forever about its next move. I left it going one night when I went to supper. When I got back it still had not made its move, so I left it on over night. It was still thinking the next morning.

Putting Chessmaster on the lowest level got you beaten too, since it would force the pace faster and faster giving you no time to think. As soon as you moved it moved too, and it was usually a very good move. Level 3 or 4 was best.

There were also levels of difficulty in terms of play style. You could choose to play against a normal player, a chessmaster, or in "coffee house" style. The chessmaster would make NO "random" moves in that style, a normal player would make a few "random" moves, and in coffee house style the most "random" moves would be made. I guess "random" actually meant "mistake", although sometimes the mistakes weren't that bad. They just weren't very good moves. Once when I played in coffee house style the computer made such a stupid and pointless random move, that I made it take back its move and try again. It played better after that.

[*POTS*]

Hands down, I'm a huge fan of BattleChess. It has a simple mode where you can play on a 2-D board for basic play. It also has the more fun 3-D mode where it's just a board at a slight angle and the pieces walk around when you move them and then beat the crap out of each other.

There used to be a full version for sale with multiple boards and modes but my Mom used to be a manager at IBM and one of her employees actually wrorte the game so she had a simple original version she gave to me.

I might still have it....I do!

For the record, this game's menu, which you can't see...if at the top of the screen and you have to right click the mouse to bring it up. Can be played with both mouse and/or keyboard.

This game brings up memories... Thanks for sharing but you forgot to mention it won't run on Win7 x64 machines (though a good work-around to make it work is installing the latest version of DOSBox).

[ZippityDooDa]

Hands down, I'm a huge fan of BattleChess. It has a simple mode where you can play on a 2-D board for basic play. It also has the more fun 3-D mode where it's just a board at a slight angle and the pieces walk around when you move them and then beat the crap out of each other.

There used to be a full version for sale with multiple boards and modes but my Mom used to be a manager at IBM and one of her employees actually wrorte the game so she had a simple original version she gave to me.

I might still have it....I do!

For the record, this game's menu, which you can't see...if at the top of the screen and you have to right click the mouse to bring it up. Can be played with both mouse and/or keyboard.

Agreed, battlechess was awesome! played this alot as a teen.