Retro DGT clock view and menu in latest version

[Johan Sjöblom]

Hi all.

Friday evening and time to have some "fun" with picochess development. I wanted to get a retro clock feeling when playing a headless Pi 4 or Pi 5.

Anyone who updates to the latest master version will get a possibility to switch the web client view to a fullscreen DGT-like retro clock... Just a first version, but it does have the same buttons and the same clock menu.

Just go into the new modernized menu and select Display -> Clock Only. There is a back button on the top right of the retro clock so that you can get back.

To show this view directly just type localhost/clock instead of just localhost. You can open it in another screen, or on your mobile phone (landscape phone is better)...

Attached a simple screen shot from my browser.

-- Johan

[Johan Sjöblom]

The latest version also includes two ways to explore positions without losing your current game.

Explore on the web client

In the ANALYSES tab, turn Explore ON. You can then try moves and analyse positions in that browser using Web Stockfish. This exploration is local to that web client: it does not change the Picochess game or disturb a connected physical eboard.

When you want to return to the live game, press Sync, or turn Explore OFF.

Temporary exploration on a physical eboard

You can also temporarily explore on the physical board—for example while entering moves in an evaluation mode or while playing against an engine.

On your turn, pause the clock and select Mode → Analysis. Picochess saves a checkpoint of the current game automatically. You can then freely try moves or set up another position on the physical board.

When you are finished, open the Mode menu again. The Analysis choice is replaced by Return to X, where X is the mode you came from. Choose this to restore the saved game and continue where you left off.

If you decide that you want to keep the new position instead, simply choose another mode. Picochess then treats the current position as the one you want to continue from and discards the saved checkpoint.

-- Johan

[Dirk]



How cool is that!?

And what a nice display of the original clock face.

Could only be topped by real photo of the DGTPi-3000 clock which is used a background 😏

Just kidding….

Am 24.07.2026 um 19:37 schrieb Johan Sjöblom <messi...@gmail.com>:



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[Johan Sjöblom]

Yes... I had some fun with that retro idea. And it also makes it easier to test the clock menu which I have tried to keep up-to-date with all the other changes.  

I am not a front end designer so maybe someone could make a really cool layout... And maybe we have copyright issues if we use the DGT tradename without asking them?

My favorite setup is now to have a headless Pi 4 or Pi 5 and then open that clock display on the mobile phone and play on the DGT board. When I send the backend sound to the mobile phone I dont need any speakers either, just the headless Pi without keyboard/display. I also have my 4-inch LCD screen which now starts to feel like a DGT clock, but I should perhaps put a physical lever on the top of the Pi 4 casing.

I have some other crazy ideas as well :-), we could use a  6 button usb macro keyboard with USB to the headless pi like this:

With the buttons arranged like this:

┌──────────┬──────────┬──────────┐
│    <<    │  LEVER   │    >>    │
├──────────┼──────────┼──────────┤
│   EVAL   │    ❚❚   │   HINT   │
└──────────┴──────────┴──────────┘

And attach a mini-display that works with Pi 5.

Or for a premium touch, use the Elgato Stream Deck Mini, in this one I think I can change the menu icon buttons depending on the mode... Button layout same as in the cheaper USB 6-button keyboard.

Obviously for best DGT3000 retro emulation we should find a 5-button macro keyboard for the Raspberry, and something to simulate the lever button on the top, and a small LCD display that works with Pi5.

-- Johan

PS. I also made improvement to the engine menu listing inspired by Antonio's idea, see https://groups.google.com/g/picochess/c/QjaIWlRGnYg/m/sWTMD13tBwAJ