Novag Universal Electronic Chessboard
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Anybody have the Novag Universal Electronic Chessboard? If so, would you
care to comment on it? Price, quality, how it works, etc.
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Charles Kamaras
Would you please leave me a note so I get get a hold of you!
Thanks,
I'm interested making a deal!
Thanks,
Charles
Charles Kamaras
Just picked up a copy of USCF chess and it seems to be a pretty strong
program!The programmer of the chess engine is David Kittinger./Seems to
be the W-chess engine./The graphics on the other hand are a different
story.The 3-d sucks!!The 2d is ok except I don't care for the oddball
looking chesspieces.There is one 2d set that looks ok,it's called
newspaper design,but even this looks funky!
The features are ok as well!I like the display of evaluations!
I've set up a problem:White king h5,rook d4.Black king e8, knight b2.
White to move and win eventually by capturing the knight on b2!
The correct first move is king g4.
After setting up this problem USCF chess took only 4 seconds to
announce a mate in 18.Now that is impressive!!
The total depth search is 41 plies.
My opinion if the graphics are fixed with a patch this maybe a winner
program.
I recommend 2d graphics like the Genius or Fritz programs have.
USCF chess also has the neat feature of the different settings for
ratings.
I'm still evaluating this program and any feedback would be great!
Thanks,
Charles Kamaras
"I'm in no way affiliated with USCF or Interplay software"!!
mat...@flash.net
Hi Charles,
Friday evening I returned my copy of USCF CHESS to the store and got
my refund. I've had USCF CHESS for a few days. I was tolerating the
bad graphics, the "rated game" problems, the buggy "take-back" move
feature, the opening book problem, and so on..., but my last game with
it was the last straw.
Twenty something moves into the game with USCF CHESS I noticed
something very odd. It added an additional a-file pawn to our game. It
had been playing with WHITE and now on it's queenside had two a-file
pawns (at a2 & a3), pawns at b2, c4, and d5! Besides cheating, an
impossible game position.
I'm a rated expert who's been playing these things since the mid-70s.
I own more than 40 chess programs, mostly commerical and a few
shareware, and up until now thought POWER CHESS was the worst program
I've seen. I wish someone would explain to me how software companies
like Interplay (and Sierra) can put out an inferior product like this,
and how USCF can endorse it! It's like they don't even bother
beta-testing it! It didn't take me anytime (and other buyers I now know
of) to find these flaws. You can fix simple programming errors with a
patch, but how about the graphics? (By the way, POWER CHESS has the
W-CHESS engine. A strong opponent, but that didn't make it a good chess
program. Some of the most basic features of a chess program were missing
in POWER CHESS.)
Anyway, those are my comments. I try always to find good in bad, so
I'll add that the TASC tutorials were okay. I enjoyed reading your
comments. Take care.
FreeGrace
Ann. a mate in 18...? Don't believe it...!
I set up the same problem with my WChess, and it does
play Kg4 ---but shows NO MATE...!
Best Regards
Charles Kamaras
After further evaluating USCF chess I cannot recommend this program at
all!!
The program is full of bugs. The features are lacking some basics.
I cannot believe that the USCF would endorse a product without testing
it first (it is evident that anybody in their right mind would not
endorse a product this incomplete).
Wish list: To numerous to list it all, here are just a few:
1. The graphics need some major overhaul. At least with the 2-D. (I
don't care for the 3-D that much.)
2. The bugs with the time controls and takebacks need's to be fixed.
3. Selectable hash tables.
4. Sounds needs to be fixed (the program will not let you know when it
moved).
5. Selectable depth search (full, selective).
6. Print (the diagrams printed have not characters, just the letters).
If anybody else has any comments about this program please post on this
news group. Maybe someone from Interplay may read these notes/reviews.
-Charles Kamaras
Gene Gombas
In article <68m17c$2...@dfw-ixnews4.ix.netcom.com>, ckam...@ix.netcom.com
says...
you can't set the rated game to anything other than 30 minutes.
--
Visit me at:
http://nj5.injersey.com/~geneg
mat...@flash.net
Charles Kamaras wrote:
>
> After further evaluating USCF chess I cannot recommend this program at
> all!!
> The program is full of bugs. The features are lacking some basics.
> I cannot believe that the USCF would endorse a product without testing
> it first (it is evident that anybody in their right mind would not
> endorse a product this incomplete).
Amen Charles. I hope you got my email. In it I related I returned my
copy for a refund. The last straw was when I saw it add an extra pawn
to the game I was playing with it! (It was playing WHITE and after
about twenty moves it's queenside had pawns on a2, a3, b2, c4, and d5.
Besides cheating, an impossible game position.)
Charles Kamaras
Hi,
Thanks for your opinion, I agreed a 100% with you!
Charles Kamaras