Comments
From Others Regarding My
Tribute
Page
Wow, that page is great! I'm glad someone likes WinBoard so much. I'll put a link from my page to yours -- I'm sure many people will appreciate the sample screenshots and configuration tips. - Tim Mann |
Thank you for taking the time to post your tribute to WinBoard and all of the info on your chess page. It is one of my favorite sites to visit since the one night that I hit a link here from Yahoo! and was first introduced to the exciting world of chess servers. My first interface that I downloaded was Slics. I felt I lost too many games on time with that interface, not seeing the time clock well, crowded windows, etc. Although I was happy with it otherwise, I decided one night to give WinBoard a try after reading your tribute. I have been a WinBoard fan since then; it is my ICS interface of choice! Your tribute to WinBoard sent me in the right direction for just what I needed. I have since used and looked at several interfaces, but maintain my preference for WinBoard. Thank you, once again! *hat tip No, thank you Damon. Since you've been visiting the chess servers, your kindness and sparkling wit have made them a better place. All of us who play there owe you a debt of gratitude. See you online. - Ed |
I'm a long time Internet chess player -- not serious, just fun. I usually just log in to ICC and use BlitzIn. I've got an FICS account, and an older version of WinBoard (3.6.2) which I've never been too crazy about -- the board size has always bugged me. I'm downloading 4.0 now, and
will give it a shot. I liked your tribute page with
the screen shots -- thanks for taking the time to do
it. I'll bookmark it, and play around with v.
4.0.0. |
I just discovered your web page and I wanted to congratulate you on a fine job. In particular I was interested in your sections on online chess interfaces. I'm a poor player hoping to improve and have only recently discovered FICS and I'm trying to get up to speed with how to use the system and the interface. I originally downloaded WinBoard, but I struggled with it a bit. From what I see on your page, it sounds like I was using an older version of WinBoard and your praise for it was enough to make me download the new version. Perhaps I'll like this version more. - Dean Gay |
I owe you a great deal of
thanks! I think your website on WinBoard is great. Up
until now I myself was using Slics. I had looked at
Winboard and even liked the graphics but didn't see the
good in it. I did not known that it could do all that. I
must say that it does everything that Slics can do and
better. I would like to know if you could sent me a copy of your menu section of the winboard.ini file. Your notes on how to do this were okay, however, I think the if you post examples of the ones that you like on your menu, Then people would find it a lot easier to setup their own. Thank You. Once again, thanks on a job THAT'S WELL DONE !!!!! Your point is well taken Ted and I will do so. Thank you. - Ed |
There I was, minding my own business, lazily surfing the net, when I came across your page. I had followed a link from the Andy McFarland's ZIICS page, as I was checking on the progress of his Windows version. (I too, periodically re-evaluate the chess clients.) Anyway, I ended up on your Winboard Tribute page, only to be confronted by a block-quote from myself! So let me congratulate you:
Still, happy as I am to have my own words used against me, I feel the gauntlet has been thrown down, and some points need to be addressed: First of all, you were right, there was some stuff in Winboard that I was not aware of. However, it still doesn't do anything that Slics can't do (we are strictly comparing the on-line features here), and Slics is still easier to use (although I admit it is harder to set up). As far as cluttered and unattractive, I just don't agree. You have to realize, many of us only have 640 x 480 resolution screens. Attached slics1.gif is how it looks on my computer. (On a big resolution like yours, Slics would be even better!) You really don't like those pieces? They're the nicest I've seen (colors on capture slightly off, btw). And you don't have you juggle windows, because you simply lay them out once, and then save the layout. (You can save up to four different layouts). As you can see, I can see the board, have a conversation, and look at the player list all at the same time. I can maximize any of the windows at any time (slics2.gif), and then "middle"-ize it again to return to the same layout. The great thing IS the organization! The player list NEVER rolls off the screen because it has its own special box. Slics3.gif illustrates me "fingering" someone. It appears in its OWN window, DISTURBING NOTHING. I read the finger notes, close the window, and it's gone. Incoming seeks and challenges also have their own special area (the bottom window, currently empty, in slics2.gif). You can have any .wav file you want play for moving, capturing, castling, losing, winning, drawing, getting a challenge, etc. Everything is customizable. For instance, if you look on my screen shot, you'll see a button marked "STC". That's the button I push to show me who's in channel 90 on FICS (Slow Time Controls Bunch), a group of which I am a member. Again, it pops up in its own window, disturbing nothing else. And I can do everything with the mouse. The only time I type is when I talking to someone. (And it can do just what you wish Winboard did, let you send the same message over without retyping it to someone else.) Speaking of your Winboard wish list, let's go down those one by one:
In short, Slics is better! Keep in mind, however, WinBoard is a GREAT program. I use WinBoard CONSTANTLY... just not for playing chess on the Internet. Here are the above mentioned screenshots of Slics that Andy sent me. |
Thanks for all the info. Your tips have saved me a lot of time. |
Ed, thank you. It clearly shows
how much time and effort you put into your pages. Not
just this WinBoard section, but your your entire site, is
one of the best I've ever seen. Your WinBoard configuration tips and tricks were very helpful to me and a couple of my friends. I've tried both CClient and Slics and and I also feel that WinBoard is clearly the better of the bunch. See you on-line. - Matt B. |
I corresponded to you about
interfaces before, and told you WinBoard was pretty
complex (which I still believe), but thanks to your web
page, your WinBoard.ini file and a little time, WinBoard
is beginning to grow on me... You should give your
WinBoard.ini to Tim Mann to make it a default ini for his
download page (Add a 2 12 seek)... Great site, tips and
effort Ed. I saw you got some heat on the Yahoo
newsgroups, and you handled it with class. Kudos! |
I love your review of
WinBoard. I think that it's very well done.
But with WinBoard, the white pieces have no
borders, which makes them hard to see regardless of what
color combo I use. I also feel that the gridlines on the
board should be optional... So, since Sliics has a very
nice Kbirk polygon set, I will stick to Sliics until Tim
Mann does something about the White pieces and board
design. |
I enjoy your WinBoard tribute
page. I check it out sometimes to see what's new...
Your page on the winboard.ini settings is a great
help. I'm able to use your examples and modify them
for my uses. Very handy! |
Thank you for the info on
WinBoard. I click on WinBoard / freechess and am logged
in, password activated, seek 5 0, with my finished game
logged into a pgn file that is set up in Chessbase lite,
& nice Fritz type colors on my WinBoard. Very nice
and very convenient!! |
I really like your web page. I
never thought there was a WinBoard maniac apart from Tim
until I saw your page! I'd like to see the comparison
between Blitzin and WinBoard. I'm the kind of person that
likes to weigh out the options... |
...by the way... an incredible
site and VERY useful WinBoard tips! I just have to thank
you for this. Thank you! |
...Thanks for your WinBoard
wish-list. I also think that a thin, black line around
the white pieces and a thin, white line around the black
pieces is a good idea. One
good feature that is missing, in my opinion, is an
"Engine" directory where one could simply throw
all the WinBoard-compatible engines. Then when WinBoard
started it would look in this directory for all the
engines. One would then simply choose from a menu which
engine one wanted. This would make the installation of
new engines very simple. A WinBoard user |
Hello, I have been
playing at FICS for approximately four (4) months,
your chess page and downloadable .ini file really saved
me allot of grief. After about two (2) weeks I
started to get the hang of how everything works and in
fact now, I am pretty good with it all. A few
questions for you though;
|
When I was setting up WinBoard
your page is what got me going... |
I'm a visitor to your webpage.
It helps me a lot in configuring WinBoard to play in ICS.
Thanks! |
Many thanks for your very
excellent web site. Your explanation of how to
configure Winboard helped immeasuraly... Keep up
the good work...I don't know how you find the time. |