xboard(6)xboard(6)NAMExboard - X graphical user interface for chess
SYNOPSISxboard [options]
xboard-ics -icshost hostname [options]
xboard-ncp [options]
|pxboard
cmail [options]
DESCRIPTION
XBoard is a graphical chessboard that can serve as a user interface to
chess engines (such as GNU Chess), the Internet Chess Servers, elec‐
tronic mail correspondence chess, or your own collection of saved
games.
This manual documents version 4.2.7 of XBoard.
MAJOR MODES
XBoard always runs in one of four major modes. You select the major
mode from the command line when you start up XBoard.
xboard [options]
As an interface to GNU Chess or another chess engine running on
your machine, XBoard lets you play a game against the machine,
set up arbitrary positions, force variations, watch a game
between two chess engines, interactively analyze your stored
games or set up and analyze arbitrary positions. (Note: Not all
chess engines support analysis.)
xboard-ics -icshost hostname [options]
As Internet Chess Server (ICS) interface, XBoard lets you play
against other ICS users, observe games they are playing, or
review games that have recently finished. Most of the ICS
"wild" chess variants are supported, including bughouse.
xboard-ncp [options]
XBoard can also be used simply as an electronic chessboard to
play through games. It will read and write game files and allow
you to play through variations manually. You can use it to
browse games off the net or review games you have saved. These
features are also available in the other modes.
|pxboard
If you want to pipe games into XBoard, use the supplied shell
script `pxboard'. For example, from the news reader `xrn', find
a message with one or more games in it, click the Save button,
and type `|pxboard' as the file name.
cmail [options]
As an interface to electronic mail correspondence chess, XBoard
works with the cmail program. See CMail below for instructions.
MENUS, BUTTONS, AND KEYS
To move a piece, you can drag it with the left mouse button, or you can
click the left mouse button once on the piece, then once more on the
destination square. To drop a new piece on a square (when applicable),
press the middle or the right mouse button over the square and select
from the popup menu. In cases where you can drop either a white or
black piece, use the middle button (or shift+right) for white and the
right button (or shift+middle) for black. When you are playing a bug‐
house game on an Internet Chess Server, a list of the offboard pieces
that each player has available is shown in the window title after the
player's name; in addition, the piece menus show the number of pieces
available of each type.
All other XBoard commands are available from the menu bar. The most
frequently used commands also have shortcut keys or on-screen buttons.
When XBoard is iconized, its graphical icon is a white knight if it is
White's turn to move, a black knight if it is Black's turn. See
Iconize in Keys below if you have problems getting this feature to
work.
File Menu
Reset Resets XBoard and the chess engine to the beginning of a new
chess game. The `r' key is a keyboard equivalent. In Internet
Chess Server mode, clears the current state of XBoard, then
resynchronizes with the ICS by sending a refresh command. If you
want to stop playing, observing, or examining an ICS game, use
an appropriate command from the Action menu, not `Reset'. See
Action Menu.
Load Game
Plays a game from a record file. The `g' key is a keyboard
equivalent. A popup dialog prompts you for the file name. If
the file contains more than one game, a second popup dialog dis‐
plays a list of games (with information drawn from their PGN
tags, if any), and you can select the one you want. Alterna‐
tively, you can load the Nth game in the file directly, by typ‐
ing the number `N' after the file name, separated by a space.
The game file parser will accept PGN (portable game notation),
or in fact almost any file that contains moves in algebraic
notation. Notation of the form `P@f7' is accepted for piece-
drops in bughouse games; this is a nonstandard extension to PGN.
If the file includes a PGN position (FEN tag), or an old-style
XBoard position diagram bracketed by `[--' and `--]' before the
first move, the game starts from that position. Text enclosed in
parentheses, square brackets, or curly braces is assumed to be
commentary and is displayed in a pop-up window. Any other text
in the file is ignored. PGN variations (enclosed in parentheses)
are treated as comments; XBoard is not able to walk variation
trees. The nonstandard PGN tag [Variant "varname"] functions
similarly to the -variant command-line option (see below),
allowing games in certain chess variants to be loaded. There is
also a heuristic to recognize chess variants from the Event tag,
by looking for the strings that the Internet Chess Servers put
there when saving variant ("wild") games.
Load Next Game
Loads the next game from the last game record file you loaded.
The shifted `N' key is a keyboard equivalent.
Load Previous Game
Loads the previous game from the last game record file you
loaded. The shifted `P' key is a keyboard equivalent. Not
available if the last game was loaded from a pipe.
Reload Same Game
Reloads the last game you loaded. Not available if the last
game was loaded from a pipe.
Save Game
Appends a record of the current game to a file. A popup dialog
prompts you for the file name. If the game did not begin with
the standard starting position, the game file includes the
starting position used. Games are saved in the PGN (portable
game notation) format, unless the oldSaveStyle option is true,
in which case they are saved in an older format that is specific
to XBoard. Both formats are human-readable, and both can be read
back by the `Load Game' command. Notation of the form `P@f7' is
accepted for piece-drops in bughouse games; this is a nonstan‐
dard extension to PGN.
Copy Game
Copies a record of the current game to an internal clipboard in
PGN format and sets the X selection to the game text. The game
can be pasted to another application (such as a text editor or
another copy of XBoard) using that application's paste command.
In many X applications, such as xterm and emacs, the middle
mouse button can be used for pasting; in XBoard, you must use
the Paste Game command.
Paste Game
Interprets the current X selection as a game record and loads
it, as with Load Game.
Load Position
Sets up a position from a position file. A popup dialog prompts
you for the file name. If the file contains more than one saved
position, and you want to load the Nth one, type the number N
after the file name, separated by a space. Position files must
be in FEN (Forsythe-Edwards notation), or in the format that the
Save Position command writes when oldSaveStyle is turned on.
Load Next Position
Loads the next position from the last position file you loaded.
Load Previous Position
Loads the previous position from the last position file you
loaded. Not available if the last position was loaded from a
pipe.
Reload Same Position
Reloads the last position you loaded. Not available if the last
position was loaded from a pipe.
Save Position
Appends a diagram of the current position to a file. A popup
dialog prompts you for the file name. Positions are saved in FEN
(Forsythe-Edwards notation) format unless the `oldSaveStyle'
option is true, in which case they are saved in an older, human-
readable format that is specific to XBoard. Both formats can be
read back by the `Load Position' command.
Copy Position
Copies the current position to an internal clipboard in FEN for‐
mat and sets the X selection to the position text. The position
can be pasted to another application (such as a text editor or
another copy of XBoard) using that application's paste command.
In many X applications, such as xterm and emacs, the middle
mouse button can be used for pasting; in XBoard, you must use
the Paste Position command.
Paste Position
Interprets the current X selection as a FEN position and loads
it, as with Load Position.
Mail Move
Reload CMail Message
See CMail.
Exit Exits from XBoard. The shifted `Q' key is a keyboard equivalent.
Mode Menu
Machine White
Tells the chess engine to play White.
Machine Black
Tells the chess engine to play Black.
Two Machines
Plays a game between two chess engines.
Analysis Mode
XBoard tells the chess engine to start analyzing the current
game/position and shows you the analysis as you move pieces
around. Note: Some chess engines do not support Analysis mode.
To set up a position to analyze, you do the following:
1. Select Edit Position from the Mode Menu
2. Set up the position. Use the middle and right buttons to
bring up the white and black piece menus.
3. When you are finished, click on either the Black or White
clock to tell XBoard which side moves first.
4. Select Analysis Mode from the Mode Menu to start the analy‐
sis.
Analyze File
This option lets you load a game from a file (PGN, XBoard for‐
mat, etc.) and analyze it. When you select this menu item, a
popup window appears and asks for a filename to load. If the
file contains multiple games, another popup appears that lets
you select which game you wish to analyze. After a game is
loaded, use the XBoard arrow buttons to step forwards/backwards
through the game and watch the analysis. Note: Some chess
engines do not support Analysis mode.
ICS Client
This is the normal mode when XBoard is connected to a chess
server. If you have moved into Edit Game or Edit Position mode,
you can select this option to get out.
To use xboard in ICS mode, run it in the foreground with the
-ics option, and use the terminal you started it from to type
commands and receive text responses from the chess server. See
Chess Servers below for more information.
XBoard activates some special position/game editing features
when you use the `examine' or `bsetup' commands on ICS and you
have `ICS Client' selected on the Mode menu. First, you can
issue the ICS position-editing commands with the mouse. Move
pieces by dragging with mouse button 1. To drop a new piece on
a square, press mouse button 2 or 3 over the square. This
brings up a menu of white pieces (button 2) or black pieces
(button 3). Additional menu choices let you empty the square or
clear the board. Click on the White or Black clock to set the
side to play. You cannot set the side to play or drag pieces to
arbitrary squares while examining on ICC, but you can do so in
`bsetup' mode on FICS. In addition, the menu commands `For‐
ward', `Backward', `Pause', and `Stop Examining' have special
functions in this mode; see below.
Edit Game
Allows you to make moves for both Black and White, and to change
moves after backing up with the `Backward' command. The clocks
do not run.
In chess engine mode, the chess engine continues to check moves
for legality but does not participate in the game. You can bring
the chess engine into the game by selecting `Machine White',
`Machine Black', or `Two Machines'.
In ICS mode, the moves are not sent to the ICS: `Edit Game'
takes XBoard out of ICS Client mode and lets you edit games
locally. If you want to edit games on ICS in a way that other
ICS users can see, use the ICS `examine' command or start an ICS
match against yourself.
Edit Position
Lets you set up an arbitrary board position. Use mouse button 1
to drag pieces to new squares, or to delete a piece by dragging
it off the board or dragging an empty square on top of it. To
drop a new piece on a square, press mouse button 2 or 3 over the
square. This brings up a menu of white pieces (button 2) or
black pieces (button 3). Additional menu choices let you empty
the square or clear the board. You can set the side to play next
by clicking on the word White or Black at the top of the screen.
Selecting `Edit Position' causes XBoard to discard all remem‐
bered moves in the current game.
In ICS mode, changes made to the position by `Edit Position' are
not sent to the ICS: `Edit Position' takes XBoard out of `ICS
Client' mode and lets you edit positions locally. If you want to
edit positions on ICS in a way that other ICS users can see, use
the ICS `examine' command, or start an ICS match against your‐
self. (See also the ICS Client topic above.)
Training
Training mode lets you interactively guess the moves of a game
for one of the players. You guess the next move of the game by
playing the move on the board. If the move played matches the
next move of the game, the move is accepted and the opponent's
response is autoplayed. If the move played is incorrect, an
error message is displayed. You can select this mode only while
loading a game (that is, after selecting `Load Game' from the
File menu). While XBoard is in `Training' mode, the navigation
buttons are disabled.
Show Game List
Shows or hides the list of games generated by the last `Load
Game' command.
Edit Tags
Lets you edit the PGN (portable game notation) tags for the cur‐
rent game. After editing, the tags must still conform to the PGN
tag syntax:
<tag-section> ::= <tag-pair> <tag-section>
<empty>
<tag-pair> ::= [ <tag-name> <tag-value> ]
<tag-name> ::= <identifier>
<tag-value> ::= <string>
See the PGN Standard for full details. Here is an example:
[Event "Portoroz Interzonal"]
[Site "Portoroz, Yugoslavia"]
[Date "1958.08.16"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Robert J. Fischer"]
[Black "Bent Larsen"]
[Result "1-0"]
Any characters that do not match this syntax are silently
ignored. Note that the PGN standard requires all games to have
at least the seven tags shown above. Any that you omit will be
filled in by XBoard with `?' (unknown value), or `-' (inapplica‐
ble value).
Edit Comment
Adds or modifies a comment on the current position. Comments are
saved by `Save Game' and are displayed by `Load Game', `For‐
ward', and `Backward'.
ICS Input Box
If this option is set in ICS mode, XBoard creates an extra win‐
dow that you can use for typing in ICS commands. The input box
is especially useful if you want to type in something long or do
some editing on your input, because output from ICS doesn't get
mixed in with your typing as it would in the main terminal win‐
dow.
Pause Pauses updates to the board, and if you are playing against a
chess engine, also pauses your clock. To continue, select
`Pause' again, and the display will automatically update to the
latest position. The `P' button and keyboard `p' key are equiv‐
alents.
If you select Pause when you are playing against a chess engine
and it is not your move, the chess engine's clock will continue
to run and it will eventually make a move, at which point both
clocks will stop. Since board updates are paused, however, you
will not see the move until you exit from Pause mode (or select
Forward). This behavior is meant to simulate adjournment with a
sealed move.
If you select Pause while you are observing or examining a game
on a chess server, you can step backward and forward in the cur‐
rent history of the examined game without affecting the other
observers and examiners, and without having your display jump
forward to the latest position each time a move is made. Select
Pause again to reconnect yourself to the current state of the
game on ICS.
If you select `Pause' while you are loading a game, the game
stops loading. You can load more moves manually by selecting
`Forward', or resume automatic loading by selecting `Pause'
again.
Action Menu
Accept Accepts a pending match offer. If there is more than one offer
pending, you will have to type in a more specific command
instead of using this menu choice.
Decline
Declines a pending offer (match, draw, adjourn, etc.). If there
is more than one offer pending, you will have to type in a more
specific command instead of using this menu choice.
Call Flag
Calls your opponent's flag, claiming a win on time, or claiming
a draw if you are both out of time. You can also call your oppo‐
nent's flag by clicking on his clock or by pressing the keyboard
`t' key.
Draw Offers a draw to your opponent, accepts a pending draw offer
from your opponent, or claims a draw by repetition or the
50-move rule, as appropriate. The `d' key is a keyboard equiva‐
lent.
Adjourn
Asks your opponent to agree to adjourning the current game, or
agrees to a pending adjournment offer from your opponent.
Abort Asks your opponent to agree to aborting the current game, or
agrees to a pending abort offer from your opponent. An aborted
game ends immediately without affecting either player's rating.
Resign Resigns the game to your opponent. The shifted `R' key is a key‐
board equivalent.
Stop Observing
Ends your participation in observing a game, by issuing the ICS
observe command with no arguments. ICS mode only.
Stop Examining
Ends your participation in examining a game, by issuing the ICS
unexamine command. ICS mode only.
Step Menu
Backward
Steps backward through a series of remembered moves. The `[<]'
button and the `b' key are equivalents. In addition, pressing
the Control key steps back one move, and releasing it steps for‐
ward again.
In most modes, `Backward' only lets you look back at old posi‐
tions; it does not retract moves. This is the case if you are
playing against a chess engine, playing or observing a game on
an ICS, or loading a game. If you select `Backward' in any of
these situations, you will not be allowed to make a different
move. Use `Retract Move' or `Edit Game' if you want to change
past moves.
If you are examining an ICS game, the behavior of `Backward'
depends on whether XBoard is in Pause mode. If Pause mode is
off, `Backward' issues the ICS backward command, which backs up
everyone's view of the game and allows you to make a different
move. If Pause mode is on, `Backward' only backs up your local
view.
Forward
Steps forward through a series of remembered moves (undoing the
effect of `Backward') or forward through a game file. The `[>]'
button and the `f' key are equivalents.
If you are examining an ICS game, the behavior of Forward
depends on whether XBoard is in Pause mode. If Pause mode is
off, `Forward' issues the ICS forward command, which moves
everyone's view of the game forward along the current line. If
Pause mode is on, `Forward' only moves your local view forward,
and it will not go past the position that the game was in when
you paused.
Back to Start
Jumps backward to the first remembered position in the game.
The `[<<]' button and the shifted `B' key are equivalents.
In most modes, Back to Start only lets you look back at old
positions; it does not retract moves. This is the case if you
are playing against a local chess engine, playing or observing a
game on a chess server, or loading a game. If you select `Back
to Start' in any of these situations, you will not be allowed to
make different moves. Use `Retract Move' or `Edit Game' if you
want to change past moves; or use Reset to start a new game.
If you are examining an ICS game, the behavior of @samp{Back to
Start} depends on whether XBoard is in Pause mode. If Pause mode
is off, `Back to Start' issues the ICS `backward 999999' com‐
mand, which backs up everyone's view of the game to the start
and allows you to make different moves. If Pause mode is on,
@samp{Back to Start} only backs up your local view.
Forward to End
Jumps forward to the last remembered position in the game. The
`[>>]' button and the shifted `F' key are equivalents.
If you are examining an ICS game, the behavior of @samp{Forward
to End} depends on whether XBoard is in Pause mode. If Pause
mode is off, `Forward to End' issues the ICS `forward 999999'
command, which moves everyone's view of the game forward to the
end of the current line. If Pause mode is on, `Forward to End'
only moves your local view forward, and it will not go past the
position that the game was in when you paused.
Revert If you are examining an ICS game and Pause mode is off, issues
the ICS command `revert'.
Truncate Game
Discards all remembered moves of the game beyond the current
position. Puts XBoard into `Edit Game' mode if it was not there
already.
Move Now
Forces the chess engine to move immediately. Chess engine mode
only.
Retract Move
Retracts your last move. In chess engine mode, you can do this
only after the chess engine has replied to your move; if the
chess engine is still thinking, use `Move Now' first. In ICS
mode, `Retract Move' issues the command `takeback 1' or `take‐
back 2' depending on whether it is your opponent's move or
yours.
Options Menu
Always Queen
If this option is off, XBoard brings up a dialog box whenever
you move a pawn to the last rank, asking what piece you want to
promote it to. If the option is true, your pawns are always pro‐
moted to queens. Your opponent can still underpromote.
Animate Dragging
If Animate Dragging is on, while you are dragging a piece with
the mouse, an image of the piece follows the mouse cursor. If
Animate Dragging is off, there is no visual feedback while you
are dragging a piece, but if Animate Moving is on, the move will
be animated when it is complete.
Animate Moving
If Animate Moving is on, all piece moves are animated. An image
of the piece is shown moving from the old square to the new
square when the move is completed (unless the move was already
animated by Animate Dragging). If Animate Moving is off, a
moved piece instantly disappears from its old square and reap‐
pears on its new square when the move is complete.
Auto Comment
If this option is on, any remarks made on ICS while you are
observing or playing a game are recorded as a comment on the
current move. This includes remarks made with the ICS commands
`say', `tell', `whisper', and `kibitz'. Limitation: remarks
that you type yourself are not recognized; XBoard scans only the
output from ICS, not the input you type to it.
Auto Flag
If this option is on and one player runs out of time before the
other, XBoard will automatically call his flag, claiming a win
on time. In ICS mode, Auto Flag will only call your opponent's
flag, not yours, and the ICS may award you a draw instead of a
win if you have insufficient mating material. In local chess
engine mode, XBoard may call either player's flag and will not
take material into account.
Auto Flip View
If the Auto Flip View option is on when you start a game, the
board will be automatically oriented so that your pawns move
from the bottom of the window towards the top.
Auto Observe
If this option is on and you add a player to your `gnotify' list
on ICS, XBoard will automatically observe all of that player's
games, unless you are doing something else (such as observing or
playing a game of your own) when one starts. The games are dis‐
played from the point of view of the player on your gnotify
list; that is, his pawns move from the bottom of the window
towards the top. Exceptions: If both players in a game are on
your gnotify list, if your ICS `highlight' variable is set to 0,
or if the ICS you are using does not properly support observing
from Black's point of view, you will see the game from White's
point of view.
Auto Raise Board
If this option is on, whenever a new game begins, the chessboard
window is deiconized (if necessary) and raised to the top of the
stack of windows.
Auto Save
If this option is true, at the end of every game XBoard prompts
you for a file name and appends a record of the game to the file
you specify. Disabled if the `saveGameFile' command-line option
is set, as in that case all games are saved to the specified
file. See Load and Save options.
Blindfold
If this option is on, XBoard displays the board as usual but
does not display pieces or move highlights. You can still move
in the usual way (with the mouse or by typing moves in ICS
mode), even though the pieces are invisible.
Flash Moves
If this option is on, whenever a move is completed, the moved
piece flashes. The number of times to flash is set by the
flashCount command-line option; it defaults to 3 if Flash Moves
is first turned on from the menu.
Flip View
Inverts your view of the chess board for the duration of the
current game. Starting a new game returns the board to normal.
The `v' key is a keyboard equivalent.
If you are playing a game on an ICS, the board is always ori‐
ented at the start of the game so that your pawns move from the
bottom of the window towards the top. Otherwise, the starting
orientation is determined by the `flipView' command line option;
if it is false (the default), White's pawns move from bottom to
top at the start of each game; if it is true, Black's pawns move
from bottom to top. See User interface options.
Get Move List
If this option is on, whenever XBoard receives the first board
of a new ICS game (or a different game from the one it is cur‐
rently displaying), it retrieves the list of past moves from the
ICS. You can then review the moves with the `Forward' and
`Backward' commands or save them with `Save Game'. You might
want to turn off this option if you are observing several blitz
games at once, to keep from wasting time and network bandwidth
fetching the move lists over and over. When you turn this
option on from the menu, XBoard immediately fetches the move
list of the current game (if any).
Highlight Last Move
If Highlight Last Move is on, after a move is made, the starting
and ending squares remain highlighted. In addition, after you
use Backward or Back to Start, the starting and ending squares
of the last move to be unmade are highlighted.
Move Sound
If this option is on, XBoard alerts you by playing a sound after
each of your opponent's moves (or after every move if you are
observing a game on the Internet Chess Server). The sound is
not played after moves you make or moves read from a saved game
file. By default, the sound is the terminal bell, but on some
systems you can change it to a sound file using the soundMove
option; see below.
If you turn on this option when using XBoard with the Internet
Chess Server, you will probably want to give the `set bell 0'
command to the ICS, since otherwise the ICS will ring the termi‐
nal bell after every move (not just yours). (The `.icsrc' file
is a good place for this; see ICS options.)
ICS Alarm
When this option is on, an alarm sound is played when your clock
counts down to the icsAlarmTime (by default, 5 seconds) in an
ICS game. For games with time controls that include an incre‐
ment, the alarm will sound each time the clock counts down to
the icsAlarmTime. By default, the alarm sound is the terminal
bell, but on some systems you can change it to a sound file
using the soundIcsAlarm option; see below.
Old Save Style
If this option is off, XBoard saves games in PGN (portable game
notation) and positions in FEN (Forsythe-Edwards notation). If
the option is on, a save style that is compatible with older
versions of XBoard is used instead. The old position style is
more human-readable than FEN; the old game style has no particu‐
lar advantages.
Periodic Updates
If this option is off (or if you are using a chess engine that
does not support periodic updates), the analysis window will
only be updated when the analysis changes. If this option is on,
the Analysis Window will be updated every two seconds.
Ponder Next Move
If this option is off, the chess engine will think only when it
is on move. If the option is on, the engine will also think
while waiting for you to make your move.
Popup Exit Message
If this option is on, when XBoard wants to display a message
just before exiting, it brings up a modal dialog box and waits
for you to click OK before exiting. If the option is off,
XBoard prints the message to standard error (the terminal) and
exits immediately.
Popup Move Errors
If this option is off, when you make an error in moving (such as
attempting an illegal move or moving the wrong color piece), the
error message is displayed in the message area. If the option
is on, move errors are displayed in small popup windows like
other errors. You can dismiss an error popup either by clicking
its OK button or by clicking anywhere on the board, including
downclicking to start a move.
Premove
If this option is on while playing a game on an ICS, you can
register your next planned move before it is your turn. Move
the piece with the mouse in the ordinary way, and the starting
and ending squares will be highlighted with a special color (red
by default). When it is your turn, if your registered move is
legal, XBoard will send it to ICS immediately; if not, it will
be ignored and you can make a different move. If you change
your mind about your premove, either make a different move, or
double-click on any piece to cancel the move entirely.
Quiet Play
If this option is on, XBoard will automatically issue an ICS
`set shout 0' command whenever you start a game and a `set shout
1' command whenever you finish one. Thus, you will not be dis‐
tracted by shouts from other ICS users while playing.
Show Coords
If this option is on, XBoard displays algebraic coordinates
along the board's left and bottom edges.
Show Thinking
If this option is set, the chess engine's notion of the score
and best line of play from the current position is displayed as
it is thinking. The score indicates how many pawns ahead (or if
negative, behind) the chess engine thinks it is. In matches
between two machines, the score is prefixed by `W' or `B' to
indicate whether it is showing White's thinking or Black's, and
only the thinking of the engine that is on move is shown.
Test Legality
If this option is on, XBoard tests whether the moves you try to
make with the mouse are legal and refuses to let you make an
illegal move. Moves loaded from a file with `Load Game' are
also checked. If the option is off, all moves are accepted, but
if a local chess engine or the ICS is active, they will still
reject illegal moves. Turning off this option is useful if you
are playing a chess variant with rules that XBoard does not
understand. (Bughouse, suicide, and wild variants where the
king may castle after starting on the d file are generally sup‐
ported with Test Legality on.)
Help Menu
Info XBoard
Displays the XBoard documentation in info format. For this fea‐
ture to work, you must have the GNU info program installed on
your system, and the file `xboard.info' must either be present
in the current working directory, or have been installed by the
`make install' command when you built XBoard.
Man XBoard
Displays the XBoard documentation in man page format. For this
feature to work, the file `xboard.6' must have been installed by
the `make install' command when you built XBoard, and the direc‐
tory it was placed in must be on the search path for your sys‐
tem's `man' command.
Hint Displays a move hint from the chess engine.
Book Displays a list of possible moves from the chess engine's open‐
ing book. The exact format depends on what chess engine you are
using. With GNU Chess 4, the first column gives moves, the sec‐
ond column gives one possible response for each move, and the
third column shows the number of lines in the book that include
the move from the first column. If you select this option and
nothing happens, the chess engine is out of its book or does not
support this feature.
About XBoard
Shows the current XBoard version number.
Other Shortcut Keys
Iconize
Pressing the `i' or `c' key iconizes XBoard. The graphical icon
displays a white knight if it is White's move, or a black knight
if it is Black's move. If your X window manager displays only
text icons, not graphical ones, check its documentation; there
is probably a way to enable graphical icons. If you get black
and white reversed, we would like to hear about it; see Problems
below for instructions on how to report this problem.
You can add or remove shortcut keys using the X resources `form.trans‐
lations'. Here is an example of what would go in your `.Xdefaults'
file:
XBoard*form.translations: \
Shift<Key>?: AboutGameProc() \n\
<Key>y: AcceptProc() \n\
<Key>n: DeclineProc() \n\
<Key>i: NothingProc()
Binding a key to `NothingProc' makes it do nothing, thus removing it as
a shortcut key. The XBoard commands that can be bound to keys are:
AbortProc, AboutGameProc, AboutProc, AcceptProc, AdjournProc,
AlwaysQueenProc, AnalysisModeProc, AnalyzeFileProc,
AnimateDraggingProc, AnimateMovingProc, AutobsProc, AutoflagProc,
AutoflipProc, AutoraiseProc, AutosaveProc, BackwardProc,
BlindfoldProc, BookProc, CallFlagProc, CopyGameProc, CopyPositionProc,
DebugProc, DeclineProc, DrawProc, EditCommentProc, EditGameProc,
EditPositionProc, EditTagsProc, EnterKeyProc, FlashMovesProc,
FlipViewProc, ForwardProc, GetMoveListProc, HighlightLastMoveProc,
HintProc, Iconify, IcsAlarmProc, IcsClientProc, IcsInputBoxProc,
InfoProc, LoadGameProc, LoadNextGameProc, LoadNextPositionProc,
LoadPositionProc, LoadPrevGameProc, LoadPrevPositionProc,
LoadSelectedProc, MachineBlackProc, MachineWhiteProc, MailMoveProc,
ManProc, MoveNowProc, MoveSoundProc, NothingProc, OldSaveStyleProc,
PasteGameProc, PastePositionProc, PauseProc, PeriodicUpdatesProc,
PonderNextMoveProc, PopupExitMessageProc, PopupMoveErrorsProc,
PremoveProc, QuietPlayProc, QuitProc, ReloadCmailMsgProc,
ReloadGameProc, ReloadPositionProc, RematchProc, ResetProc,
ResignProc, RetractMoveProc, RevertProc, SaveGameProc,
SavePositionProc, ShowCoordsProc, ShowGameListProc, ShowThinkingProc,
StopExaminingProc, StopObservingProc, TestLegalityProc, ToEndProc,
ToStartProc, TrainingProc, TruncateGameProc, and TwoMachinesProc.
OPTIONS
This section documents the command-line options to XBoard. You can set
these options in two ways: by typing them on the shell command line you
use to start XBoard, or by setting them as X resources (typically in
your `.Xdefaults' file). Many of the options cannot be changed while
XBoard is running; others set the initial state of items that can be
changed with the Options menu.
Most of the options have both a long name and a short name. To turn a
boolean option on or off from the command line, either give its long
name followed by the value true or false (`-longOptionName true'), or
give just the short name to turn the option on (`-opt'), or the short
name preceded by `x' to turn the option off (`-xopt'). For options that
take strings or numbers as values, you can use the long or short option
names interchangeably.
Each option corresponds to an X resource with the same name, so if you
like, you can set options in your `.Xdefaults' file or in a file named
`XBoard' in your home directory. For options that have two names, the
longer one is the name of the corresponding X resource; the short name
is not recognized. To turn a boolean option on or off as an X
resource, give its long name followed by the value true or false
(`XBoard*longOptionName: true').
Chess Engine Options
-tc or -timeControl minutes[:seconds]
Each player begins with his clock set to the `timeControl'
period. Default: 5 minutes. The additional options `movesPerS‐
ession' and `timeIncrement' are mutually exclusive.
-mps or -movesPerSession moves
When both players have made `movesPerSession' moves, a new
`timeControl' period is added to both clocks. Default: 40
moves.
-inc or -timeIncrement seconds
If this option is specified, `movesPerSession' is ignored.
Instead, after each player's move, `timeIncrement' seconds are
added to his clock. Use `-inc 0' if you want to require the
entire game to be played in one `timeControl' period, with no
increment. Default: -1, which specifies `movesPerSession' mode.
-clock/-xclock or -clockMode true/false
Determines whether or not to display the chess clocks. If clock‐
Mode is false, the clocks are not shown, but the side that is to
play next is still highlighted. Also, unless `searchTime' is
set, the chess engine still keeps track of the clock time and
uses it to determine how fast to make its moves.
-st or -searchTime minutes[:seconds]
Tells the chess engine to spend at most the given amount of time
searching for each of its moves. Without this option, the chess
engine chooses its search time based on the number of moves and
amount of time remaining until the next time control. Setting
this option also sets clockMode to false.
-depth or -searchDepth number
Tells the chess engine to look ahead at most the given number of
moves when searching for a move to make. Without this option,
the chess engine chooses its search depth based on the number of
moves and amount of time remaining until the next time control.
With the option, the engine will cut off its search early if it
reaches the specified depth.
-thinking/-xthinking or -showThinking true/false
Sets the Show Thinking option. See Options Menu. Default: false.
-ponder/-xponder or -ponderNextMove true/false
Sets the Ponder Next Move menu option. See Options Menu.
Default: true.
-mg or -matchGames n
Automatically runs an n-game match between two chess engines,
with alternating colors. If the `loadGameFile' or `loadPosi‐
tionFile' option is set, XBoard starts each game with the given
opening moves or the given position; otherwise, the games start
with the standard initial chess position. If the `saveGameFile'
option is set, a move record for the match is appended to the
specified file. If the `savePositionFile' option is set, the
final position reached in each game of the match is appended to
the specified file. When the match is over, XBoard displays the
match score and exits. Default: 0 (do not run a match).
-mm/-xmm or -matchMode true/false
Setting `matchMode' to true is equivalent to setting
`matchGames' to 1.
-fcp or -firstChessProgram program
Name of first chess engine. Default: `gnuchessx'.
-scp or -secondChessProgram program
Name of second chess engine, if needed. A second chess engine
is started only in Two Machines (match) mode. Default:
`gnuchessx'.
-fb/-xfb or -firstPlaysBlack true/false
In games between two chess engines, firstChessProgram normally
plays white. If this option is true, firstChessProgram plays
black. In a multi-game match, this option affects the colors
only for the first game; they still alternate in subsequent
games.
-fh or -firstHost host
-sh or -secondHost host
Hosts on which the chess engines are to run. The default for
each is `localhost'. If you specify another host, XBoard uses
`rsh' to run the chess engine there. (You can substitute a dif‐
ferent remote shell program for rsh using the `remoteShell'
option described below.)
-fd or -firstDirectory dir
-sd or -secondDirectory dir
Working directories in which the chess engines are to be run.
The default is "", which means to run the chess engine in the
same working directory as XBoard itself. (See the CHESSDIR
environment variable.) This option is effective only when the
chess engine is being run on the local host; it does not work if
the engine is run remotely using the -fh or -sh option.
-initString string
-secondInitString string
The string that is sent to initialize each chess engine for a
new game. Default:
new
random
Setting this option from the command line is tricky, because you
must type in real newline characters, including one at the very
end. In most shells you can do this by entering a `\' character
followed by a newline. It is easier to set the option from your
`.Xdefaults' file; in that case you can include the character
sequence `\n' in the string, and it will be converted to a new‐
line.
If you change this option, don't remove the `new' command; it is
required by all chess engines to start a new game.
You can remove the `random' command if you like; including it
causes GNU Chess 4 to randomize its move selection slightly so
that it doesn't play the same moves in every game. Even without
`random', GNU Chess 4 randomizes its choice of moves from its
opening book. Many other chess engines ignore this command
entirely and always (or never) randomize.
You can also try adding other commands to the initString; see
the documentation of the chess engine you are using for details.
-firstComputerString string
-secondComputerString string
The string that is sent to the chess engine if its opponent is
another computer chess engine. The default is `computer\n'.
Probably the only useful alternative is the empty string (`'),
which keeps the engine from knowing that it is playing another
computer.
-reuse/-xreuse or -reuseFirst true/false
-reuse2/-xreuse2 or -reuseSecond true/false
If the option is false, XBoard kills off the chess engine after
every game and starts it again for the next game. If the option
is true (the default), XBoard starts the chess engine only once
and uses it repeatedly to play multiple games. Some old chess
engines may not work properly when reuse is turned on, but oth‐
erwise games will start faster if it is left on.
-firstProtocolVersion version-number
-secondProtocolVersion version-number
This option specifies which version of the chess engine communi‐
cation protocol to use. By default, version-number is 2. In
version 1, the "protover" command is not sent to the engine;
since version 1 is a subset of version 2, nothing else changes.
Other values for version-number are not supported.
Internet Chess Server Options
-ics/-xics or -internetChessServerMode true/false
Connect with an Internet Chess Server to play chess against its
other users, observe games they are playing, or review games
that have recently finished. Default: false.
-icshost or -internetChessServerHost host
The Internet host name or address of the chess server to connect
to when in ICS mode. Default: `chessclub.com'. Another popular
chess server to try is `freechess.org'. If your site doesn't
have a working Internet name server, try specifying the host
address in numeric form. You may also need to specify the
numeric address when using the icshelper option with timestamp
or timeseal (see below).
-icsport or -internetChessServerPort port-number
The port number to use when connecting to a chess server in ICS
mode. Default: 5000.
-icshelper or -internetChessServerHelper prog-name
An external helper program used to communicate with the chess
server. You would set it to "timestamp" for ICC (chessclub.com)
or "timeseal" for FICS (freechess.org), after obtaining the cor‐
rect version of timestamp or timeseal for your computer. See
"help timestamp" on ICC and "help timeseal" on FICS. This
option is shorthand for `-useTelnet -telnetProgram program'.
-telnet/-xtelnet or -useTelnet true/false
This option is poorly named; it should be called useHelper. If
set to true, it instructs XBoard to run an external program to
communicate with the Internet Chess Server. The program to use
is given by the telnetProgram option. If the option is false
(the default), XBoard opens a TCP socket and uses its own inter‐
nal implementation of the telnet protocol to communicate with
the ICS. See Firewalls.
-telnetProgram prog-name
This option is poorly named; it should be called helperProgram.
It gives the name of the telnet program to be used with the
`gateway' and `useTelnet' options. The default is `telnet'. The
telnet program is invoked with the value of `inter‐
netChessServerHost' as its first argument and the value of
`internetChessServerPort' as its second argument. See Fire‐
walls.
-gateway host-name
If this option is set to a host name, XBoard communicates with
the Internet Chess Server by using `rsh' to run the `telnetPro‐
gram' on the given host, instead of using its own internal
implementation of the telnet protocol. You can substitute a dif‐
ferent remote shell program for `rsh' using the `remoteShell'
option described below. See Firewalls.
-internetChessServerCommPort or -icscomm dev-name
If this option is set, XBoard communicates with the ICS through
the given character I/O device instead of opening a TCP connec‐
tion. Use this option if your system does not have any kind of
Internet connection itself (not even a SLIP or PPP connection),
but you do have dialup access (or a hardwired terminal line) to
an Internet service provider from which you can telnet to the
ICS.
The support for this option in XBoard is minimal. You need to
set all communication parameters and tty modes before you enter
XBoard.
Use a script something like this:
stty raw -echo 9600 > /dev/tty00
xboard-ics -icscomm /dev/tty00
Here replace `/dev/tty00' with the name of the device that your
modem is connected to. You might have to add several more
options to these stty commands. See the man pages for `stty' and
`tty' if you run into problems. Also, on many systems stty works
on its standard input instead of standard output, so you have to
use `<' instead of `>'.
If you are using linux, try starting with the script below.
Change it as necessary for your installation.
#!/bin/sh -f
# configure modem and fire up XBoard
# configure modem
(
stty 2400 ; stty raw ; stty hupcl ; stty -clocal
stty ignbrk ; stty ignpar ; stty ixon ; stty ixoff
stty -iexten ; stty -echo
) < /dev/modem
xboard-ics -icscomm /dev/modem
After you start XBoard in this way, type whatever commands are
necessary to dial out to your Internet provider and log in.
Then telnet to ICS, using a command like `telnet chessclub.com
5000'. Important: See the paragraph below about extra echoes,
in Limitations.
-icslogon or -internetChessServerLogonScript file-name
Whenever XBoard connects to the Internet Chess Server, if it
finds a file with the name given in this option, it feeds the
file's contents to the ICS as commands. The default file name is
`.icsrc'. Usually the first two lines of the file should be
your ICS user name and password. The file can be either in
$CHESSDIR, in XBoard's working directory if CHESSDIR is not set,
or in your home directory.
-msLoginDelay delay
If you experience trouble logging on to an ICS when using the
`-icslogon' option, inserting some delay between characters of
the logon script may help. This option adds `delay' milliseconds
of delay between characters. Good values to try are 100 and 250.
-icsinput/-xicsinput or -internetChessServerInputBox true/false
Sets the ICS Input Box menu option. See Mode Menu. Default:
false.
-autocomm/-xautocomm or -autoComment true/false
Sets the Auto Comment menu option. See Options Menu. Default:
false.
-autoflag/-xautoflag or -autoCallFlag true/false
Sets the Auto Flag menu option. See Options Menu. Default:
false.
-autobs/-xautobs or -autoObserve true/false
Sets the Auto Observe menu option. See Options Menu. Default:
false.
-moves/-xmoves or -getMoveList true/false
Sets the Get Move List menu option. See Options Menu. Default:
true.
-alarm/-xalarm or -icsAlarm true/false
Sets the ICS Alarm menu option. See Options Menu. Default:
true.
-icsAlarmTime ms
Sets the time in milliseconds for the ICS Alarm menu option.
See Options Menu. Default: 5000.
-pre/-xpre or -premove true/false
Sets the Premove menu option. See Options Menu. Default: true.
-quiet/-xquiet or -quietPlay true/false
Sets the Quiet Play menu option. See Options Menu. Default:
false.
-colorizeMessages or -colorize
Setting colorizeMessages to true tells XBoard to colorize the
messages received from the ICS. Colorization works only if your
xterm supports ISO 6429 escape sequences for changing text col‐
ors.
-colorShout foreground,background,bold
-colorSShout foreground,background,bold
-colorChannel1 foreground,background,bold
-colorChannel foreground,background,bold
-colorKibitz foreground,background,bold
-colorTell foreground,background,bold
-colorChallege foreground,background,bold
-colorRequest foreground,background,bold
-colorSeek foreground,background,bold
-colorNormal foreground,background,bold
These options set the colors used when colorizing ICS messages.
All ICS messages are grouped into one of these categories:
shout, sshout, channel 1, other channel, kibitz, tell, chal‐
lenge, request (including abort, adjourn, draw, pause, and take‐
back), or normal (all other messages).
Each foreground or background argument can be one of the follow‐
ing: black, red, green, yellow, blue, magenta, cyan, white, or
default. Here ``default'' means the default foreground or back‐
ground color of your xterm. Bold can be 1 or 0. If background
is omitted, ``default'' is assumed; if bold is omitted, 0 is
assumed.
Here is an example of how to set the colors in your `.Xdefaults'
file. The colors shown here are the default values; you will
get them if you turn `-colorize' on without specifying your own
colors.
xboard*colorizeMessages: true
xboard*colorShout: green
xboard*colorSShout: green, black, 1
xboard*colorChannel1: cyan
xboard*colorChannel: cyan, black, 1
xboard*colorKibitz: magenta, black, 1
xboard*colorTell: yellow, black, 1
xboard*colorChallenge: red, black, 1
xboard*colorRequest: red
xboard*colorSeek: blue
xboard*colorNormal: default
-soundProgram progname
If this option is set to a sound-playing program that is
installed and working on your system, XBoard can play sound
files when certain events occur, listed below. The default pro‐
gram name is "play". If any of the sound options is set to "$",
the event rings the terminal bell by sending a ^G character to
standard output, instead of playing a sound file. If an option
is set to the empty string "", no sound is played for that
event.
-soundShout filename
-soundSShout filename
-soundChannel filename
-soundKibitz filename
-soundTell filename
-soundChallenge filename
-soundRequest filename
-soundSeek filename
These sounds are triggered in the same way as the colorization
events described above. They all default to "", no sound. They
are played only if the colorizeMessages is on.
-soundMove filename
This sound is used by the Move Sound menu option. Default: "$".
-soundIcsAlarm filename
This sound is used by the ICS Alarm menu option. Default: "$".
-soundIcsWin filename
This sound is played when you win an ICS game. Default: "" (no
sound).
-soundIcsLoss filename
This sound is played when you lose an ICS game. Default: "" (no
sound).
-soundIcsDraw filename
This sound is played when you draw an ICS game. Default: "" (no
sound).
-soundIcsUnfinished filename
This sound is played when an ICS game that you are participating
in is aborted, adjourned, or otherwise ends inconclusively.
Default: "" (no sound).
Here is an example of how to set the sounds in your .Xdefaults
file:
xboard*soundShout: shout.wav
xboard*soundSShout: sshout.wav
xboard*soundChannel1: channel1.wav
xboard*soundChannel: channel.wav
xboard*soundKibitz: kibitz.wav
xboard*soundTell: tell.wav
xboard*soundChallenge: challenge.wav
xboard*soundRequest: request.wav
xboard*soundSeek: seek.wav
xboard*soundMove: move.wav
xboard*soundIcsWin: win.wav
xboard*soundIcsLoss: lose.wav
xboard*soundIcsDraw: draw.wav
xboard*soundIcsUnfinished: unfinished.wav
xboard*soundIcsAlarm: alarm.wav
Load and Save Options
-lgf or -loadGameFile file
-lgi or -loadGameIndex index
If the `loadGameFile' option is set, XBoard loads the specified
game file at startup. The file name `-' specifies the standard
input. If there is more than one game in the file, XBoard pops
up a menu of the available games, with entries based on their
PGN (Portable Game Notation) tags. If the `loadGameIndex'
option is set to `N', the menu is suppressed and the N th game
found in the file is loaded immediately. The menu is also sup‐
pressed if `matchMode' is enabled or if the game file is a pipe;
in these cases the first game in the file is loaded immediately.
Use the `pxboard' shell script provided with XBoard if you want
to pipe in files containing multiple games and still see the
menu.
-td or -timeDelay seconds
Time delay between moves during `Load Game'. Fractional seconds
are allowed; try `-td 0.4'. A time delay value of -1 tells
XBoard not to step through game files automatically. Default: 1
second.
-sgf or -saveGameFile file
If this option is set, XBoard appends a record of every game
played to the specified file. The file name `-' specifies the
standard output.
-autosave/-xautosave or -autoSaveGames true/false
Sets the Auto Save menu option. See Options Menu. Default:
false. Ignored if `saveGameFile' is set.
-lpf or -loadPositionFile file
-lpi or -loadPositionIndex index
If the `loadPositionFile' option is set, XBoard loads the speci‐
fied position file at startup. The file name `-' specifies the
standard input. If the `loadPositionIndex' option is set to N,
the Nth position found in the file is loaded; otherwise the
first position is loaded.
-spf or -savePositionFile file
If this option is set, XBoard appends the final position reached
in every game played to the specified file. The file name `-'
specifies the standard output.
-oldsave/-xoldsave or -oldSaveStyle true/false
Sets the Old Save Style menu option. See Options Menu.
Default: false.
User Interface Options
-display
-geometry
-iconic
These and most other standard Xt options are accepted.
-movesound/-xmovesound or -ringBellAfterMoves true/false
Sets the Move Sound menu option. See Options Menu. Default:
false. For compatibility with old XBoard versions, -bell/-xbell
are also accepted as abbreviations for this option.
-exit/-xexit or -popupExitMessage true/false
Sets the Popup Exit Message menu option. See Options Menu.
Default: true.
-popup/-xpopup or -popupMoveErrors true/false
Sets the Popup Move Errors menu option. See Options Menu.
Default: false.
-queen/-xqueen or -alwaysPromoteToQueen true/false
Sets the Always Queen menu option. See Options Menu. Default:
false.
-legal/-xlegal or -testLegality true/false
Sets the Test Legality menu option. See Options Menu. Default:
true.
-size or -boardSize (sizeName | n1,n2,n3,n4,n5,n6,n7)
Determines how large the board will be, by selecting the pixel
size of the pieces and setting a few related parameters. The
sizeName can be one of: Titanic, giving 129x129 pixel pieces,
Colossal 116x116, Giant 108x108, Huge 95x95, Big 87x87, Large
80x80, Bulky 72x72, Medium 64x64, Moderate 58x58, Average 54x54,
Middling 49x49, Mediocre 45x45, Small 40x40, Slim 37x37, Petite
33x33, Dinky 29x29, Teeny 25x25, or Tiny 21x21. Pieces of all
these sizes are built into XBoard. Other sizes can be used if
you have them; see the pixmapDirectory and bitmapDirectory
options. The default depends on the size of your screen; it is
approximately the largest size that will fit without clipping.
You can select other sizes or vary other layout parameters by
providing a list of comma-separated values (with no spaces) as
the argument. You do not need to provide all the values; for
any you omit from the end of the list, defaults are taken from
the nearest built-in size. The value `n1' gives the piece size,
`n2' the width of the black border between squares, `n3' the
desired size for the clockFont, `n4' the desired size for the
coordFont, `n5' the desired size for the default font, `n6' the
smallLayout flag (0 or 1), and `n7' the tinyLayout flag (0 or
1). All dimensions are in pixels. If the border between
squares is eliminated (0 width), the various highlight options
will not work, as there is nowhere to draw the highlight. If
smallLayout is 1 and `titleInWindow' is true, the window layout
is rearranged to make more room for the title. If tinyLayout is
1, the labels on the menu bar are abbreviated to one character
each and the buttons in the button bar are made narrower.
-coords/-xcoords or -showCoords true/false
Sets the Show Coords menu option. See Options Menu. Default:
false. The `coordFont' option specifies what font to use.
-autoraise/-xautoraise or -autoRaiseBoard true/false
Sets the Auto Raise Board menu option. See Options Menu.
Default: true.
-autoflip/-xautoflip or -autoFlipView true/false
Sets the Auto Flip View menu option. See Options Menu.
Default: true.
-flip/-xflip or -flipView true/false
If Auto Flip View is not set, or if you are observing but not
participating in a game, then the positioning of the board at
the start of each game depends on the flipView option. If
flipView is false (the default), the board is positioned so that
the white pawns move from the bottom to the top; if true, the
black pawns move from the bottom to the top. In any case, the
Flip menu option (see Options Menu) can be used to flip the
board after the game starts.
-title/-xtitle or -titleInWindow true/false
If this option is true, XBoard displays player names (for ICS
games) and game file names (for `Load Game') inside its main
window. If the option is false (the default), this information
is displayed only in the window banner. You probably won't want
to set this option unless the information is not showing up in
the banner, as happens with a few X window managers.
-buttons/-xbuttons or -showButtonBar True/False
If this option is False, xboard omits the [<<] [<] [P] [>] [>>]
button bar from the window, allowing the message line to be
wider. You can still get the functions of these buttons using
the menus or their keyboard shortcuts. Default: true.
-mono/-xmono or -monoMode true/false
Determines whether XBoard displays its pieces and squares with
two colors (true) or four (false). You shouldn't have to specify
`monoMode'; XBoard will determine if it is necessary.
-flashCount count
-flashRate rate
-flash/-xflash
These options enable flashing of pieces when they land on their
destination square. `flashCount' tells XBoard how many times to
flash a piece after it lands on its destination square.
`flashRate' controls the rate of flashing (flashes/sec). Abbre‐
viations: `flash' sets flashCount to 3. `xflash' sets flash‐
Count to 0. Defaults: flashCount=0 (no flashing), flashRate=5.
-highlight/-xhighlight or -highlightLastMove true/false
Sets the Highlight Last Move menu option. See Options Menu.
Default: false.
-blind/-xblind or -blindfold true/false
Sets the Blindfold menu option. See Options Menu. Default:
false.
-clockFont font
The font used for the clocks. If the option value is a pattern
that does not specify the font size, XBoard tries to choose an
appropriate font for the board size being used. Default:
-*-helvetica-bold-r-normal--*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*.
-coordFont font
The font used for rank and file coordinate labels if `showCo‐
ords' is true. If the option value is a pattern that does not
specify the font size, XBoard tries to choose an appropriate
font for the board size being used. Default: -*-helvetica-bold-
r-normal--*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*.
-font font
The font used for popup dialogs, menus, comments, etc. If the
option value is a pattern that does not specify the font size,
XBoard tries to choose an appropriate font for the board size
being used. Default: -*-helvetica-medium-r-nor‐
mal--*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*.
-fontSizeTolerance tol
In the font selection algorithm, a nonscalable font will be pre‐
ferred over a scalable font if the nonscalable font's size dif‐
fers by `tol' pixels or less from the desired size. A value of
-1 will force a scalable font to always be used if available; a
value of 0 will use a nonscalable font only if it is exactly the
right size; a large value (say 1000) will force a nonscalable
font to always be used if available. Default: 4.
-bm or -bitmapDirectory dir
-pixmap or -pixmapDirectory dir
These options control what piece images xboard uses. The XBoard
distribution includes one set of pixmap pieces in xpm format, in
the directory `pixmaps', and one set of bitmap pieces in xbm
format, in the directory `bitmaps'. Pixmap pieces give a better
appearance on the screen: the white pieces have dark borders,
and the black pieces have opaque internal details. With bit‐
maps, neither piece color has a border, and the internal details
are transparent; you see the square color or other background
color through them.
If XBoard is configured and compiled on a system that includes
libXpm, the X pixmap library, the xpm pixmap pieces are compiled
in as the default. A different xpm piece set can be selected at
runtime with the `pixmapDirectory' option, or a bitmap piece set
can be selected with the `bitmapDirectory' option.
If XBoard is configured and compiled on a system that does not
include libXpm (or the `--disable-xpm' option is given to the
configure program), the bitmap pieces are compiled in as the
default. It is not possible to use xpm pieces in this case, but
pixmap pieces in another format called "xim" can be used by giv‐
ing the `pixmapDirectory' option. Or again, a different bitmap
piece set can be selected with the `bitmapDirectory' option.
Files in the `bitmapDirectory' must be named as follows: The
first character of a piece bitmap name gives the piece it repre‐
sents (`p', `n', `b', `r', `q', or `k'), the next characters
give the size in pixels, the following character indicates
whether the piece is solid or outline (`s' or `o'), and the
extension is `.bm'. For example, a solid 80x80 knight would be
named `n80s.bm'. The outline bitmaps are used only in mono‐
chrome mode. If bitmap pieces are compiled in and the bitmapDi‐
rectory is missing some files, the compiled in pieces are used
instead.
If the bitmapDirectory option is given, it is also possible to
replace xboard's icons and menu checkmark, by supplying files
named `icon_white.bm', `icon_black.bm', and `checkmark.bm'.
For more information about pixmap pieces and how to get addi‐
tional sets, see zic2xpm below.
-whitePieceColor color
-blackPieceColor color
-lightSquareColor color
-darkSquareColor color
-highlightSquareColor color
Colors to use for the pieces, squares, and square highlights.
Defaults:
-whitePieceColor #FFFFCC
-blackPieceColor #202020
-lightSquareColor #C8C365
-darkSquareColor #77A26D
-highlightSquareColor #FFFF00
-premoveHighlightColor #FF0000
On a grayscale monitor you might prefer:
-whitePieceColor gray100
-blackPieceColor gray0
-lightSquareColor gray80
-darkSquareColor gray60
-highlightSquareColor gray100
-premoveHighlightColor gray70
-drag/-xdrag or -animateDragging true/false
Sets the Animate Dragging menu option. See Options Menu.
Default: true.
-animate/-xanimate or -animateMoving true/false
Sets the Animate Moving menu option. See Options Menu. Default:
true.
-animateSpeed n
Number of milliseconds delay between each animation frame when
Animate Moves is on.
-lowTimeWarning true/false
When time is tight, use alternative color to show timer. This is
done when the clock counts down to icsAlarmTime (5 seconds by
default). It can be used in conjunction with sound alarm.
Default: true.
-lowTimeWarningColor color
Color to use when lowTimeWarning option is used and time is
tight. Default: red.
Other Options
-ncp/-xncp or -noChessProgram true/false
If this option is true, XBoard acts as a passive chessboard; it
does not start a chess engine at all. Turning on this option
also turns off clockMode. Default: false.
-mode or -initialMode modename
If this option is given, XBoard selects the given modename from
the Mode menu after starting and (if applicable) processing the
loadGameFile or loadPositionFile option. Default: "" (no selec‐
tion). Other supported values are MachineWhite, MachineBlack,
TwoMachines, Analysis, AnalyzeFile, EditGame, EditPosition, and
Training.
-variant varname
Activates preliminary, partial support for playing chess vari‐
ants against a local engine or editing variant games. This flag
is not needed in ICS mode. Recognized variant names are:
normal Normal chess
wildcastle Shuffle chess, king can castle from d file
nocastle Shuffle chess, no castling allowed
fischerandom Fischer Random shuffle chess
bughouse Bughouse, ICC/FICS rules
crazyhouse Crazyhouse, ICC/FICS rules
losers Lose all pieces or get mated (ICC wild 17)
suicide Lose all pieces including king (FICS)
giveaway Try to have no legal moves (ICC wild 26)
twokings Weird ICC wild 9
kriegspiel Opponent's pieces are invisible
atomic Capturing piece explodes (ICC wild 27)
3check Win by giving check 3 times (ICC wild 25)
shatranj An ancient precursor of chess (ICC wild 28)
unknown Catchall for other unknown variants
In the shuffle variants, xboard does not shuffle the pieces, but
you can do it by hand using Edit Position. Some variants are
supported only in ICS mode, including fischerandom, bughouse,
and kriegspiel. The winning/drawing conditions in crazyhouse
(offboard interposition on mate), losers, suicide, giveaway,
atomic, and 3check are not fully understood. In crazyhouse,
xboard does not yet keep track of offboard pieces. Shatranj is
unsupported, but it may be usable if you turn off Test Legality.
-debug/-xdebug or -debugMode true/false
Turns on debugging printout.
-rsh or -remoteShell shell-name
Name of the command used to run programs remotely. The default
is `rsh' or `remsh', determined when XBoard is configured and
compiled.
-ruser or -remoteUser user-name
User name on the remote system when running programs with the
`remoteShell'. The default is your local user name.
CHESS SERVERS
An "Internet Chess Server", or "ICS", is a place on the Internet where
people can get together to play chess, watch other people's games, or
just chat. You can use either `telnet' or a client program like XBoard
to connect to the server. There are thousands of registered users on
the different ICS hosts, and it is not unusual to meet 200 on both
chessclub.com and freechess.org.
Most people can just type `xboard -ics' to start XBoard as an ICS
client. Invoking XBoard in this way connects you to the Internet Chess
Club (ICC), a commercial ICS. You can log in there as a guest even if
you do not have a paid account. To connect to the largest Free ICS
(FICS), use the command `xboard -ics -icshost freechess.org' instead,
or substitute a different host name to connect to your favorite ICS.
For a full description of command-line options that control the connec‐
tion to ICS and change the default values of ICS options, see ICS
options.
While you are running XBoard as an ICS client, you use the terminal
window that you started XBoard from as a place to type in commands and
read information that is not available on the chessboard.
The first time you need to use the terminal is to enter your login name
and password, if you are a registered player. (You don't need to do
this manually; the `icsLogon' option can do it for you. See ICS
options.) If you are not registered, enter `g' as your name, and the
server will pick a unique guest name for you.
Some useful ICS commands include
help <topic>
to get help on the given <topic>. To get a list of possible top‐
ics type "help" without topic. Try the help command before you
ask other people on the server for help.
For example `help register' tells you how to become a registered
ICS player.
who <flags>
to see a list of people who are logged on. Administrators (peo‐
ple you should talk to if you have a problem) are marked with
the character `*', an asterisk. The <flags> allow you to display
only selected players: For example, `who of' shows a list of
players who are interested in playing but do not have an oppo‐
nent.
games to see what games are being played
match <player> [<mins>] [<inc>]
to challenge another player to a game. Both opponents get <mins>
minutes for the game, and <inc> seconds will be added after each
move. If another player challenges you, the server asks if you
want to accept the challenge; use the `accept' or `decline' com‐
mands to answer.
accept
decline
to accept or decline another player's offer. The offer may be
to start a new game, or to agree to a `draw', `adjourn' or
`abort' the current game. See Action Menu.
If you have more than one pending offer (for example, if more
than one player is challenging you, or if your opponent offers
both a draw and to adjourn the game), you have to supply addi‐
tional information, by typing something like `accept <player>',
`accept draw', or `draw'.
draw
adjourn
abort asks your opponent to terminate a game by mutual agreement.
Adjourned games can be continued later. Your opponent can
either `decline' your offer or accept it (by typing the same
command or typing `accept'). In some cases these commands work
immediately, without asking your opponent to agree. For exam‐
ple, you can abort the game unilaterally if your opponent is out
of time, and you can claim a draw by repetition or the 50-move
rule if available simply by typing `draw'.
finger <player>
to get information about the given <player>. (Default: your‐
self.)
vars to get a list of personal settings
set <var> <value>
to modify these settings
observe <player>
to observe an ongoing game of the given <player>.
examine
oldmoves
to review a recently completed game
Some special XBoard features are activated when you are in examine mode
on ICS. See the descriptions of the menu commands `Forward', `Back‐
ward', `Pause', `ICS Client', and `Stop Examining' on the Step Menu,
Mode Menu, and Options Menu.
FIREWALLS
By default, XBoard communicates with an Internet Chess Server by open‐
ing a TCP socket directly from the machine it is running on to the ICS.
If there is a firewall between your machine and the ICS, this won't
work. Here are some recipes for getting around common kinds of fire‐
walls using special options to XBoard. Important: See the paragraph in
the below about extra echoes, in Limitations.
Suppose that you can't telnet directly to ICS, but you can telnet to a
firewall host, log in, and then telnet from there to ICS. Let's say
the firewall is called `firewall.example.com'. Set command-line options
as follows:
xboard-ics -icshost firewall.example.com -icsport 23
Or in your `.Xdefaults' file:
XBoard*internetChessServerHost: firewall.example.com
XBoard*internetChessServerPort: 23
Then when you run XBoard in ICS mode, you will be prompted to log in to
the firewall host. This works because port 23 is the standard telnet
login service. Do so, then telnet to ICS, using a command like `telnet
chessclub.com 5000', or whatever command the firewall provides for tel‐
netting to port 5000.
If your firewall lets you telnet (or rlogin) to remote hosts but
doesn't let you telnet to port 5000, you may be able to connect to the
chess server on port 23 instead, which is the port the telnet program
uses by default. Some chess servers support this (including chess‐
club.com and freechess.org), while some do not.
If your chess server does not allow connections on port 23 and your
firewall does not allow you to connect to other ports, you may be able
to connect by hopping through another host outside the firewall that
you have an account on. For instance, suppose you have a shell account
at `foo.edu'. Follow the recipe above, but instead of typing `telnet
chessclub.com 5000' to the firewall, type `telnet foo.edu' (or `rlogin
foo.edu'), log in there, and then type `telnet chessclub.com 5000'.
Suppose that you can't telnet directly to ICS, but you can use rsh to
run programs on a firewall host, and that host can telnet to ICS.
Let's say the firewall is called `rsh.example.com'. Set command-line
options as follows:
xboard-ics -gateway rsh.example.com -icshost chessclub.com
Or in your `.Xdefaults' file:
XBoard*gateway: rsh.example.com
XBoard*internetChessServerHost: chessclub.com
Then when you run XBoard in ICS mode, it will connect to the ICS by
using `rsh' to run the command `telnet chessclub.com 5000' on host
`rsh.example.com'.
Suppose that you can telnet anywhere you want, but you have to run a
special program called `ptelnet' to do so.
First, we'll consider the easy case, in which `ptelnet chessclub.com
5000' gets you to the chess server. In this case set command line
options as follows:
xboard-ics -telnet -telnetProgram ptelnet
Or in your `.Xdefaults' file:
XBoard*useTelnet: true
XBoard*telnetProgram: ptelnet
Then when you run XBoard in ICS mode, it will issue the command `ptel‐
net chessclub.com 5000' to connect to the ICS.
Next, suppose that `ptelnet chessclub.com 5000' doesn't work; that is,
your `ptelnet' program doesn't let you connect to alternative ports. As
noted above, your chess server may allow you to connect on port 23
instead. In that case, just add the option `-icsport ""' to the above
command, or add `XBoard*internetChessServerPort:' to your `.Xdefaults'
file. But if your chess server doesn't let you connect on port 23, you
will have to find some other host outside the firewall and hop through
it. For instance, suppose you have a shell account at `foo.edu'. Set
command line options as follows:
xboard-ics -telnet -telnetProgram ptelnet -icshost foo.edu -icsport ""
Or in your `.Xdefaults' file:
XBoard*useTelnet: true
XBoard*telnetProgram: ptelnet
XBoard*internetChessServerHost: foo.edu
XBoard*internetChessServerPort:
Then when you run XBoard in ICS mode, it will issue the command `ptel‐
net foo.edu' to connect to your account at `foo.edu'. Log in there,
then type `telnet chessclub.com 5000'.
ICC timestamp and FICS timeseal do not work through some firewalls.
You can use them only if your firewall gives a clean TCP connection
with a full 8-bit wide path. If your firewall allows you to get out
only by running a special telnet program, you can't use timestamp or
timeseal across it. But if you have access to a computer just outside
your firewall, and you have much lower netlag when talking to that com‐
puter than to the ICS, it might be worthwhile running timestamp there.
Follow the instructions above for hopping through a host outside the
firewall (foo.edu in the example), but run timestamp or timeseal on
that host instead of telnet.
Suppose that you have a SOCKS firewall that will give you a clean 8-bit
wide TCP connection to the chess server, but only after you authenti‐
cate yourself via the SOCKS protocol. In that case, you could make a
socksified version of XBoard and run that. If you are using timestamp
or timeseal, you will to socksify it, not XBoard; this may be difficult
seeing that ICC and FICS do not provide source code for these programs.
Socksification is beyond the scope of this document, but see the SOCKS
Web site at http://www.socks.permeo.com/. If you are missing SOCKS,
try http://www.funbureau.com/.
ENVIRONMENT VARIABLES
Game and position files are found in a directory named by the `CHESS‐
DIR' environment variable. If this variable is not set, the current
working directory is used. If `CHESSDIR' is set, XBoard actually
changes its working directory to `$CHESSDIR', so any files written by
the chess engine will be placed there too.
LIMITATIONS AND KNOWN BUGS
There is no way for two people running copies of XBoard to play each
other without going through an Internet Chess Server.
Under some circumstances, your ICS password may be echoed when you log
on.
If you are connecting to the ICS by running telnet on an Internet
provider or firewall host, you may find that each line you type is
echoed back an extra time after you hit <Enter>. If your Internet
provider is a Unix system, you can probably turn its echo off by typing
`stty -echo' after you log in, and/or typing <^E><Enter> (Ctrl+E fol‐
lowed by the Enter key) to the telnet program after you have logged
into ICS. It is a good idea to do this if you can, because the extra
echo can occasionally confuse XBoard's parsing routines.
The game parser recognizes only algebraic notation.
The internal move legality tester does not look at the game history, so
in some cases it misses illegal castling or en passant captures. It
permits castling with the king on the d file because this is possible
in some "wild 1" games on ICS. It does not check piece drops in bug‐
house and crazyhouse to see if you actually hold the piece you are try‐
ing to drop. However, if you attempt an illegal move when using a
chess engine or chess server, XBoard will accept the error message that
comes back, undo the move, and let you try another.
Fischer Random castling is not understood. You can probably play Fis‐
cher Random successfully on ICS by typing castling moves into the ICS
Interaction window, but they will not be animated correctly, and saved
games will not be loaded correctly if castling occurs.
FEN positions saved by XBoard never include correct information about
whether castling is legal or how many half-moves have been made since
the last irreversible move, and sometimes may not correctly indicate
when en passant capture is available.
The mate detector does not understand that non-contact mate is not
really mate in bughouse and crazyhouse. The only problem this causes
while playing is minor: a `#' (mate indicator) character will show up
after a non-contact mating move in the move list; XBoard will not
assume the game is over at that point. However, if you are editing a
game, Edit Game mode will be terminated by a non-contact mate.
The menus may not work if your keyboard is in Caps Lock or Num Lock
mode. This seems to be a problem with the Athena menu widget, not an
XBoard bug.
Also see the ToDo file included with the distribution for many other
possible bugs, limitations, and ideas for improvement that have been
suggested.
REPORTING PROBLEMS
Report bugs and problems with XBoard to `<bug-xboard@gnu.org>'.
Please use the `script' program to start a typescript, run XBoard with
the `-debug' option, and include the typescript output in your message.
Also tell us what kind of machine and what operating system version you
are using. The command `uname -a' will often tell you this. Here is a
sample of approximately what you should type:
script
uname -a
./configure
make
./xboard -debug
exit
mail bug-xboard@gnu.org
Subject: Your short description of the problem
Your detailed description of the problem
~r typescript
.
If you improve XBoard, please send a message about your changes, and we
will get in touch with you about merging them in to the main line of
development. Also see our Web site at http://savan‐
nah.gnu.org/projects/xboard/.
AUTHORS AND CONTRIBUTORS
Tim Mann has been responsible for XBoard versions 1.3 and beyond, and
for WinBoard, a port of XBoard to Microsoft Win32 (Windows NT and Win‐
dows 95).
Mark Williams contributed the initial (WinBoard-only) implementation of
many new features added to both XBoard and WinBoard in version 4.1.0,
including copy/paste, premove, icsAlarm, autoFlipView, training mode,
auto raise, and blindfold. Ben Nye contributed X copy/paste code for
XBoard.
Hugh Fisher added animated piece movement to XBoard, and Henrik Gram
(henrikg@funcom.com) added it to WinBoard. Frank McIngvale added
click/click moving, the Analysis modes, piece flashing, ZIICS import,
and ICS text colorization to XBoard. Jochen Wiedmann ported XBoard to
the Amiga, creating AmyBoard, and converted the documentation to tex‐
info. Elmar Bartel contributed the new piece bitmaps introduced in
version 3.2. John Chanak contributed the initial implementation of ICS
mode. The color scheme and the old 80x80 piece bitmaps were taken from
Wayne Christopher's `XChess' program.
Chris Sears and Dan Sears wrote the original XBoard. They were respon‐
sible for versions 1.0 through 1.2.
Evan Welsh wrote `CMail'. Patrick Surry helped in designing, testing,
and documenting CMail.
CMAIL
The `cmail' program can help you play chess by email with opponents of
your choice using XBoard as an interface.
You will usually run `cmail' without giving any options.
CMail options
-h Displays `cmail' usage information.
-c Shows the conditions of the GNU General Public License. See
Copying.
-w Shows the warranty notice of the GNU General Public License.
See Copying.
-v
-xv Provides or inhibits verbose output from `cmail' and XBoard,
useful for debugging. The `-xv' form also inhibits the cmail
introduction message.
-mail
-xmail Invokes or inhibits the sending of a mail message containing the
move.
-xboard
-xxboard
Invokes or inhibits the running of XBoard on the game file.
-reuse
-xreuse
Invokes or inhibits the reuse of an existing XBoard to display
the current game.
-remail
Resends the last mail message for that game. This inhibits run‐
ning XBoard.
-game <name>
The name of the game to be processed.
-wgames <number>
-bgames <number>
-games <number>
Number of games to start as White, as Black or in total. Default
is 1 as white and none as black. If only one color is specified
then none of the other color is assumed. If no color is speci‐
fied then equal numbers of White and Black games are started,
with the extra game being as White if an odd number of total
games is specified.
-me <short name>
-opp <short name>
A one-word alias for yourself or your opponent.
-wname <full name>
-bname <full name>
-name <full name>
-oppname <full name>
The full name of White, Black, yourself or your opponent.
-wna <net address>
-bna <net address>
-na <net address>
-oppna <net address>
The email address of White, Black, yourself or your opponent.
-dir <directory>
The directory in which `cmail' keeps its files. This defaults to
the environment variable `$CMAIL_DIR' or failing that, `$CHESS‐
DIR', `$HOME/Chess' or `~/Chess'. It will be created if it does
not exist.
-arcdir <directory>
The directory in which `cmail' archives completed games.
Defaults to the environment variable `$CMAIL_ARCDIR' or, in its
absence, the same directory as cmail keeps its working files
(above).
-mailprog <mail program>
The program used by cmail to send email messages. This defaults
to the environment variable `$CMAIL_MAILPROG' or failing that
`/usr/ucb/Mail', `/usr/ucb/mail' or `Mail'. You will need to set
this variable if none of the above paths fit your system.
-gamesFile <file>
A file containing a list of games with email addresses. This
defaults to the environment variable `$CMAIL_GAMES' or failing
that `.cmailgames'.
-aliasesFile <file>
A file containing one or more aliases for a set of email
addresses. This defaults to the environment variable
`$CMAIL_ALIASES' or failing that `.cmailaliases'.
-logFile <file>
A file in which to dump verbose debugging messages that are
invoked with the `-v' option.
-event <event>
The PGN Event tag (default `Email correspondence game').
-site <site>
The PGN Site tag (default `NET').
-round <round>
The PGN Round tag (default `-', not applicable).
-mode <mode>
The PGN Mode tag (default `EM', Electronic Mail).
Other options
Any option flags not listed above are passed through to XBoard.
Invoking XBoard through CMail changes the default values of two
XBoard options: The default value for `-noChessProgram' is
changed to true; that is, by default no chess engine is started.
The default value for `-timeDelay' is changed to 0; that is, by
default XBoard immediately goes to the end of the game as played
so far, rather than stepping through the moves one by one. You
can still set these options to whatever values you prefer by
supplying them on CMail's command line. See Options.
Starting a CMail Game
Type `cmail' from a shell to start a game as white. After an opening
message, you will be prompted for a game name, which is optional -- if
you simply press <Enter>, the game name will take the form `you-VS-
opponent'. You will next be prompted for the short name of your oppo‐
nent. If you haven't played this person before, you will also be
prompted for his/her email address. `cmail' will then invoke XBoard in
the background. Make your first move and select `Mail Move' from the
`File' menu. See File Menu. If all is well, `cmail' will mail a copy of
the move to your opponent. If you select `Exit' without having selected
`Mail Move' then no move will be made.
Answering a Move
When you receive a message from an opponent containing a move in one of
your games, simply pipe the message through `cmail'. In some mailers
this is as simple as typing `| cmail' when viewing the message, while
in others you may have to save the message to a file and do `cmail <
file' at the command line. In either case `cmail' will display the game
using XBoard. If you didn't exit XBoard when you made your first move
then `cmail' will do its best to use the existing XBoard instead of
starting a new one. As before, simply make a move and select `Mail
Move' from the `File' menu. See File Menu. `cmail' will try to use the
XBoard that was most recently used to display the current game. This
means that many games can be in progress simultaneously, each with its
own active XBoard.
If you want to look at the history or explore a variation, go ahead,
but you must return to the current position before XBoard will allow
you to mail a move. If you edit the game's history you must select
`Reload Same Game' from the `File' menu to get back to the original
position, then make the move you want and select `Mail Move'. As
before, if you decide you aren't ready to make a move just yet you can
either select `Exit' without sending a move or just leave XBoard run‐
ning until you are ready.
Multi-Game Messages
It is possible to have a `cmail' message carry more than one game.
This feature was implemented to handle IECG (International Email Chess
Group) matches, where a match consists of one game as white and one as
black, with moves transmitted simultaneously. In case there are more
general uses, `cmail' itself places no limit on the number of
black/white games contained in a message; however, XBoard does.
Completing a Game
Because XBoard can detect checkmate and stalemate, `cmail' handles game
termination sensibly. As well as resignation, the `Action' menu allows
draws to be offered and accepted for `cmail' games.
For multi-game messages, only unfinished and just-finished games will
be included in email messages. When all the games are finished, they
are archived in the user's archive directory, and similarly in the
opponent's when he or she pipes the final message through `cmail'. The
archive file name includes the date the game was started.
Known CMail Problems
It's possible that a strange conjunction of conditions may occasionally
mean that `cmail' has trouble reactivating an existing XBoard. If this
should happen, simply trying it again should work. If not, remove the
file that stores the XBoard's PID (`game.pid') or use the `-xreuse'
option to force `cmail' to start a new XBoard.
Versions of `cmail' after 2.16 no longer understand the old file format
that XBoard used to use and so cannot be used to correspond with anyone
using an older version.
Versions of `cmail' older than 2.11 do not handle multi-game messages,
so multi-game correspondence is not possible with opponents using an
older version.
OTHER PROGRAMS YOU CAN USE WITH XBOARD
Here are some other programs you can use with XBoard
GNU Chess
The GNU Chess engine is available from:
ftp://ftp.gnu.org/gnu/gnuchess/
You can use XBoard to play a game against GNU Chess, or to interface
GNU Chess to an ICS.
Crafty
Crafty is a chess engine written by Bob Hyatt. You can use XBoard to
play a game against Crafty, hook Crafty up to an ICS, or use Crafty to
interactively analyze games and positions for you.
Crafty is a strong, rapidly evolving chess program. This rapid pace of
development is good, because it means Crafty is always getting better.
This can sometimes cause problems with backwards compatibility, but
usually the latest version of Crafty will work well with the latest
version of XBoard. Crafty can be obtained from its author's FTP site:
ftp://ftp.cis.uab.edu/hyatt/.
To use Crafty with XBoard, give the -fcp and -fd options as follows,
where <crafty's directory> is the directory in which you installed
Crafty and placed its book and other support files.
zic2xpm
The ``zic2xpm'' program is used to import chess sets from the ZIICS(*)
program into XBoard. ``zic2xpm'' is part of the XBoard distribution.
ZIICS is available from:
ftp://ftp.freechess.org/pub/chess/DOS/ziics131.exe
To import ZIICS pieces, do this:
1. Unzip ziics131.exe into a directory:
unzip -L ziics131.exe -d ~/ziics
2. Use zic2xpm to convert a set of pieces to XBoard format.
For example, let's say you want to use the FRITZ4 set. These
files are named ``fritz4.*'' in the ZIICS distribution.
mkdir ~/fritz4
cd ~/fritz4
zic2xpm ~/ziics/fritz4.*
3. Give XBoard the ``-pixmap'' option when starting up, e.g.:
xboard-pixmap ~/fritz4
Alternatively, you can add this line to your .Xdefaults file:
xboard*pixmapDirectory: ~/fritz4
(*) ZIICS is a separate copyrighted work of Andy McFarland. The
``ZIICS pieces'' are copyrighted works of their respective creators.
Files produced by ``zic2xpm'' are for PERSONAL USE ONLY and may NOT be
redistributed without explicit permission from the original creator(s)
of the pieces.
COPYRIGHT
Copyright (C) 1991 Digital Equipment Corporation, Maynard, Massachu‐
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ONE LINE TO GIVE THE PROGRAM'S NAME AND AN IDEA OF WHAT IT DOES.
Copyright (C) 19YY NAME OF AUTHOR
This program is free software; you can redistribute it and/or
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as published by the Free Software Foundation; either version 2
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GNU General Public License for more details.
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Also add information on how to contact you by electronic and paper
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If the program is interactive, make it output a short notice like this
when it starts in an interactive mode:
Gnomovision version 69, Copyright (C) 19YY NAME OF AUTHOR
Gnomovision comes with ABSOLUTELY NO WARRANTY; for details
type `show w'. This is free software, and you are welcome
to redistribute it under certain conditions; type `show c'
for details.
The hypothetical commands `show w' and `show c' should show the appro‐
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necessary. Here is a sample; alter the names:
Yoyodyne, Inc., hereby disclaims all copyright
interest in the program `Gnomovision'
(which makes passes at compilers) written
by James Hacker.
SIGNATURE OF TY COON, 1 April 1989
Ty Coon, President of Vice
This General Public License does not permit incorporating your program
into proprietary programs. If your program is a subroutine library,
you may consider it more useful to permit linking proprietary applica‐
tions with the library. If this is what you want to do, use the GNU
Library General Public License instead of this License.
GNU $Date: xboard(6)
