XBoard is an open source graphical chess interface that was made to be compatible with the X window system and that can accept mouse moves, support countless chess engines and even allow the playing of chess variations. Legendary from XBoard is the best Electric Skateboard on the market that gives you the sensation that you're skating the slopes of a mountain. XBoard, also known as WinBoard on Microsoft operating systems, is a free graphical user interface client developed by Tim Mann that is compatible with various chess engines that support the Xboard Communication Protocol such as GNU Chess. It also supports Internet Chess Servers, e-mail chess, and the playing of saved games.

1. Xboard Protocol
2. Xboarder
3. Xboard Linux

1. The E-Mu Xboard 49 USB/MIDI Controller is an ideal MIDI controller for studio and stage use with 49 full-size, velocity-sensitive keys with aftertouch and 16 programmable realtime controllers.
2. XBoard/Winboard 4.8.0 released posted by apersaud, Mon 03 Nov 2014 03:35:57 AM UTC - 0 replies. Short description of XBoard/Winboard: XBoard is a graphical user interface for chess in all its major forms, including international chess, xiangqi (Chinese chess), shogi Japanese chess) and Makruk.

XBoard is a graphical user interfacechessboard for chess engines under the X Window System. It is developed and maintained as free software by the GNU project. WinBoard is a port of XBoard to run natively on Microsoft Windows.

Overview[edit]

Originally developed by Tim Mann as a front end for the GNU Chessengine, XBoard eventually came to be described as a graphical user interface for XBoard engines.^[1] It also acts as a client for Internet Chess Servers,^[2] and e-mail chess,^[3] and can allow the user to play through saved games.^[4]

XBoard/WinBoard remain updated, and the Chess Engine Communication Protocol has been extended to meet the needs of modern engines (which have features such as hash tables, multi-processing and end-game tables, which could not be controlled through the old protocol).

XBoard/WinBoard also fully support engines that play chess variants, such as Fairy-Max. This means the GUI is able to display a wide range of variants such as xiangqi (Chinese chess), shogi (Japanese chess), makruk (Thai chess), Crazyhouse, Capablanca Chess and many other Western variants on boards of various sizes. It offers a Westernized representation for these games, but the almost limitless configurability of XBoard/WinBoard also allows a high-quality representation of non-Western style games.^[5]

Another computer chess protocol is the Universal Chess Interface (UCI). XBoard/WinBoard supports this protocol (and its dialects USI and UCCI, which are in common use for shogi and Chinese chess) through adapter programs such as Polyglot and UCI2WB.

Since 2014 there exists a special version of XBoard that better integrates with Apple's OS X. It is distributed from WinBoard forum as an OS X App, including several engines (for chess and many chess variants), and adapters for running engines in non-natively supported protocols. It also contains supporting software for connecting with the popular Internet Chess Servers FICS and ICC for on-line play. XBoard OS X Apps that specifically configure XBoard for oriental-style shogi or xiangqi are also available.

WinBoard is a version of XBoard adapted to MS Windows, and is available in a similar package.^[6]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

1. ^Hagen, William von (13 May 2010). Ubuntu Linux Bible: Featuring Ubuntu 10.04 LTS. John Wiley and Sons. pp. 15–16. ISBN978-0-470-88180-4. Retrieved 11 November 2011.
2. ^Negus, Chris (2003). Red Hat Linux 9 bible. Wiley Pub. p. 242. ISBN978-0-7645-3938-1.
3. ^Mui, Linda; Quercia, Valérie (1994). X user tools. O'Reilly & Associates. p. 186. ISBN978-1-56592-019-4. Retrieved 11 November 2011.
4. ^Johnson, Chris F. A. (2005). Shell scripting recipes: a problem-solution approach. Apress. p. 294. ISBN978-1-59059-471-1.
5. ^'XBoard'. gnu.org. Retrieved 11 November 2011.
6. ^http://home.hccnet Fairy-Max: an AI for playing user-defined Chess variants.

External links[edit]

• XBoard on GNU Savannah
• FAQ for the use of Xboard and Winboard chess engines
• Listing of Xboard and Winboard chess engines

WinBoard / XBoard 4.4

A Graphical User Interface for Chess and its Variants

I have upgraded the popular Winboard GUI to be able to handle more different piece types, and larger board sizes. I also improved the support for variants with piece drops, such as Crazyhouse and Bughouse.

In addition, I included various adjudication possibilities for engine-engine games. WinBoard can now adjudicate theoretical draws, award 50-move and repetition draws (after an adjustable number of moves or repetitions), adjudicate trivial draws such as KBKB. It can also test draw and win claims by the engines for validity. The move legality testing is improved to the point where it should be 100% reliable, as WinBoard now also keeps track of castling rights and en-passant status.

WinBoard is now also aware of pieces occurring in Capablanca Chess (ArchBishop and Chancellor), Shatranj (Alfil and Ferz), Xiangqi (Chinese Chess) and Shogi (Japanese Chess), so that these games can also be played with legality testing on. (Although the legality testing in the latter two might be not as strict as with Western Chess.)

Two board sizes ('middling' and 'bulky') have predefined bitmaps for all the new piece types. One board size ('moderate') has bitmaps for traditional Shogi pieces. At all sizes, however, the piece representation can be arbitrarily defined by the user through font-based rendering.

Xboard Protocol

Some screen shots:

XBoard

This shows XBoard playing a (normal Chess) engine-engine game, with the engine-output, move-history and eval-graph windows open.

WinBoard

Main window of WinBoard, using a marble theme for the board, configured to display engine logos.

WinBoard

WinBoard in size 'petite', with the auxiliary windows open, and a marmoleum board theme.

Shatranj, the Arabic precurser of modern Chess:

This shows board size 'middling', which has built-in bitmaps for the Elephants and General.

Xboarder

Xiangqi, in traditional oriental representation

This shows WinBoard in board size 'middling' using font-based rendering with a true-type Xiangqi font and bitmap background with wood texture. WinBoard is fully aware of all Xiangqi rules, including the complex Asia rules for perpetual chasing.

Indicating target squares

WinBoard and XBoard can indicate target squares of any piece you pickup, as shown here in a Xiangqi game.

Courier Chess, a Medieval intermediate between Shatranj and Modern Chess :

Capablanca Chess, with Archbishop and Chancellor:

Crazyhouse or Bughouse, a game with piece drops:

To effect drops the pieces can simply be dragged with the mouse from the holdings to the board.
Promoted pieces have a slightly different appearence, borrowed from pieces occurring in other games.
At other sizes these promoted pieces are somewhat demagnified versions of the normal Chess piece.

Shogi, with a Westernized representation of board and pieces:

Xboard Linux

Shogi in traditional Japanese representation:

(available only in board size 'moderate')

Xiangqi (Chinese Chess), with Westernized board and pieces:

A mini variant:

Courier Chess at board size 'Petite':

XBoard Engine-Settings dialog

UCI engines running under Polyglot (v 1.4.46b or higher) will get their UCI options transmitted to XBoard, so they can be configured through this XBoard menu. Below you see how this dialog looks for Glaurung, which has quite a few options. The Polyglot options appear also in this dialog.

XBoard file-selector dialog

XBoard now has a decent file-selector dialog, which allows you to browse for a file, while displaying the contents of three levels of directories.