I ALSO ABANDON THE CHESS PLATFORM ICC

I shall leave the Internet Chess Club platform.

As some of you may recall, I recently announced my decision to discontinue using the Free Internet Chess Server (FICS) platform.

These two chess platforms are very similar. The main difference is that the FICS is free while the ICC is a paid service. The ICC is pretty expensive. I got it at a discount but only used it for a few months.

The reasons for leaving these chess platforms are also very similar, except that the justification is amplified in the case of the ICC’s paid service.

Why did I cancel my subscription to the ICC?

There is no one to play with

There are too few users on the ICC. Almost everyone prefers to play blitz or bullet, while I like to play rapid or classical games, at least 15 minutes per game.

There are not enough challenges on the ICC, and my challenges have rarely been accepted. I have managed to play only one or two games daily on the ICC. The opponents have almost always been with a lower rating than mine. I already know them by heart and know exactly when someone uses the chess engine during the game.

The chat is unacceptable

While waiting for the game, looking at what is happening in the chats is natural.

Unfortunately, the chat is self-destructive, which allows abuse without leaving a trace.

The abuse is constant and systematic. Always some McCarthyist political instructor, the thought police is present, who distorts what you say, makes personal attacks, presents false accusations and false ascriptions and slanders you in your face.

For example, before my last participation in the discussion, I was suddenly accused—and entirely out of context—that I did not know the definition of “genocide.” Unfortunately, I know the definitions of “genocide” as a philosopher who has written some essays on that matter.

Today, I started the discussion by remarking that it did not look democratic that Putin was elected president of Russia for the fifth time. The political instructor intervened and added that Putin was a murderer, etc. I believe I was pretty neutral and objective. However, when I did not agree with everything he had to say, he accused me of being a supporter of Putin, etc.

Excuse me, but why should I pay money for such a chess platform that upholds direct political propaganda, demagoguery, and slandering where no real discussion is ever possible?

I can get the brainwashing for free every day. So why pay and sponsor unintelligent and immoral propagandists?

It may sound illogical. Unfortunately, it is very logical: 

As a philosopher, I recommend that chess platforms not allow general discussions. Such discussion forums suppress debate and promote pure political propaganda and brainwashing.

The ICC interfaces behave like a spy program

There are various interfaces to the ICC and its outdated web page. 

“Mobialia” is a comfortable interface that can be used on both the ICC and the FICS. Unfortunately, it is not trustworthy. Once, it failed to show me the chessboard and did not allow me to abort the game either. 

“ICC for Windows” is a new interface with rich features. It is the only option I found to change my flag from the US flag to my country’s flag! During the game, you can use the comfortable full-screen mode. It automatically downloads your games to your computer.

Unfortunately, about 20 or 40 of my games have disappeared. It turns out that the ICC maintains only 20 of your last games. I switched to the “ICC for Windows” too late. And even if the ICC keeps all of your games on the server, finding how to access them takes work.

However, the worst thing about the ICC is that my computer’s clipboard is ruined after using “Mobialia” or “ICC for Windows” on the ICC. 

I have checked it: it happens if and only if I play or discuss on the ICC or FICS. At it, “ICC for Windows” is only for the ICC.

I cannot imagine why the clipboard is involved at all. The ICC has not declared it takes over the user’s computer anyway.

Goodbye, chess Gestapo!

So how can I enjoy playing chess if I am afraid that I will be insulted and slandered on the chat or that, after the game, I have to restart my computer or even recover the Windows registries?

I HAD A NICE GAME

On the Chesstempo, I had a nice rapid game with white pieces. Not always, I win, making only a few mistakes.

I scored 2200 on the Chesstempo the first time, probably in the Glicko system.

Nanomaster - Gannthemann

The game is automatically commented by Chesstempo. I have added only the variation starting with 25...Rxa3.

Chessbase has automatically inserted references to other games. 

In the present post, the Apronus chess software was used.

 

I ABANDON THE CHESS PLATFORM FICS

I shall leave the chess platform Free Internet Chess Server.

First of all, there is no one to play with

Almost everyone prefers to play blitz or bullet. Only some players agree to play rapid or slow games. The number of players interested in rapid or slow games is not big enough. If you want to play with time control 15 minutes per game or slower, usually there are no challenges, or your challenge will not be accepted.

Sometimes, you must wait hours before someone accepts your challenge for a rapid game. 

It is particularly so if your rating is above 2000.

Sometimes, the system ignores your "formula" and gives you an opponent with a rating above or below the limits you had fixed.

One of the players on FICS has an abnormally high rating. If that player is a grandmaster, I know his name but will not reveal it here. Considering that only a few players have high ratings, that player must always win to keep an exceptionally high rating. I suspect the player is an admin and uses chess engines during the games.

FICS Chat is abusive

When waiting for challenges or for your challenge to be accepted, you look at the discussions in the chat.

Interestingly, the Free Internet Chess Club members discuss everything in the Politics chat, including the chess candidate tournament. 

It is even more surprising that when you enter the Politics chat, some members ask whether you are interested in politics.

Unfortunately, you cannot freely discuss politics on the FICS Politics chat.

You think you are talking about politics with chess players who consider themselves intelligent. Instead, you regularly speak with the same anonymous governmental political instructor. 

If your opinions or even questions do not match with the Western compulsory narrative, you will be constantly targeted in an abusive way.

Your arguments will not be refuted. Instead, everything you say will be distorted and wrongly interpreted. The context will be changed. The unacceptable argumentum ad hominem will be used. Personal attacks will constantly appear.

The political instructor, a thought policeman, will constantly observe whether you have joined the chat. As soon as you enter the chat, the political instructor joins it. The political instructor is probably one of the admins of FICS.

Anyway, the FICS has not de-platformed that nasty person.

The political instructor attributes you with various motives and beliefs and sometimes even explicitly declares that one suspects you of being a criminal.

A symmetrical answer would be to declare that you suspect that this person is a paedophile, corps-eater, etc.

Sometimes, the political instructor makes some explicit extremist announcements.

Once, that person declared that all philosophers should be jailed.

The McCarthyist political instructor even goes as far as to personally target you absolutely outside the context. For example:

YOU:

"Hello! It's nice weather today!"

POLITICAL INSTRUCTOR LOGS IN:

"You may talk about the weather, but a week ago you expressed stupid views about the Ukrainian war."

(Then, the political instructor will misdescribe your views.)

Then, someone accepts your challenge, and the chessgame starts. You are supposed to play chess right after some totalitarianist Stalinist maniac has seriously insulted and slandered you.

Your game's notation and result will be recorded, but the chat is self-destructive. The evidence of abusive behaviour will be eliminated.

It is not freedom of speech. Instead, the FICS is hosting some info-terrorists who are seriously damaging others' freedom of speech.

Mobialia chess interface

The best chess interface for FICS is probably Mobialia Chess. It is sufficiently laconic so that nothing disturbs you during the game.

Unfortunately, once, it failed to show me the chessboard and did not allow me to abort the game either.

Because of unknown reasons, Mobialia also has an Android app for mobile phones. It is pretty useless as most players play blitz, and correspondence chess is excluded from FICS.

Mobialia's nice feature is tactics problems. I like it as the problems are chosen from the games of great chess masters.

However, Mobialia behaves like a spy program. It hangs your clipboard. 

Mobialia can be connected with FICS or ICC (Internet Chess Club). To change my account, I need to insert my password using the clipboard. Unfortunately, Mobialia has taken over my clipboard, and to be able to use it, I have to switch off Mobialia and restart my computer altogether.

CHESSBASE IS MAKING TRICKS

Chessbase is undoubtedly the best PGN editor out there. Nowadays, most chess databases, including the Chess Informator and Encyclopedia of Chess Openings (ECO), are in the Chessbase format.

One cannot avoid Chessbase if one is playing chess seriously.

Unfortunately, Chessbase misuses its monopoly status. Its behaviour, its databases, and the chess programs associated with it violate consumer rights and business ethics codes.

Chessbase forces to buy new versions of it

I had the Chessbase PGN editor, version 14. This old program could create, open, and edit all the PGN files and databases in Chessbase format. I was pretty satisfied with this version and did not intend to upgrade it or buy a newer version. Free updates of Chessbase 14 were sometimes available anyway.

Recently, Chessbase started advertising that I had to buy a newer version. When using the automated analyses of the games, it ceased to make comments in the style "peredecessor", referring to earlier games from the same position. 

I did not need that superficial feature anyway. It is strange, however, that Chessbase announced that the program is outdated and that the feature requires an update. 

When I bought Chessbase years ago, where did they say such features would expire? - Nowhere!

Things became worse, however. 

Suddenly, Chessbase 14 suggested I make a free update, which I did. Unfortunately, the updated version did not work correctly, so I could not create new games with the correct data. Thus, I was forced to buy Chessbase 17, wasting 189 Euros.

It seems that the sudden "update" was specially designed to make the program unusable and force consumers to buy a newer version.

That is a robbery.

Chessbase behaves as a spy program

There is the "Let's Check" feature on Chessbase. If you are analysing a position using the chess engine, then "Let's Check" allows you to see the analyses of other users with different chess engines and depth of analysis.

Sometimes, if you make a move in the position, the "Let's Check" feature turns on, but sometimes it does not. 

On its homepage, Chessbase somewhere declares that your analyses are "yours", but you can see the analyses of others. However, Chessbase does not explain in what sense exactly your analyses are "yours". And it does not explain how it gets the analyses of others.

Thus, there is a suspicion that Chessbase will take your engine analysis from your local computer, store it in the cloud, and make it visible to others.

The general feature of Chessbase is that, seemingly on purpose, it does not give exact information concerning several disputable features.

Suppose you are a top grandmaster preparing for an important match or competition. In that case, I suggest you use chess engines for your opening preparation only if you are not logged in to Chessbase and your computer is not connected to the internet.

Perhaps you should even use Chessbase only on a computer, never connected to the internet.

There is another feature of Chessbase that makes it look like a spy program

Newer versions of Chasbase are stealing the clipboard content. If you are copying a chessgame in another program and do not use the clipboard cleaner, what happens if you open the Chessbase?

Your clipboard content immediately appears in Chessbase as a new game. Worse, it is already saved in the file named "My PGN Downloads."

The user has not been informed about such a feature. It is also difficult to find how to switch off that feature.

No other chess program I know steals or even saves the clipboard's content. For example, Shredder pastes a game from the clipboard only if you click the "Paste" button, and it saves it only if you click "Save."

In this sense, Chessbase is similar to the spy program Microsoft Edge, which steals the addresses of the web pages you visit on other browsers. 

Of course, Chessbase does not steal your passwords from the clipboard unless you use the PGN file as a password.

If you need to be cautious, do not keep the Chessbase open while working with other chess programs, and remember to use a comfortable clipboard cleaner.

Chessbase app is not working

There is a cheaper version of Chessbase—the Chessbase app for Android. It can be used on a mobile phone.

Unfortunately, it is a waste of money. Chessbase still sells that app on Google Play. However, it seems abandoned, and its real name should be "No Games Found." For years, it has been unable to find games from the databases and constantly hangs. To exit, one must use the "Stop" command from the mobile phone's settings.

The Chessbase app malfunctions independently of the speed of the internet connection and the Android version or mobile phone used.

Playchess malfunctions

I have played hundreds of chessgames on some chess platforms, and never something suspicious happened. I was playing for free, without charge.

Some chess platforms, however, behave strangely. 

I wrote about Chessbase's "Playchess" earlier. 

You pay money for the service, but it downloads the wrong games onto your local computer, deletes them, makes them inaccessible, etc. 

You are setting the rating difference in the "formula", but the system ignores your command and gives you an opponent with the ELO 500 points above or below your strength. 

You have a perfect internet connection and receive messages during the game, but the chessboard suddenly hangs, and you lose an important match. Playchess declares that you have been disconnected, which is considered a forfeit. But it never happened on some other platforms.

The new version of Chessbase malfunctions

While Chessbase forced me to buy a new version of Chessbase, the latest version does not work correctly.

The "Tactical Analysis" feature never failed on Chessbase 14. Unfortunately, on Chessbase 17, it gives a "Runtime error" message and stops working.

To use the automated analysis feature, I have to use Shredder, which is five times cheaper than Chessbase, or Scid, which is entirely free.

***

And so on.

So let's pay more and more money for the monstrum.