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Subject: Re: Open letter to Chessbase 8 Programmers

Author: Mike Hood

Date: 03:22:08 09/16/03

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On September 15, 2003 at 09:16:40, Bob Durrett wrote:

>On September 15, 2003 at 06:40:49, Mike Hood wrote:
>
>>On September 14, 2003 at 22:13:25, Bob Durrett wrote:
>>
>>>On September 14, 2003 at 18:10:14, Mike Hood wrote:
>>>
>>>>On September 13, 2003 at 21:30:52, Bob Durrett wrote:
>>>>
>>>>>On September 13, 2003 at 18:08:17, Mike Hood wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>>>On September 12, 2003 at 11:53:18, Jeroen van Dorp wrote:
>>>>>>
>>>>>>>On September 12, 2003 at 10:08:29, Mike Hood wrote:
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>So why not incorporate the last remaining features of
>>>>>>>>Chessbase 8 into Fritz 9, add forget about ever updating Chessbase?
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>Comments welcome.....
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>Do you own ChessBase 8? Can you compare it to the Fritz GUI database
>>>>>>>possibilites? What are those "last remaining features of ChessBase" in your
>>>>>>>opinion?
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>J.
>>>>>>
>>>>>>I do own Chessbase 8, but I never use it, because everything I need is possible
>>>>>>with Fritz. All that occurs to me at the moment that Chessbase offers extra is:
>>>>>>
>>>>>>* automated database updates of the newest games from the TWIC website
>>>>>>* better sorting/filtering capabilities
>>>>>>* creating database keys to speed up the search of large databases
>>>>>>
>>>>>>There might be more, but that's all I can think of. It's hardly worth the
>>>>>>existence of Chessbase as a distinct product. It's not a matter of Chessbase not
>>>>>>being good enough, the problem is that Fritz is too good!
>>>>>
>>>>>Different people use computer programs for different things.  If the things you
>>>>>would use chess database management software do not require a powerful database
>>>>>manager then that's perfectly OK.
>>>>>
>>>>>There are many other people who use MANY of the features of chess database
>>>>>management programs.  They are the ones who need this sophisticated software [or
>>>>>it's competitor].
>>>>>
>>>>>Obviously.
>>>>>
>>>>>Bob D.
>>>>
>>>>Point taken... but exactly what ARE these chess database management features
>>>>that Chessbase has but Fritz doesn't?
>>>
>>>There are many.  Here is an example:  Try to sort a game collection.  In CB8, in
>>>the drop-down view menu, there is a sort option.  CB8 allows you to sort the
>>>list in many different ways.  Once sorted, the game collection can then be
>>>copied into an empty database and the sort order will be retained in the new
>>>database even after CB8 is shut down.
>>>
>>>In the Fritz GUI, there is no equivalent capability.  [No sort under view.]
>>>
>>>That is a trivial example, but there are hundreds of such "trivial" examples.
>>>They add up.
>>>
>>>Bob D.
>>
>>Thanks, Bob. I already knew this example. I played around with Chessbase 8 for a
>>while after I first received it, comparing it with Fritz 7 (the newest version
>>of Fritz at the time). I don't deny that Chessbase has useful features that are
>>missing in Fritz's database management. My question is: is there any reason why
>>all these features shouldn't be built into Fritz 9?
>
>Money?  : )
>
>Bob D.

Money, yes. And maybe history as well. Chessbase was the first product created
by the company Chessbase, and they named their company after the product. Still,
there is a way around it that could save face. Since Fritz 5 Chessbase (the
company) has had the habit of selling engines together with the complete GUI, so
the product Fritz 8 is identical to the product Shredder 7, apart from the
engine. In the good old days when Fritz was clearly the flagship product it was
easy to say "The Shredder 7 engine runs in the Fritz GUI". Nowadays the matter
is fuzzier, so it's just as easy to say "The Fritz engine runs in the Shredder
GUI" without confusing anyone. So how about some cosmetic revamping? Chessbase
(the company) could revert to selling one product called Chessbase, and offer
engines as plug-ins. When the product Chessbase is started the opening screen
could display the Chessbase logo and offer three options: (1) Play game, (2) Use
server playchess.com, (3) Use Database.

Money is still an issue... Chessbase the company would no longer make money from
Chessbase the product if it were given free with all the engines. But I'm sure
Chessbase the company can find alternative ways to make money, such as yearly
Megabase updates.



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