Author: Albert Silver
Date: 04:36:07 11/24/98
Go up one level in this thread
On November 24, 1998 at 00:35:54, Mig wrote:
>While trying out different programs to get an overview for an article on
>computer chess for a newspaper I found several popular programs are still using
>DOS and still look as ugly as they did 15 years ago.
>
>In particular I was appalled by Rebel 10, one of the top programs out there by
>general consent. After using ChessBase 7.0 and relatives for so long I couldn't
>believe my eyes. The board and pieces in Rebel 10 look worse than some of the
>klugy Java boards used for on-line viewing! (Maybe the guy's settings were
>wrong? He didn't think so.)
>
>I'm no fan of fancy 3-D boards or medieval pieces, etc., but really, I'm sure
>they could do better than that. Unless the program in question is dramatically
>stronger than the competition to compensate (it's not) I can't imagine using
>something that ugly regularly. (Not that I would anyway due to the lack of
>multi-tasking.)
>
>How big of a factor is this considered to be in the marketplace? Beauty is only
>skin deep, but there should be a minimum!
>
>Mig
I for one have nothing against the look of the pieces, and it is a fair sight
better than some others (I've always thought that MChess Pro, up til 7.1 (don't
know what the 8.0 version looks like), despite being one of my favourite
"playing" programs, had a good handle on ugliness). Of course you'll argue that
just because there are uglier, doesn't mean it's ok to be unsightly. Truth of
the matter is, I think Rebel's pieces are not bad, but beauty here truly is in
the eye of the beholder here. I read one response saying they liked Winboard's
pieces. Frankly, on my ugly list they rank no. 2, but that's just me. Rebel's
pieces haven't changed really in quite some time, so one can assume that Ed
Schroeder (the programmer) hasn't exactly been inundated by complaints about the
program's appearance. Perhaps a choice of set and pieces in the program would be
preferrable, especially for people such as yourself who's eyeballs roll up in
their heads in order to avoid being traumatized.
As far as being a DOS program, the issue is another story. Rebel truly still
is DOS based, but it is very Windows friendly. For one thing, I found that
contrary to it's predecessor, if left analyzing in the window while doing
something else, it will not freeze what it was doing (which is what happened
with Rebel 9). The transition to Windows programs, and even 32-bit processing
for that matter has been a tough one for many of the long established
programmers. You have to remember that many of them don't (cannot) live off of
their chess-playing brainchild, work alone and thus have to concentrate their
efforts somewhere. Mchess for one suffers from this, and so does Hiarcs, whose
newest version 7, will be coming out and guess what? It's still DOS and it's
still 16-bit. Completely mad? Hard to say. I asked the programmer himself about
this, who kindly explained the reasons: He works on the program a few nights a
week, in his spare time, alone, hasn't had time to really tweak a possible
transition to 32-bit processing and found his results in 16-bits to still be
superior, and had to make a few hard decisions: concentrate on making it a
beautiful Windows program, though virtually identical in strength to it's
predecessor; or concentrate on the engine and chess playing aspects of it. He
chose the latter, and frankly I'm glad. BTW, it is unlikely that there will be a
Fritz/CB engine for Hiarcs 7 in case you're wondering. Reviews of these programs
can be found at WCCR (Web Computer Chess Reports) should you be interested:
http://www.icdchess.com/wccr/index.shtml
Reviews are accepted by all, so if you want to contribute, feel free to do so.
It isn't about patting each other on the back, so if you disagree, and feel the
taste of bile in your mouth when staring at a program, don't hesitate to say so.
Albert Silver
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