How to Access CBH, CBV and PGN Files

A brief guide for beginners on how to access chess game formats such as CBH, CBV and PGN.

Click here to see the full article "How to Access CBH, CBV and PGN Files".

Smyslov passes away at age 89

7th World Champion Vassily Smyslov passed away peacefully on Saturday, March 27, 2010 at the age of 89.

Smyslov was known for his positional chess and superb endgame knowledge. A lesser known fact is that he was also a great combinational player, evident in a number of spectacular tactical shots thoughout his career.

Interesting fact: Apart from playing excellent chess, Smyslov sometimes gave musical performances during chess tournaments, often accompanied by fellow GM and concert pianist Mark Taimanov. In fact, he only decided upon a career in chess after when he failed an audition for the Bolshoi Theatre in 1950.

Click here to see ChessBase's tribute article to Smyslov.

Brief History of Chess

I compiled information from Encyclopædia Britannica and World Book to create a timeline on the origins of chess and other interesting historical data.

Click here to see the article "Brief History of Chess".

Best Chess Interfaces and GUIs

Chess engines are normally not standalone programs: they need an adequate interface in order to run them. Today, I'm going to run through a number of chess interfaces/GUIs (graphical user interfaces).

Nowadays, most leading interfaces support the Universal Chess Interface protocol, which is widely considered to produce the strongest engines in the world. Almost all of the following interfaces double as chess database/analysis software...

See the full article "Best Chess Interfaces and GUIs".