You can communicate with the IGS by using telnet as described in the previous section. But usually the users prefer to use one of the IGS clients available. A client program will interpret the messages received from the IGS and display them in a more pleasant way. For example, if you are running X windows then you should definitely use the X client. It will display the Go board using graphics rather then ascii and it will enable you to play Go using the mouse instead of entering coordinates.
The client programs are available by anonymous ftp from
ftp.u.washington.edu in the directory public/go.
The currently supported client programs are:
| Program | Machine | window system |
| public/go/xigs_v1.0.sh.Z | Any | X windows |
| public/go/igs040.sh.Z | Any | curses |
| public/go/gs039.sit.hqx | Macintosh | Macintosh |
| public/go/pcig303z.exe | PC compatible | VGA |
Three more programs of interest are: public/go/mgt.22.sh.Z,
public/go/xgoban-1.0.sh.Z and public/go/smart2ps32.sh.Z.
The first two programs can display game records (and comments) in
Smart Go Format.
The latter can convert these records to PostScript enabling you
to make a nice printout of your (or somebody else's!) game.
All three programs are available from ftp.u.washington.edu.