QuickStart!

To start playing at the Borland Chess Club, select a username and password (do not forget them!), type them in the input boxes on the logon dialog of the applet and then press Logon. Once you have connected to the server, you will see a list containing a list of your previously suspended games, other idle players, and the games currently underway. You can now either Resume an old game, Challenge another player, Observe someone else's match, or View one of games in the Library.

• Click on the piece you wish to move and drag it to its destination. If the move is illegal, it will return to its starting square.
• To castle, move your king two squares towards your rook.
• To claim a draw (by repetition, the 50 move rule or lack of mating material), press the Offer Draw button when the position has occurred.
• Remember to set the time control to your liking before challenging someone.

Features:

• Animation of the moves.
• Functional Chess Clock.
• Private chat with the opponent during a game.
• Observing live games. You can view all the games that are currently in progress. You can review past moves of the game while waiting for the next move
• Kibitz mode - review your game with your opponent and observers after it is over
• Library of current and classic Grandmaster matches to study
• Library Games that have been selected for study remain available to the applet even after the connection has been severed
• Correspondence games. Players can suspend games and continue them later, since all games and all moves are saved.
• Player rating. Every game is rated, so you know your play level.
• Primitive Import/Export of games via the clipboard.

Obscure / Hard to discover Features:

• Draw offers can be made even if the opponent is not present. In this case they are delivered when the second player resumes the game.
• There is a splitter bar separating the Chat text from the list box. Grab it and you can increase the size of one area at the expense of the other.
• Click the Options button to change the colors of the squares, reverse the orientation of the board, or change the style of the pieces.
• If you choose more than one library game at a time, they are transferred to your machine for future viewing. To view them, make sure only one is selected. All the library games you downloaded will still be available after you logoff and drop your connection.
• "Opponent: Opponent parted" in the chat window indicates that your opponent is no longer there. If it is your move, make it. When it is your opponents move, you can linger to see if they come back or not. Waiting for their time to expire serves no purpose since their official time remaining has been saved with the game when they suspended it.
• You can adjourn the game whenever it is your opponents turn to move. The game will also be adjourned upon Logoff or if your connection is lost. To resume the game, choose Player List, select the adjourned game from the list, and then press Resume.
• If you select yourself in the player list and choose the Update button, you can save a few lines of information about yourself that the other players will see in their chat window whenever they select your name. There is also a list showing the names and ratings of the other players. To send a private message to another player, select their name from this list, type your message into the edit box and press the Send Note button. This can be used to leave messages for people who are not logged on as well. The next time they logon, all of their messages will appear in their chat window.

Kibitz Mode - when your game is over:

• Click on the grid to show the position at the move selected or use the navigation buttons to display an interesting point in the game
• Either side can move the pieces. Your opponent will see your variation and can watch, add to it or show you an alternative.
• Observers can chat with the players and ask questions/offer analysis, but they cannot move the pieces.

Chatting

• When you first log on or are otherwise idle, your chat messages are sent to all other idle players. While you are playing a game, the chat messages are those of yourself and your opponent. When observing a game, the chat is limited to other players that are observing the same game. After a game ends, the participants are added to the group of observers. You can send private chat to a particular player via the dialog presented by pressing Update. The Update button is only available when you select yourself in the player list.