The Replay cursor causes the board to show the position at the insert point.
The Edit cursor is used for word processing actions like insert and cut.
• Be sure to press the Grow Tree button after editing to recompile the game.
This button changes the cursor to a question mark. Any button or menu item chosen will then open a Help window.
The Position buttons 1 - 8 are used to keep positions you may want to refer to later. The present position is replicated in a small window (or an existing window is brought to the front) when pressed.
Press this button to start a new variation. This takes back the last move played and inserts "(" into the text.
Press this button to end a variation. This returns the board position to what it was before, and inserts ")" into the text.
Grow Tree causes a game tree to be produced. After keyboard entry, deletions, and insertions press this button to "compile" the game text. If an illegal move is found the insert point stops at the last legal move.
Enlarge causes a large display board to appear on the screen.
Move these pieces to the board to set up a position. You may want to use Clear from the Edit menu to make an empty board first.
Drag the pieces to move them. The short algebraic notation for the move will appear in the text panel. If you make an illegal move you will be alerted and admonished.
The Text Panel shows the notation of the game. If the Replay cursor is on, clicking in the text puts the insert point past the last move played and the board position shows the corresponding position.
The radio buttons replay the game like a tape.
++ forward play
+ forward one move
• stop
- backward one move
-- backward play
This small scroll bar sets the game replay speed. The fastest is like fast forward on a tape player, while the slowest will put you to sleep.
Hitting the |< button or selecting Restart from the Game menu sets the screen board to the beginning position and makes the insert point jump to the start of the game.
•• A double click on the |< jumps to the beginning of a file.
The horizontal scroll bar jumps the position to the corresponding scroll position.
The vertical scroll bar works like a standard word processing scroll bar.
This closes the front window. If it is a game window that has been edited, you get a chance to save it.
This opens a game file. The standard Mac dialog box enables you to choose the game file.
This quits ChessWriter. If you have edited a game you'll be asked if you want to save the changes.
This inserts a diagram of the present position into the text.
This menu changes the font, size, and style of the selected text.
Find invokes a dialog box. The program will search for the string you type.
This command puts a copy of the game text into the clipboard.
This command puts a diagram of the present position into the clipboard.
This command opens a window showing the contents of the clipboard; the last thing you cut or copied.
The Script Movie command allows you to sequence games. For example, you could show all your games from your last tournament automatically.
Clear erases the present game from memory and takes all the pieces off the board. Can be used before setting up endgames, for example;
This command makes the game start at the present insert point in the text panel. This is useful for marking the start of the second and following games in a text file.
This command makes the game start at the present insert point AT THE PRESENT POSITION. This is useful for when you want to start at a middlegame or endgame position.
This allows you to choose which variation you want to see when replaying a game. A list of the alternatives is presented from which you select.
Choosing this causes the game replay to stop at the end of a variation. This is useful for studying and evaluating these critical positions.
This opens a dialog box which allows you to set a limit on the depth of analysis shown during a replay. If you just want to see the main line game, set it to zero.
This command shows all the key positions saved by using buttons 1 through 8 below the board.
The semicolon is used to separate variations. Sometimes it is more convenient than parenthesis since you can reorder lines easily by cut and paste.
This affects the way the game replay is treated at the end of a variation. Fork View causes the position at the last branch to be displayed before going on to the next line.
This switches the board from white's view to black's view. White pawns moving up the board is the white view.
The >| button causes a jump to the end of the game. If the game cursor is on then the board position changes accordingly.
•• Double clicking takes you to the next game in a multiple game file.
Undo reverts a cut or paste. After entering or replaying a move, undo takes back and erases the last move made. This is very good after you've entered the wrong move.
Index makes a list of game titles in the front window. You can then scan then games and choose one by double clicking (or by making a selection and hitting the OK button).
When this option is on, any quoted game text is displayed in a dialog box while replaying a game. This is useful for presenting tutorials and annotated games.
Selecting "New" opens a new game window. Use this to begin entering a game.
"Save" puts the game text on disk, replacing the old version. If the game is untitled, you are invited to give it a name.
This item allows you to save the game on any disk, in any folder, under any name. This gives you more choices than using "Save".
"Page Setup" allows you to set printing options such as page size and orientation.
Selecting "Print" does the obvious - the game in the front window is printed. You may have to use the Chooser to select the right printer before printing a game.
This item, of course, exits the ChessWriter program. Don't you know anything about the Mac?
Choosing "Styles" causes the Style Sheet dialog box to come up. Here you can set the typographic properties of the game text, diagrams, and chess figurines.
The style sheet information and game settings are saved to disk when this item is chosen. Next time you start up ChessWriter, the saved settings will apply.
When the check mark shows, cutting or copying causes a Rich Text Format version of the selected text to be put into the clipboard. Turn this on to paste styled text to certain other programs.
When the figurine item is checked, games open with figurine algebraic notation. When unchecked games open as ASCII text (but open much faster).
When Untitled Start is checked and the settings saved, ChessWriter will start up with an untitled window. Otherwise no game window is opened at launching.
When checked, you will get an alert when you leave variation open while entering analysis. This protects you from destroying the logic of the game.
The "Copy Stem" command puts the moves leading up to the current position into the clipboard. Only the main line is included, not the variations.
The Show Movie command plays back a sequence of previously scripted games.
Get Reference allows game windows to open other game windows, effectively linking files together.
If you are playing e-chess or postal chess, then set the game status here. Each status is color coded and a trailer is appended to the game.
If you choose this after selecting text. The text will be deleted, but stored in the clipboard for later pasteing.
Choose this to put a copy of the selected text into the clipboard for later pasteing.
Choose this to insert the contents of the clipboard into the text at the insertion point.
Choose this to bring the Controls window to the front. The Controls work like a tape player: you may go forward or backward either continuously or one move at a time.
Choose this to bring the Symbols window to the front. This gives you access to the international chess symbols, which you may insert into the text by double-clicking.
Choose this to bring the named game window to the front. This is handy when the window you want gets covered by other windows.
Choose this to change the selected text to the named font. If no text is selected, there is no effect.
Choose this to change the size of the selected text. If no text is selected, there is no effect.
Choose this to change the style of the selected text. If no text is selected, there is no effect.
Choose this to change the language of the menus.
Sorry, the programmer is a typical monolingual American. He doesn't know this language. The bold may wish to edit the related 'STR#' resource to implement a language.
Clicking on this button inserts the 'with the idea of' symbol into the text.
Clicking on this Null Move button inserts the '...' symbol into the text and skips a player's move. Use this to play several moves in a row by the same color.
This window stores a key position. Click on one of the buttons 1 thru 8 to put a position on one of these small boards.
Click on the OK button to close the Style Sheet and apply the style changes you have selected.
Click on Default to revert the standard style setting.
Click on Apply to make a style change without closing the Style window.
Click on Cancel to close the Style Sheet without making any style changes.
Click on the Color button to pick a color for the current character type.
Choose the type of character you wish to change by using these radio buttons.
Change the font style of the chosen character type using these radio buttons.
This list shows the available fonts. Click on a font name to select it. Choose a font appropriate for the character type you are editing. E.g. choose a chess font for the 'figurine' or 'diagram' type, and a normal font for 'move text' or 'typed.'
Change the font size by typing a number here.
Change the analysis depth level of the character type here. Levels zero through three are available. Each level can be a different size or color. Level zero is the main line.
Use the File menu to open, save, close or print documents.
Use the Edit menu to cut, copy, paste, insert diagrams, etc.
Use the Game menu to control how a game is replayed.
Use the Special menu to control various display features.
Use the Window menu to bring a window to the front.
