xboard man page on BSDi

Man page or keyword search:  
man Server   6284 pages
apropos Keyword Search (all sections)
Output format
BSDi logo
[printable version]



xboard(6)						xboard(6)

NAME
       xboard  -  X  user  interface  for  GNU Chess, Crafty, the
       Internet Chess Server (ICS), and	 electronic  mail  corre-
       spondence chess.

SYNOPSIS
       To run with GNU Chess: xboard [options]
       To run with Crafty: xboard -fcp "crafty xboard" [options]
       To  run	with  the  ICS:	 xboard	 -ics  -icshost	 hostname
       [options]
       To play email chess: See cmail(6).
       To run standalone: xboard -ncp [options]
       To use in a pipeline: |pxboard

DESCRIPTION
       xboard is a graphical chessboard that can serve as a  user
       interface  to  the GNU Chess and Crafty chess engines, the
       Internet Chess  Servers,	 electronic  mail  correspondence
       chess, or your own collection of saved games.

       As  an  interface  to GNU Chess or Crafty, xboard lets you
       play a game against the machine, set  up	 arbitrary  posi-
       tions,  force  variations,  or  watch  a	 game between two
       machines.

       As an interface to Crafty, xboard also lets  you	 interac-
       tively analyze your stored games (PGN, etc.)  or setup and
       analyze arbitrary positions.

       As an interface to the Internet Chess Server (ICS), xboard
       -ics  lets you play against other ICS users, observe games
       they are playing, or review games that have recently  fin-
       ished.	All  the  "wild"  chess	 variants on ICS are sup-
       ported, including bughouse.

       As an interface to electronic mail  correspondence  chess,
       xboard  works  with  the cmail(6) program.  See its manual
       page for instructions.

       You can also use xboard as a chessboard	to  play  through
       games.  It will read and write game files and allow you to
       play through variations	manually.   You	 can  use  it  to
       browse  games  off the net or review games you have saved.
       These features are available at all times; if you want  to
       use them without starting a chess program or connecting to
       the ICS, you can do so with the command xboard -ncp.

       To view games from a netnews reader like rn(1) or  xrn(1),
       use  the news reader's Save command and specify "|pxboard"
       as the save file name.  This pipes the article to pxboard,
       a  simple  shell script that saves the article to a tempo-
       rary file and runs xboard  in  the  background.	 See  the
       script itself for more information.

GNU		       1998/01/20 02:14:56			1

xboard(6)						xboard(6)

       You  make  moves in xboard in one of two ways. The default
       method is to "drag-and-drop": Press mouse button	 1  while
       the  cursor is on one of your pieces, then move the cursor
       to another square and release the button.  If you set  the
       option  -clickClick  then you move pieces by clicking once
       on the piece and then clicking  once  on	 the  destination
       square.

       To  drop	 a new piece on a square (when applicable), press
       button 2 or 3 over the square and select	 from  the  popup
       menu.

       When  xboard  is	 iconized,  its graphical icon is a white
       knight if it is White's turn to move, a black knight if it
       is  Black's  turn.  See Iconize below if you have problems
       getting this feature to work.

MENU COMMANDS, BUTTONS, AND KEYS
       All xboard commands are available on menus.  The most fre-
       quently used commands also have shortcut keys or on-screen
       buttons.

File Menu
       Reset   Resets xboard and the chess engine to  the  begin-
	       ning  of	 a new chess game.  The "r" key is a key-
	       board equivalent.  In Internet Chess Server  mode,
	       clears  the  current  state of xboard, then resyn-
	       chronizes with ICS by sending a	refresh	 command.
	       If you want to stop playing, observing, or examin-
	       ing a game on ICS, use an appropriate command from
	       the Action menu, not Reset.

       Load Game
	       Plays a game from a record file.	 The "g" key is a
	       keyboard equivalent.  A popup dialog  prompts  you
	       for the file name.  If the file contains more than
	       one game, a second popup dialog displays a list of
	       games (with information drawn from their PGN tags,
	       if any), and you can  select  the  one  you  want.
	       Alternatively,  you  can	 load the Nth game in the
	       file directly from the file name dialog, by typing
	       the  number  N after the file name, separated by a
	       space.

	       The game file parser  will  accept  PGN	(portable
	       game  notation),	 or  in fact almost any file that
	       contains moves in algebraic notation.  Notation of
	       the  form  "P@f7"  is  accepted for piece-drops in
	       bughouse games; this is a nonstandard extension to
	       PGN.   If  the  file  includes a PGN position (FEN
	       tag), or	 an  old-style	xboard	position  diagram
	       bracketed  by  "[--"  and  "--]"	 before the first
	       move, the game starts from  that	 position.   Text
	       enclosed in parentheses, square brackets, or curly

GNU		       1998/01/20 02:14:56			2

xboard(6)						xboard(6)

	       braces is assumed to be	commentary  and	 is  dis-
	       played  in a pop-up window.  Any other text in the
	       file is	ignored.   PGN	variations  (enclosed  in
	       parentheses)  are  treated  as comments; xboard is
	       not able to walk variation trees.

       Load Next Game
	       Loads the next game from the last game record file
	       you  loaded.   The  shifted  "N" key is a keyboard
	       equivalent.

       Load Previous Game
	       Loads the previous game from the last game  record
	       file  you  loaded.   The shifted "P" key is a key-
	       board equivalent.  Not available if the last  game
	       was loaded from a pipe.

       Reload Same Game
	       Reloads	the  last game you loaded.  Not available
	       if the last game was loaded from a pipe.

       Load Position
	       Sets up a position from a position file.	 A  popup
	       dialog prompts you for the file name.  If the file
	       contains more than one  saved  position,	 and  you
	       want  to load the Nth one, type the number N after
	       the file name, separated	 by  a	space.	 Position
	       files  must be in FEN (Forsythe-Edwards notation),
	       or in the format that the  Save	Position  command
	       writes when oldSaveStyle is turned on.

       Save Game
	       Appends a record of the current game to a file.	A
	       popup dialog prompts you for the	 file  name.   If
	       the  game did not begin with the standard starting
	       position, the  game  file  includes  the	 starting
	       position	  used.	  Games	 are  saved  in	 the  PGN
	       (portable game notation) format, unless	the  old-
	       SaveStyle  option  is True, in which case they are
	       saved in an  older  format  that	 is  specific  to
	       xboard.	Both formats are human-readable, and both
	       can be read back by the Load Game command.   Nota-
	       tion  of	 the  form "P@f7" is generated for piece-
	       drops in bughouse games;	 this  is  a  nonstandard
	       extension to PGN.

       Save Position
	       Appends	a  diagram  of	the current position to a
	       file.  A popup dialog prompts  you  for	the  file
	       name.   Positions  are  saved  in  FEN  (Forsythe-
	       Edwards notation) format unless	the  oldSaveStyle
	       option is True, in which case they are saved in an
	       older, human-readable format that is  specific  to
	       xboard.	Both formats can be read back by the Load

GNU		       1998/01/20 02:14:56			3

xboard(6)						xboard(6)

	       Position command.

       Mail Move
       Reload CMail Message
	       See the manual page for cmail(6).

       Exit    Exits from xboard.  The shifted "Q" key is a  key-
	       board equivalent.

Mode Menu
       Machine White
	       Tells the chess engine to play White.

       Machine Black
	       Tells the chess engine to play Black.

       Two Machines
	       Plays a game between two chess engines.

       Analysis Mode
	       Puts XBoard in analysis mode on the current edited
	       position or game.  This mode requires that you use
	       Crafty,	version	 9.25  or higher.  See the manual
	       section GETTING CRAFTY  for  more  information  on
	       getting and installing Crafty.

       Analyze File
	       This  mode  lets you load a game from a file (PGN,
	       etc.) and use Crafty to interactively analyze  it.
	       This  requires that you use Crafty 9.25 or higher.
	       See the manual section  GETTING	CRAFTY	for  more
	       information on getting and installing Crafty.

       ICS Client
	       This  is	 the normal mode when xboard is connected
	       to a chess server.  If you have	moved  into  Edit
	       Game  or	 Edit  Position mode, you can select this
	       option to get out.

	       To use xboard in ICS mode, run  it  in  the  fore-
	       ground  with the -ics option, and use the terminal
	       you started it from to type commands  and  receive
	       text  responses from the chess server.  Useful ICS
	       commands include who to	see  who  is  logged  on,
	       games to see what games are being played, match to
	       challenge another player to  a  game,  observe  to
	       observe	an  ongoing  game, examine or oldmoves to
	       review a recently completed game,  and  of  course
	       help.

	       Some  special  xboard  features are activated when
	       you are in examine or bsetup mode on ICS.  See the
	       descriptions  of	 the menu commands Forward, Back-
	       ward, Pause, ICS Client, and Stop Examining below.

GNU		       1998/01/20 02:14:56			4

xboard(6)						xboard(6)

	       You  can	 also issue the ICS position-editing com-
	       mands with the mouse.   Move  pieces  by	 dragging
	       with  mouse  button  1.	 To drop a new piece on a
	       square, press mouse button 2 or 3 over the square.
	       This  brings  up a menu of white pieces (button 2)
	       or  black  pieces  (button  3).	 Additional  menu
	       choices	let  you  empty	 the  square or clear the
	       board.  Click on the White or Black clock  to  set
	       the side to play.  You cannot set the side to play
	       or drag pieces to arbitrary squares while  examin-
	       ing  on	ICC,  but you can do so in bsetup mode on
	       FICS.

	       If you are playing a bughouse game on the ICS, you
	       can  drop an offboard piece by pressing mouse but-
	       ton 2 or 3 over an empty	 square	 to  bring  up	a
	       piece  menu.   It makes no difference which button
	       you use.	 A  list  of  the  offboard  pieces  each
	       player  has available is shown in the window title
	       after the player's name.

       Edit Game
	       Allows you to make moves for both Black and White,
	       and  to	change	moves  after  backing up with the
	       Backward command.  The clocks do not run.

	       In chess engine mode, the chess	engine	continues
	       to  check moves for legality but does not partici-
	       pate in the game.  You can bring the chess  engine
	       back  into  the	game  by selecting Machine White,
	       Machine Black, or Two Machines.

	       In ICS mode, the moves are not sent  to	the  ICS:
	       Edit  Game takes xboard out of ICS Client mode and
	       lets you edit games locally.  If you want to  edit
	       games  on  ICS  in  a way that other ICS users can
	       see, use the ICS examine command or start  an  ICS
	       match against yourself.

       Edit Position
	       Lets  you set up an arbitrary board position.  Use
	       mouse button 1 to drag pieces to new  squares,  or
	       to  delete a piece by dragging it off the board or
	       dragging an empty square on top of it.  To drop	a
	       new  piece  on a square, press mouse button 2 or 3
	       over the square.	 This brings up a menu	of  white
	       pieces  (button	2)  or	black  pieces (button 3).
	       Additional menu choices let you empty  the  square
	       or  clear the board.  You can set the side to play
	       next by clicking on the White or	 Black	indicator
	       at the top of the screen.  Selecting Edit Position
	       causes xboard to discard all remembered	moves  in
	       the current game.

GNU		       1998/01/20 02:14:56			5

xboard(6)						xboard(6)

	       In  ICS mode, changes made to the position by Edit
	       Position are not sent to the ICS:   Edit	 Position
	       takes  xboard  out of ICS Client mode and lets you
	       edit positions locally.	If you want to edit posi-
	       tions  on  ICS  in  a way that other ICS users can
	       see, use the ICS examine command, or start an  ICS
	       match  against yourself.	 (See also the ICS Client
	       topic above.)

       Show Game List
	       Shows or hides the list of games generated by  the
	       last Load Game command.

       Edit Tags
	       Lets  you  edit	the  PGN (portable game notation)
	       tags for the current  game.   After  editing,  the
	       tags must still conform to the PGN tag syntax:

		   <tag-section> ::= <tag-pair> <tag-section>
			       <empty>
		   <tag-pair> ::= [ <tag-name> <tag-value> ]
		   <tag-name> ::= <identifier>
		   <tag-value> ::= <string>

	       See the PGN Standard for full details.  Here is an
	       example:

		   [Event "Portoroz Interzonal"]
		   [Site "Portoroz, Yugoslavia"]
		   [Date "1958.08.16"]
		   [Round "8"]
		   [White "Robert J. Fischer"]
		   [Black "Bent Larsen"]
		   [Result "1-0"]

	       Any characters that do not match this  syntax  are
	       silently	 ignored.   Note  that	the  PGN standard
	       requires all games to have at least the seven tags
	       shown  above.  Any that you omit will be filled in
	       by xboard with "?" (unknown value), or "-"  (inap-
	       plicable value).

       Edit Comment
	       Adds  or	 modifies  a comment on the current posi-
	       tion.  Comments are saved by  Save  Game	 and  are
	       displayed by Load Game, Forward, and Backward.

       ICS Input Box
	       If  this mode is on in ICS mode, xboard creates an
	       extra window that you can use for  typing  in  ICS
	       commands.   The	input box is especially useful if
	       you want to type in  something  long  or	 do  some
	       editing	on  your  input,  because output from ICS
	       doesn't get mixed in with your typing as it  would

GNU		       1998/01/20 02:14:56			6

xboard(6)						xboard(6)

	       in the main terminal window.

       Pause   Pauses  updates to the board, and if you are play-
	       ing against a local chess engine, also pauses your
	       clock.	To  continue, select Pause again, and the
	       display will automatically update  to  the  latest
	       position.  The [P] button and keyboard "p" key are
	       equivalents.

	       If you select Pause when you are playing against a
	       local  chess  engine  and it is not your move, the
	       engine's clock will continue to run  and	 it  will
	       eventually make a move, at which point both clocks
	       will stop.  Since board updates are  paused,  how-
	       ever,  you  will	 not  see the move until you exit
	       from Pause mode (or select Forward).  This  behav-
	       ior is meant to simulate adjournment with a sealed
	       move.

	       If you select Pause while you are in examine  mode
	       on  ICS,	 you can step backward and forward in the
	       current	history	 of  the  examined  game  without
	       affecting   the	other  observers  and  examiners.
	       Select Pause again to reconnect	yourself  to  the
	       current state of the game on ICS.

	       If  you select Pause while you are loading a game,
	       the game stops loading.	You can load  more  moves
	       manually by selecting Forward, or resume automatic
	       loading by selecting Pause again.

Action Menu
       Accept  Accepts a pending ICS match offer.   If	there  is
	       more than one offer pending, you will have to type
	       in a more specific command instead of  using  this
	       menu choice.

       Decline Declines	  a   pending  ICS  offer  (match,  draw,
	       adjourn, etc.).	If there is more than  one  offer
	       pending,	 you will have to type in a more specific
	       command instead of using this menu choice.

       Call Flag
	       Calls your opponent's  flag,  claiming  a  win  on
	       time,  or  claiming  a draw if you are both out of
	       time.  You can also call your opponent's	 flag  by
	       clicking	 on his clock or by pressing the keyboard
	       "t" key.

       Draw    Offers a draw to your opponent, accepts a  pending
	       draw offer from your opponent, or claims a draw by
	       repetition or the 50-move  rule,	 as  appropriate.
	       The "d" key is a keyboard equivalent.

GNU		       1998/01/20 02:14:56			7

xboard(6)						xboard(6)

       Adjourn Asks your opponent to agree to adjourning the cur-
	       rent game, or  agrees  to  a  pending  adjournment
	       offer from your opponent.

       Abort   Asks  your  opponent to agree to aborting the cur-
	       rent game, or agrees to a pending abort offer from
	       your  opponent.	 An aborted ICS game ends immedi-
	       ately without affecting either player's rating.

       Resign  Resigns the game to your	 opponent.   The  shifted
	       "R" key is a keyboard equivalent.

       Stop Observing
	       Ends  your  participation  in observing a game, by
	       issuing the ICS observe command with no arguments.

       Stop Examining
	       Ends  your  participation  in examining a game, by
	       issuing the ICS unexamine command.

Step Menu
       Backward
	       Steps backward  through	a  series  of  remembered
	       moves.  The [<] button and the "b" key are equiva-
	       lents.  In  addition,  pressing	the  Control  key
	       steps  back  one move, and releasing it steps for-
	       ward again.

	       In most modes, Backward only lets you look back at
	       old positions; it does not retract moves.  This is
	       the case if you are playing against a local  chess
	       engine, playing or observing a game on the ICS, or
	       loading a game.	If you select Backward in any  of
	       these  situations, you will not be allowed to make
	       a different move.  Use Retract Move or  Edit  Game
	       if you want to change past moves.

	       If  you	are examining a game on ICS, the behavior
	       of Backward depends on whether xboard is in  Pause
	       mode.   If  Pause mode is off, Backward issues the
	       ICS backward command, which  backs  up  everyone's
	       view  of the game and allows you to make a differ-
	       ent move.  If Pause  mode  is  on,  Backward  only
	       backs up your local view.

       Forward Steps forward through a series of remembered moves
	       (undoing	 the  effect  of  Backward)  or	  forward
	       through a game file.  The [>] button and the f key
	       are equivalents.

	       If you are examining a game on ICS,  the	 behavior
	       of  Forward  depends on whether xboard is in Pause
	       mode.  If Pause mode is off,  Forward  issues  the
	       ICS  forward  command, which moves everyone's view

GNU		       1998/01/20 02:14:56			8

xboard(6)						xboard(6)

	       of the game forward along the  current  line.   If
	       Pause  mode  is	on, Forward only moves your local
	       view forward, and it will not go past the position
	       that the game was in when you paused.

       Back to Start
	       Jumps backward to the first remembered position in
	       the game.  The [<<] button and the shifted "B" key
	       are equivalents.

	       In  most	 modes,	 Back to Start only lets you look
	       back at old positions; it does not retract  moves.
	       This  is	 the  case  if	you are playing against a
	       local chess engine, playing or observing a game on
	       the ICS, or loading a game.  If you select Back to
	       Start in any of these situations, you will not  be
	       allowed to make different moves.	 Use Retract Move
	       or Edit Game if you want to change past moves;  or
	       use Reset to start a new game.

	       If  you	are examining a game on ICS, the behavior
	       of Back to Start depends on whether xboard  is  in
	       Pause  mode.   If Pause mode is off, Back to Start
	       issues the  ICS	backward  999999  command,  which
	       backs  up everyone's view of the game to the start
	       and allows you to make different moves.	If  Pause
	       mode is on, Back to Start only backs up your local
	       view.

       Forward to End
	       Jumps forward to the last remembered  position  in
	       the game.  The [>>] button and the shifted "F" key
	       are equivalents.

	       If you are examining a game on ICS,  the	 behavior
	       of  Forward to End depends on whether xboard is in
	       Pause mode.  If Pause mode is off, Forward to  End
	       issues the ICS forward 999999 command, which moves
	       everyone's view of the game forward to the end  of
	       the current line.  If Pause mode is on, Forward to
	       End only moves your local  view	forward,  and  it
	       will not go past the position that the game was in
	       when you paused.

       Revert  If you are examining a game on ICS and Pause  mode
	       is off, issues the ICS command revert.

       Truncate Game
	       Discards	 all  remembered moves of the game beyond
	       the current position.  Puts xboard into Edit  Game
	       mode if it was not there already.

       Move Now
	       Forces  the chess engine to move immediately.  May

GNU		       1998/01/20 02:14:56			9

xboard(6)						xboard(6)

	       not work with all chess engines.

       Retract Move
	       Retracts your last move.	  When	playing	 a  local
	       chess  engine,  you  can	 do  this  only after the
	       engine has replied to your move; if  it	is  still
	       thinking,  use  Move  Now  first.   In  ICS  mode,
	       Retract Move issues  the	 command  takeback  1  or
	       takeback	 2  depending on whether it is your oppo-
	       nent's move or yours.

Options Menu
       Always Queen
	       If this option is off, xboard brings up	a  dialog
	       box  whenever  you  move	 a pawn to the last rank,
	       asking what piece you want to promote it	 to.   If
	       the  option  is on, your pawns are always promoted
	       to queens.  Your opponent can still  underpromote.

       Auto Comment
	       If  this	 option	 is  on,  any remarks made on ICS
	       while you are observing	or  playing  a	game  are
	       recorded	 as  a comment on the current move.  This
	       includes remarks made with the ICS  commands  say,
	       tell,  whisper,	and  kibitz.  Limitation: remarks
	       that you type yourself are not recognized;  xboard
	       scans  only the output from ICS, not the input you
	       type to it.

       Auto Flag
	       If this option is on and your opponent runs out of
	       time before you do, xboard will automatically call
	       his flag, claiming a win on time (or a draw if you
	       do not have mating material).

       Auto Observe
	       If  this option is on and you add a player to your
	       gnotify list on	ICS,  xboard  will  automatically
	       observe all of that player's games, unless you are
	       doing something else (such as observing or playing
	       a  game	of  your own) when one starts.	The games
	       are displayed from the point of view of the player
	       on your gnotify list; that is, his pawns move from
	       the bottom of the window towards the top.   Excep-
	       tions:  If both players in a game are on your gno-
	       tify list, if your ICS highlight variable  is  set
	       to  0,  or if the ICS you are using does not prop-
	       erly support observing from Black's point of view,
	       you  will see the game from White's point of view.

       Auto Save
	       If this option is on, at the  end  of  every  game
	       xboard  prompts	you for a file name and appends a
	       record of  the  game  to	 the  file  you	 specify.

GNU		       1998/01/20 02:14:56		       10

xboard(6)						xboard(6)

	       Disabled	 if the saveGameFile option is set, as in
	       that case all games are	saved  to  the	specified
	       file.

       Bell    If this option is on, xboard alerts you by ringing
	       the terminal bell after each  of	 your  opponent's
	       moves  (or after every move if you are observing a
	       game on the Internet Chess Server).  The	 bell  is
	       not rung after moves you make or moves read from a
	       saved game file.

	       If you turn on this option when using xboard  with
	       the  Internet Chess Server, you will probably want
	       to give the set bell 0 command to the  ICS,  since
	       otherwise  the ICS will ring the bell itself after
	       every move.

       Flip View
	       Inverts your view of the chess board for the dura-
	       tion  of	 the  current  game.  Starting a new game
	       returns the board to normal.  The  "v"  key  is	a
	       keyboard equivalent.

	       If you are playing a game on the ICS, the board is
	       always oriented at the start of the game	 so  that
	       your  pawns  move  from	the  bottom of the window
	       towards the top.	 Otherwise, the starting orienta-
	       tion  is	 determined  by the flipView command line
	       option; if it  is  False	 (the  default),  White's
	       pawns move from bottom to top at the start of each
	       game; if it is True, Black's pawns move from  bot-
	       tom to top.

       Get Move List
	       If this option is on, whenever xboard receives the
	       first board of a new ICS game (or a different  ICS
	       game  from the one it is currently displaying), it
	       retrieves the list of past  moves  from	the  ICS.
	       You can then review the moves with the Forward and
	       Backward commands or save  them	with  Save  Game.
	       You  might want to turn off this option if you are
	       observing several blitz games  at  once,	 to  keep
	       from  wasting  time and network bandwidth fetching
	       the move lists over and over.  When you turn  this
	       option	on  from  the  menu,  xboard  immediately
	       fetches the move list  of  the  current	game  (if
	       any).

       Old Save Style
	       If  this	 option is off, xboard saves games in PGN
	       (portable game  notation)  and  positions  in  FEN
	       (Forsythe-Edwards notation).  If the option is on,
	       a save style that is compatible	with  older  ver-
	       sions of xboard is used instead.	 The old position

GNU		       1998/01/20 02:14:56		       11

xboard(6)						xboard(6)

	       style is more human-readable  than  FEN;	 the  old
	       game style has no particular advantages.

       Periodic Updates
	       If you are using the "xboard-supported" version of
	       Crafty (see the manual section GETTING CRAFTY  for
	       details), then you can decide whether you want the
	       Analysis Window to be updated periodically or not.
	       If  this	 option	 is  unchecked (or if you are not
	       using the "xboard-supported" Crafty), the analysis
	       window  will  be	 updated  only	when the analysis
	       changes. If this option is checked,  the	 Analysis
	       Window will be updated every two seconds.

       Quiet Play
	       If  this	 option	 is on, xboard will automatically
	       issue an ICS set	 shout	0  command  whenever  you
	       start  an ICS game and a set shout 1 command when-
	       ever you finish one.  Thus you will  not	 be  dis-
	       tracted by shouts from other ICS users while play-
	       ing.

       Show Coords
	       If this option is on,  xboard  displays	algebraic
	       coordinates  along  the	board's	 left  and bottom
	       edges.

       Show Thinking
	       If this option is on, the chess engine's notion of
	       the  score  and best line of play from the current
	       position is displayed  as  it  is  thinking.   The
	       score  indicates how many pawns ahead (or if nega-
	       tive, behind) the engine thinks it is.	When  GNU
	       Chess  is  thinking on your time, this thinking is
	       not shown if  GNU  Chess	 was  compiled	with  the
	       -DQUIETBACKGROUND  option.  In matches between two
	       machines, the score is prefixed by W or B to indi-
	       cate whether the display is of White's thinking or
	       Black's, and thinking on the  opponent's	 time  is
	       never shown.

       Test Legality
	       If  this	 option is on, xboard tests whether moves
	       you try to make with  the  mouse	 are  legal,  and
	       refuses	to  let	 you make an illegal move.  Moves
	       loaded  from  a	file  with  Load  Game	are  also
	       checked.	  If  the  option  is  off, all moves are
	       accepted, but if a local chess engine or	 the  ICS
	       is  active,  they will still reject illegal moves.
	       Turning off this option is useful if you are play-
	       ing  a  chess  variant with rules that xboard does
	       not  understand.	  (Bughouse,  suicide,	and  wild
	       variants	 where the king may castle after starting
	       on the d file are generally  supported  with  Test

GNU		       1998/01/20 02:14:56		       12

xboard(6)						xboard(6)

	       Legality on.)

Help Menu
       Info XBoard
	       Displays	 the  xboard  info  file in a new window.
	       For this feature to work, you must  have	 the  GNU
	       info  program  installed	 on  your system, and the
	       file xboard.info must either  be	 present  in  the
	       current	working directory, or have been installed
	       by the make install command when you built xboard.

       Man XBoard
	       Displays	 this man page in a new window.	 For this
	       feature to work, the file xboard.6 must have  been
	       installed  by  the  make	 install command when you
	       built xboard, and the directory it was  placed  in
	       must  be	 on  the  search  path	for your system's
	       man(1) command.

       Hint    Displays a move hint from the local chess  engine.

       Book    Displays	 a  list of possible moves from the local
	       chess engine's opening  book.   The  first  column
	       gives  moves, the second column gives one possible
	       response for each move, and the third column shows
	       the  number  of lines in the book that include the
	       move from the first column.  If	you  select  this
	       option  and  nothing  happens, the chess engine is
	       out of its book or does not support this	 command.

       About XBoard
	       Shows the current xboard version number.

Other shortcut keys
       Iconize Pressing	 the  i	 or  c	key iconizes xboard.  The
	       graphical icon displays a white knight  if  it  is
	       White's	move,  or a black knight if it is Black's
	       move.  If your X window manager displays only text
	       icons,  not  graphical  ones, check its documenta-
	       tion; there is probably a way to enable	graphical
	       icons.	If  you are running the Motif window man-
	       ager mwm(1), add these lines  to	 your  .Xdefaults
	       file and restart mwm:

		   Mwm*iconDecoration: activelabel label image
		   Mwm*XBoard*iconImageBackground: White
		   Mwm*XBoard*iconImageForeground: Black

	       The  first  line	 above enables graphical icons in
	       mwm; you don't need it if you already  have  them.
	       The next two lines force the white knights to come
	       out white and the black knights	black.	 Unfortu-
	       nately  these  resources	 can't be set from inside
	       xboard; you have to set them in your .Xdefaults.

GNU		       1998/01/20 02:14:56		       13

xboard(6)						xboard(6)

       You can add or remove xboard shortcut  keys  using  the	X
       resource	 form.translations.   Here  is an example of what
       would go in your .Xdefaults file:

	   XBoard*form.translations: \
	       Shift<Key>?: AboutGameProc() \n \
	    <Key>y: AcceptProc() \n \
	    <Key>n: DeclineProc() \n \
	    <Key>i: NothingProc()

       Binding a key to NothingProc makes  it  do  nothing,  thus
       removing	 it as a shortcut key.	The xboard functions that
       can be bound to keys are: AbortProc, AboutGameProc, About-
       Proc,  AcceptProc, AdjournProc, AlwaysQueenProc, Analysis-
       ModeProc,   AnalyzeFileProc,   AutobsProc,   AutoflagProc,
       AutosaveProc,  BackwardProc, BellProc, BookProc, CallFlag-
       Proc, DebugProc, DeclineProc,  DrawProc,	 EditCommentProc,
       EditGameProc,  EditPositionProc,	 EditTagsProc,	FlipView-
       Proc,  ForwardProc,   GetMovesProc,   HintProc,	 Iconify,
       IcsClientProc,  InfoProc,  LoadGameProc, LoadNextGameProc,
       LoadPositionProc,   LoadPrevGameProc,	MachineBlackProc,
       MachineWhiteProc,   MailMoveProc,   ManProc,  MoveNowProc,
       NothingProc, OldSaveStyleProc, PauseProc,  PeriodicUpdate-
       sProc,	 QuietPlayProc,	  QuitProc,   ReloadCmailMsgProc,
       ReloadGameProc,	ResetProc,  ResignProc,	 RetractMoveProc,
       RevertProc,   SaveGameProc,  SavePositionProc,  ShowCoord-
       sProc, ShowGameListProc, ShowThinkingProc,  StopExamining-
       Proc,  StopObservingProc,  ToEndProc,  ToStartProc,  Trun-
       cateGameProc, and TwoMachinesProc.

OPTIONS
       Most of the xboard options have both a  long  name  and	a
       short  name.   To turn a boolean option on or off from the
       command line, either give its long name	followed  by  the
       value  True  or False (-longOptionName True), or give just
       the short name to turn the option on (-opt), or the  short
       name  preceded by "x" to turn the option off (-xopt).  For
       options that take strings or numbers as	values,	 you  can
       use the long or short option names interchangeably.

       Each  option  corresponds  to  an X resource with the same
       name, so you can set options in your  .Xdefaults	 file  if
       you like.  For options that have two names, the longer one
       is the name of the corresponding	 X  resource;  the  short
       name  is	 not recognized in .Xdefaults.	To turn a boolean
       option on or off in your .Xdefaults file,  give	its  long
       name  followed  by the value True or False (XBoard*longOp-
       tionName: True).

Chess Engine Options
       All of these options apply  to  both  the  GNU  Chess  and
       Crafty chess engines.

GNU		       1998/01/20 02:14:56		       14

xboard(6)						xboard(6)

       -tc or -timeControl minutes[:seconds]
	       Each player begins with his clock set to the time-
	       Control period.	Default: 5  minutes.   The  addi-
	       tional  options	movesPerSession and timeIncrement
	       are mutually exclusive.

       -mps or -movesPerSession moves
	       When both players have made movesPerSession moves,
	       a  new timeControl period is added to both clocks.
	       Default: 40 moves.

       -inc or -timeIncrement seconds
	       If this option is  specified,  movesPerSession  is
	       ignored.	   Instead,  after  each  player's  move,
	       timeIncrement seconds are added to his clock.  Use
	       -timeIncrement 0 if you want to require the entire
	       game to be played in one timeControl period,  with
	       no increment.  Default: -1, which specifies moves-
	       PerSession mode.

       -clock or -clockMode
	       Determines whether or not  to  display  the  chess
	       clocks.	If clockMode is False, the clocks are not
	       shown, but the side that is to play next is  still
	       highlighted.	Also,	 unless	  searchTime   or
	       searchDepth is set, the chess engine  still  keeps
	       track  of  the clock time and uses it to determine
	       how fast to make its moves.

       -st or -searchTime minutes[:seconds]
	       Tells the chess engine to spend at most the  given
	       amount  of  time	 searching for each of its moves.
	       Without this option, the engine chooses its search
	       time  based  on	the number of moves and amount of
	       time remaining until the next time control.   Set-
	       ting this option also sets clockMode to False.

       -sd or -searchDepth number
	       Tells  the  chess engine to look ahead at most the
	       given number of moves when searching for a move to
	       make.  Without this option, the engine chooses its
	       search depth based on  the  number  of  moves  and
	       amount  of time remaining until the next time con-
	       trol.  Setting this option also sets clockMode  to
	       False.

       -thinking or -showThinking
	       Sets  the  Show	Thinking  menu	option.	 Default:
	       False.

       -mm or -matchMode
	       Automatically runs a game between two  chess  pro-
	       grams.	If  the	 loadGameFile or loadPositionFile
	       option is set, xboard starts  the  game	with  the

GNU		       1998/01/20 02:14:56		       15

xboard(6)						xboard(6)

	       given  opening moves or the given position; other-
	       wise, the game starts with  the	standard  initial
	       chess  position.	  If  the  saveGameFile option is
	       set, a move record for the match	 is  appended  to
	       the   specified	file.	If  the	 savePositionFile
	       option is set, the final position reached  in  the
	       match is appended to the specified file.	 When the
	       match is over, xboard exits.  Default: False.

       -fcp or -firstChessProgram program
	       Name of first chess program.  In	 matches  between
	       two  machines, this program plays Black.	 Default:
	       gnuchessx.  To use Crafty, give the option as -fcp
	       "crafty xboard".

       -scp or -secondChessProgram program
	       Name  of	 second	 chess	program,  if  needed.  In
	       matches between two machines, this  program  plays
	       White;  otherwise  it  is  not  started.	 Default:
	       gnuchessx.  To use Crafty as the second chess pro-
	       gram, give the option as -scp "crafty xboard".

       -fh or -firstHost host
       -sh or -secondHost host
	       Hosts on which the chess programs are to run.  The
	       default for each is  localhost.	 If  you  specify
	       another	host, xboard uses rsh(1) to run the chess
	       program there.  (You can	 substitute  a	different
	       remote shell program for rsh using the remoteShell
	       option described below.)

       -initString string
	       The string that is sent to  initialize  the  chess
	       program.	 Default:
		   new
		   beep
		   random
		   hard
	       Setting	this  option  from  the	 command  line is
	       tricky, because you  must  type	in  real  newline
	       characters,  including  one  at	the end.  In most
	       shells you can do this by entering a "\" character
	       followed	 by  a	newline.  It is easier to set the
	       option from your .Xdefaults file; in that case you
	       can  include  the  character  sequence "\n" in the
	       string, and it will be converted to a newline.

	       If you change this option, don't	 remove	 the  new
	       and beep commands.  The new command is required by
	       all chess engines to start a new	 game;	the  beep
	       command is required to turn off the output of bell
	       characters from GNU Chess that break xboard.

	       You can remove the random  command  if  you  like;

GNU		       1998/01/20 02:14:56		       16

xboard(6)						xboard(6)

	       including  it  causes  GNU  Chess to randomize its
	       move selection slightly so that	it  doesn't  play
	       the  same  moves in every game.	Even without ran-
	       dom, GNU Chess randomizes its choice of moves from
	       its opening book.  Crafty ignores this command; it
	       randomizes by default.

	       You can also remove hard if you like; including it
	       causes  GNU  Chess  to think on your time.  Crafty
	       ignores this command; it thinks on  your	 time  by
	       default.

	       You  can	 also  try  adding  other commands to the
	       initString; see the GNU Chess or Crafty documenta-
	       tion for details.

       -reuse or -reuseChessPrograms
	       If the option is False, xboard kills off the chess
	       program after every game and starts it  again  for
	       the  next  game.	  If  the  option  is  True  (the
	       default), xboard starts	the  chess  program  only
	       once  (twice  in	 Two  Machines	mode) and uses it
	       repeatedly to play  multiple  games.   Some  chess
	       programs	 may  not  work	 properly  when	 reuse is
	       turned on, such as versions of Crafty earlier than
	       12.0, but otherwise new games will start faster if
	       it is left on.

Internet Chess Server Options
       -ics or -internetChessServerMode
	       Connect with an	Internet  Chess	 Server	 to  play
	       chess  against its other users, observe games they
	       are playing, or review games  that  have	 recently
	       finished.  Default: False.

       -icshost or -internetChessServerHost host
	       The  Internet  host  name  or address of the chess
	       server to connect to when in ICS	 mode.	 Default:
	       chessclub.com.	See the file ics-addresses in the
	       xboard source distribution for  a  list	of  other
	       addresses  to  try.   If	 your site doesn't have a
	       working Internet name server, try  specifying  the
	       host  address  in numeric form.	You may also need
	       to specify the  numeric	address	 when  using  the
	       icshelper  option  with timestamp or timeseal (see
	       below).	 At  this   writing,   chessclub.com   is
	       208.196.3.66  and ics.onenet.net is 164.58.253.10.

       -icsport or -internetChessServerPort port-number
	       The port number to use when connecting to a  chess
	       server in ICS mode.  Default: 5000.

       -icshelper or -internetChessServerHelper prog-name
	       An  external  helper  program  used to communicate

GNU		       1998/01/20 02:14:56		       17

xboard(6)						xboard(6)

	       with the	 chess	server.	  You  would  set  it  to
	       "timestamp"  for ICC (chessclub.com) or "timeseal"
	       for  FICS   (fics.onenet.net,   eics.daimi.aau.dk,
	       etc.),  after  obtaining	 the  correct  version of
	       timestamp or  timeseal  for  your  computer.   See
	       "help  timestamp"  on  ICC  and "help timeseal" on
	       FICS.  This option is  shorthand	 for  "-useTelnet
	       -telnetProgram program".

       -telnet or -useTelnet
	       This  option  is	 pooly named; it should be called
	       useHelper.  If set to True, it instructs xboard to
	       run  an	external  program to communicate with the
	       Internet Chess Server.	The  program  to  use  is
	       given  by the telnetProgram option.  If the option
	       is False (the default), xboard opens a TCP  socket
	       and  uses  its  own internal implementation of the
	       telnet protocol to communicate with the ICS.   See
	       the  FIREWALLS section below for an explanation of
	       when this option is useful.

       -telnetProgram prog-name
	       This option is poorly named; it should  be  called
	       helperProgram.	It  gives  the name of the telnet
	       program to be used with the gateway and	useTelnet
	       options.	  The default is telnet.  The telnet pro-
	       gram  is	 invoked  with	the   value   of   inter-
	       netChessServerHost  as  its first argument and the
	       value of	 internetChessServerPort  as  its  second
	       argument.   See the FIREWALLS section below for an
	       explanation of when this option is useful.

       -gateway host-name
	       If this option is set to a host name, xboard  com-
	       municates  with the Internet Chess Server by using
	       rsh(1) to run the telnetProgram on the given host,
	       instead	of  using its own internal implementation
	       of the telnet protocol.	You can substitute a dif-
	       ferent  remote  shell  program  for  rsh	 with the
	       remoteShell option described below.  See the FIRE-
	       WALLS  section  below  for  an explanation of when
	       this option is useful.

       -internetChessServerCommPort or -icscomm dev-name
	       If this option is set,  xboard  communicates  with
	       the  ICS	 through  the  given character I/O device
	       instead of opening a  TCP  connection.	Use  this
	       option  if  your	 system does not have any kind of
	       Internet connection itself (not even a SLIP or PPP
	       connection),  but  you do have dialup access (or a
	       hardwired terminal line) to  an	Internet  service
	       provider from which you can telnet to the ICS.

	       The  support for this option in xboard is minimal.

GNU		       1998/01/20 02:14:56		       18

xboard(6)						xboard(6)

	       You need to set all communication  parameters  and
	       tty modes before you enter xboard.

	       Use a script something like this:

		   stty raw -echo 9600 > /dev/tty00
		   xboard -ics -icscomm /dev/tty00

	       Here  replace  /dev/tty00  with	the  name  of the
	       device that your modem is connected to.	You might
	       have  to	 add  several  more options to these stty
	       commands.  See  the  man	 pages	for  stty(1)  and
	       tty(4)  if  you	run into problems.  Also, on many
	       systems stty works on its standard  input  instead
	       of standard output, so you have to use "<" instead
	       of ">".

	       If you are using	 linux,	 try  starting	with  the
	       script  below.	Change	it  as necessary for your
	       installation.

		   ##################################################
		   #!/bin/sh -f
		   # configure modem and fire up xboard

		   # configure modem
		   ( stty 2400 ; stty raw ; stty hupcl ; stty -clocal
		     stty ignbrk ; stty ignpar ; stty ixon ; stty ixoff
		     stty -iexten ; stty -echo ) < /dev/modem

		   xboard -ics -icscomm /dev/modem
		   ##################################################

	       After you start xboard in this way, type	 whatever
	       commands	 are necessary to dial out to your Inter-
	       net provider and log  in.   Then	 telnet	 to  ICS,
	       using  a	 command  like telnet chessclub.com 5000.
	       Important: See the paragraph  in	 the  LIMITATIONS
	       section below about extra echoes.

       -icslogon or -internetChessServerLogonScript file-name
	       Whenever	 xboard	 connects  to  the Internet Chess
	       Server, if it finds a file with the name given  in
	       this  option,  it feeds the file's contents to the
	       ICS as commands.	 The default file name is .icsrc.
	       Usually	the first two lines of the file should be
	       your ICS user name and password.	 The file can  be
	       either in $CHESSDIR, in xboard's working directory
	       if CHESSDIR is not set, or in your home directory.

       -msLoginDelay delay
	       If  you	experience  trouble  logging  onto an ICS
	       using the -icslogon option, inserting  some  delay
	       between	characters  of the login script may help.

GNU		       1998/01/20 02:14:56		       19

xboard(6)						xboard(6)

	       This option inserts delay  milliseconds	of  delay
	       per character. Good values to try are 100 and 250.

       -icsinput or -internetChessServerInputBox
	       Sets ICS Input Box on  the  mode	 menu.	 Default:
	       False.

       -autocomm or -autoComment
	       Sets  the  Auto	Comment	 menu  option.	 Default:
	       False.

       -autoflag or -autoCallFlag
	       Sets the Auto Flag menu option.	Default: False.

       -autobs or -autoObserve
	       Sets  the  Auto	Observe	 menu  option.	 Default:
	       False.

       -moves or -getMoveList
	       Sets  the  Get  Move  List  menu option.	 Default:
	       True.

       -quiet or -quietPlay
	       Sets the Quiet Play menu option.	 Default:  False.
	       Default: False.

       -colorizeMessages or -colorize
	       Setting	colorizeMessages to True causes xboard to
	       colorize the messages received from the ICS.  Col-
	       orization  works	 only  if your xterm supports ISO
	       6429 escape sequences for changing text colors.

       -colorShout foreground,background,bold
       -colorSShout foreground,background,bold
       -colorChannel foreground,background,bold
       -colorKibitz foreground,background,bold
       -colorTell foreground,background,bold
       -colorChallenge foreground,background,bold
       -colorNormal foreground,background,bold
	       These options set the colors used when  colorizing
	       ICS  messages.	All ICS messages are grouped into
	       one of these categories: shout, sshout, channel 1,
	       other channel, kibitz, tell, challenge, normal.

	       Each  foreground or background argument can be one
	       of the following: black, red, green, yellow, blue,
	       magenta,	 cyan, white, or default.  Here "default"
	       means the default foreground or	background  color
	       of your xterm.  Bold can be 1 or 0.  If background
	       is omitted, "default" is assumed; if bold is omit-
	       ted, 0 is assumed.

	       Here  is	 an  example  of how to set the colors in
	       your .Xdefaults file.  The colors shown	here  are

GNU		       1998/01/20 02:14:56		       20

xboard(6)						xboard(6)

	       the  default values; you will get them if you turn
	       -colorize on without specifying your own colors.
		   xboard*colorizeMessages: true
		   xboard*colorShout: green
		   xboard*colorSShout: green, black, 1
		   xboard*colorChannel1: cyan
		   xboard*colorChannel: cyan, black, 1
		   xboard*colorKibitz: magenta, black, 1
		   xboard*colorTell: yellow, black, 1
		   xboard*colorChallenge: red, black, 1
		   xboard*colorNormal: default

Load and Save Options
       -lgf or -loadGameFile file
       -lgi or -loadGameIndex index
	       If the loadGameFile option is  set,  xboard  loads
	       the specified game file at startup.  The file name
	       "-" specifies the standard  input.   If	there  is
	       more  than  one game in the file, xboard pops up a
	       menu of the available games, with entries based on
	       their  PGN  (portable game notation) tags.  If the
	       loadGameIndex option is set to N, the menu is sup-
	       pressed	and  the  Nth  game  found in the file is
	       loaded immediately.  The menu is	 also  suppressed
	       if  matchMode  is enabled or if the game file is a
	       pipe; in these cases the first game in the file is
	       loaded  immediately.  Use the pxboard shell script
	       if you want  to	pipe  files  containing	 multiple
	       games into xboard and still see the menu.

       -td or -timeDelay seconds
	       Time  delay  between moves during LoadGame.  Frac-
	       tional seconds are allowed; try -td 0.4.	  A  time
	       delay value of -1 tells xboard not to step through
	       game files automatically.  Default: 1 second.

       -sgf or -saveGameFile file
	       If this option is set, xboard appends a record  of
	       every game played to the specified file.	 The file
	       name "-" specifies the standard output.

       -autosave or -autoSaveGames
	       Sets the Auto Save menu option.	Ignored if saveG-
	       ameFile is set.	Default: False.

       -lpf or -loadPositionFile file
       -lpi or -loadPositionIndex index
	       If  the	loadPositionFile  option  is  set, xboard
	       loads the specified position file at startup.  The
	       file  name  "-"	specifies the standard input.  If
	       the loadPositionIndex option is set to N, the  Nth
	       position	 found	in  the file is loaded; otherwise
	       the first position is loaded.

GNU		       1998/01/20 02:14:56		       21

xboard(6)						xboard(6)

       -spf or -savePositionFile file
	       If this option is set, xboard  appends  the  final
	       position reached in every game played to the spec-
	       ified file.  The file name "-" specifies the stan-
	       dard output.

       -oldsave or -oldSaveStyle
	       Sets  the  Old  Save  Style menu option.	 Default:
	       False.

User Interface Options
       standard Xt options
	       xboard accepts standard Xt options like	-display,
	       -geometry, and -iconic.

       -bell or -ringBellAfterMoves
	       Sets the Bell menu option.  Default: False.

       -queen or -alwaysPromoteToQueen
	       Sets  the  Always  Queen	 menu  option.	 Default:
	       False.

       -legal or -testLegality
	       Sets the	 Test  Legality	 menu  option.	 Default:
	       True.

       -size   or   -boardSize	 (Large	 |  Medium  |  Small  |
       Tiny  | n1,n2,n3,n4,n5,n6)
	       Determines how large the board will be.	The Large
	       board  uses  80x80  pieces,  Medium  64x64,  Small
	       40x40, and Tiny 21x21.  Piece bitmaps of all these
	       sizes are built into xboard.  The default  depends
	       on  the	size  of your screen; it is approximately
	       the largest size that will fit without clipping.

	       You can select other sizes or  vary  other  layout
	       parameters  by providing a list of comma-separated
	       values (with no spaces) as the argument.	  The  n1
	       value  gives  the  piece size, n2 the width of the
	       black border between  squares,  n3  the	preferred
	       pixel  size  for	 the  clockFont, n4 the preferred
	       pixel size for the coordFont, n5	 the  smallLayout
	       flag  (0	 or  1), and n6 the tinyLayout flag (0 or
	       1).  If smallLayout  is	1  and	titleInWindow  is
	       True, the window layout is rearranged to make more
	       room for the  title.   If  tinyLayout  is  1,  the
	       labels  on  the	menu  bar  are abbreviated to one
	       character each, the buttons in the button bar  are
	       made narrower, and a smaller default font is used.
	       You do not need to provide all the values; for any
	       you  omit  from	the end of the list, defaults are
	       taken from the nearest built-in size.

GNU		       1998/01/20 02:14:56		       22

xboard(6)						xboard(6)

       -coords or -showCoords
	       Sets the Show Coords menu option.  Default: False.
	       The coordFont option specifies what font to use.

       -flip or -flipView
	       If you are playing a game on the ICS, the board is
	       always oriented at the start of the game	 so  that
	       your  pawns  move  from	the  bottom of the window
	       towards the top.	 Otherwise, the starting orienta-
	       tion  is	 determined by the flipView option; if it
	       is False (the default), White's	pawns  move  from
	       bottom  to top at the start of each game; if it is
	       True, Black's pawns move from bottom to top.

       -title or -titleInWindow
	       If this option is  True,	 xboard	 displays  player
	       names  (for  ICS	 games)	 and game file names (for
	       Load Game) inside its main window.  If the  option
	       is  False  (the default), this information is dis-
	       played only in the window  banner.   You	 probably
	       won't  want to set this option unless the informa-
	       tion is not showing up in the banner,  as  happens
	       with a few X window managers.

       -mono or -monoMode
	       Determines  whether xboard displays its pieces and
	       squares with two colors (True)  or  four	 (False).
	       You  shouldn't  have  to	 specify monoMode; xboard
	       will determine if it is necessary.

       -borderXoffset
       -borderYoffset
	       These options are part  of  a  kludge  that  helps
	       position	 the  Comment and Edit Comment windows in
	       the same place on the screen when they are  closed
	       and  reopened.	They  should  be set equal to the
	       width and height of the borders that your X window
	       manager	adds  to  windows  when it displays them.
	       The defaults are correct for tvtwm(1).

       -flashCount count
       -flashRate rate
	       These options enable flashing of pieces when  they
	       land  on	 their	destination  square.   flashCount
	       tells XBoard how many times to flash a piece after
	       it  lands  on  its  destination square.	flashRate
	       controls	 the  rate  of	flashing   (flashes/sec).
	       Defaults:

		   flashCount = 0 (No flashing)
		   flashRate = 5

	       Here's  an example of how to specify these options
	       in your .Xdefaults file:

GNU		       1998/01/20 02:14:56		       23

xboard(6)						xboard(6)

		   xboard*flashCount: 3
		   xboard*flashRate: 5

       -clickClick or -click
	       With this option, you move pieces by clicking once
	       on  the	piece  and  then  once on the destination
	       square. Without this option,  xboard  defaults  to
	       the  click-drag-release behavior.  Here's an exam-
	       ple of how to specify this option  in  your  .Xde-
	       faults file:

		   xboard*clickClick: True

       -clockFont
	       The font used for the clocks.  If the option value
	       is a pattern that does not specify the font  size,
	       xboard tries to choose an appropriate font for the
	       board size  being  used.	  Default:  -*-helvetica-
	       bold-r-normal--*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*.

       -coordFont
	       The  font used for rank and file coordinate labels
	       if showCoords is True.  If the option value  is	a
	       pattern	that  does  not	 specify  the  font size,
	       xboard tries to choose an appropriate font for the
	       board  size  being  used.   Default: -*-helvetica-
	       bold-r-normal--*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*.

       -font   The font used for popup dialogs, menus,	comments,
	       etc.  If tinyLayout is true (e.g., if "-size Tiny"
	       is specified), the default is -*-helvetica-medium-
	       r-normal--11-*-*-*-*-*-*-*.	Otherwise,    the
	       default	     is	       -*-helvetica-medium-r-nor-
	       mal--14-*-*-*-*-*-*-*.

       -bitmapDirectory or -bm
	       By  default,  xboard  uses  a  set  of compiled-in
	       bitmaps for its pieces, icons, and menu checkmark.
	       If  the	bitmapDirectory option is set at runtime,
	       bitmaps are taken  from	files  in  the	specified
	       directory.  If any bitmap file is missing or unus-
	       able, xboard looks for a built-in  bitmap  of  the
	       required type and size instead.

	       Files in the bitmapDirectory must be named as fol-
	       lows: The first character of a piece  bitmap  name
	       gives  the  piece it represents (p, n, b, r, q, or
	       k), the next characters give the size  in  pixels,
	       the  following  character  indicates  whether  the
	       piece is solid or outline (s or o), and the exten-
	       sion  is ".bm".	For example, a solid 80x80 knight
	       would be named "n80s.bm".  The outline bitmaps are
	       used only in monochrome mode.  The icons are named

GNU		       1998/01/20 02:14:56		       24

xboard(6)						xboard(6)

	       "icon_white.bm" and "icon_black.bm", and the  menu
	       checkmark is named "checkmark.bm".

	       Two  sets  of bitmaps are distributed with xboard.
	       Those in the directory bitmaps are  normally  com-
	       piled   in   as	 the   default.	   Those  in  the
	       bitmaps.xchess directory can be selected	 at  run-
	       time with the bitmapDirectory option.  If you want
	       to compile in  the  latter  set	as  the	 default,
	       rename  the  bitmaps directory to "bitmaps.fselch"
	       and the	bitmaps.xchess	directory  to  "bitmaps";
	       then recompile xboard.  If you want to add another
	       compiled-in size, edit the bitmaps.h file  in  the
	       bitmaps directory, and optionally edit xboard.h to
	       associate a name	 and  default  layout  parameters
	       with your new size.

       -xpmDirectory or -xpm
	       Instead	of  bitmaps,  xboard can use X pixmaps as
	       its piece images.  If the xpmDirectory  option  is
	       set, pixmaps are taken from files in the specified
	       directory.  The	directory  may	contain	 multiple
	       sizes  of  pieces.  xboard will choose the closest
	       based either on screen size or on the size option.

	       You  can import pieces from the ZIICS distribution
	       by using the zic2xpm program to	convert	 them  to
	       pixmaps.	  ZIICS	 provides a large number of piece
	       sets to choose from.  Here's how to import them:

	       1) Download the ZIICS distribution. It  is  avail-
	       able from

		    ftp://ftp.onenet.net/pub/chess/DOS/ziics131.exe

	       2) Unzip it into a directory, for example:

		     unzip -L ziics131.exe -d ~/ziics

	       3)  Pick	 a chess set you want to use, for example
	       the FRITZ4 set.	Create a directory  to	hold  the
	       pieces, then run the zic2xpm program to create the
	       pieces:

		     mkdir ~/fritz4
		     cd ~/fritz4
		     zic2xpm ~/ziics/fritz4.*

	       (The zic2xpm program is	in  the	 directory  where
	       xboard  was compiled, in case you didn't do a make
	       install.)

	       4) Now, just add the -xpm option	 when  you  start
	       xboard:

GNU		       1998/01/20 02:14:56		       25

xboard(6)						xboard(6)

		    xboard -xpm ~/fritz4     (... other options ...)

	       Or,  even easier, just add this to your .Xdefaults
	       file:
		    xboard*xpmDirectory: ~/fritz4

	       Now you don't have to give the -xpm  option  every
	       time.

       -whitePieceColor
       -blackPieceColor
       -lightSquareColor
       -darkSquareColor
	       Colors	to   use  for  the  pieces  and	 squares.
	       Defaults:

		   -whitePieceColor	#FFFFCC
		   -blackPieceColor	#202020
		   -lightSquareColor	#C8C365
		   -darkSquareColor	#77A26D

	       If you are using a grayscale monitor, try  setting
	       the colors to:

		   -whitePieceColor	gray100
		   -blackPieceColor	gray0
		   -lightSquareColor	gray80
		   -darkSquareColor	gray60

Other Options
       -ncp or -noChessProgram
	       If  this	 option is True, xboard acts as a passive
	       chessboard; it does not start a chess  program  at
	       all.  Turning on this option also turns off clock-
	       Mode.  Default: False.

       -debug or -debugMode
	       Turns on debugging printout.

       -rsh or -remoteShell shell-name
	       Name of the command used to run programs remotely.
	       The  default  is	 rsh  or  remsh,  determined when
	       xboard is configured and compiled.

       -ruser or -remoteUser user-name
	       User name on the remote system when  running  pro-
	       grams  with  the remoteShell.  The default is your
	       local user name.

ANALYSIS MODES
       If you are using the chess program Crafty (version 9.25 or
       above), you can use xboard to analyze your games.  See the
       section titled GETTING  CRAFTY  for  more  information  on
       obtaining  and installing Crafty.  There are a few ways to

GNU		       1998/01/20 02:14:56		       26

xboard(6)						xboard(6)

       analyze:

	 Analyzing a stored game (PGN, etc): Choose Analyze  File
	     from  the	Mode Menu.  Type the name of the file you
	     wish to load.  If the file contains multiple  games,
	     another  popup  will  appear to let you choose which
	     game you want to analyze.	Use the arrow buttons  to
	     move through the game and watch Crafty's analysis.

	 Setting  up  a	 position to analyze Choose Edit Position
	     from the Mode Menu.  Edit the board (the  right  and
	     middle  mouse buttons bring up the black/white piece
	     menus). When finished editing, click on  either  the
	     White or Black clock to tell xboard whose turn it is
	     to move. Choose Analysis Mode from	 the  Mode  Menu.
	     Watch the analysis, move pieces around, etc.

	 Analyzing a new game If you want to start a new analysis
	     from a fresh board, choose Reset Game from the  File
	     Menu,  then choose Analysis Mode from the Mode Menu.
	     Now you can move pieces around  and  watch	 Crafty's
	     analysis.

GETTING CRAFTY
       Crafty  is  a strong, rapidly evolving chess program. This
       rapid pace of development is good, because it means Crafty
       is  always  getting  better.  However, this can also cause
       problems with backwards compatibility.

       To make life easier for the user, and also for the  xboard
       developers,  an	"xboard-supported"  version  of Crafty is
       being provided.	This  version  of  Crafty  includes  some
       important  changes  that	 make it work better with xboard.
       You can get more information on it from either:

	   http://fly.hiwaay.net/~frankm/crafty.html

       Or, if you don't have HTTP access:

	  ftp://gw2.maf.mobile.al.us/frankm/crafty/README

       You can of course always grab Bob Hyatt's latest	 official
       version from:

	  ftp://ftp.cis.uab.edu/hyatt/crafty.tar.gz

       But  please  be	aware of the caveats mentioned on the Web
       page before reporting "bugs" to the xboard developers.

FIREWALLS
       By default, xboard  -ics	 communicates  with  an	 Internet
       Chess  Server  by  opening  a TCP socket directly from the
       machine it is running on to the ICS.  If there is a  fire-
       wall  between  your  machine and the ICS, this won't work.

GNU		       1998/01/20 02:14:56		       27

xboard(6)						xboard(6)

       Here are some recipes for getting around common	kinds  of
       firewalls using special options to xboard.  Important: See
       the paragraph in the LIMITATIONS section below about extra
       echoes.

       Suppose that you can't telnet directly to ICS, but you can
       telnet to a firewall host, log in, and  then  telnet  from
       there   to   ICS.    Let's  say	the  firewall  is  called
       fire.wall.com.  Set command-line options as follows:

	   xboard -ics -icshost fire.wall.com -icsport 23

       Or in your .Xdefaults file:

	   XBoard*internetChessServerHost: fire.wall.com
	   XBoard*internetChessServerPort: 23

       Then when you run xboard in ICS mode, you will be prompted
       to  log in to the firewall host.	 (This works because port
       23 is the standard telnet login service.)   Log	in,  then
       telnet  to  ICS, using a command like telnet chessclub.com
       5000, or whatever command the firewall provides	for  tel-
       netting to port 5000.

       If  your	 firewall  lets	 you telnet (or rlogin) to remote
       hosts, but doesn't let you telnet to port 5000,	you  will
       have  to	 find  some  other host outside the firewall that
       does let you do this, and hop through it.   For	instance,
       suppose you have an account at foo.edu.	Follow the recipe
       above, but instead of typing telnet chessclub.com 5000  to
       the firewall, type telnet foo.edu (or rlogin foo.edu), log
       in there, and then type telnet chessclub.com 5000.

       Exception: chessclub.com itself lets you	 connect  to  the
       chess  server  on  the  default telnet port (23), which is
       what you get if you don't specify a  port  to  the  telnet
       program. But the other chess servers don't allow this.

       Suppose that you can't telnet directly to ICS, but you can
       use rsh to run programs on a firewall host, and that  host
       can  telnet  to	ICS.   Let's  say  the firewall is called
       rsh.wall.com.  Set command-line options as follows:

	   xboard -ics -gateway rsh.wall.com -icshost chessclub.com

       Or in your .Xdefaults file:

	   XBoard*gateway: rsh.wall.com
	   XBoard*internetChessServerHost: chessclub.com

       Then when you run xboard in ICS mode, it will  connect  to
       the  ICS	 by  using  rsh	 to run the command telnet chess-
       club.com 5000 on host rsh.wall.com.

GNU		       1998/01/20 02:14:56		       28

xboard(6)						xboard(6)

       Suppose that you can telnet anywhere  you  want,	 but  you
       have to run a special program called ptelnet to do so.

       First,  we'll  consider	the  easy  case, in which ptelnet
       chessclub.com 5000 gets you to the chess server.	 In  this
       case set command line options as follows:

	   xboard -ics -telnet -telnetProgram ptelnet

       Or in your .Xdefaults file:

	   XBoard*useTelnet: true
	   XBoard*telnetProgram: ptelnet

       Then  when  you	run xboard in ICS mode, it will issue the
       command ptelnet chessclub.com 5000 to connect to the  ICS.

       Next,  suppose  that  ptelnet  chessclub.com  5000 doesn't
       work; that is, your ptelnet program doesn't let	you  con-
       nect to alternative ports.  In this case, you will have to
       find some other host outside the firewall  that	does  let
       you  do	this,  and hop through it.  For instance, suppose
       you have an account at foo.edu.	Set command line  options
       as follows:

	   xboard -ics -telnet -telnetProgram ptelnet -icshost foo.edu -icsport ""

       Or in your .Xdefaults file:

	   XBoard*useTelnet: true
	   XBoard*telnetProgram: ptelnet
	   XBoard*internetChessServerHost: foo.edu
	   XBoard*internetChessServerPort:

       Then  when  you	run xboard in ICS mode, it will issue the
       command ptelnet foo.edu to  connect  to	your  account  at
       foo.edu.	  Log  in  there,  then type telnet chessclub.com
       5000.

       ICC timestamp and FICS  timeseal	 generally  do	not  work
       through firewalls.  You can use them only if your firewall
       gives a clean TCP connection with a full 8-bit wide  path.
       If  your	 firewall allows you to get out only by running a
       special telnet program, you can't use timestamp	or  time-
       seal across it.	But if you have access to a computer just
       outside your firewall, and you have much lower netlag when
       talking	to  that  computer  than  to the ICS, it might be
       worthwhile running timestamp there.  Follow  the	 instruc-
       tions  above  for hopping through a host outside the fire-
       wall (foo.edu in the example), but run timestamp or  time-
       seal on that host instead of telnet.

GNU		       1998/01/20 02:14:56		       29

xboard(6)						xboard(6)

ENVIRONMENT
       Game  and  position files are found in the directory named
       by the CHESSDIR environment variable.  If this variable is
       not set, the current working directory is used.	If CHESS-
       DIR is set, xboard actually changes its working	directory
       to  $CHESSDIR,  so  any	files written by the chess engine
       will be placed there too.

SEE ALSO
       gnuchess(6), cmail(6).

LIMITATIONS
       There is no way for two people running copies of xboard to
       play  each  other without going through the Internet Chess
       Server.

       Under some circumstances, your ICS password may be  echoed
       when you log on.

       If you are connecting to the ICS by running telnet, times-
       tamp, or timeseal on  an	 Internet  provider  or	 firewall
       host,  you may find that each line you type is echoed back
       an extra time after you	hit  Return.   If  your	 Internet
       provider	 is a Unix system, you can probably turn its echo
       off by typing stty -echo after you log in,  and/or  typing
       ^E-Return  (control-E  followed	by the Return key) to the
       telnet program after you have logged into ICS.	It  is	a
       good  idea  to  do  this if you can, because otherwise the
       extra echo can occasionally confuse xboard's parsing  rou-
       tines.

       The game parser recognizes only algebraic notation.

       The  internal  move  legality  tester does not look at the
       game history, so in some cases it misses illegal	 castling
       or en passant captures.	It permits castling with the king
       on the d file because this is possible in  some	"wild  1"
       games  on  ICS.	 However,  if you attempt an illegal move
       when using a chess engine or the ICS, xboard  will  accept
       the  error message that comes back, undo the move, and let
       you try another.

       FEN positions saved  by	xboard	do  not	 include  correct
       information  about  whether  castling  or  en  passant are
       legal.

       The mate detector does  not  understand	that  non-contact
       mate  is	 not  really  mate in bughouse.	 The only problem
       this causes while playing is minor: a "#" (mate indicator)
       character  will show up after a non-contact mating move in
       the move list.  xboard will not assume the game is over at
       that point.

       Edit  Game  mode always uses non-bughouse rules.	 Although

GNU		       1998/01/20 02:14:56		       30

xboard(6)						xboard(6)

       you can load and edit games that contain piece drops,  the
       piece  menus  are  not  active, so you cannot insert piece
       drops.  Also, xboard thinks an edited game is over when	a
       mating  move is inserted, even if the mate is non-contact.

       Some xboard functions may not work with	versions  of  GNU
       Chess earlier than 4.0, patchlevel 73, or with versions of
       Crafty earlier than 12.0.  A few functions work	with  GNU
       Chess but not Crafty, or vice versa.

       The  menus  may	not work if your keyboard is in Caps Lock
       mode.  This seems to be a problem  with	the  Athena  menu
       widget.

REPORTING PROBLEMS
       Report	bugs   and  problems  with  xboard  to	<bug-gnu-
       chess@prep.ai.mit.edu>.	Please use the script(1)  program
       to  start a typescript, run xboard with the -debug option,
       and include the typescript output in your  message.   Also
       tell  us	 what  kind  of machine and what operating system
       version you are using.  The command "uname -a" will  often
       tell you this.  Here is a sample of approximately what you
       should type:

	   script
	   uname -a
	   ./configure
	   make
	   ./xboard -debug
	   exit
	   mail bug-gnu-chess@prep.ai.mit.edu
	   Subject: problem with foobaz command in XBoard
	   Description of the problem
	   ~r typescript
	   .

       If you improve xboard, please send a  message  about  your
       changes	to  bug-gnu-chess,  and we will get in touch with
       you about merging them in to the main line of development.

AUTHORS AND CONTRIBUTORS
       Tim  Mann has been responsible for xboard versions 1.3 and
       beyond, and for WinBoard, a port of  xboard  to	Microsoft
       Win32  (Windows	NT  and Windows 95).  Chris Sears and Dan
       Sears wrote the original xboard; they were responsible for
       versions 1.0 through 1.2.

       Frank  McIngvale	 added	-clickClick  mode,  the	 Analysis
       modes, piece flashing, ZIICS import,  and  ICS  text  col-
       orization.   Jochen  Wiedmann  ported xboard to the Amiga,
       creating AmyBoard, and converted the documentation to tex-
       info.   Elmar Bartel contributed the new piece bitmaps for
       version 3.2.  Evan Welsh wrote cmail.   John  Chanak  con-
       tributed	 the  initial  implementation  of  ICS mode.  The

GNU		       1998/01/20 02:14:56		       31

xboard(6)						xboard(6)

       color scheme and the old 80x80 piece  bitmaps  were  taken
       from Wayne Christopher's XChess program.

COPYRIGHT
       Copyright  1991 by Digital Equipment Corporation, Maynard,
       Massachusetts.  Enhancements Copyright 1992-95 Free  Soft-
       ware Foundation, Inc.

       XBoard's	 alternative  piece  bitmaps (bitmaps.xchess) are
       derived from the bitmaps in the XChess program, which  was
       written and is copyrighted by Wayne Christopher.

       The  following  terms  apply to Digital Equipment Corpora-
       tion's copyright interest in XBoard:

	      All Rights Reserved

	      Permission to use,  copy,	 modify,  and  distribute
	      this software and its documentation for any purpose
	      and without fee is hereby	 granted,  provided  that
	      the above copyright notice appear in all copies and
	      that both that copyright notice and this permission
	      notice appear in supporting documentation, and that
	      the name of Digital not be used in  advertising  or
	      publicity	 pertaining  to distribution of the soft-
	      ware without specific, written prior permission.

	      DIGITAL DISCLAIMS ALL  WARRANTIES	 WITH  REGARD  TO
	      THIS  SOFTWARE, INCLUDING ALL IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF
	      MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS, IN NO EVENT SHALL DIG-
	      ITAL  BE LIABLE FOR ANY SPECIAL, INDIRECT OR CONSE-
	      QUENTIAL DAMAGES OR ANY DAMAGES WHATSOEVER  RESULT-
	      ING  FROM	 LOSS OF USE, DATA OR PROFITS, WHETHER IN
	      AN ACTION OF CONTRACT, NEGLIGENCE OR OTHER TORTIOUS
	      ACTION,  ARISING	OUT  OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE
	      USE OR PERFORMANCE OF THIS SOFTWARE.

       The following terms apply  to  this  enhanced  version  of
       XBoard distributed by the Free Software Foundation:

	      This program is free software; you can redistribute
	      it and/or modify it under the terms of the GNU Gen-
	      eral  Public License as published by the Free Soft-
	      ware Foundation; either version 2 of  the	 License,
	      or (at your option) any later version.

	      This  program  is	 distributed  in the hope that it
	      will be useful, but WITHOUT ANY  WARRANTY;  without
	      even  the	 implied  warranty  of MERCHANTABILITY or
	      FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.	 See the GNU Gen-
	      eral Public License for more details.

	      You  should have received a copy of the GNU General
	      Public License along with	 this  program;	 if  not,

GNU		       1998/01/20 02:14:56		       32

xboard(6)						xboard(6)

	      write  to	 the  Free  Software Foundation, Inc., 59
	      Temple Place - Suite 330,	 Boston,  MA  02111-1307,
	      USA.

       ZIICS  is  a  separate  Copyrighted work of Andy McFarland
       (Zek on ICC). Use of ZIICS falls under the ZIICS	 license,
       not the GPL.

GNU		       1998/01/20 02:14:56		       33

[top]

List of man pages available for BSDi

Copyright (c) for man pages and the logo by the respective OS vendor.

For those who want to learn more, the polarhome community provides shell access and support.

[legal] [privacy] [GNU] [policy] [cookies] [netiquette] [sponsors] [FAQ]
Tweet
Polarhome, production since 1999.
Member of Polarhome portal.
Based on Fawad Halim's script.
....................................................................
Vote for polarhome
Free Shell Accounts :: the biggest list on the net