are allowed to stay and abuse the rules.. Yet, Ed is still banned.. Hmm..

LJ harrasses women.. and Dano.. well he babbles consistantly..

So why is Ed still banned..?? huh Walter?

I am really enjoying the articles at www.chessville.com. It has a great analysis of the possibilities of the game. I appreciate all the work that has gone into it.

For my part, I really would like to see Gothic Chess stay here at BrainKing, as that is my great joy to come here and play.

I would like to see Ed unbanned. We learn from his perspective on the game, and as long as we come together to do that in this fellowship, we collectively benefit.

Where is the moderator? What good is he?

Looking at the moderator's profile, it appears his cmptr is on the fritz. Also, he did not ban Trice and I believe he was under the impression that only Fencer could reverse the ban, so he didn't himself. But it's best to ask him yourself.

Fencer has already said,Walter can un ban,both Ed and Dunnosheck.So hopefully,if Walter is having Computer issues....Fencer might select another moderator.....like ME!!! LOL:)

I cast my ballot for bwildman as the mod. Down with plonker Walter!

Aloha all.

I have been watching this board for quite some time. I have made a few posts here and there. I mentioned to Fencer when Ed got stripped of his moderator position, but at the time, I was not a paying member, so I could not be the moderator. I have just paid my membership dues, so now I can be moderator. I would like to moderate this board. I enjoy Gothic Chess, but I am not as fiercely loyal to it as some players here, so I am interested in this board enough to do a good job and yet i can stay detached enough from it and be a good moderator, stepping in only when necessary.

If a couple more people post to give the job to me, perhaps Fencer will (hint, hint).

Thanks,
Thad

Let's try this.

That should be fun.

What about if moderator M1 wants to ban X person while moderator M2 disagrees? And don't forget moderator M3.

So they should start having some conversations between them, to find a common way of thinking, for moderating this board.

And what would happen if someone between them strongly disagree with the others and start a fightning? I suggest to have another moderator to moderate them too:-)

Wait and see.

Welcome Thad and bwildman. I didn't add you to the list, so I'll figure you asked Fencer to be added to the list of moderators and he went for it.
I'm currently typing from the public library in Bishop, California as my truck broke down on the way home from Rock Creek where I was camping. I'll just let the new moderators have a free hand until or unless the need arises for me to do something about them. As for re-instating danoschek of EdTrice, they'll banned for awhile more if not forever. Though EdTrice might be welcomed back as he seems to have a few supporters here, though not one person has vouched for danoschek. The reasons they were banned previously are still valid now.

Walter is right in saying the bans will stay for abit.
the color of the convrsations here have been great,as of late...and althouh I consider Ed's new found sense of humor funny....some dont.
I feel there are some very debatable opinions to be discussed...but personal insults(either direct or implied) should not be tolerated.This includes myself.
We are mostly all adults,and I really see no reason we cant comunicate as such.Dont get me wrong...theres absolutly nothing wrong witha sense of humor...but lets try to keep it on a less personal basis.
I am open to comments.

Trice seems to cause trouble faster than he forks out -- A conclusion reached by mere observation (i.e. prove it otherwise.)

Peaceful co-existence between these guys is possible only if you keep them apart, though.

Just my two cents z:)

Speaking from an ex-mod's POV, I just want to make those in power aware of their duty to be fair. In other words, if you decide to keep the ban on any of these aforementioned BK members, let your decision not be based upon personal grudges, vendettas, or any other stupid reason except for factual violations of the actual rules. Let all be considered in an unbiased sense.

but thats what I meant by: myself included.

well hell, can I be a mod too???

I sacrificed a Queen on move 18 to get a forced mating net in 13;I foresaw most of it and was only surprised once.

The player who caused him to be banned is rude and obnoxious with alot of players who do not wish to adher to his viewpoint. Besides Ed invented the greatest of all Chess Games,Gothic Chess. To replace Gothic with the highly inferior Capablanca Chess should be unthinkable. It is too too unplayable;that was why Ed "fixed it;"to make it balanced and playable. It is the most playable chess variant on a 10x8 board. Gothic Chess is perfectly balanced and a whole lot more fun to play than any form of chess ever invented;this includes boring 8x8 traditional chess;which has gotten too too drawish and much too booked and analyzed.

How much longer of a ban are we talking about? You must remember it was the reluctance of a Moderator to do anything that let this thing get out of hand in the 1st place! I feel that there is something personal here and to let this continue is wrong!

Can someone point out the specific piece of legislation interpreted as a requirement for BrainKing to have a licence for gothic chess?

I don't see much of a point in banning Ed and Dano. So what if their posts were off-topic? Isn't this one too? Albeit puerile, I found their repartie amusing at times and the entertainment value alone is sorely missed. And yes, at present, of course gothic chess is more fun than chess...more to discover! The whole reason Ed was removed as moderator was that he became draconian, banning everyone whom he thought was making a disturbance on this board. But to continue to ban him is only following in his footsteps. Just unban everyone and let em have at it. If you don't like the posts, hide them or put the offenders on your enemies list. Censorship is pusillanimous.

ugh, if they want to have the game and CALL it Gothic Chess, they need a license, or else..um...well, you get the point.

Ed is not banned.

A question of registered trade mark? It's an interesting point. Presumably no licence is needed to hold a tournament of gothic chess, even if so named, in the physical world, but how about if such a tournament were played with home-made sets?

it is an interesting point. The internet is still open season as proven by the failure of numerous prosecutors to secure jurisdiction on something that belongs to no and yet every country at once. Good observation about the real world tourneys....so few games and sports that we enjoy are trademarked so who knows?

I'm no longer banned and indeed I'm here just for
gothic chess and any senseful capablanca idea more ... ~*~

red didnt unban you.but I'm glad to read your remarks.

Now I return to lurker mode *puuff*

I'm sometimes reminded of competing video-codes - a court stated if you
cAn memorize the whole program for a decoder then it's not patentworthy ...
just an allegory, not unconditionally valid here, but every code wants to be default ... ~*~

before again somebody else offers the service of translating me :D
that meant that I vote for keeping gothic chess at brainking - on about the
wavelength of m.coan - no major interfering with server business presumed, i.e. ... ~*~

Re Dano and Ed Trice - or anyone else!
How about reinstating them BUT the moderator putting their posts on 'hide' or for the moderator to approve the messages before posting?
If they're on topic, reveal them. If they're not, delete them.

How a person can be banned?

A)Only one moderator (who wants to ban someone, without the other 2 know) is enough to do it.
B)Any 2 of the 3 moderators if they agree to ban someone, while the other disagree, are enough to do it.
C)All the 3 moderators should agree to ban someone.

I personally do not see why Ed was baned to begin with. I think people have a right to say what they feel. And if being attacked to defend themselves. I think Ed should be allowed back!!

If it was so easy to just add a couple of co-monitors then why not do it when Ed was a monitorator. Just does not make any sense, if you ask me.

no one is banned at this moment. please read previous posts.

Ed does have a patent on Gothic Chess; but I think that if he ever wants to see it become as popular as it should be that he should be more flexible on letting more sites use it.

I am from Germany, and according to our patent laws Gothic Chess would be never ever patentable. Maybe you would get a patent, but it would not survive a quarreling in a court. But I have no doubt that Ed Trice has invested a lot of time and barrier breaking thinking into this new game, and has invented it, so I have no problem with paying just those 20 dollars. Anyway, to be honest, I would prefer paying for a leading program, not for a game which is based very much on Capablana chess, despite I really like it and Ed has found it first in the chess universe.

The purpose of the patent is to prevent a company like Hasbro from releasing their own Gothic Chess board game that we invented, not charge a user, like yourself, a fee for playing.

Gothic Chess "looks easy" to have invented, after the fact. I challenge you to come up with another 80-square arrangement where:

1. All pawns are defended in the starting configuration.
2. Many themes from chess still apply (castling, Inidian formations, fianchettoed Bishops).
3. The game is playable (no mates in 2, as in Bird's Chess)
4. It does not already exist.

It is interesting that nobody thinks there is anything wrong with Milton Bradley patenting a game like Stratego. It really is the same thing.

Can Microsoft make a software version of Stratego? Not without paying a licensing fee.

That's all. Anyone wants to distribute the game, they pay a licensing fee.

By the way, the European Patent has been finialized, so, yes, Germany has allowed it, via their proxy vote from London.

Gothic Chess has already "survived" two court victories, so perhaps before you make such statements, you should do some research.

It just shows how little respect people have for attorneys, since everyone offers their own opinion of "the law" and "what is right".

I can't see you doing the same thing is a surgeon was about to cut you open to save your life. Would you tell them "the way it should be?"

By the way, my rating should be 2433, but Fencer refuses to give me my 8 points back after the server timed out a game against Caissus and gave him 10 points as well.

Just wondering how he could restore our game so quickly yet continue to ignore my requests to have my rating reset to where it should be.

8 points! What a scandal, should I cancel my membership?

maybe......just maybe.....you forgot the magic word? just a speculation. ;-)

Welcome back Ed! ;-)

Fencer does not refuse to adjust your ratings, as he already replied, there are
higher priorities befor a major change to the ratings system is on timetable anyway ...
I am waiting myself since more than two months btw without running out of dry tissues ... ~*~

the las time I checked...bickering requires 2....
seems Ed was voicing an opinion,which is entirely acceptable.As is...it is acceptable to voice ours,as long as it doesnt seem like an insult.

Ed, your rating is not the only rating on BrainKing that is off a little. Fencer already said he is working on a script which will actually go back to the first game and recalculate all ratings from the start.

So why should he spend time going in and fixing everyones rating now when it will be fixed once the script is done?

he accused fencer wrong period. for sensitive minds insulting. ~*~

I say we should all pay Iraqi's some money since chess was originally invented in Babylonia. I guess after playing it for so many centuries we all owe them about $100 billion in royalties.

I think that anybody who thinks that Ed's contribution to Gothic chess is not substantial can sit down, think and invent a game themselves. In my opnion Ed deserves a lot of credit for fixing the problems with Capablanca chess. Yes, the game is patentable and if Ed gets a patent with the WTO his invention will be protected even more.

I am someone who enjoys Gothic Chess a lot. I just hope the bickering will be kept to a minimum. Chess breeds critical and strategic thinking. Unfortunately for some players it does not breed maturity. I think it is unfortunate that some people have picked on Ed, Danoscheck, etc. It is even more unfortuante that they would be foolish enough to let some people get under their skin. If somebody makes a stupid comment, just ignore it. Let them drown in their own drool.

for technical reasons you can't ignore moderators entirely ... but I agree ... ~*~ :)

Welcome back.. So good to have you back again...

Hi Scarlet. Someone else is back too. But thanks for welcoming me back. :)