Bernice: Well, it is a public forum, so it's everybody's business. But in your last comment to Fencer, you said the bank attempts were made the day before your request, but if you think about it, you may have made the request in the morning of August 14 Australia time, which would have been Fencer's August 13 Czech Republic time, so his bank made the attempt to pull it "the day before" you did. Case closed.

I joined BrainKing on May 15, 2005...17 years and 144 days later, I just made my 1 millionth move! That's an average of about 158 moves per day.

Good Luck :)FLR:

100 questions coming right up

Coincidentally, I just received notice yesterday that “awesome” passed away of a heart attack on August 24. He mostly played loop chess here. RIP awesome and dein

It's hard to believe that I've been here since May 2005, over 11 years! I love this site, and will play until the end.

DeaD man WalkiN: yes, 5 points for hitting the last frog + bonus 2 points for winning + 1 point for each frog not found. This is why I play aggressive, because I know I can have 2 misses and still win the game. If you missed a guess, then I can have 3 misses. In the game, there were only 2 possible spots for your frog, so I was able to take an early guess without risk and hopefully win earlier.

Resher: This game was talked about in the Untouchables fellowship... I found it in the fellowship thread. That's how I know what happened.

Everyone interprets rules differently, that's why I asked for clarification in my original post. Also, per Aganju's request, further discussion should take place on the backgammon board: http://brainking.com/en/Board?bc=26

LOL Crosseyed... sorry to ruin it for you!

Aganju: Here is another example (which I researched from a fellowship game) -- Resher pointed out the rule to Zach, and Zach later offered a draw in good sportsmanship because he didn't open up the spot on time. Click on move 25: Fevga (Zach vs. Resher)

Aganju: Actually, if you click back on move 25, he was blocking 8-9-10 also, so yes, the rule applies here

Roberto Silva: You are correct. Thus, I will take Pedro's advice from the other day and not take the rules too seriously! Thanks everyone for their input... I can close this case now :)

crosseyed: I'm sure there are other rules on this site that are not enforced. For example, in chess, perpetual check is allowed and can force a draw that way. In Chinese Chess, perpetual check is not allowed and the person doing the check must break it off... hence, no forced draw. However, even though that is a published rule for chinese chess, it is not enforced on this site.

Marshmud: For me, it is an issue of honest sportsmanship. If a published rule is pointed out, it should be followed.

Aganju: Yes, my opponent thinks the rule is "unfair" and chose not to follow it after I pointed it out. It is a rare situation to have all checkers stacked on one point, and that is why most people are not aware of this rule. This is the first time I was the one with all checkers on one point, but it has happened several times where my opponents have stacked all of theirs, and I freed up a spot for them to have a chance to move. I believe you should always follow the rules at a game site if they are published... even if they are not your standard way of playing. Oh well.

I'm not sure if this is where I post this, but can I get a clarification of the FEVGA rule for the following game. The rule in question is the 2nd to the last bullet: "It is allowed to build a prime (six consecutive blocked points) anywhere else (not in the player's starting quarter), but if opponent has collected all his checkers onto the one point behind player's prime, the player must unblock a point in his prime to allow the opponent a chance to move".

Fevga (cd power vs. TT2010)

Does my opponent need to move a checker, as all of my checkers stand on one point behind his? I have now had to pass already.

jadarite: No, you missed the point. It is not about "proving yourself here," but rather you will see by playing games that you do get that draft mode by clicking your move, then you can sit there and think about it if you wish, or make notes and come back later. Anyway, I see that you have left... I always knew you were just trolling here and using some fake profile you created in 2010 without a single finished game.

jadarite: Honestly, it is difficult to take your suggestion seriously when your first log-in to this site was in 2010, but yet you have not completed a single game here. Finish 100 games and then tell us what % of those games you lost because you were unable to use a "draft" mode.

Purple:

He is referencing a tv commercial here in the US. Purple means your ex-girlfriend is hacking your account, and you should have told her you were talking to Jake from State Farm (his insurance agent): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=47cAxRX3aDg

Hrqls: I agree with you... I do the same thing. I'm in the USA, and have never experienced these sorts of problems. Occasionally, the site may run a little bit slow at times, but nothing that prevents me from making my moves. I used to have all kinds of problems when I wasn't clearing the cache, but now that it is set up automatically to clear the cache, I don't have issues.

Roberto Silva: And let's not forget about Maharajah chess... that is probably the worst offender of all the games. If I play the black color, I am 100% guaranteed victory in 24 moves. Anyone who does not believe me, then send me an invite where I am black and I'll prove it to you!

Thad: The seedings got screwed up and the bottom part is also incomplete.

Artful Dodger: That's pretty cool... you were playing nightmagic, but cardinal came out as the winner

In 17 hours begins the time-out of 4,000 games for a particular turtle on this site. Tournaments will be able to resume!

thisbeme: I guess so... I modified my response below while you were typing yours.

thisbeme: On the paid member page, there is a drop-down menu. For 36 Euros, you get 12 months white brain rook, plus whichever applicable color bonus. For 360 euros, you get the "forever" black rook, and then you are done... bonuses do not matter at that point.... IF you are only buying for yourself... I see what Gabriel is saying... you can get another black rook forever and gift it to someone. I can not confirm nor deny if that is true... I trust Gabriel is correct then.

thisbeme: No, the bonus codes are not "Forever" Black rooks. They are white rooks... red code = 2 years of white rooks. Purple code = 1 year + 3 months. Other codes = 1 year + whatever %. However, if you purchase every single bonus code, then you will get the black rook bonus (forever).

fukuhara: Maybe more than 13 people have already bought the red code. The list you show is only of people who earned the red code bonus achievement in the last few days. Some people may have earned the red code achievement long ago, and then renewed their membership within the last few days buying the red code, and they will not reappear on the achievement list (because they already have it).

Justaminute:

It is strange that for some it has slowed, and others it is fast. For me, it seems just as fast as always, maybe even faster. I have always had my cookies/cache cleared every time I exit the browser, and I never have had issues.

rabbitoid and lukulus: I agree with both of you, well said.

thisbeme: I enjoy the games I am playing against you, so don't take this the wrong way, but if you are so worried about timeouts, then why are you playing over 3,500 games at once? The bulk of the responsibility belongs to you, and I don't like that you're placing fault with this great gaming site that Fencer has built.

GT: you probably need to clear out the cache on your web browser

When searching for ponds to sign up for, if you click on the Fellowships ponds, there are many ponds waiting to sign up that are 2 to 4 years old... wouldn't it be great if those were simply deleted from the site?

Thom27: There are also "Prize Tournaments without an entry fee." This is how I won my first brains.

Gabriel Almeida: It was a planned down-time and advance notice was given that game times would be suspended for 24 hrs: http://brainking.com/en/News

thisbeme: Since you asked, instead of playing the victim card, you can take control and play a manageable number of games (i.e. a few hundred instead of 1500+). This way, you can make a move in each one of your games on a daily basis, and if the time settings are always a few days per move, then you know you can always take a break for a few days and not worry about time-outs, especially if something unexpected happens like you lost your internet access.

new mexico: Every year, everyone's vacation resets on Jan 1. You will be back to 35 days (x24 hrs) by doing nothing and waiting until Jan 1.

Thank you, Fencer, for changing the vacation rules so that vacation can no longer be abused. I look forward to January 1.

rod03801: This is very strange... I, too, was seeing a blank page, but then upon clicking on a few times, the player list appeared. I then clicked on it again, and a blank page. I clicked again, and the list was there.

Personally, formulas for ponds maybe slightly help, so I don't really care if someone uses a formula or is in collusion with others. I have only began playing ponds this year, without any formula, and have won 17 of them in a very short time, and even achieved a # 1 ranking for a little bit. So, this shows me I can beat others no matter what they do.

Not one problem in California!

Gouwe gozer: It seems like we have summer time all year in Los Angeles! Warm weather. (But yes, we change our clocks this weekend).

Pioneer54: I agree with you. These abusive people think they are big fish in a small pond and that this site will die without them, but in reality, it is quite the opposite.

AbigailII: And I appreciate that! I don't like elimination tourneys where the lower BKR advances in case of a draw. Some games (i.e. Logik) have a high rate for having a draw.

pedestrian: This has happened to me sometimes with Firefox, if I have had it open for awhile. Close your browser completely and then reopen it... this should fix it.

: I also have never participated in this conversation, but to me, it's simple: If someone doesn't like the guy, put him on block and don't join BG Race tournaments that he's in. Then, just go about your life instead of filling up the discussion board with this nonsense. Let Fencer run this site however he wants to. I doubt anyone will quit over this, because this site is too great, but if they do, then that means I don't have to read their complaining on the discussion boards.

I don't have anything against anybody... only you can choose whether or not something or someone bothers you.

Czuch: Have you exited your browser (completely closed it) and then reloaded it? That always works for me, as I have had the same issue.

AbigailII: I have also been confused for many years by the vacation day system. If a person's vacation days show zero, then when the clock counts down to zero, it should be a timeout, period. I don't see the logic behind having any other fancy rules.

ChessVariant: I agree that some stupid blunders are made, as I have made plenty of them myself. However, the kind of eliminations I am talking about are:

1. Chess Example: King vs. King + Rook. Please resign this game if you only have a king rather than make someone finish it.

2. Backgammon example: If you can see that a player will win if he rolls all 2-1 for the remainder of the game, even if the opponent rolls all double 6's, then it is pointless to continue. Only people who are praying for the winning opponent's computer to explode would keep playing this game.

tfra11: I disagree with the USA argument. Why do sports series end early if the other team is mathematically eliminated? (i.e. NBA: Lakers won 4-1 in a best of 7, and there was no need to play all seven). Even with Soccer (Futbol), if a game goes to a Penalty Kick shootout, all 5 kicks by each team are not taken if a team is mathematically eliminated before the 5th kick. With board games, I believe it is universally considered "good sportsmanship" to resign a lost cause.

I have a question... do achievements on certain games only start when the achievement feature was added (April 5)?... I have a dice chess 10x10 game that satisfies 2 achievements, but yet I was not given credit: Dice Chess 10x10 (cd power vs. janka) This game shows all 3 kings captured by the same piece (one achievement) and I did not lose any kings (another achievement). Additionally, maybe it should be another achievement in which the only pcs that I captured were three kings only! Can I at least get credit for the first two achievements mentioned above?

Also, I have won several games in maharajah chess as the white maharajah, check-mating my opponent's king... but I was not given credit for that achievement?

In fact, I have satisfied achievements in several other games (dice poker, etc) in which I was not given credit.

Tigger: lol... me, too!