alanback: I think Princess Alison meant she was having problems with the site yesterday..

Kipling ~ "Is anyone having problems with games loading?"

Princess Alison ~ "I was yesterday, but not today"

alanback: pardon??

Princess Alison: You left the UK today?

I was yesterday, but not today

Kipling: If you are in the UK yes!

Is anyone having problems with games loading?

Dryznik: Actually, as site owner, financier, developer and host Fencer probably really is the lone King of the Hill :)

Dryznik: i'm somewhat new to brainking, but i'll take this site over iyt

playBunny: Fencer does sound like he is the lone King Of The Hill. ;) It has been a long time since I played Ladders and I'm done with IYT. I just have to get used to Stairs and this site. Most everything is improvable in kife and play. Thanks for all comments. ;~)

Dryznik: The IYT Ladder system allows you to challenge 2 people within 20 places above yourself and have 2 challenges from other people below.

The BrainKing Stairs allows you to choose from 4 Steps (your own and the three below). That can mean a greater or lesser choice of players depending on how many people there are on those Steps. The fact that you look down rather than up to choose an opponent is a new perspective. It's too early to say how well it's going to work.

The GoldToken Ladders are the real "program induced" ones. Players are assigned to play one other on their current Step at random. That's neither a good thing nor a bad thing.

Fencer doesn't intend to sound rude when he says suck it up or go away... lolol.

Dryznik: You remember wrong. You could only play a maximum of 4 games in any one ladder and you were limited to playing those within a certain limit on the ladder.

Dryznik: Do not forget we have a Discussion board to talk about stairs.

Anyway, the computer program does not pick who you can play - you can choose anyone on the same (or below) level as you to play.

Dryznik: Your "freedom living" is to choose a site which fulfils your criteria the most. Nobody is forced to play here. Our system is our system and I won't change it.

As I recall Ladders at IYT any lower rung player could challenge anyone on the ladder and have several games going at once on that Ladder. That made challenges and play more worth playing--instead of 'program induced' persons to play! Not able to choose who one plays is like losing freedom living. Isn't Brainking made up of teamwork to make the site, games and player's challenges better for overal enjoyment?

I read the rules and i was wrong.
I am sory.

Fencer: Whats the game-id.

frolind: Two moves before.

kondiau: Hardly to check without the game ID.

kondiau: And with "checked him before", do you mean that you checked him in your last move before his rocade?

Can somebody tell me whats happening. I played a game of chess with a person who was able to do a rockad even though i checked him before. My question is.
How was he able to make that move...
Thanks for your time.
Greetings kondiau.

Fencer: I suppose my writing style might have led you to believe I was complaining, but I was questioning the workings of it. It doesn't make sense to me and if I was going to play it I needed that resolved well enough for me to give it a try. Just because you put a lot of time and effort into something doesn't mean that what is created is final, complete, or finished. This site itself is a good example of that, let alone any additions you make to it.

I will save any further questions I have for the "Stairs" feature for that board .

Walter Montego: What I want to say is that I spent too much time and effort to create the Stairs system and I don't want to change it when one person complains. A perfect system doesn't exist and there will be always someone who doesn't like it.
Btw, there is Stairs discussion board.

Walter Montego: From the few times I have played in some similar "ladders", I remember that the biggest point of the system is that the person you challenge can't decline, so you will get to play opponents that would have declined your challenge in normal time.

playBunny: But since you're now below him, he can challenge you, but you can't challenge him? I don't understand the reasoning behind this.

Thanks Fencer for explaining that I don't need to play it. I already understand that. Every time you've added something new to the site, there's always been questions about it. Remember when you added Ponds? Lots of people complained or suggested changes. You made a few of them. That's all I was doing by quetioning this "Stairs" deal you've added. You don't want my comments? Fine, I'll keep them to myself.

Walter: "Looks like a bunch hoopla for nothing"

Well, yes and no. It's a whole new bunch of hoops that's for sure. And they're for jumping through - just for the hell of it! :-))

Earlier today I was kicked off a Step by Pedro. That's him up to 3, me back to 1. My aim is to clamber back up to 2, haul myself up to 3 and then return the favour! That's fun. :-))

Walter Montego: If you don't see the point, don't play them.

Pedro Martínez: I did read them. That's why I posted that I disagree with them. I don't even see the point of the whole stairs/ladders deal. Looks like a bunch hoopla for nothing. So you can't decline a challenge and you can't challenge those ahead of you. Why do I want to challenge those under me to move up? What's the point then? And you can only have two games of stairs going at a time. Just what is this list suppose to show?

Walter Montego: no, you can not decline a challenge.

Walter Montego: Walter, why don't you read the rules first?

BIG BAD WOLF: I disagree. It seems reasonable to me to limit the higher climbed player as to how far down the stairs he can challenge, but I see no reason to limit, let alone not allow someone to challenge anyone above them. You are allowed to decline a challenge, aren't you?

Do not forget, we have a public discussion board dedicated just to talking about stairs here:

http://brainking.com/en/Board?bc=108

I like the idea of "compressing" the stairs every once and awhile - a lot of people like to play, and if they end up getting so far ahead where they can no longer be challenged, or are playing the same 1 or 2 people over and over again, that gets boring fast. I have seen on some other sites on ladders where the top player will quit & start over at the bottom just so they can play games (point of a game site) - so hopefully the compression of steps will keep players active.

Luke Skywalker: I agree; I do not like the compression idea either, as it merely serves to punish those who have worked to achieve status. With large numbers of players, it may not even happen, but what would be wrong with an empty stair or two?

Meanwhile, those on the first stair risk nothing by losing matches, since they cannot fall any lower.

Just observations here, not criticism; no doubt many players are enjoying these new events.

Walter: There's no looking ahead or upwards. It's a game of climbing up by pushing your peers off the step you're on and stomping on those below.

It's an interesting point of view. Rather than playing the weaker of those players above (as on a Ladder), you initially make the best progress by playing the weakest of the weak below you! (at least to the degree that your playing ethics permit such choices) and also by knocking off rivals as they come up to your level. Hopefully for those reaching the higher levels of the Stair that latter becomes the prime reason for choosing an opponent.

Walter Montego: You can't challenge people that are higher than you on the stairs.

Fencer: You say you can challenge people three or less stairs beneath you. How far ahead of yourself can someone be for you to challenge?

Pioneer54: I've set a max to how many games I'll start so I don't run into that problem.

My players don't usually have to wait for anymore then 2 days for me to move.

Yes, it includes the empty Steps. But the compression once a month would remove them.

Pythagoras: You can only challenge those on your step or the three below** - which places a limit on how magic your carpet is. In the case that the people below get pulled down by those below them and the gap widens, the empties will be whipped away by an angel.

** Fencer: Is that 3 below numerically, ie. including empty Steps or three occupied Steps below?

Fencer: when there are three empty stairs behind the player, he can't challenge anybody, until someone else climbs up. (I don't like the idea of compressing the stairs, if a player is at the top, others will try to reach him, thereby closing the gap.)

Pythagoras: There is no top stair. You can advance as high as you can.

Without following the discussions about stairs, i have a question......
What will happen if someone advances to the top stair and wins X games from there? I guess he won't start floating in the air but he will remain in the top stair But what if he loses 1 game(after he won X games, being already on the top stair)? He will lose one position or not? Or since he won X games being at the top stair already, he has to lose X games also, in order to be removed from the top stair...............?

Jason: http://brainking.com/cz/FAQ?ht=20

can pawns use auto vacation ?

Fencer: ah, so! i think that actually works! i could argue that i'd like to be able to see it before i signed up, but that's not that big a deal. thanks, F. :)

plaintiger: Just find yourself in the Steps and you'll see it.

i'd like to be able to see my BKR in the game in question when i'm on the Stairs pages, so that when i'm choosing an opponent i can see how their BKR compares to mine.

i don't have all my BKRs memorized yet.

Pioneer54: Such players are listed in the "Select one free player to play" combo box. Players which cannot be challenged are filtered out.

When you get into a group, how do you know which players have openings and are eligible to accept a challenge? Must you scour the game list to see?

BIG BAD WOLF: How?? It does not seem likely that many Rooks would become Ns. I did it, to place a restriction on myself and my time, but I'm probably perhaps one of a handful.

Or, a warning message sent when there is one week left of knight membership saying, "In one week you will be limited to one stair. Please resign from the ladders of your choice. If you haven't done that in the week, the system will choose to keep you on the stairs where you are on the highest step".. or something like that..