On one game page there is an icon one can download. It blinks when one has a play ready. It goes on the toolbar and prevents surfing back and forth to check on moves. Email notification is unnecessary if one has the icon, or one can have both.

RL: Agreed ... WQ:)

WisperzQ, your points, as always, are good ones. By contrast, my problem is the reverse of yours! When players take a very long time to move I lose interest in the game and sometimes offer draws, even if I have a won ending, just to avoid all the time it would take. I'd rather clear the game and try a new one with someone else. Of course, I must cross my fingers and hope my new opponent is more expedient than the last. I know this is a turn based site and I have no problem with those who move once every day or two. My frustration is with those who consistently move no more than once a week! I know they have every "right" to do so. I see no reason why multiple options, such as adding the time as you suggested AND indicating moves per day per game (per game type) as I suggested, cannot be implemented. I believe features such as these would dramatically improve the gaming experience here for everyone. The fervent and ongoing debate over this issue appears to confirms this.

Just a different perspective Jason ... so long as each is allowed their point of view and noone considers theirs superior to the other we can all be happy!

How about an "online fellowship members" button?

well you just cant win lol people moan at people for moving too slow ,and now because they move too quick ,
if people are online when im online i will move as many moves as possible in that game ,not to try and catch them out ontime ,but because i like playing fast .if i didnt i wouldnt play two day limits .

i agree, winning by timing out is bad. I just like to play quickly. If you time out against me I'll have it reinstated. Except Dark Chess of course. :)

grenv: again ... my point exactly ... I know you jest but it demonstates that someone may try to use time to pressure the opposition which surely is a very poor way (and I would declare unsportsmanlike) of trying to secure a win ... a win should (at least on a turn based site) be based on ability not on who can trump another's move immediately to force time to be the deciding factor. I guess a vote against this suggestion would place you firmly in that camp.

I have won many games where the other person, for some reason or other, has timed out. I find those very hollow victories and think that it is sad that others would even contemplate conspiring to win in this manner ... but it is their life I guess. At least I can say that if anyone has timed out against me I have always been willing to accept the game back again (and even suggested it), even if I am not in the stronger position as some of you know.

Cheers WQ

aargh. Please don't apply that logic. I would suggest a time limit for the whole game instead of each turn.
So for example you could have 30 days each for the game. If you take 4 days for your first move you have 26 left etc.

Whisperz. Now I know why I have been successful against you lately. Better watch out, I'll be moving super quick against you from now on!

:)

hmm, I see, sorry for needing the further explanation, thankyou.

That is the point! "A" could have expected to need to make their next move in 4 days time (maximum) if "B" had taken their 2 days to make their move and then there would be another 2 days after that for "A" to respond. Presently, if I play a two day game, make my move NOW then I have to wait up to 2 days before I know the time and date by which I MUST make my next move ... it could be a minimum of 2 days but could also be up to 4 days. This proposal takes away that uncertainty.

sorry, but I don't understand why "now A still has 4 days to make their move (the two days B could have taken and the two days following that for A to make their move)."
Why does A then get B's days ?

Agreed Backoff ... I actually find it daunting when my opponent moves straight away, particularly in 1 day games (one reason why I no longer play them). I tend to play for maybe an hour about the same time each day, if I am early one day, opponent moves and late the next then I have a time out ... now I was hardly tardy.

So I would suggest that a person's time period be two times the stated time frame ... let's go through an example. A two day game ... A moves, B immediately moves (even though they actually have 2 days to make the move) ... now A still has 4 days to make their next move (the two days B could have taken and the two days following that for A to make their move). Vacation days get added, irrespective of whether either party moves during that time (this should answer Caissus' valid problem that he might get timed out on a game that he was expecting to be extended (because the oopponent was on vacation)and wasn't (because they moved). Now I can hear many voices crying "oh no" games will take even longer, but the reality is that they won't, what was a two day game can become a one day game (two days for A to move again), four two and so forth. What it does do is set some certainty for the likes of me as to absolutely when I must move in a game irrespective of an opponents' speed of moving. And, of course, the same principle could be appled to games which might run in hours rather than days.

but what we want is something in between... everyone could have their cake and eat it too, but as it is I must eat my cake no quicker than the slowest person at the table! (OTB gives me indigestion.)

You can play however you want,

All i requested was a way to define a tournament that would guarantee a quick finish. Those that don't want to play quickly won't enter those particular tournaments. Just as I don't enter tournaments with 10 day moves.

I work 12 hours days and spend my free time at work playing on here so it's no biggy for me play for 2.5 to 3 hours a day on here. I know everyone is different but the point I'm trying to make is that this is a turned based site. If you want really fast games, plat OTB at yahoo or MSN.

300 moves per day. Assume 30 seconds thinking time (Which is quick in my book). That is still 2.5 hours / day, which seems excessive.

I agree with tracking "How long do I take to move".

Also I absolutely don't see the point in playing so many games. It seems to me that a game is enjoyable when you can follow the flow of the game as it's happening rather than waiting weeks to play a move. Even if I could play 300 moves, I'd want to play 10 moves in 30 games, not 1 move in 300.

Just my 2c :)

LOL@Backoff, only 40-50 chess games!? Me thinks you need a blindfold too! :-)

Jason: No one wants to take that away from you. We just want a way to get what many of us want as well, and that's a way to avoid being forced to wait for days for each move. Our frustration is the same as yours would be if you were forced to move quicker than you wanted.

maple. some people have to work ...so only move when they can ...i for one dont want a percentage of time against my moves ...i move when i want as much as i want . what a pointless idea...

I wonder how a "Game Timeout" would work...hmmm
If there is no winner when the game "Times Out" then BK decides the winner. Whoever spent the most time waiting to move, loses.

LMAO, I get trashed more than I do the thrashing :O Most games I play to be playing them, because I like them, not because I'm good at them. There's only two games I take my time in and that's chess and corner chess, I try to only have 40 or 50 chess games going at once, everything else I'll play as many as possible. Example, Line 4. It only takes about 30 seconds to 1 min MAX to study the board and make a move, where as in chess, I spend at least 5 mins on each game.

I only like a few games at once and prefer them to move along at a reasonable pace. It is hard for me to play chess one move per week as I forget everything I was thinking and/or planning. I put 7 days per move to protect against unforseen events, not because I only want to make one move a week. I think I am by no means alone in this. We do not all share your ability to thrash 200 players simultaneously. :-)

or how about the people with paid memberships just don't worry about it because you can play as many games as you want to so it dosn't matter long long it takes someone to move.

yes, that is the correct way to determine average moves per day per game (per game type). This could be factored, for instance, over a 3 month period to reflect a players current habits.

average moves per day per game is a good idea.

Grenv, I'm only 24, quite far from being retired, but I still make 200-300 moves a day.

Tournament that would only let a person with (lets say 50 or less games) in is not really a solution - since I know players who have 200+ games, and play very very fast. I know some who have 10 games, and play very very slow.

Suggestion:

I would like to see tournaments where you can choose it to be a "SPEEDY" tournament - that is no vacations, and no weekend days are allowed. That way, 2 days means 2 days.

I suggested showing a persons "average moves per day per game" on their profile page next to BKR. When creating a game, or tournament, a range could be specified in the same way as BKR.

i am constantly in tournaments where everyone but one finishes in a few days and the one takes 3 weeks per move and we never finish. I don't know of a way to prevent this from happening. Even setting the limit to 2 days seems to be circumvented by vacations.
Perhaps a tournament option to not allow vacations would work? ugh.

Perhaps when I retire I will have time to play 300. It would seem that there is diminishing returns after 100 or so, wouldn't you always have a move to make with 100 games going? I have never exceeded about 50 so I don't really know, but even at that level I was rarely left waiting to make a move.

yea we have that, just let pawns and knights play. I personlly just got under 200 games and that's very low for me. After I get most of my chess games completed I'll go back up to 300 of so becuase games like spider line 4 or backgammon I'll get online with someone and complete the whole game in under an hour. Heck in one tournament the other day, half the games where completed in less than 2 hours after it started.

Personally I think 6 weeks is too much. How many people actually have 6 weeks where they can't get to a computer?

One request: When setting up a tournament I'd like to be able to set a limit on current games. For instance: Only players with fewer than 50 unfinished games, or something like that.
:-)

not everyone who plays during vacation days are out to mess with things...

So Caissus - you would rather no games be played, then some games be played?

I know for myself, i come to this game site to have fun. And if I know after I get off work, I'll be going hot-air ballooning or something, I'll put myself on a vacation day. I will still try to log on while at work, or possible after ballooning - that way i can still enjoy a few games.

A vacation day is a vacation day. it is meant to be used any way you want. And if you want to spend part of your "vacation" on the computer playing games, well it is your vacation do what you like. :-)

The vacation days get used up so it's not a major problem, is it?

But this is not the sense of a vacation day! The sense of a vacation day is if you are completely! not at the server for one or more days!

If you have no time to play you have two good possibilities:
you can play fewer games or games with more time per day.
But to use vacation days and even so to play again (without running time) is abuse!

Sometimes if I know I can't make many moves in one day, but still would like to come here and make a few moves for about 10 minutes before I have to leave - I would hate to not be able to.

Either way, a vacation day would be used. It would just be a bonus for the people who want games played faster if games can be played while on vacation.

Some time before we have discussed that people sometimes are playing their games although they have vacation days. Now I have seen this issue at another chessserver.

If a player wants to make a move during his vacation days a message appears:
"You are in vacation at the moment,and if you make a move the vacation is finished automatically".

But if the vacation days are finished the time runs again for all the games of the player.
So it could be prevented,that people take their vacation days only to extend the time for some of their games.

I like that idea too Ug... Stay in the games waiting after accepting an open invitation...

I want a Pinto just like Tonto's horse!!!

......and I'd like a Pony, Fencer....seeing as how you are in such a giveing mood .. :ř)

Sorry Sir, one more thing. After accepting a game from the waiting room I'd like to be returned to the waiting room rather than my main page.

Thanks.

Okay, no problem.

At the top of the waiting games box, similar to the figure above the active games box.

Where should such figure be displayed?

I know but I have to count them to see how many they are (I think) could I have a figure such as exists with my active games?

Aha. Scroll down to the bottom of Main Page, you will see your own waiting games :-)

1) Thanks
2) I meant my own waiting games.

Sure. But the total waiting games figure is still displayed next to the Waiting Games link.

When viewing a members profile would it be possible to see their waiting games? Also it would be nice to have a total waiting games figure on my main page, please.

Kinda makes sense. I personally move as many times as possible in games like backgammon or checkers, but because of the amount of time involved in chess or corner chess, I may only make 15 or 20 moves in these games per day.