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press an illegal from or to square, an incorrect piece or color, or an
invalid game key.
If you press an illegal to square, the display will simply continue to
indicate the square the piece came from. To continue, move your
piece to a legal square. If you press a from square, but decide not to
make that move, press that same square again to cancel the input. If
you change your mind after entering your whole move, retract the
move as described in Section 6.
2.4 Check, Mate, and Draw
Whenever a King is in check, the computer will display Check
briefly after the move is made. If the computer discovers a forced
mate, it will briefly show a mate announcement (e.g., Mate in 3).
When a game ends in checkmate, the computer will either congratu-
late you or express its condolences, depending on whether you’ve
won or lost. A display of Checkmate! will then end the game.
The computer recognizes draws by stalemate, three-fold repetition,
and the 50-move rule. In each of these cases, the corresponding
display will be shown after the drawing move has been made.
2.5 Try the Self-Rating System!
Whenever you play on any of the Tournament Levels, the computer
will provide you with an approximate ELO rating after the game has
ended, based on your performance. Not sure what a “rating” is? It’s a
universally recognized method of measuring chess performance or
describing relative playing ability. The international body which
governs chess is called FIDE, or
Fédération Internationale des
Échecs,
and FIDE ratings are sometimes referred to as ELO ratings.
The United States Chess Federation (USCF) uses a similar rating
system. Ratings are usually four-digit numbers, with stronger players
having higher ratings. Towards the upper end of the scale, Masters
rank in at 2200 and above, with International Grandmasters at 2500+.
Want to know where you stand? Here’s your chance! Refer to Section
5.3 for more information on the Tournament Levels.
2.6 Want a Hint? Just Ask!
If you ever need help with a move, the computer will be glad to
oblige! Press HINT/INFO during your turn, and the computer will
display a move suggestion. If the hint happens to be e4xd5, for
example, Ply 1: e4xd5 will be displayed. A “ply” is an individual
move, or a move for either side. The hint can take from one to five