Best 2012 chess GUI ?

[hgm]

Well, see it as a poll for the number 2 then!

[Adam Hair]

No XBoard?
No XBoard-GTK?
Not even the 'normal' WinBoard?

Here is a write-in vote for the best GUI of 2012:

[hgm]

And one from me for the 4.7.beta version (using the ChessMark / Wood Rim theme).

[IGarcia]

And one from me for the 4.7.beta version (using the ChessMark / Wood Rim theme).

Scid in action:




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[carldaman]

If the main criteria is running engine matches on your computer, I'd vote for ChessGUI. With better graphics in the works soon, it should be totally awesome. Other GUI's have many things going for them, too, let's not forget, and I can't say I dislike them.

There's no mention of ChessPartner at all.
If your main gig is running an engine account on ICC or FICS, then there's nothing better, hands-down. It's good for sparring vs your favorite engines, as it sports a really attractive board and pieces. Forget running local engine vs engine matches on it, however, as you'll soon regret it.

Winboard is also easy on the eyes, and we may see upcoming improvements here, too. If you just enjoy sitting there watching engines play each other live, I recommend WB, Fritz and Arena.

Shredder Classic is sparring-friendly, as is the Fritz GUI, WB and Arena.

For serious study/analysis purposes and opening preparation, I recommend CB/Fritz. On the other hand, if you have a lot of time on your hands, and like to fiddle with advanced features, then CA/Aquarium may be the best thing to have. It's got the most powerful deep analysis functionality (IDeA), but the non-intuitive layout and hard-to-follow documentation makes it really hard to learn/use properly.

Regards,
CL

[velmarin]

The fact is that we all use in the gun almost every time.

For official testers or serious ChessGui is best.

I'm decanting by Fritz.
A party of one minute per side in Arena takes almost four minutes to complete,
The same more or less in the other GUIs.
Fritz fails to two minutes and a few seconds.
At least in Windows Fritz is superfast, even 10 seconds game no lag.

Also I like to watch the games, and graphics also seems superior Fritz.

[hgm]

I don't get it. With 1 min/side sudden-death a game should never take more than 2 min. Also not 10 sec more. In WinBoard/XBoard it would surely not take more than 2 min before one of the engines is flagged.

How do you conclude Fritz has no lag? Did you use the GUI timing kit to time-stamp the sending of a move and the arrival of that move at the opponent?

[velmarin]

I don't get it. With 1 min/side sudden-death a game should never take more than 2 min. Also not 10 sec more. In WinBoard/XBoard it would surely not take more than 2 min before one of the engines is flagged.

How do you conclude Fritz has no lag? Did you use the GUI timing kit to time-stamp the sending of a move and the arrival of that move at the opponent?

I have to admit that I have not given much time to test Winboard.

I have to try, you probably is right.
My tests are almost always 1 minute ponder on.
And I like to watch from time to time.

Try Winboard, I promise.

[Ponti]

Winboard is "Xboard for Windows".

The latest release in the family is Winboard Zeta, so I added it to the list.

I agree that Chess Partner is a good GUI, but it is not updated regularly. I use it rarely, most of the times to play against Prodeo new versions.

A complete list should include other not so popular GUIs, or the old ones:
- Jose
- Chess Academy 7 (complete training tool!)
- Chess Genius (great engine... good 3D)
- Rebel DOS (I love that!)
- ...

[enhorning]

Winboard is "Xboard for Windows".

The latest release in the family is Winboard Zeta, so I added it to the list.

I thought Zeta was a spin-off and not part of the main Winboard family (where the latest would be either 4.6.2 or 4.7.0beta)?