SchemingMind.com Knowledge Base

Getting Started

I am new and I have a question about SchemingMind.com, Who can I ask?

Click 'Community>Forums>New Player Forum'. You can read previously asked questions and post your own there. If you are still playing a welcome game, you could also try asking your site guide in the game chat.

How do I start a game of chess?

First, you need to find an opponent! - If you know who you want to play against, then you can use the search page (Players>Search Player Database). Enter the first few letters of their name and click the 'Search Now' button. If you want the system to select an opponent for you at random, then click 'My games>Suggest Opponent', enter the variant you want to play and the rating of the player you want to challenge (optional) and click 'Suggest'. Once you have found a player's profile page, you can...

How do I challenge a particular player to a game?

There are several ways to issue game challenges. If you have a game already in progress with that player, you can simply open that game (by clicking 'My Games > Current Games' and then selecting that game from the list) and then clicking your opponent’s name from the header information at the top of the history tab on the game page. (If you just completed a game with that player, you can click 'My Games > Completed Games'.) Clicking the player's name anywhere in Scheming Mind will take you to t...

How do I enter a move?

You can enter a move on the game page in two ways: You can type the move into the small box in the area under the game board. For the server to recognise your move, it must be in coordinate notation (i.e. E2-E4), or, You can click the 'from' and the 'to' square with your mouse - this will enter the move automatically in the correct box. You can also enter a message to your opponent with your move - type this in the large box at the bottom of the screen. Remember, you need to click th...

What are conditional moves?

Sometimes a move sequence is forced or expected (for example in agreed openings, or forced endgames). You can save time by suggesting a line of moves to your opponent who has one chance to accept this line of play. By doing so, you save having to wait for each other to make several obvious moves. To make conditional moves both players need to have the option enabled in their personal preferences. If they are available an extra option appears on the game page when it is not your turn to move. I...

None of my opponents are replying to my moves, why not?

Remember that this is correspondence chess - it is normal for games to take weeks or months to complete. But sometimes people do leave the site mid-game. You could try using the private message system to send your opponent a message, or wait until the time runs out and then abandon the game (if five or less full moves have been made) or claim a win. You can see how active your opponent is before you start a game - each players profile page shows you when they were last active and how many moves...

How do the time controls work?

SchemingMind uses 'incremental' time controls; this means that you start a game with a fixed amount of time and for each move you make, an increment is added to your clock. The 'standard' time control used on the site is 30+1 (thirty days, plus one day added for each move). Other time controls used are Blitz (5+12h), Fast (10+1) and Leisure (30+3). You can specify which of these four time controls you would like to play from your 'Challenge Preferences' page. Each game you play is allocated a ...

What if I want to take a holiday (vacation)?

Just before you go away, you need to go to the holiday page (My Details > Holidays). On that page you should check the check box and press the button (optionally you can enter a comment in the text box). This will do a few things... It will 'freeze' the clocks in your currently running games until your return date It will add a message to each of your games It will prevent you from being shown in the 'suggest opponent' thing for one week It will prevent anyone from being able...

Is there a way to jump to the next waiting game after each move?

Yes, From the menu, select My Details > Personal Preferences. Then select what you want to do "After moving", and click save.

What are mini-tournaments?

Mini-tournaments are 'all-play-all' tournaments for three to ten players. Only full members of SchemingMind.com can start mini-tournaments, but standard members who are playing less than eight games can join them. There are two types of mini-tournament. 'Public' tournaments, which available for any player to join, and 'private' tournaments which are only available to the friends of the person who started the event (through their buddy list). A list of public mini-tournaments can be seen from t...

What do the green spots on the menu bar mean?

A green spot appears on the menu bar when there is an item below the highlighted menu which requires your attention. If you click the menu bar, the menu item is highlighted in bold. There are three kinds of alert: It's your move: The 'My Games>Current Games' menu is highlighted when there is a game in which it is your move. Clear this highlight by making the move. Private Messages: The 'Community>Private Messages' menu is highlighted to alert you that someone has sent you a private message. C...

What is Xfcc?

Xfcc (XML Web Services for Correspondence Chess) is a set of Internet protocols for sending Correspondence Chess data over the Internet, Xfcc was developed by Martin Bennedik and is an open standard so it may be used by any server. SchemingMind.com supports XfccBasic - allowing you to play your games using third party software. More details about Xfcc are available here: http://www.xfcc.org An Xfcc client program for Windows, written by Andres Valverde (the author of the popular correspondence...

I just made a blunder. Can I take back a move?

Sorry, it's not possible to take moves back on SchemingMind.com - think of it as being like the touch move in over the board chess!

Is there a list of the variants offered at Scheming Mind? Also, what are the rules for these variants?

The list and rules are under the 'Chess>Chess Variants' menu.

I tried to challenge somebody but it wouldn't let me, why not?

This can happen for several reasons. Are you over your game limit? If so, you can't issue a challenge. Full members can play an unlimited number of games, so you might consider subscribing to the site. Is your intended opponent over their game limit? If so, they can't accept a challenge. It's also possible you're attempting to challenge a member to a type of game they have selected to not play, or with time controls they don't want to use. You can check a player's chess variant preferences b...

Is there any way to see if a particular player is logged in to SchemingMind.com right now?

No, SchemingMind.com is a correspondence site - leave the player a message and they will respond in their own time.

What's the Buddy List for, and how do I use it?

Over time, you may find you enjoy playing certain players again and again. The buddy list gives you a place to keep track of their names. That way, when you want to challenge them to a game or send them a message, you have one short list to find them in. To add a player to your Buddy List, first, find that player's profile. Then, in the player profile table, scroll down (if necessary) to see the entry titled Buddy List. You can add or remove the player from your Buddy List by clicking add or rem...

Is there a way to search the SchemingMind.com forums?

Not at present, although there's a lot of stuff there that's hopelessly out of date anyway. If you can't find an answer to your question, feel free to ask in the forums anyway - if you're lucky you might get a sensible answer!

Can I make my moves from my mobile phone or PDA?

Yes, the mobile version of the site is at http://mobile.schemingmind.com This is a simplified version of the site, designed for mobile phones or other mobile devices - you can't start games or join tournaments, also variant play is limited, but it's handy for making a move in when you're on the train!

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