Judging by some of the moves I've made so far you're programming skills leave much to be desired ;) :rotfl:

Maybe these skills will serve your taste better:

Your last: 18. .../Nc6-a5
My move 19. Nc3-d5

Probably the most obvious move of all possible. But I think, the other options are not really "weaker". Just don't want to breed over this position the whole night, so I pick the simpe path and do the most obvious move.

http://img53.imageshack.us/img53/1303/pos18yy.jpg

What is better in these chess threads: the matches, or the grim humour and laconic comments? :lol:

S'all part of the game, isn't it? ;)

Why aren't you joining, then? ;) There is time enough.

Your last: 19. Nc3-d5
My move: 19... Be7xf6

Your last: 19. .../Be7xf6 wrong move!!! :hulk:
My move: 20. Qb3-d3

Playing chess is a nice way to boost your post counter, btw :lol:

http://img301.imageshack.us/img301/2348/pos19dl.jpg

Your move: 20. Qb3-d3
My move: 20... Qf5-e5

I think I stopped playing correct ones a while back ;)

I certainly have no intention to disagree here :lol: Again, I only need to react. It seems I only have good moves left :D A hard choice, really. As I said, I will do a computer-based analysis of the match, and I wonder what Mr. HAL will have to say on this position, and one or two others, and what moves he will list to be acceptable.

I plan to get Hiarcs 10 later this week, it has a sharper 3D board with the German "Bundesform" figures and is said to have paired it's traditional strategic and positional strengths with the tactical strengths and deeper calculation depth of "fast breeders" like Fritz, who are more Brute Force oriented.

Currently thinking on Bg2, Re1 and Be4. but it seesm that all three moves will be found in all three variations sooner or later :lol: Will be back later this evening.

When I used to annotate (some) of my games I used Crafty as a check for any tactical combinations either side might have made (and to see if the ones that were made might have been refuted) but that freeware engine pales next to Hiarcs and Fritz (though it suited its purpose well enough) which are the state of the art. The nice thing I liked about Crafty was that Chessbase accepted it as a "plugin" so I could do everything in one database. I suspect my old Chessbase 7 (which I have somewhere on cd - i have yet to reinstall it on the new PC though I really should) is a little out of date now but still a useful tool.

To my surprise I learned two weeks ago, that the SSDF ranking is no longer dominated by chessbase-engines like Fritz or shredder, but two independent engine: Fruit, and an engine called Rubky or Rybuk or something like that, which currently is number 1. Only Hiarcs (who has done an incredible jump on the ELO scale, compared to version 9) is up to their level, currently. But I do not know both engines. Fruit also does not run under chessbase surface, so I will not try it anyway. Rybuk - maybe later in the year, the latest version is not free.

Back to our entertaining execution :smug: I decided again on the most opbvious move, doubling my firepower, and blocking your line of sight a bit. But any of the other moves, I think would not do any more good or harm in this position.

Your last 20. .../Qf5-e5
My move: Bf3-e4

I think Bg2 is well, too. Or Re1. Maybe even b4, but it is a little bit too distracting from what I am after.

http://img135.imageshack.us/img135/8416/pos19gn.jpg

Chess is the ultimate game for suffering... :lol:

Cheers Porphy

Your last: Bf3-e4
My move: h7-h6

Its not over yet, I'm only down the pawn I sac'd ;)

Hm, do we use tournament rules here or do we play for fun? Maybe this is considered to be unpolite or arrogant, that is why I ask, but let's clear this question at this opportunity, for all future matches to come:

You might want to reconsider your last move, maybe? It's a great mistake that will be followed by an enforced sequence of moves that lets you bleed ;) Would be a shame to let this nice match down that way!

I play by tournament rules where a move once made cannot be taken back. I subscribe to the view that takebacks only promote sloppy chess and its in the making of them and being punished for them that we become better players... thus it falls to you now to prove my error by meting out punishment accordingly ;)