WinBoard

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WinBoard is a graphical user interface for the Chess Engine Communication Protocol under the Windows operating system, also called the WinBoard protocol, initially designed and developed by Tim Mann based on XBoard. In 2009, Harm Geert Muller became the main developer and proposed a protocol definition, also covering Chess Variants with different board sizes.

=Screenshot= WinBoard 4.4.0 running GNU Chess]

=Quotes= Tim Mann's quote from an Interview by Frank Quisinsky, April 2000 : Originally, xboard and WinBoard were simply graphical user interfaces for GNU Chess, then for GNU Chess and Internet chess servers. Because the GUI and the chess engine are separate programs, several people thought of the idea of connecting their own chess programs in place of GNU Chess, and they began to email me asking how to do it. I think the first person to ask was Shay Bushinsky, in November 1994. Over the years I received so many requests for this information that I was more or less forced into documenting and extending the ad-hoc engine protocol to support them. The document that exists now (chess-engines.html) evolved directly from the original email reply I sent to Shay. Unfortunately, because the protocol was never really designed, but just grew out of documenting the existing communication with GNU Chess, there are still several bugs and deficiencies in it today. It would be nice to make some major revisions, but then of course it would (at best) take a long time for the existing engines to convert over to the new protocol, so both would have to be supported, probably forever.

=Chess protocols= Winboard supports only Chess Engine Communication Protocol. However, UCI's chess engines can run with Winboard via some adapters such as PolyGlot, UCI2WB ones.

=Pros and Cons= Winboard was the first-ever and unique for a while chess graphical user interface with good and very fast graphics, various functions, almost enough for general users. However, some users criticize it since it does not support directly UCI's chess engines as well as it has old-style, complicated and hard to use interface. Not supporting directly UCI engines is a huge disadvantage since almost all new and/or strong chess engines nowadays are UCI ones. It is also the main reason why recently there are so few computer chess tournaments using Winboard as a Tournament Manager even it has enough functions to do that task.

=See also=
 * Chess Engine Communication Protocol
 * CPW-Engine_com
 * PolyGlot
 * Tournament Manager
 * UCI
 * WinBoard Engines
 * XBoard

=Forum Posts=

1990 ...

 * Re: Accessing remote computers with WinBoard by Tim Mann, gnu.chess, November 7, 1993

1995 ...

 * XBoard and WinBoard 3.4, patchlevel 1 by Tim Mann, rec.games.board, December 13 1995
 * Problems with Winboard - fix?? by Valavan Manohararajah, rgcc, June 6 1996
 * XBoard and WinBoard, version 3.6.0 by Tim Mann, rgc, May 09, 1997
 * xboard/WinBoard 4.0.0 available by Tim Mann, rgc, June 21, 1998
 * WinBoard and pondering under W98 by Frank Phillips, CCC, July 28, 1999 » Pondering

2000 ...

 * Winboard for Dummies by Russell Reagan, rgcc, June 30, 2001
 * xboard and WinBoard 4.2.4 released by Tim Mann, gnu.chess, December 10, 2001
 * Winboard.debug by David Rasmussen, CCC, December 07, 2002 » Debugging
 * New Winboard version 4.3.0 released by Daniel Mehrmann, CCC, February 05, 2003
 * Daniel's Winboard: kibitzing? by David Rasmussen, CCC, February 05, 2003
 * Kiwi for Win98 and input-reading stuff by Alessandro Scotti, CCC, September 29, 2004 » Kiwi, Windows, C++, Thread

2005 ...

 * Safe I/O (repeated) by Fabien Letouzey, Winboard Forum, February 11, 2005
 * A question about kibitz by Niyaz Khasanov, Winboard Forum, February 18, 2005
 * CPU usage at 505 in Winboard Engine by mjlef, Winboard Forum, July 19, 2006
 * WinBoard 4.3 Downloads by Harm Geert Muller, Winboard Forum, August 23, 2008
 * A Basic Guide for setting up Winboard a UCI Chess Engine by Charles Browne, Winboard Forum, 01 Nov 2008
 * It's a plague of Winboard engines by Kirill Kryukov, Winboard Forum, August 20, 2009 » Time Management
 * UCI protocol in winboard by Engin Üstün, Winboard Forum, September 24, 2009 » Chess Engine Communication Protocol, UCI
 * Adapter for non-standard chess engine to Winboard by Carey, CCC, October 10, 2009
 * winboard engine config popup by Will Singleton, Winboard Forum, November 19, 2009

2010 ...
2011 2012 2013 2014
 * WinBoard & Chessclub.com by Thomas Mayer, Winboard Forum, January 25, 2010
 * Aquarium (other GUIs too?) and WB support => I am shocked by Miguel A. Ballicora, CCC, February 27, 2010
 * Multiple WinBoard installations by Robert Pope, Winboard Forum, August 17, 2010
 * WinBoard, exotic version by Harm Geert Muller, CCC, January 15, 2011
 * WinBoard 4.5 downloads by Harm Geert Muller, Winboard Forum, February 06, 2011
 * WinBoard protocol driver by Harm Geert Muller, Winboard Forum - Chess Programming Lessons, April 30, 2011
 * ics command by Matt McKnight, Winboard Forum, May 18, 2011
 * WinBoard 4.5.3 released by Harm Geert Muller, CCC, October 02, 2011
 * Winboard questions by Günther Simon, Winboard Forum, January 26, 2012
 * Winboard bloated? by tomgdrums, Rybka Forum, February 20, 2012
 * XBoard / WinBoard 4.6.0 released by Harm Geert Muller, CCC, March 11, 2012
 * Winboard and braille display by Olivier Deville, Winboard Forum, July 12, 2012
 * Winboard/Java help by Dan Honeycutt, CCC, April 22, 2012 » Java
 * For HGM: Engine priority under Winboard/Polyglot by Joost Buijs, CCC, July 16, 2012
 * Winboard protocol and fractional increments by Jon Dart, CCC, September 25, 2012 » Time Management
 * Tool to recreate PGN from winboard.debug? by Sven Schüle, CCC, January 01, 2013 » Portable Game Notation
 * WinBoard 4.7.0 released (with CCT support!) by Harm Geert Muller, CCC, February 21, 2013 » CCT15
 * WinBoard 4.7.2 released by Harm Geert Muller, CCC, August 29, 2013
 * Any WinBoard bugs I missed? by Harm Geert Muller, CCC, September 11, 2014
 * for Chess-variant authors by Harm Geert Muller, CCC, September 17, 2014
 * WinBoard 4.8.0 pre-release by Harm Geert Muller, CCC, September 22, 2014
 * WinBoard/XBoard 4.8.0 released by Harm Geert Muller, CCC, October 18, 2014
 * UCCI2WB by Harm Geert Muller, CCC, October 27, 2014

2015 ...
2016 2017 2018 2020...
 * Setting up engines by Dan-the-K, Winboard Forum, October 08,2015
 * Winboard 4.8.0b and Amazon chess variant by Ferdinand Mosca, CCC, December 05, 2015
 * Engines with interfaces for slightly nerdish people by Peter Berger, CCC, February 26, 2016
 * Einstein wuerfelt nicht by Harm Geert Muller, CCC, July 03, 2016 » EinStein würfelt nicht!
 * Weird Windows / WinBoard behavior by Harm Geert Muller, CCC, September 15, 2016 » Process, Windows
 * Winboard book settings by Erin Dame, CCC, October 20, 2016 » Opening Book
 * MinGW AlphaBlend by Harm Geert Muller, CCC, November 29, 2016 » 2D Graphics Board, Windows
 * Polyglot pickBest by Dennis Sceviour, CCC, December 29, 2016 » PolyGlot
 * Novag UCB drivers (Winboard and UCI) by Graham O'Neill, CCC, February 24, 2017 » Novag Universal Electronic Chess Board
 * Winboard variants online by Erin Dame, CCC, March 22, 2017 » Chess Variants
 * Winboard questions by Ed Schroder, CCC, June 26, 2017
 * Winboard: Resigning? by Rasmus Althoff, CCC, June 27, 2017
 * about using winboard by Uri Blass, CCC, February 25, 2018
 * UCI vs Winboard question by Michael Sherwin, CCC, March 05, 2018 » UCI
 * Re: What GUI you use and why? by Harm Geert Muller, CCC, July 1, 2020
 * How to pass UCI parameters to Xboard? by Gautam Buddha, CCC, July 21, 2020

=External Links=

Free Software Foundation

 * XBoard - GNU Project also includes WinBoard
 * What is new in WinBoard / XBoard 4.6.0?
 * XBoard tourney-manager function » Tournament Manager
 * What is new in WinBoard / XBoard 4.7.0?
 * What is new in WinBoard / XBoard 4.8.0?
 * What is new in WinBoard / XBoard 4.9.0?

Tim Mann & H.G. Muller

 * Chess Engine Communication Protocol by Tim Mann & H.G. Muller
 * hgm.nubati.net Git - xboard.git/summary
 * What is new in XBoard/WinBoard 4.9.0? by H.G. Muller
 * Tim Mann's Chess Pages, XBoard and WinBoard

WiBoard Misc

 * XBoard from Wikipedia
 * Tinkering with Winboard... by Alessandro Scotti
 * Winboard/XBoard UML state diagram by Alessandro Scotti
 * Lyapko George's WinBoard related page (outdated) by George Lyapko
 * FAQ on Winboard and Chess Engines by Aaron Tay, hosted by Ron Murawski
 * What can Winboard do? by Aaron Tay, March 01, 2002, hosted by Ron Murawski
 * Winboard and Chess Engines FAQ from Ron Murawski's Computer-Chess Wiki
 * Winboard from Ron Murawski's Computer-Chess Wiki
 * Winboard Forum
 * WinBoard development and bugfixing Forum

=References=

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