Arena
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Arena,
a free Graphical User Interface for Chess Engine Communication Protocol and UCI compatible engines running under Windows, and since November 2016 Linux [2], developed by Martin Blume [3]. The development started in 2001/2002 motivated and initiated by WinBoard aficionado Frank Quisinsky. The Arena team, soon maintaining their own website and support forum, was advanced by Christopher Conkie, Michael Diosi and a lot of other people for Language translation and Opening Book support, for instance Harry Schnapp, Đorđe Vidanović, Carlos Pesce and Dann Corbit to name a few mentioned on the Arena site [4] . They initially set up an Arena Security Area for registered download of the GUI and the bundled Arena partner engines. In 2004 there was an attempt by Frank Quisinsky within the Gladiator-Shop to commercialize Arena bundled with engines such as Ruffian [5], Patriot [6] and Ktulu [7] . The Gladiator project was abandoned after suspicions that the new Patriot 2.0 was based on Fruit [8] became substantial in May 2005 [9]. Arena 3.5.1 is the recent version which was available from the Arena download site.
Partner Engines
Features
A brief summary
- ABK - Arena's book format
- Algebraic Chess Notation
- Playing and analyzing chess games
- Configurable Interface
- Detailed information thinking process
- DGT Chessboard and DGT clock XP
- Engine Testing
- Extended Position Description (EPD)
- Chess960 (Fischer Random Chess)
- Forsyth-Edwards Notation (FEN)
- Gaviota Tablebases
- Internet Chess Server
- Portable Game Notation (PGN)
- Printing
- Support of 19 languages for the GUI
- Support of Novag Citrine
- Tournament Manager
- UCI protocol I, II
- WinBoard protocol I, II
- Windows Clipboard for Games and Positions
Team Issues
By August 2005, presumably after issues to commercialize Arena, Quisinsky left the team [10] . In retrospect he explains his reasoning in the German CSS Forum, January 30, 2010 [11] :
There were several reasons why I've pulled out of the project.
1st With their arena and proceed to the spread of computer chess, there were different perspectives on Martin and myself. For example, I had built up just before the break a lot of contacts with Asian firms. Stupid was that some truth in both views was. So I realized that not enough time to implement, for example, my future goals. The team was too small. My own goals fell into a tailspin. But I want to write anything. Probably it would have been so but now that we have had in about 3-5 million downloads, computer chess world would have had a higher level of awareness. 2nd Added to this was that I no longer even afford the time could. His time a new job, etc.. Also stole a lot of time useless. The forum was argued only the administration and robbed continually important time. Martin also saw the way other members was unfortunately not in the team for the Forum sacred. But in a small team must be set Prios. 3rd What turned me off that everyone helped himself without asking. His term discussions in chess talk. Even the administrators of chess talk did not intervene. Arena was or is indeed freeware, but for future releases should be asked. We wanted to know who uses the Arena and whether our interests are safeguarded so. I had no interest in that the good reputation of the very hard work had gone before, is not ruined by the people involved. So it was that time in the copyrights that require approval of a further publication. Freeware is not necessarily just because a program is freely available. 4th I really dislike it, the arena team that captured people like Christopher Conkie, Arena used to fighten against other programs. It was not in my interest in using other software developers arena to point out any errors. Arena has to focus on the development itself and not on other programs. Sun came slowly but surely also a shame to the reputation of the project in danger for me and my name was on a long term. Unsubscribe private wars under the flag arena ... I absolutely refused. Under these circumstances, I did my time no longer provide. Thus, on my website texts that I had added, deleted, even by Christopher Conkie. That went too far for me. As Martin, with whom I was coping very well, not relenting was ... I thought, well now Martin will be happy with Christopher Conkie. If you support these activities around arena, but not together with me please. Eventually, Martin was certainly very disappointed but we were not together anymore ... probably noticed ... without which we would now argue, etc.. We also have no contact. 3x've tried to contact him but he responds to recover any of my e-mails. And the Arena GUI itself: For me, this program is in the midst of development. The many ideas are still far from complete. I look at arena with different eyes than perhaps a user who is satisfied with the features comes up with the current arena. Insofar as I can with the program on time, in this state, not make friends more and avoid arena ... only see a construction site when I would start arena. Also due to the fact that I have sooo much time invested. Thus ends at some point once a team work, which has raised such a popular project. Greeting Frank |
Illegal Hosting
Despite free software, the Arena team demands downloads from their own site and combats illegal hosting [12] of the GUI, the engines as well as their Web content. That also refers to interviews with programmers, which were copied even without citing the original source. Over the years they suffered not only from illegal hosting but during the time also from attacking their site. Their former ExactaChess site is closed now, the new site appeared in January 2011. However, it is not appropriate for the current Arena support team around Michael Diosi to attract attention by offensive public statements against their commercial and free software competitors [13] [14] [15] , to defame people from Eastern European countries for not citing the source [16], and to react on the other side oversensitive after Harm Geert Muller used the phrase To each his own [17] concerning the number of hits of the Arena site, as mentioned by Diosi [18] .
See also
Forum Posts
2002 ...
- New and free WinBoard and UCI GUI "Arena" by Martin Blume (Germany) ... by Frank Quisinsky, CCC, January 04, 2002
- Arena 0.76 Beta 2 is available ... by Frank Quisinsky, CCC, March 03, 2002
- schmutzig, schmutzig... by Marcus Kästner, ChessBits Forum, July 26, 2002 (German)
- Arena 0.90 by Martin Blume is available! by Frank Quisinsky, CCC, October 02, 2002
- Arena 0.949-b6 released has been released by Michael Diosi, CCC, October 30, 2003
- Arena 1.0 / Ruffian 2.0 ... information! by Frank Quisinsky, CCC, November 21, 2003
- Arena 1.0 released ... by Frank Quisinsky, Winboard Forum, November 27, 2003
- Arena 1.02 / ELChinito 3.25 available ... by Frank Quisinsky, CCC, December 23, 2003
- Arena 1.08 with UCI II support available in ASA ... by Frank Quisinsky, CCC, April 08, 2004
- Second try: Arena 1.1 release information ... by Frank Quisinsky, CCC, December 09, 2004
- Arena 1.1 by Christopher Conkie, CCC, December 17, 2004
- What is new in Arena 1.1 GUI and what now ... by Frank Quisinsky, CCC, December 18, 2004
2005 ...
- for the arena team (Christopher Conkie) by Eduard Nemeth, CCC, January 02, 2005
- Arena and UCI commands by Josué Forte, Winboard Forum, April 30, 2005
- iBase+ 2.0 for Arena Released by Michael Diosi, CCC, January 02, 2006
- Arena 1.99 Beta 2 is available for download... by Christopher Conkie, CCC, January 20, 2006
- Arena 2.0 released by Michael Diosi, Chess Knowledge Base, December 24, 2008
- Arena "sd=9999" by Richard Allbert, CCC, February 24, 2009
2010 ...
- Arena 3.0 available by Michael Diosi, CCC, December 24, 2010
- Arena future development.../Proposals ? by Michael Diosi, CCC, January 05, 2011
- Arena/Interviews by Michael Diosi, CCC, February 23, 2011
- Arena plans... by Michael Diosi, CCC, February 23, 2011
- No.. by Michael Diosi, CCC, March 19, 2011
- ... using Arena by Matthias Gemuh, CCC, August 20, 2011 » Arena
- Problem with UCI engines hash in Arena by Carl Langan, CCC, December 26, 2012 » UCI
- Psst... by Michael Diosi, CCC, January 04, 2013
- Arena 3.5 is out by Tony Mokonen, CCC, January 02, 2014
- Arena 3.5 by Michael Diosi, CCC, January 02, 2014
- Arena 3.5: No Adjudicated TB ending? by Rob Nicholas, CCC, January 02, 2014
- Help with Arena issue by Daniel Sparks, CCC, February 19, 2014
2015 ...
- Arena 3.5.1 - Autoplayer by Krzysztof Grzelak, CCC, March 01, 2016
- Getting engines to use TBs in Arena by Brendan J. Norman, CCC, July 19, 2016 » Endgame Tablebases
- Arena for Linux by Jesse Gersenson, CCC, November 15, 2016 » Linux
- How to use Arena book? by P. Kumar, CCC, February 01, 2017 » ABK
- Arena 1.1 for Linux by Arnaud lohéac, CCC, February 06, 2017
- Advice on how to use Arena GUI for engine-engine matches by Erfuk Neuni, CCC, March 04, 2018
- Arena website down >= 48 hrs by Carl Lumma, CCC, February 24, 2019
- Re: Arena website down >= 48 hrs by Mike S., CCC, February 28, 2019
External Links
GUI
- Arena Chess GUI - Welcome to Arena [19])
- A first look at Arena? by Aaron Tay, hosted by Ron Murawski's Computer-Chess Wiki, June 23, 2002
Misc
References
- ↑ Arena Chess GUI - Welcome to Arena
- ↑ Arena for Linux, November 12, 2016
- ↑ Arena Chess GUI 3.0 - Archive 10 | 154 Martin Blume Interview by Michael Diosi, December 21, 2007 (German)
- ↑ Arena Chess GUI 3.0 - People Involved
- ↑ Ruffian 2.1.0 ... by Frank Quisinsky, CCC, February 09, 2004
- ↑ After Ruffian now the second project clear for take off (Patriot) ... by Frank Quisinsky, CCC, March 27, 2004
- ↑ Ktulu 5.0 by Rahman Paidar (Iran) available in Gladiator-Shop tomorrow! by Frank Quisinsky, CCC, May 01, 2004
- ↑ Re: Sorry Vladimir but this is what I see... by Christopher Conkie, CCC, May 09, 2005
- ↑ Patriot 2.0 Revealed as a Clone! by Nog, CCC, May 04, 2005
- ↑ News in Arena Forum by Ómar Skúlason, CCC, August 02, 2005
- ↑ ChessBase Deep Shredder 12 Bericht online ... by Frank Quisinsky, CSS Forum, January 30, 2010 (German) translated with Google Translate
- ↑ Illegal Arena hosting... by Michael Diosi, CCC, March 20, 2011
- ↑ Fritz 12 available by Michael Diosi, CCC, September 25, 2009
- ↑ Any improvement in Fritz 12 behaviour ? by Michael Diosi, CCC, September 25, 2009
- ↑ CheesBase 11 by Michael Diosi, CCC, September 19, 2010
- ↑ Re: Scandalous ! by Michael Diosi, CCC, February 24, 2011
- ↑ Re: People who detected several clones in the pat not even asked by H.G.Muller, CCC, July 03, 2011
- ↑ Re: People who detected several clones in the pat not even asked by Michael Diosi, CCC, July 03, 2011
- ↑ Re: Arena website down >= 48 hrs by gerhard, CCC, February 28, 2019