Wednesday, June 28, 2006

Monroi a new technology for recording chess games & tournaments!

Aloha,

Its been awhile since anyone placed any more information about Monroi. The World database is growing but for games to be added from a tournament a Personal Chess Manager (PCM) and a Professional Tournament Manager(PTM) & Monroi S/W are needed at the tournament in question. PCM's are not used by everyone and normally only few are currently used. It you look at the June 16 to 18 Las Vagas National Tournament, there is about 20 games at http://www.monroi.com per round so more than lightly there were 20 PCM's in use. The cost is probably a factor, but hopefully that will go down as Monroi becomes a more popular to be used in tournaments.

So to answer the question, what about the games that no PCM was used!? Well hopefully someone turned in the chess notataion sheet and then someone else will inputed into a computer and it will showup someday at Chessbase or other database. The World Database is only for those using the Monroi equipment both PCM and PTM and software. As any new system or equipment you got to start somewhere! And I'm sure more upgrades will be coming soon as Monroi becomes better known and then maybe another company may come up with a better system in the future or Monroi will keep improving their equipment.

For now the cheaper route is the good old pencil and paper, just be sure you have a pencil sharper handy and an eraser, and hope you do not get into time pressure and then not write the last few moves of a game.

Some players actually used both pencil and paper along side the Monroi PCM, just in case! See http://susanpolgar.blogs pot.com/2006_06_01_susanpolgar_archive.h tml

Has anyone in Hawaii used a Monroi PCM, not yet but that is about to change, will it appear on World database? Not yet no PTM was purchase, plus who would want to see my games anyway at this time!

Cost is the main issue, but if you have a laptop or computer at home, or PDA, and cell phone these devices were all costly too! They are used to communicate and their prices have come down a little. Monroi has an idea to make chess games more interesting for everyone and to share these games not just in a database on the Internet but in realtime! I observe Hawaii's State Champion from 97, 98, 99 play Kong Liang Deng (2478) at the Las Vegas event even though I was in Hawaii. I believe ICC was offering this as well for the top 10 boards where do you think they were getting the chess notataion for these games in progress!

As a chess instructor for beginner's to intermediate this new tool will assist me greatly, Mahalo Monroi!

By the way pencil and paper work fine at a personal level and I will be teaching chess notation always to my students!

Thursday, June 15, 2006

Windward Chess Club moves to Kailua District Park for 15 months!

Aloha Hawaii Chess Players,

Due to Windward Mall renovating the mall we were asked to move out of the mall! Unfortunally Kaneohe District Park also is being renovated and so they could not house us either, so Kailua District Park was kind enough to offer the space, trying my best to keep the meetings on Wednesday's since we have other Hawaii chess clubs that meet on other days of the week.

Windward Chess Club will be meeting at the Kailua District Park possibly for the next 15 months, we need you to come and support this club, so that the District Park sees there is indeed a large group of chess players that need a meeting place on the Windward side of the Island. Let others know we moved and check http://chess.meetup.com/9/events for location of Windward Chess Club (WCC) Wednesday meetings 5:30pm to 8:45pm as well as the summer chess classes at Palolo Tuesdays and Kailua on Mondays for begineer scholastic players.

The Kailua District Park meeting rooms are smaller, but if we show we can bring a larger group we may be able to get more space, so we need your support. No A/C just good ole Trade winds to keep us cool, bring your workout clothes, lots of other things to do at the Park, like start training for the Honolulu Marathon!!

WCC is the ONLY public chess club that offers CXR rated match games and Quads currently in Hawaii, For current Quad results go to http://www.windwardchess.org/Results.html. So if you do NOT see your name below, either you have not played in 61 days (to remain an "Active" players) or your membership expired, Scholastic $5, adults $12, see Frank Alejandro on how to renew! As you see CXR in not only a national club rating, its an International chess club rating, with Mexico and Canada in the rating picture as well!

Questions please email me or call!

And my question to you, if have your own chess club, why is it not listed?

For map follow this link http://chess.meetup.com/9/events

Like to play a another game besides chess WCC will also have nice wooden Go boards available for those interested in this game. So there you have another reason to come, Chess, Go and training your body for long games via sports of your choice at the Kaiilua District Park,

Mahalo,

Frank

Tuesday, June 06, 2006

Very important, please take poll at http://chess.meetup.com/9 concerning meeting location for Windward Chess Club! ASAP

Aloha Windward Chess Club (WCC) Players, parents, HCF board, and Friends,

http://chess.meetup.com/9 please take our location change poll at Meetup, ASAP!
Please let us know where you like WCC to meet to ensure you can come to the club! We have limited known possible locations. Due to the durations (15 MONTHS) I thought the district park at Kailua would be best and to keep it on Wednesdays or Tuesday's if we need to change the date. Also the main Kaneohe District park is preparing to go under renovations as well so we could not go there and they already have other events going on there on Wednesdays! Tuesdays conflict with the Pearlridge Chess Club, Monday with Honolulu Chess Club, and Thursday with the Mililani Chess Club for those that go there is as well!

I already have chess class (group) at Kailua on Mondays from 3:30pm to 5:00pm, so I know Kailua area has an interest in chess and many players do visit the Windward Chess Club on Wednesdays as well. this would encourage these players to come, plus its close to the beach and the rest of us can visit the beach before or after the chess meeting!

We have only two more meetings at Windward Mall (June 7 & 14) and so our first meeting away from the mall will be June 21. Right now I'm lobbying for Kaila District Park on Wednesdays 5:30pm to 8:30pm! But please take our poll and lets see what the majority say, if select another location that not listed please email ASAP with your suggestion!

Tomorrow night (June 7th) we will decided at our regular meeting as we are running out of time to find a new location!

Windward Mall has express an interest inviting us back on Sept 2007 when the renovations are over and this novation effects other activities at the mall not just the chess club. Please let the Windwared Malll we appreciated the last 4 1/2 years of playing chess at the mall and we hope to continue when the revocations are completed!

Mahalo,

Frank