KEYS AND FEATURES AT A GLANCE 1. PROTECTIVE COVER: Detachable, hinged lid keeps dust out and keeps pieces in place during travel. 2. BATTERY COMPARTMENT: In base of unit. Uses four "AA" (Type AM3/R6) alkaline batteries. 3. SENSORY CHESSBOARD: Each square contains a sensor that registers piece movement. 4. GAME KEYS · NEW GAME: Press to reset for a new game of chess. · LEVEL: Press to enter Level Mode, when pressed together with a piece symbol key, to access the Teach Modes. · NON AUTO: Press to enter Non Auto Mode, which allows moves to be entered manually. · VOICE COACH: Press to select Voice Coach Level options. · EVALUATE: Press while the computer is thinking to get the computer's evaluation of the current board position. · TAKE BACK: Press to take back the last individual move. Take back up to six individual moves (three per side). · SAY AGAIN/DISPLAY MOVE: Press when it's your turn to have the last voice output repeated. Press and hold down while the computer is thinking to display the move it is considering. · SMART HINT: Press to get a level-independent move suggestion. · PLAY: Press to change sides with the computer; press while the computer is thinking to force it to move. Press at the beginning of a new game to play Black from the bottom of the board. · PIECE SYMBOL KEYS: Used for piece verification and pawn promotion; also used to select Teach Modes. · VOLUME SLIDER: Used to turn the volume up and down. · GO/STOP: Used to turn the computer on and off. Current position is retained in memory even when turned off. 5. ACL (Reset): In base of unit. Used to eliminate static discharge after inserting new batteries. 6. BOARD LIGHTS: Used to show moves and game information, verify pieces, indicate the side to move, and show the playing levels. Also used to indicate check, mate, and draw, and to give you insight into the computer's thought process. 7. PIECE STORAGE AREA: For storage of captured pieces. 8 7 6 NEW GAME LEVEL PLAY VOICE COACH EVALUATE TAKE BACK 5 SAY AGAIN SMART HINT NON AUTO 4 DISPLAY MOVE 3 2 VOLUME 1 STOP · · GO A CHECK B C D DRAW E F G MATE H A PORTABLE CHESS COACH THAT TALKS -- what a great way to learn about chess! 1 ENGLISH TABLE OF CONTENTS INTRODUCTION 1. GETTING STARTED: THE BASICS 1.1 First, Install the Batteries 1.2 Ready to Play? Here's How! 1.3 The Computer Makes Its Move 1.4 Change Your Mind? Take Back! 1.5 Game Over? Start a New Game 1.6 Too Easy/Hard? Change Levels! 1.7 Voice On/Off? It's Your Choice! 2. ADDITIONAL FEATURES 2.1 Indication of the Side to Move 2.2 Captures and Special Moves 2.3 Illegal Moves/Wrong Moves 2.4 Check, Mate, and Draw 2.5 Need Help? Ask for a Hint! 2.6 Interrupting the Search 2.7 Changing Sides with the Computer 2.8 Game Information 2.9 Verifying Piece Positions 2.10 Non Auto Mode 2.11 Playing Black from the Bottom 2.12 Book Openings 2.13 Game Memory 3. LEVELS OF SKILL Selecting a Playing Level 3.1 Beginner Levels 3.2 Fun Levels 3.3 Infinite Level 3.4 Combination Finder Level 3.5 Mate Finder Level 3.6 Practice Levels 3.7 Tactical Levels 3.8 Fixed Depth Levels 3.9 Quiet Closed Game Levels 3.10 Aggressive Game Levels 3.11 Normal Playing Levels 4. SPECIAL COACHING MODES 4.1 Voice Coach Levels 4.2 Teach Modes 5. TECHNICAL DETAILS 5.1 The ACL Function 5.2 Care and Maintenance 5.3 Technical Specifications TROUBLESHOOTING GUIDE suggest a visit to your local library, where you are sure to find a wealth of interesting chess books! 1. GETTING STARTED: THE BASICS 1.1 First, Install the Batteries Your computer runs on four "AA" (AM3/R6) batteries. For longer battery life, use fresh alkaline. Slide the GO/STOP switch to GO, and then insert the batteries as shown in the Quick Start. After a short selftest, a Welcome message will greet you, signalling that the computer is ready to play! If the unit doesn't respond, reset the computer by using a paper clip or another sharp object to press into the hole marked ACL in the base of the unit for at least one second. See "KEYS AND FEATURES AT A GLANCE" for an itemized overview of your chess computer's main points! 1.2 Ready to Play? Here's How! Follow these steps to start a game: a. Switch to GO to turn the unit on, if you haven't already done so. b. Set up the pieces in their starting positions, with the White pieces nearest to you, as shown in the Quick Start. Press NEW GAME; the computer confirms by announcing New Game. c. To make a move, lightly press down on the piece you want to move until you hear the voice identify that piece. The sensory chessboard registers your move, and two board lights turn on to indicate the piece. d. Take the piece and gently press it down into the hole of the square you want to move to. A beep will sound, and the computer will then start thinking about its move. At the beginning of a game, the computer often replies instantly on many levels, playing moves directly from its openings library (see Section 2.12). 1.3 The Computer Makes Its Move When the computer moves, it beeps and turns on two board lights indicating the horizontal row and vertical column of the piece it wishes to move. Press this piece down gently on the square. The computer then uses the board lights to show you where the INTRODUCTION Thank you for choosing this unique computer as your new chess partner and opponent. This chess computer will give you countless hours of valuable chess instruction and exciting game play! As the computer patiently guides you and teaches you about this great game, your chess skills are bound to improve. The voice will follow your every move, occasionally even offering helpful advice and encouragement. This is interactively at its best--watch, listen, and learn as you play! Your computer knows the rules of chess. For those who are new to the game, we have enclosed an overview of the rules. We hope this will help you to understand the game better and get a feel for the strategies involved. For more detailed information and further study, we 2 See the "QUICK START" for an example of how the board lights would indicate a computer move from e7 to e5! 1.4 Change Your Mind? Take Back! If you make a mistake or change your mind about a move, it's easy to take moves back! Press TAKE BACK when it is your turn, and the computer will announce the move to be taken back (e.g., Black takes back Knight move). The computer also uses board lights to guide you through the take-back. The to square of the last move lights first-- press the indicated piece down on that square. The computer then shows you where the piece came from. Press the piece down on the from square to complete the take-back. Repeat this procedure to take back more moves, up to a total of six individual moves. When taking back captures or castling maneuvers, the computer will remind you which pieces should be put back on the board! It does so by turning on board lights to indicate the position. It also announces the color and type of the captured piece. 1.5 Game Over? Start a New Game Whenever you finish a game (or if you decide to abort your current game), press NEW GAME to reset the computer. The computer is then ready for another game, using the currently selected level. Caution: Since pressing NEW GAME clears your current game from memory, be careful not to press this key by mistake! 1.6 Too Easy/Hard? Change Levels! When the computer is first turned on, it is set to Level H4 (ten seconds a move). However, you may choose any of the 64 playing levels described in Section 3! Press LEVEL to enter Level Mode, and the board lights will indicate the current level. To change levels, press a board square to activate your desired level, using the Level Chart in Section 3 as a guide. Press LEVEL again to exit Level Mode. 1.7 Voice On/Off? It's Your Choice! Your computer's informative and entertaining voice output is on by default, and the Volume Control Slider sets the desired volume. How- 2. ADDITIONAL FEATURES 2.1 Indication of the Side to Move When Black is thinking about its move, board light 8 flashes. After it has moved, the 1 light comes on steadily to show that it is now White's turn to move. Similarly, if the computer plays White, the 1 light flashes during its turn, and the 8 light comes on steadily after it has moved. It's easy to tell whether the computer is thinking and whose turn it is! 2.2 Captures and Special Moves During the game, the computer's voice will normally alert you to captures and special moves, such as castling or pawn promotions. Captures: To capture, press down lightly on the piece you want to move--the voice will identify that piece. Take the captured piece off the board, and press your piece on the square of the captured piece. The capture will be announced, as in takes Bishop. En Passant: In an en passant capture, the computer uses board lights to remind you to remove the captured pawn. Press down on the captured pawn before removing it from the board. Although beginning players are often confused when this type of capture occurs, the voice output takes pawn en passant is heard after pressing the to square-- making this move unmistakable! Pawn Promotion: · When you promote a pawn, first press your pawn down on its from square, as usual. As soon as you press down on the to square, you will hear Pawn now Queen--and your pawn automatically becomes a Queen! If you would rather underpromote to a Knight, Bishop, or Rook, first press the from square. Then, before pressing the to square, press the Piece Symbol key for the Knight, Bishop, or Rook. 3 ENGLISH piece should go. Move the piece to the indicated square and press the piece down. Once you have pressed this square, you have completed the computer's move! ever, if you would rather not have the voice on, you have other options! As noted in Section 4.1, you can choose to hear only beeps, or even turn the sound off for completely silent operation, if desired. By the way, if you don't hear what the computer says, simply press SAY AGAIN on your turn to have the last message repeated. Note the following exceptions: If you press SAY AGAIN in Verify Mode or when the computer is displaying a hint on your turn, the computer will simply return to normal playing mode. Also, SAY AGAIN is disabled if the Voice Coach Level is set to G or H, or when you are in Level Mode. Finally, press down on the to square. You will hear Pawn now [piece]. Remember to change your piece on the board or make a distinguishing mark on the pawn. · When the computer promotes a pawn, it first indicates its move as usual. As soon as you press its from and to squares, it will announce Pawn now Queen if it is promoting to a Queen. When the computer underpromotes, first press its from and to squares as usual. After the underpromotion is announced (Pawn now Bishop, for example), and the to square flashes, press the corresponding Piece Symbol key (the BISHOP key, in this case) to acknowledge the underpromotion, and the to square lights will turn off. If you have the voice turned off and the computer underpromotes, check its chosen piece by pressing the Piece Symbol keys in succession--the key which turns the flashing to square off indicates the correct piece. Don't forget to replace the computer's pawn with its new piece or make a distinguishing mark on it. Castling: The computer automatically recognizes castling after the King is moved. After you have pressed the King down on its from and to squares, the computer announces Castling, and uses board lights to remind you to move the Rook. Press down on the Rook's indicated from and to squares to finish the castling move. 2.3 Illegal Moves/Wrong Moves Your computer will never accept an illegal move. If you attempt such a move, the computer will announce your error! If you press the wrong to square, you hear Illegal move--and the board lights continue to indicate the square the piece came from. To clear the illegal move, either move that same piece to another square, or press it back down on its from square and move a different piece. If you press on the wrong color piece, you will hear Black [piece type] or White [piece type] ­ Illegal Move. Check the side to move and make the move correctly. If you don't execute a computer move correctly (if you move the wrong piece, or move the computer's piece to the wrong square), you hear a triple beep. Check the lights, and move the piece correctly. If you press a piece down on a from square but decide not to make that move, press down on the same square again to cancel the input. Then make another move. If you change your mind after entering your whole move, take the move back as described in Section 1.4. 2.4 Check, Mate, and Draw When your King is in check, the computer says Check! and flashes the A and B board lights. When a game ends in mate, Checkmate! is announced, followed by Good game! Play again? if the computer loses, or simply Play again? if you have lost. The A, B, G, and H board lights will also flash. ...