Playchess has many different rooms, which are grouped together in a tree structure. At the bottom right of the screen you can see the rooms that you can enter.

 

 

Each room is for a different purpose, and there will be more in the future. The number following the name of the room is the number of visitors in the room.

 

You can enter a room by double-clicking it. Once you are there you can chat with other visitors, challenge them to a game, watch others play, etc.

 

The main playing hall is the room you normally get to when you log on to the Playchess server. Note that the use of computers in strictly forbidden in this room. The server is constantly monitoring the games and will report suspicious activities by any player. In fact the server may delete ratings or cancel an account if it detects clear evidence of computer use.

 

 

If you do want to play with a computer, you can do so in the engine room, but only if you own the full Fritz program. In the "news" room you will find the latest chess news in many different languages. "Training and Teaching" is for precisely that, "Broadcasts" is where you will find live coverage of big chess events. Visit "News and Hints" periodically to read the answers to frequently asked questions.

 

Note that countries, chess federations and clubs can have their own rooms.