ChessRoller 27.1 is out. It's the biggest update since launch: opening books for your engines, a move list that reads like a book, and a long list of keyboard shortcuts.
Read a game the way a book prints it
The move list can now be set as running text, with variations and comments in line, instead of in columns. Switch with the Layout button above the move list.
Opening books for your engines
Add your own opening books in Settings > Opening Books. ChessRoller reads Polyglot (.bin) books and CTG (.ctg) books, the format ChessBase and Fritz use. The book stays where it is on disk, so there is nothing to convert.
In a game, each engine gets its own Book menu. In an engine match, that means each side can play from a different book.
An openings tree with the numbers
The Openings tab in the library now shows the same statistics for each opening that the Moves tab shows for each move: how often it was played and how it scored.
The numbers follow your filter. Narrow the database to one player, a rating range, or a span of years, and the tree updates right away to count only those games. There is no index to rebuild.
Hands on the keyboard
There are new shortcuts for annotating, engine analysis, and browsing a database. If you've used other chess database programs, many are already muscle memory:
- Space plays the engine's best move, and Shift+Space adds its top line as a variation.
- + and - change how many lines the engine shows.
- X shows the threat.
- Ctrl+Y or ⌘Y deletes a variation.
- [ and ] cut the moves before or after the current one.
- Ctrl+Alt+↓ and Ctrl+Alt+↑, or ⌥⌘↓ and ⌥⌘↑ on the Mac, open the next or previous game in the database.
The Menus and Shortcuts article in the in-app help lists them all.
Show Threat
Press X while the engine is running and a red arrow shows what your opponent would play if it were their move again. It's the quickest way to answer "what is this move for?"
Game review names the tactic
When review flags a move, it now says what the tactic was: a fork, a skewer, a discovered attack. The name is added to the move as a keyword.
Also in 27.1
- Paste PGN/FEN. Edit > Paste PGN/FEN opens a game, several games, or a position from the clipboard.
- Faster databases. Database queries are faster across the board.
- A welcome window with a guided tour, on first launch and under Help > Welcome afterwards.
- More annotation symbols, including initiative, attack, counterplay, zugzwang, and novelty.
- Leipzig, a new 2D piece set.
There are bug fixes too. The release notes have the full list.
Available now
ChessRoller updates itself, so if you already have it, 27.1 will arrive on its own. Updates to version 27 are free. If you don't have it yet, the free 7-day trial includes everything.
ChessBase and Fritz are trademarks of ChessBase GmbH. ChessRoller is not affiliated with or endorsed by ChessBase GmbH.