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Garry Kasparov launches a community-first chess platform

techcrunch.com

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Re: Garry Kasparov launches a community-first chess platform

#71

Post by andrei_says_ »

mustafa_pasi wrote: post #2

The community first chess platform is lichess, which doesn't even get a mention because it is non-profit. This thing sounds like some botched together platform with Kasparov's name attached to add legitimacy. It will 100% fail.

Lichess is one of the best experiences on the web. I build web apps and this one is polished to perfection. It is an example of what is possible when you combine good intentions, great taste, excellent skill and sincere love for the beauty and fun of chess.

The UX is just perfect.

It is an inspiration for me.

Re: Garry Kasparov launches a community-first chess platform

#72

Post by eterm »

jasonwatkinspdx wrote: post #37
eterm wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I hate to burst your Twitch bubble but production started way before chess streaming took off: "On March 19, 2019, Netflix gave the production a series order consisting of six episodes"

Chess streaming had gained critical mass before that, and as the sibling comment points out, there were a lot of conversations happening in relation to how chess was clearly gaining momentum, particularly on twitch, before the first actual pogchamps. I was more using Pogchamps as a placeholder term for referring to the overall boom of chess on twitch. That is definitely why Netflix funded it. I've been told this some…

From these charts that that just isn't very convincing anymore:

https://socialblade.com/twitch/user/gmhikaru/monthly https://socialblade.com/twitch/user/chessbrah/monthly

And I say that as someone who was watching Hiarku on twitch in 2018 and even wrote long post on this site about why Chess is the fastest growing esport" in 2019. [ I seem to have lost which account I posted that under however, I maintain separate work accounts and suspect I posted that one one company time (oops!) ]

But looking back, I was over-optimistic, not about Chess' prospects as an esport, but about how much it had really grown given what happened when we saw a real boom from the pandemic, from xQc and pogchamps, and from the Queen's Gambit.

Re: Garry Kasparov launches a community-first chess platform

#73

Post by eterm »

bobthebuilders wrote: post #28
eterm wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I hate to burst your Twitch bubble but production started way before chess streaming took off: "On March 19, 2019, Netflix gave the production a series order consisting of six episodes"

Pohchamps was in the making since 2018.

Do you have a source for that? Googling literally returns your own post here as the top result.

Re: Garry Kasparov launches a community-first chess platform

#74

Post by kzrdude »

erostrate wrote: post #69
kzrdude wrote: post #64

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Chess.com is not lead by IM Danny Rensch alone. He has a C-title (chief chess officer). I did a double take there because that would be an amazing fact. Danny Rensch is one of the best things with chess.com overall. Wikipedia can tell you about which the leaders of chess.com are https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chess.com

My bad, he's just so visible that I had incorrectly deduced he was CEO.

(Admittedly mean jab as a response :P) It's easy to mistake social media for reality!

Re: Garry Kasparov launches a community-first chess platform

#75

Post by SergeAx »

mustafa_pasi wrote: post #2

The community first chess platform is lichess, which doesn't even get a mention because it is non-profit. This thing sounds like some botched together platform with Kasparov's name attached to add legitimacy. It will 100% fail.

I never knew Lichess is open source and donation supported. I feel so grateful now.

Re: Garry Kasparov launches a community-first chess platform

#76

Post by jorgenveisdal »

mustafa_pasi wrote: post #2

The community first chess platform is lichess, which doesn't even get a mention because it is non-profit. This thing sounds like some botched together platform with Kasparov's name attached to add legitimacy. It will 100% fail.

Very Kasparov. No doubt very half-baked, and very self-promotional

Re: Garry Kasparov launches a community-first chess platform

#77

Post by krisgenre »

bluecalm wrote: post #57
lasfter wrote: post #3

Earlier quoted context omitted.

100%. Lichess is an astounding achievement of FOSS and I wish it got more love in general. I can't think of any other open-source website with as much traffic and with as much complex functionality.

Also quality. Lichess has by far the best interface and smoothest experience. Well financed commercial players like chess.com, chess24, chessbase were never able to replicate it. Lichess which was a one man show for a long time has beaten them all in engineering department and not by a small margin. The difference is just night and day, like driving 30 years old car and modern one. It's one of the examples of how you…

True. Bullet is unplayable for me on chess.com because of latency but works really well on lichess.

Re: Garry Kasparov launches a community-first chess platform

#78

Post by YetAnotherNick »

erostrate wrote: post #59

Current landscape of chess platform as I understand it: lichess: non-profit, free and open source, community oriented, high quality tech, growing userbase, amazing founder ornicar, much loved by its users and supporters including me. Regular online competitions well attended but doesn't organise major events. Doesn't really do things like video lessons or partnership with streamers as far as I know, probably due to n…

I love lichess but it is hard to argue tech is better than chess.com. Chess.com analysis board is better(although for free membership it is lot worse), they have more number of puzzles, they organize CCC, their anti cheating detection is the most advanced and this all is without coming to UI part in which most feel it to be better or at least more customizable.

Re: Garry Kasparov launches a community-first chess platform

#79

Post by rtwall »

bluecalm wrote: post #57
lasfter wrote: post #3

Earlier quoted context omitted.

100%. Lichess is an astounding achievement of FOSS and I wish it got more love in general. I can't think of any other open-source website with as much traffic and with as much complex functionality.

Also quality. Lichess has by far the best interface and smoothest experience. Well financed commercial players like chess.com, chess24, chessbase were never able to replicate it. Lichess which was a one man show for a long time has beaten them all in engineering department and not by a small margin. The difference is just night and day, like driving 30 years old car and modern one. It's one of the examples of how you…

chess24 needs to work on page load performance, but I find watching tournaments more pleasant on chess24 than on lichess.

chess24's default chess board is easier on the eyes than the flat design lichess one.

lichess is amazing for playing though.

Re: Garry Kasparov launches a community-first chess platform

#80

Post by chakhs »

Zenchess wrote: post #68
erostrate wrote: post #59

Current landscape of chess platform as I understand it: lichess: non-profit, free and open source, community oriented, high quality tech, growing userbase, amazing founder ornicar, much loved by its users and supporters including me. Regular online competitions well attended but doesn't organise major events. Doesn't really do things like video lessons or partnership with streamers as far as I know, probably due to n…

Chess24 has a playing zone site redesign that is a massive improvement. It's currently in beta testing for premium members only.

Do you have screenshots?
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