The next update is taking a while so I want to share what to expect.
New Features (i.e., pgn, pgn, pgn!):
- PGN import – useful for sharing across devices, backing up your data, sending to your chess coach, having a friend review your lines, etc.PGN is human editable so rather than take forever with nuances like FEN positions (this is an opening app, not a tactics trainer), it will have enough PGN that if you export a game from Chess Arsenal it can definitely be reimported. If a particular file fails to load, you can choose “Mail to developer” for future support.
So how do you get files onto your device? The main way is to drag and drop into iTunes. Or you can tap a PGN file within Safari, Mail, or any other app:
- PGN exports will include your opening names, and PGN Import will restore them.
- iTunes File Sharing will also get you to your main database, tucked away in a /Database folder separate from PGN imports/exports. It has no use in other software but some of you want a pure backup. This backs up what PGN does not: your training scores. Also, anyone with problems can send it to me to debug exactly what’s going on. There’s some risk in making the database public — it’s deletable! — but backup+problem solving are worth it.
Bug Fixes:
- Castling legality can become off by one move or more. The fix requires care in order to run through the database and repair castling at every position. So far, so good.
- A two-square pawn move can pass through other pawns!
This stuff’s been hairy to work with and I can’t nail down an expected date, but backups are invaluable and I think it’s worth the wait.
Happy Checkmates!
Brian
This sounds like its gonna be a awesome update!! really looking forward to it. this is one of the finest ideas for a chess app. thanks for all your hard work. i hope you have much success
It’s working great, Brian. For the first time, the look is not odd, as it used to be when it was mainly designed for the iPhone. There it looked great, but not on an iPad. So the looks are the same for the iPhone with this update, but very pleasant for the iPad.
Also, it works greatly with the Split Screen feature, so that one doesn’t have to switch frantically between two apps or two devices, when inserting new moves and comments from other sources.
And also, because of the landscape mode, the Smart Keyboard can be used to type those insertions, keyboard which demanded a landscape mode only.
The only ‘downside’, if we can call it that, is that if, say, you used a title, like providing the source of the main comments in the notes, before it used to be perfectly in the middle. Whereas now, because the space changed considerably, it tends to be way closer to left corner, so now it has to be pushed all the way to the center. And the letters/symbols are smaller than before.
But overall, it is the best product of its kind on the market. Thank you Brian, great work! Much appreciated.
Thanks for the detailed feedback, as always. If you want to send a screenshot of the off-center heading, that sounds like an easy fix. Also check out today’s 1.6.1 update that slightly changes the titles for iPhone X.
Hi. I’m not sure if this post is the right place to ask this question, but I couldn’t find a better place… I am trying to import a huge set of moves from Chess Position Trainer (via pgn export). I have one file for my White moves and 5 separate files for my black moves. When I import the pgns, it adds all the moves, but it doesn’t flag my candidate moves. And I’m finding it really difficult to go through and identify them myself and click the key button. I’m sure this has come up before, so I’m wondering, is there a known solution for this? Or is going through move by move and clicking the key symbol the only way to do this? Thanks.
Hi Michael,
Yes, this is the right place unless someone wants to open an Arsenal thread on Chess.com, etc.
I haven’t used CPT, but does it have its own way of marking the PGN, or an easy way of adding manual comments? Arsenal looks for a comment of “*My move.*” and auto-tags those. I’d be happy to update it to look for CPT’s annotations if there are any. Feel free to send me a sample CPT file, if you’d like. ChessArsenal gmail.com.
I can send you the pgn from CPT but I don’t see a contact link or anything to send you an email. The thing with CPT though is they split the repertoire between white openings and black openings, and it seems to force a candidate move to be checked for every position. Ie, if you have three potential moves, at least the first one will have the box checked (even if it’s, say, black’s moves for a white opening). So in the pgn that might show as a key move even though it really isn’t.
Ah, looks like the “at” in my email was missing in my last message. ChessArsenal (at) gmail.com.
Ah I read to fast and didn’t even see that. Sorry, sending now.
(Sorry logged in with a different account)
Dear sirs,
I do not succeed to add my opening repertoire to ChessArsenal.
I do everything according to your instructions, even manage to import files through iTunes, but not to add them to my training repertoire. What to do?