GameKnot: GameKnot related, Chess on mobile

GameKnot related: Chess on mobile

« Back to forum

Pages:

From

Message

maricea
02-Nov-10, 08:57

Chess on mobile

Is gameKnot chess playable from mobile devices ?

kingdawar
02-Nov-10, 09:42

gameknot.com

herrflick
22-Mar-11, 16:33

I applaud GK's committment to an open web, but...

GK are clearly not obliged to design apps for everyone's iPhone and Android convenience. But it should be
recognised that not everyone has time to sit in front of the computer and play. For many of us family and work
pressures can leave little time for chess beyond perhaps half an hour on the train. It would be really
worthwhile if GK could design a formatted-for-mobile version of at least the standard game pages. Perhaps
just for use by paying subscribers...

iggy2007
03-Apr-11, 16:28

Smart Phone Age

I must agree an app that supported mobile phones would be much appreciated and greatly used. I know GK has done polls before. It would be nice to see how many users have smart phones and how many would use a mobile app. I think the results would be surprising.

herrflick
03-Apr-11, 17:13

Absolutely

Yes, its surprising that the utility of the new start-phone platforms hasn't generated more enthusiasm at
GKHQ. Probably if polled today most people would see clear customer and corporate benefits..

untateve
04-Apr-11, 04:48

The development of a GK app would be quite welcome.

vdmarel
04-Apr-11, 11:03

What?

I've been playing through gameknot on my mobile for years. I've had Windows Mobile phones with Opera browser and now I have an android device. Never in all those years have I experienced any problems.

sideeffect34
04-Apr-11, 13:13

I think I'm close to buying a smartphone, either an iPhone or Android, soon. Even without an app, is it still possible to play chess on them just from the phone browser?

untateve
04-Apr-11, 14:48

sideeffect--

yes, it is possible to play from a browser on a smart phone.

vdmarel
07-Apr-11, 08:52

vdmarel

Yes, definitely possible.

Remember iPhones don't have Flash. I don't think this website uses it but others may. So go for the Android, definitely.

herrflick
07-Apr-11, 08:57

Yes its possible but

the formatting of GK is not very convenient for mobile usage, requiring manual resizing and
moving to fit board to screen - which should really be a quick win for GK if they were to
implement it.

archibald866
26-Apr-11, 13:33

pity that it can cost you to play by phone - for some reason the move that appeared on here through conventional pc was a square off from where it should have been. I had one move left to mate, the game was as good as over and won, yet this hiccup cost that game...

j101m
11-Jun-11, 00:29

Blackberry

I have been playing on my BB Bold for the last 6 months without any issues. It's great!

nathanman22
12-Jun-11, 07:13

playing blind, ok with pgn and a real board

i have the ability to see pgn only on my phone...but thats enough. I use a regular chess board to play out the moves and then type my move into the area where it normally appears when you move your piece. Its all manual for me, and takes more time. But it gives me an out if im near to running out of time. I always have my phone with me. This is why i appear online a lot but make very few moves....it takes forever to play outt long games on a board using just a pgn!

sideeffect34
13-Jun-11, 13:36

I just recently got a smartphone, a Droid X2. I really like that I can play some GameKnot on it. Like someone already said, you do have to re-size it a little bit, but it's easy. It's nice to check my messages on the go and also make some moves that are timing out if I don't have access to my home computer. I haven't had any problems with it so far. I also saved it as a bookmark to my home screen, so it's just one hit and I'm there.

mrdld
15-Jun-11, 06:49

Would make subscription a no-brainer

If GK would develop an app for the Droid that allowed me to see the whole board without
scrolling and make moves from that board, I would pull the trigger on a premium membership. As
it stands now, I hate to invest in the site for fear I *might* find another chess program I like
better... and the ONLY reason I would ever look for another application is for better mobile
support. Just my thoughts.

herrflick
15-Jun-11, 08:44

I dont even think apps are necessary..

It would cost GK a lot to develop and maintain them ensuring comparability with latest phone models, etc. But
a formatted-for-mobile version of main game pages would be easy to develop and cheap to maintain and
provide a much improved customer experience. Cumon GK, get with the Web 3.0 times...

j101m
15-Jun-11, 11:08

Better customer experience... now we're talking

I have been playin on my Blackberry Bold and its been great but I have to scroll up and down to see the whole screen. This has resulted in me making making some of my worst blunders in some of my games to the extent that I now only play on my BB if I have to.

I agree with your comments herrflick, we need something a bit better!

Gameknot.com
15-Jun-11, 13:20

So, the main problem with using GameKnot on a cell phone is that the chessboard doesn't fit on the screen, correct? Any reason why changing the size of the board isn't an option? It's a couple of clicks, and the link is right on the same page...

kingdawar
15-Jun-11, 15:07

Maybe GameKnot could optionally detect the browser/screen size and automatically switch to the tiniest board setting?

j101m
15-Jun-11, 21:45

Change board size

When I click on "My Games" the board size I get is very small. Then when I increase the board size once it is too big for the screen and I have to scroll around to see all the pieces. This applies to the Blackberry Bold - not sure how other smart phones experience the site.

herrflick
16-Jun-11, 06:07

Some suggestions..

Thanks for weighing in GK Admin. The problem is not that we can't play on the mobile. It is possible - but many users have to manually resize every time we do a new move. I'm not sure how it works on Blackberries or iphones, but on my HTC Desire the board starts very small as the phone browser automatically resizes the webpage to view the whole page, including sidebar menus etc. What would be really great would be for GK to provide a formatted-for-mobile option somehow. It would need to remove sidebars, set the page width to the normal width of a smartphone's resolution, and size the board to fit that. Suggest having control buttons/options in bars above and below the board. That way when the new page loads up it would automatically be ready to play - no faffing around.

Another reason for doing this is that some mobile users have limited internet allowances. So reducing the mobile version to bare minimum features needed to play would be much better for them.

I think it will become more important for GK to see off competitors in the mobile chess market. The GK community is its biggest asset, but it won't stay that way forever if customer's requirements aren't being met.

mrdld
16-Jun-11, 06:11

@herrfick

Well said herrfick! I couldn't agree more.

j101m
16-Jun-11, 07:34

Mobile Users

100% behind you , herrflick. I travel a lot and I really enjoy playing GK chess while waiting at airports. An improved mobile experience will drive more traffic to the GK site and surely that can only be beneficial to GK.

Lets see how our hosts respond.

pristinesneakers
31-Aug-11, 14:18

I'm holding off on re-subscription

until I see a mobile app is coming. I've been using the chess.com android app, and prefer being
able to comfortable make moves on the go. Their price is really expensive so I don't think I'll be
subscribing there, but the free account is mostly suiting my needs.

What I really want though, is a gameknot app, so I can renew my sub and go about business as
usual.

pristinesneakers
31-Aug-11, 14:22

@GK Admin

It can be done, but when making moves in multiple games every extra little step counts and
takes time. I'm not going to use a site from my phone where I have to move and/or re-size the
screen constantly to look at the board and move when there is an alternative that is designed
to function properly on mobile devices.

Also, what herrflick said:
"Another reason for doing this is that some mobile users have limited internet allowances. So
reducing the mobile version to bare minimum features needed to play would be much better for
them.

I think it will become more important for GK to see off competitors in the mobile chess market.
The GK community is its biggest asset, but it won't stay that way forever if customer's
requirements aren't being met."

It would be a huge asset to the community, rather than letting them know that they can
resize windows.

urim
28-Sep-11, 05:20

I'm sadly looking for alternatives

I'm using a Samsung Galaxy S2.

I love gameknot so I won't post names of alternative apps here (didn't find anything decent so
far, BTW), but I'm really disappointed there's no gameknot app. Even a simple one which would
let me do the basic stuff would keep me on the site (and I'd gladly pay for it).

But anything browser-based won't do. Too slow and all the user interface is very counter-
intuitive.

Come on gameknot!

rockall
09-Oct-11, 19:02

Another reason for an app

The existence of the app itself, in the app store, is an advertisement for the site.

I Would rather have the app than win the drawing for HP pad.

Count me as an another vote for mobile apps.

herrflick
10-Oct-11, 12:30

An app would be nice...

.. but sadly GK have said repeatedly that they aren't willing to develop one. They did however tell me (by email)
that they're considering developing some webpages formatted for mobile users. I reckon that - unless
someone else builds a GK app - formatted pages are probably the best compromise solution we're going to
get. Of course the more people that let them know, the better!

rockall
10-Oct-11, 20:38

Spoke with an App developer friend today

He was not very sympathetic towards our complaints. He said, based on my description of the site and the
functions on it, there is no reason for a separate App. He suggested that the board size issues could be solved by
more attention to detail from the GK java programer, and perhaps the users also. I trust this guy, so I hereby
withdraw my complaint.

Pages:

« Back to forum