Windows 3x on DOSBOx Chess

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spacious_mind
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Windows 3x on DOSBOx Chess

Post by spacious_mind »

I bought this cd a little while back from Germany called Schach Champ Classic which I was never able to install on Windows 10 because it has no compatibility with Windows 3x.

Anyway I fiddled around a bit with DOSBox running Win 3.11 and managed to get my computers cd drive working with it. Therefore I was able to install the game into Win 3.11 DOSBox.

Well Surprise Surprise!

Chess Champ Classic - 1995 - Richard Lang

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Graphically it is quite nice really. I have no idea how strong it is but I will probably include in the future in my Division 1 Tournament.

One negative is that you have to have the CD in the drive otherwise it won't play. I guess it uses this for copy protection.

Its a program by Richard Lang. Don't know if engine version 1.504c means or if it is Chess Genius 1.5 or something.

Anyway this is what it looks like:

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Here is another one that I installed as well:

Colossus Chess 2000 - Martin Bryant ?

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Well I am assuming that this is Martin Bryant since I doubt that anyone else would be able to call it Colossus Chess. Also the CD is licensed by Guildhall Leisure Services Ltd. Which sound very British.

Best regards
Nick
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Tibono2
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Re: Windows 3x on DOSBOx Chess

Post by Tibono2 »

spacious_mind wrote:One negative is that you have to have the CD in the drive otherwise it won't play.
Hi,
there is a way to get rid of physically inserting the CD in the drive - works on W7, to be confirmed on W10:
- create an iso file from your CD (many ways, many softwares to do that - including the basic MS explorer)
- get WinCDEmu, free OpenSource software - it lets you mount an iso image as a virtual CD drive
- then start your Dosbox Win31 using this new drive letter instead of the physical drive you already succeeded to mount.

Exemple I use for Extreme Chess, comments are red:

"C:\Program Files (x86)\WinCDEmu\batchmnt64" Extreme_Chess.iso Z /wait [mounts iso image as Z: drive]
cd "C:\Program Files (x86)\DOSBox-0.74"
DOSBox.exe -userconf -c "mount c c:\eric\programmes\doswin" [where my Win 3.1 C: root is] -c "mount d c:\eric\programmes" [where my chess programs are] -c "mount e z:\ -t cdrom" [make Z: virtual drive accessible to Dosbox (&Win 3.1) as E:drive] -c "mount v c:\eric\programmes\vdisk" [for Win3.1 use] -c "c:\autoexec.bat" [launch Win3.1 from its root C: directory] -noconsole -conf "c:\dosbox\mem64.conf" [set 64Mb RAM as not the default in my DosBox userconf] -conf "c:\dosbox\1997.conf" [set CPU cycles according to software generation - you can forget about this one :)]
"C:\Program Files (x86)\WinCDEmu\batchmnt64" /unmount Z: [once Win31/Dosbox exits, free the virtual CD]

It may seem a bit complicated but it is very user friendly once set up.
Cheers,
Eric
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Re: Windows 3x on DOSBOx Chess

Post by Tibono2 »

spacious_mind wrote:Colossus Chess 2000 - Martin Bryant ?
To be checked... The GUI is very very similar to those many derivatives from Borland Chess Engine (OWL Chess, Winchess, K-Chess, Bowili...) using ObjectsWindowsLibrary and beeing a C++ port of Borland Pascal Turbo Chess demo (by K. Danielsen).
KR, Eric
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Bryan Whitby
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Post by Bryan Whitby »

Hi Nick

I own two German schach programs including the Richard Langs 'Schach Champ Classic' plus Chris Donningers 'Mephisto Meisterschach'.
Out of the two I prefer the Mephisto program that contains the Donninger Nimzo 3 engine.

Incidentally, both programs installed and work fine on my Windows 10 Tablet/laptop without any additional software.

Regards
Bryan

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Post by Bryan Whitby »

Sorry the images don't appear on my iPad but they are there on my Windows tablet...very strange.
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spacious_mind
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Re: Windows 3x on DOSBOx Chess

Post by spacious_mind »

Tibono2 wrote:
spacious_mind wrote:Colossus Chess 2000 - Martin Bryant ?
To be checked... The GUI is very very similar to those many derivatives from Borland Chess Engine (OWL Chess, Winchess, K-Chess, Bowili...) using ObjectsWindowsLibrary and beeing a C++ port of Borland Pascal Turbo Chess demo (by K. Danielsen).
KR, Eric
Hi Tibono,

Thanks, I will check on mounting the images. I have few Win 3x that need it because of wanting to keep the cd in the drive.

Yes I know author to be confirmed, but it does originate from the UK. This is not a Borland for that I am pretty sure. Also I think it is better than K-Chess, Winchess etc.

Regards
Nick
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Post by spacious_mind »

Chessmaster Ireland wrote:Hi Nick

I own two German schach programs including the Richard Langs 'Schach Champ Classic' plus Chris Donningers 'Mephisto Meisterschach'.
Out of the two I prefer the Mephisto program that contains the Donninger Nimzo 3 engine.

Incidentally, both programs installed and work fine on my Windows 10 Tablet/laptop without any additional software.

Regards
Bryan
Hi Bryan,

Yes it wont let you see the images, whatever you are using. Even if you paste it directly into a browser it takes you to a registration page.

I have Mephisto Meisterschach as well I think. I need to do some digging to see where I put it. Regarding Nimzo 3 and Nimzo 3.5, I play those directly in DOSBox.

Here is another one that has the cd nag but works in DOSBox Win 3x:

Tasc Chess CD - Chess Tutor & Chessica - Chessica = Franz Morsch 1997

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Frans Morsch of course the programmer. But it looks as if there was some assistance from Johan de Koning as well (whatever that was). Book Cock de Gorter who I think also created some of the King opening books. And of course Mark Derksen who is attributed for the Commodore 64's The Final Chesscard!

http://www.spacious-mind.com/html/the_f ... commo.html

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Chessica has a nice interface and the above picture is me playing at 69,300 cpu_cycles which is approximately Pentium 90.

Chess Tutor - 1996

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Included on the disk you also have chess tutor.

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Which you could play in 5 languages and had 5 chapters to work through.

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The above are topics covered in chapter 2.

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At the end of each chapter you have a set of tests. These tests might be interesting to try against dedicated computers too.

Anyway this was quite a nice software package, strong program and tutor.

Best regards
Nick
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Post by Bryan Whitby »

Found this from Martin's original web page which unfortunately no longer exists. In the very last sentence he refers to Guilhall Leisure.

I will try again with my missing photos.


Colossus Chess
I developed Colossus Chess in 1983 from my existing White Knight chess program. It used various forward pruning techniques to achieve deeper, narrower tree searches than its earlier full width cousin and had a more sophisticated evaluation function. Over the following few years it was published for a large number of 8-bit micros including the Commodore 64 (the original version 2 and later version 4), BBC Micro, Acorn Electron, Apple ][, Atari, Amstrad CPC, Amstrad PCW, Sinclair Spectrum, MSX and probably a few more too! Later it was released for the 16-bit micros Atari ST, Commodore Amiga and IBM PC (now christened version ‘X’). It became one of the largest selling chess programs of all time. In all cases it was written in the assembly language of the appropriate CPU. The graphics on the later 16-bit versions were developed with the assistance of Gary Thomlinson and Carl Cropley. No work was done on the program from 1991 until 2005. However, Guildhall Leisure released a rebadged version called Colossus Chess 2000.
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Post by Bryan Whitby »

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Post by spacious_mind »

Chessmaster Ireland wrote:Found this from Martin's original web page which unfortunately no longer exists. In the very last sentence he refers to Guilhall Leisure.

I will try again with my missing photos.


Colossus Chess
I developed Colossus Chess in 1983 from my existing White Knight chess program. It used various forward pruning techniques to achieve deeper, narrower tree searches than its earlier full width cousin and had a more sophisticated evaluation function. Over the following few years it was published for a large number of 8-bit micros including the Commodore 64 (the original version 2 and later version 4), BBC Micro, Acorn Electron, Apple ][, Atari, Amstrad CPC, Amstrad PCW, Sinclair Spectrum, MSX and probably a few more too! Later it was released for the 16-bit micros Atari ST, Commodore Amiga and IBM PC (now christened version ‘X’). It became one of the largest selling chess programs of all time. In all cases it was written in the assembly language of the appropriate CPU. The graphics on the later 16-bit versions were developed with the assistance of Gary Thomlinson and Carl Cropley. No work was done on the program from 1991 until 2005. However, Guildhall Leisure released a rebadged version called Colossus Chess 2000.
Perfect, thanks for confirming it. So it seems to be some kind of windows version of Colossus X or Colossus 4?

Regarding Mephisto Meistrerschach. I am pretty sure that I have this one too. I need to find it. Nice photos !!

Best regards
Nick
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Re: Windows 3x on DOSBOx Chess

Post by BenRedic »

Tibono2 wrote: there is a way to get rid of physically inserting the CD in the drive - works on W7, to be confirmed on W10:
- create an iso file from your CD (many ways, many softwares to do that - including the basic MS explorer)
- get WinCDEmu, free OpenSource software - it lets you mount an iso image as a virtual CD drive
- then start your Dosbox Win31 using this new drive letter instead of the physical drive you already succeeded to mount.
Why do you need a dedicated program to read the ISOs? DosBox mounts ISOs directly. Easy to set up if you use something like D-Fend Reloaded. Also supports CUE/BIN images.
Thank you for an interesting game.
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Re: Windows 3x on DOSBOx Chess

Post by Tibono2 »

BenRedic wrote:DosBox mounts ISOs directly. Easy to set up if you use something like D-Fend Reloaded. Also supports CUE/BIN images.
Thanks for the comment, I got back to the DosBox manual, and you are right (imgmount utility)... I will simplify my scripts!
Kind regards
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Re: Windows 3x on DOSBOx Chess

Post by Tibono2 »

Tibono2 wrote:
BenRedic wrote:DosBox mounts ISOs directly
I will simplify my scripts!
Well if any useful, here is the edited DosBox command line to mount the iso file as E: drive (from the exemple I shared above):

DOSBox.exe -userconf -c "mount c c:\eric\programmes\doswin" -c "mount d c:\eric\programmes" -c "imgmount e C:\Eric\Programmes\Extrem~1\Extreme_Chess.iso -t cdrom -fs iso" -c "mount v c:\eric\programmes\vdisk" -c "c:\autoexec.bat" -noconsole -conf "c:\dosbox\mem64.conf" -conf "c:\dosbox\1997.conf"

And indeed the mounting of the CD in a virtual host drive previously to DosBox launch is not any more useful.
(Such a virtual mount may remain useful for non-DosBox programs with CD requirement)

Cheers, Eric
Last edited by Tibono2 on Sun Mar 25, 2018 6:09 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Windows 3x on DOSBOx Chess

Post by Tibono2 »

spacious_mind wrote:Chess Champ Classic - 1995 - Richard Lang
Hi Nick, I found out Schach Niggeman used to sell it, and a description remains online.
Click on Review(s) for more details.

Cheers, Eric
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Re: Windows 3x on DOSBOx Chess

Post by spacious_mind »

Tibono2 wrote:
spacious_mind wrote:Chess Champ Classic - 1995 - Richard Lang
Hi Nick, I found out Schach Niggeman used to sell it, and a description remains online.
Click on Review(s) for more details.

Cheers, Eric
Hi Eric,

Yes that's the one. I had bought mine on German Ebay.

I ran Chess Champ through my rating test which is available here:

http://hiarcs.net/forums/viewtopic.php? ... &start=195

I used DOSBox with Pentium P90 setting of 69,200 cpu_cycles.

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Interestingly in Test game 5, it scored and played every single move exactly the same as my Mephisto Tournament Machine Portorose 68030-36 MHz. Chess Champ finished the test with a Test rating of 2283 ELO.

So it is likely that Chess Champ has a closely related playing style to TM Portorose.

Also I included a test for my I7 T68060 Sargon 3 using WINUAE emulator and Sargon 3 scored 2251 ELO.

Just for kicks I then compared the test results of TM Porotorse, Champ Classic, MCG and Sargon 3 simulating a win for whoever scored the highest points in the test game. It came out as follows:

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Even though Millennium Chess Genius had the lowest above Lang's Test ELO score with 2269 ELO. It won the simulated tournament! I find this quite amusing as typically in live tournaments this sort of thing is exactly what happens all the time with the highest rated program often not winning the tournament.

I might replay the test with Chess Champ and set it up at max cpu_cycles just to see how much more improvement it has running at DOSBix full speed on my I7.

Best regards
Nick
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