Parents, especially homeschoolers are turning to games that invest in their kid's minds while they are young and impressionable. With all the video and PC games out there creating such short attention spans, there has to be a balance.

Heather Gneco, wife and mom to four wonderful kids, chose the Home Chess Learning Kit to help her kids learn chess and get involved in a game that was not only classic and fun, but would help them in their learning ability.

Heather who writes on homeschool education writes.

Besides the solid, educational chess DVD in the chess kit, is a long lasting, durable, and club chess set.

Now parents that school their kids in public, private school, or home, are able to give their children a meaningful gift that sharpens their mind with chess learning, and the all purpose chess set they can play with their friends, at school, or the family at home.

Here's a frank, hands-on review of the Excalibur Grandmaster computer.

ChessHouse feels that it's important to be familiar with the computers and show you what the computers offer, and why or why not they may be a good choice for you.

It helps us be familiar with them, and answer your questions, or give you the answers to the questions you already have in mind before your have to ask!

I'll cover the Excalibur Grandmaster today. I have one sitting right here and have been playing and testing with with the manual open.

After spending time reading the manual, playing the computer in different modes, and levels, I give this computer a 8.5 out of 10. I never recommended this computer with optimism, but now I feel I can - to the right person.

I guess the fact that I've been around hardwood computers made me feel that it was not a very high-end computer. And the pieces are not heavily weighted.

However, actually setting it up and giving it a few games - I come away with a different impression.

I give Excalibur a lot of credit, because it's very easy to learn how to use this computer. (at least it was for me, and I feel that in 15 minutes, I understand most everything)

I don't have to press down on the squares - the computer recognizes each move as it's made. That's great. Since I've played a lot of tournament chess, I also like the vinyl squares, which by the way, are very authentic in appearance and feel!

The pieces are white/black as you can see in the photos, and sized very nicely to feel like club pieces. They are a tad lighter than a weighted set, but heavier than a standard plastic set I think.

Other than the vinyl board, the whole unit is plastic... but there are some smart things about it. They actually put the reset key right in a handy place on the TOP of the computer! can you believe it? It's not hidden away underneath. The great thing is that I haven't had to use it at all.

This is a good time to talk about reliability. ChessHouse has seen a few grandmasters come back with "dead" squares. But that's out of hundreds of them. We feel this is a relatively reliable computer, and if anything goes wrong, ChessHouse stands behind purchases and will do our very best to be available and assist. You will also be able to take advantage of a one year warranty from Excalibur.

Ok, onto the great stuff.

is it good for playing with a friend?

There are two good size LCD displays. One on each side. So if you want to play with your friend (which this computer is IDEAL for), then each player has a chess clock to time their play. You could select any timing level you want... or play blitz (5 minute) chess.  Then you can watch your time count down or hit the bottom to watch your opponents time as well.

If you are playing against each other, you can also have the Excalibur Grandmaster monitor or rate your moves. Or you can even get hints during the play. This would score your move choices and help you understand how well your are playing.

is it for beginners?

Now that I know what this computer offers, I will recommend it to beginners. Not only is it a wonderful, fullsize, real board, to practice and play during your supplemental DVD, book, and software studies, but the actual modes it offers give practice hints and scoring.

One of the BIGGEST helps to beginners that this computer offers is the square name printed right on the square!!  I love it!  I'm not a beginner, but I know how helpful this will be to those that need it. So, when you see a move on the LCD readout. You can know exactly which square (E2-E4) to move the piece!

You might wonder how an LCD can provide this input. Well, you can request a hint, cycle through your options, and let it show you a score for any move possible.

Scoring is a three digit number, where 150 equals a pawn, etc. And from there it will estimate and create it's partial scoring scale, mathematically incorporating all the pieces on the position.

There are 100 levels. When you first buy the computer, it starts out in Level 6. This is the easiest, where it's limited to looking ahead one move. And of course it won't let you make illegal moves, and it knows all the rules of chess including en passant, castling, stalemate, etc.

Now, if..... yes if you can't beat it on the beginner level you could give the computer a handicap and have it play "short" a few pieces :)

You can also verify the position of the pieces on the board in case you forget where a piece should be or if your youngster is helping you move a few pieces at once.

Oh, and you can easily switch sides, or ask the computer to make your move, by pressing the MOVE key any time.

There is a "Threat Warning" which will show you if any of your pieces are being threathened.

Another good feature for beginners is the Book Opening Learning. There are 32 openings by name that you can choose to play, and the Excalibur Grandmaster will guide you through them.

more on levels

I think the level setting is very intuitive and easy.  Hit the level key. Choose from 1-100. Move by 10's by holding down the key. Simple.

The first level is facinating. It will use your average time and move accordingly.

The next few levels (2-6) let you limit the number of moves it can see ahead... three, two, or one move.

Level 7-36 require the computer to move in a fixed time from 1 sec, to 3 minutes per move, depending on which level you choose.

Leverls 37-66 are averaged time, so it will take an average of the specified amount of time from 1 sec to 3 minutes per move over the whole game.

Remember, any time a move is "a given" or required, or the only move possible, the Excalibur Grandmaster will move immediately. This is also true if the Grandmaster still recognizes the position as in it's opening book.

Levels 67-89 will be very popular because they are countdown (aka sudden death). I know... that's weird if you haven't heard that before. This is where you'd choose a game like 5 minute blitz (Level 70), or any length of game from 2 min to 120 min.

Levels 90-93 are Tournament Levels. You can choose from some popular ones like 40 moves in 120 minutes; then 20 moves every 60 minutes thereafter.... or 40 moves in 60 minutes. etc.

Level 94 is a good one. Infinite Search. Say you want the computer to analyse a position for a long time... or overnight.  You can choose level 94 and let the computer think. Then, when you press MOVE it will make it's move - whatever the best move is that it found.

Levels 95-100 help you with "mate finding". Not dating. Checkmate finding. These are programmed specifically for helping you find Mate in X. Say you find a chess problem in the New York Times and can't come up with the answer. Now you can setup this position, and the computer will do the work for you :).  It will do Mates in 1 to Mates in 6.

You can set up special positions. Change a position. Add a piece, remove a piece, all with the Setup features. The manual explains this simply and clearly.

is it for strong players?

Yes. It's ideal not just for beginners, but I think stronger club players and even experts.

With an estimated rating of 2200 (Master level), it will give a strong game even to experts. If you want a super strong way to play against a computer, of course you'll need to search out chess software.

But all-in-all, it's relatively strong and better than a host of other chess computers.

In case you are wondering, this computer will not hook up to a PC. Some have asked this, but that's not part of the design.

in summary

I think that for the price, this computer offers quite a lot, especially being the only full size computer, and currently the largest, practical, computer vs. player or player vs. player model.

I'd give the computer an 8.5 out of 10. It's not the toughest plastic, and it doesn't have a super quality appearance, but with all that it offers, I think that the vast majority of you will really enjoy it.

I think it would be great as a gift for an uncle, dad, or grandpa for playing at home. Or for a child that's serious about improving.

To buy the Excalibur Grandmaster, go to ChessHouse.com. You'll be dealing with a responsible, friendly company that's easy to do business with.

Some people are entirely new to chess, but must of us know at least how the pieces move.

People that are watching Elliott's Chess School DVD's say it is outstanding and are recommending it to friends. Not only is his teaching so complete, step-by-step, and valuable, but his personality and presentation make it easy and fun to watch. He's a great guy, and this shows through.

You will not only learn or get a review of the basics, but you will start learning how to do more than just move pieces. He will show you how to really apply strategy and give you solid tips so chess makes a lot more sense to you.

You can find gaps in your knowledge that will be filled, and help you win more among your family members and friends, even if you are a beginner.

Elliott Neff has taught thousands of students life skills through chess, with Chess4Life.com. He will teach you everything you need to know as a beginner. This is important because unskilled teachers are a dime a dozen. But Elliott has refined the teaching methods to leave no "holes" in your knowledge. You'll be confident that what you are learning is thorough and real.

I think that anyone from 5 years old to 85 years old will enjoy this chess teaching you can watch on DVD. He's very easy to understand, and goes at a good pace that's not too fast or too slow.

So regardless of your age, you will be able to enjoying learning chess, and learn it efficiently and completely with Elliott's Chess School.

I recommend you start with the first DVD called the "Pawn Level". There are six DVDs planned in the series and right now, the first two are available. These two levels will take you through Pawn:Beginner and Knight:Basics.

Regardless of your chess knowledge right now, you will pick up great tips by watching these. Get a head start on your friends, and go for solid, enjoyable chess teaching with Elliott.

Friday, March 14, 2008 (AP)
Experts Link Leonardo to Chess Puzzles
By ARIEL DAVID, Associated Press Writer

  (03-14) 09:55 PDT ROME, Italy (AP) --

  Leonardo da Vinci drew everything from war machines to anatomy sketches.
Now it seems he may have also been an early illustrator of the chess
puzzle.

  Experts say the Renaissance genius, whose interests included painting,
mathematics, music, engineering, anatomy and botany, may have illustrated
the puzzles in a long-lost chess treatise recently recovered in the
library of an aristocratic family in northern Italy.

  The manuscript was penned around 1500 by Luca Pacioli, a mathematician and
friend of Leonardo, and some experts believe the artist may have drawn the
elegant pieces that illustrate the chess puzzles discussed in the
treatise.

  "The pieces are exceptional for that era," said Franco Rocco, a
Milan-based architect and sculptor who studied the illustrations. "Even
today they look futuristic."

  The treatise, "De Ludo Schaccorum" — Latin for "Of the Game of
Chess" — includes more than 100 chess problems that challenge the
player to reach checkmate in a certain number of moves. Today such
mind-twisters are popular fixtures in newspapers.

  The sole copy of the treatise was found in 2006 among 22,000 volumes
collected by the Coronini family in their palace in Gorizia, on Italy's
border with Slovenia.

  "It was like a Holy Grail of chess," said Serenella Ferrari Benedetti,
cultural coordinator of the foundation that manages the Coronini estate.
"We knew it existed but nobody had ever seen it."

  The illustrations of the red and black chess pieces were themselves a
puzzle. The slender, abstract design was so unusual that Ferrari Benedetti
asked Rocco to study the drawings.

  After a year of research, Rocco concluded that Pacioli enlisted Leonardo's
help to draw the pieces.

  Rocco, in a telephone interview with The Associated Press, noted that the
two men had earlier collaborated in Milan when Leonardo helped illustrate
a treatise on proportion while also painting "The Last Supper."

  Rocco said the futuristic style of the chess pieces is in sharp contrast
with the way other pieces were represented at the time.

  Every piece also was proportionally related to each of its parts and to
the other pieces, a trademark of Leonardo's art, he said. In addition,
some pieces directly recall other works by Leonardo, including a queen
similar to a fountain drawn in one of the artist's manuscripts.

  Not all the pieces display the same quality and some were drawn with a
right hand and others with a left, Rocco said. This indicates that
Leonardo, who was left-handed, may have only drawn a few pieces to provide
examples, or that he simply suggested the designs to Pacioli, Rocco said.

  Alessandro Vezzosi, the director of a museum dedicated to the artist in
his hometown of Vinci, told the AP that the idea that Leonardo drew the
pieces is plausible, but documented proof would be needed.

  "We can't say that he drew the pieces. It's a very interesting hypothesis,
but it needs to be verified," said Vezzosi, who was not involved in
Rocco's research.

  Pacioli's manuscript, normally not on public display, was exhibited last
summer in Florence and will be briefly shown in Gorizia in June. ----------------------------------------------------------------------
Copyright 2008 AP

A video review of the phantom force chess computer will be posted on youtube soon.

It's currently the only available self moving chess computer.

the chess pieces are very light weight on purpose so the computer can actually slide them across the surface. therefore the board surface is also very slippery. any jolt will displace the pieces so you'll just need to have it sitting on a firm surface.

This is the most interesting and intriguing chess computer. It will amaze anyone. We have noticed that operation is not silent though.

Can you provide information and tips on how to start a chess club?

This question has been posed frequently. I would like to give assistance to those seeking tips on how to start a chess club. Since the means and methods very greatly, I will mention a few general points and let our readers weigh in from their own experience.

Identify your reason for starting the club. Keep it simple, and focus on your goal. Even a few friends can form a small group meet-up style club, completely informal and fun. Whatever the size you hope to start, you'll have a motivating purpose and person, or group of persons behind your new chess club.

Often in keeping with this motivating purpose which inspired you to start a chess club, you'll create your club's signature event. It can be extremely simple, but think about your location, interests of the members you have or plan to attract, and choose a beginning venue, time, and playing standard. These elements are entirely up to you, and you should think about it carefully. Will you layout rules, or keep it very informal?

Starting a club requires some commitment. State your motivational purpose, and move right ahead. Here are some things to keep in mind.

-- Does the club target a particular age group? Seniors? College students? High School? Elementary? Surfers? All of the above?
-- Will you foot the bill entirely yourself, or require dues or donations? Count the cost before hand. Will you consider sponsorship?
-- What atmosphere do you want? This is largely created by the venue, and your people.
-- Is the purpose entirely fun? or will you emphasize learning opportunities, and make it benefit a group or community?
-- what is your target size? how many members do you want? larger is not necessarily better.
-- will you build in incentives such as premium equipment to top achievers?

Since chess clubs in education are starting in rapid numbers, let's focus there. With numerous parents discovering the value of chess for their kids, parents are taking the initiative to get their kids involved in after school chess programs, chess classes, and essentially chess clubs.

But many teachers and parents are clueless as to what to do to start a club. Many are taking action out of pure motivation, wanting to help these groups of kids and give them this wonderful activity.

Here are some basics to consider:

1. What special need or goal do you want to achieve? Ultimately, the pure fun, and challenge, with reasonably organized leadership will be a great positive experience for the kids.
2. Who will organize and lead the class or club?
3. Where will you meet. And how often will you meet?
4. How many kids will participate - how many will you reach?
5. will your school back or fund your endeavor, partially, or entirely? If not, this is not reason to give up!

These are some things you will normally consider. In the next article, I want to give you more specific resources, facts, and tips you can use to get off the ground and make it REAL and fun!

Friends, if you have start a chess club, and have experience, go right ahead and share some specific tools and resources you have found most effective.

For example.
1. How did you organize your first tournament?
2. Did you use software to run your club?
3. What chess equipment did you find essential?
4. What organization(s) if any provided helpful info?

The US women's team made history at the Chess Olympiad by capturing Silver, the first ever Olympic medal for the United States. The player and driving force behind this success was Susan Polgar, who came out of a eight-year hiatus with a stunning performance. Read the interview.