Patronware

Published on 2021-10-24 by Stuart Spence

I like that the full ChessCraft game is free and ad-free, and yet it is monetized. It has been a challenge describing this monetization strategy succinctly. I wish there were a word for it. In this post I'll explore how words like "donationware", "freemium", and "nagware" aren't a good fit …

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Oh, Stallman

Published on 2021-04-17 by Stuart Spence

Richard Stallman may be a legend in the world of software, but he also has decades of history promoting a toxic environment in software communities. Due to this, the Free Software Foundation (FSF) has been pressured to kick out Stallman from the board of directors, which they did, though he …

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Release 1.12: Online Multiplayer

Published on 2021-02-09 by Stuart Spence

Today I'm incredibly excited to announce a test release of ChessCraft with online multiplayer! If you are a beta tester on Google Play, you'll soon get the latest version 1.12 which allows you to play your friends online.

Just like release 1.4 where you could share your designs …

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Bazaar

Published on 2020-12-01 by Stuart Spence

So... I bought myself a ChessCraft mug. Is that vain?

I'm really happy with this awesome mug!

chesscraft mug

In case anyone else is interested, here's a link to the new online store: ChessCraft Bazaar. Good to note: these are printed individually by Zazzle so they are quite pricey, and I hardly …

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Ode to the Public Servant

Published on 2020-09-04 by Stuart Spence

The privately employed

May say they're annoyed

about public servant perks.

-

What they fail to note

(and it's fair that they don't)

is that zombification lurks.

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Zombies are not happy,

humans need to be scrappy.

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Hold on to your fire,

stir the pots and aspire.

-

Are you a zombie?

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Release 1.9: Convenient Buttons and Bugfixes

Published on 2020-07-15 by Stuart Spence

This small update is all about convenience features and bugfixes.

  • Fixed a bug where the AI thinks a very long time then makes illegal moves.
  • Undo button in the board editor.
  • Drag release drift.
  • Swap button for white/black when placing pieces in the board editor.
  • New piece abilities: move …

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Release 1.8: Random Board Generator

Published on 2020-06-08 by Stuart Spence

Before I ramble too much about the random board generator, I must thank:

  • Luigi Annicchiarico
  • Johan Estévez
  • Selianin Alexander

- for volunteering to fully and thoroughly edit my Italian, Spanish, and Russian translations! This was a lot of work. More than most people may realize. Internally, ChessCraft has over 500 different …

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