Like many other pastimes, chess has become very popular on the Internet. There are sites where you can play your own games or even against the computer, sites where you can post messages regarding the game itself and sites where you can look up a wealth of information from past games to rules to chess openings and on and on. We're going to take a look at a few of the most popular chess sites on the Internet. Probably the most popular chess site on the Internet is chessgames.com. It has an Alexa ranking of 21,705 at the writing of this article, which is pretty darn good. The site has just about everything the chess enthusiast could want. They have their game of the day, which you can view and analyze. They have the puzzle of the day where they give you a position and you have to guess the move or moves that will provide victory for either the white or black pieces. Some of these puzzles are very hard even for accomplished players. Also at this site you can look up just about any opening and every tournament game by every player who has ever played that opening. Their database of games is simply massive. And of course you have your message boards where you can chat and post your comments on the various games in their database.
For the person who is really into chess, this is probably the only site you will ever need to go to if you just want to look up data on the game of chess. But if you want to play the game online, well, that's a different story and you're going to have to look elsewhere.
If you want to play chess online, one of the best places is pogo.com. This site has an Alexa ranking of 244 as of this writing. Granted, that is mostly because of all the other games that you can play there, but when doing a search for playing chess online, this is one of the first sites you are going to see.
At pogo.com you're going to run into hundreds of people who play chess. The rooms are broken down into ratings so that you're not playing against an opponent who is much better than you unless you want to. Also, you can play against the computer, which is quite fun. The online computer engines are not that good but good enough that they can give you a run for your money unless you're a grand master. The computers do have different levels too.
Then of course there is the Internet Chess Club where all the grand masters hang out. If you want to meet some of the most famous people in the chess world, this is where you want to go. Considering that the grand master population is relatively small, an Alexa ranking of 42,343 as of this writing, is pretty good. This is a pay site but the members benefits are numerous, including unlimited rated play, chat, tournaments and even private lessons. Membership is definitely worth it if you're an avid chess player.
And these are only a few of the many chess sites available online. With a little research, you can literally get lost in this world of Internet chess.
Michael Russell Your Independent guide to Chess
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