10/26/2021 – While entering moves, writing comments, and evaluating positions are the most fundamental aspects of chess annotation, there is little doubt that illustrating the board with well-placed arrows, and timely highlighted squares can tell you in a glance you can see what is going on without a single variation or comment. Be sure to have these tools in your tool kit.

10/21/2021 – Adding symbols, evaluations and comments may be important, but without variations and moves to depict the possibilities that could have taken place or should have taken place, describing chess as a science would have no meaning. Yet knowing how to organize and re-organize those variations and moves sensibly and efficiently is no less essential. Learn how to do it like a pro!

10/18/2021 – Knowing the ins and outs of annotating a game in ChessBase is one of the most fundamental and useful skills to have in it. It is vital so you can prepare openings, review your games, and more. Before stating you know all this, ask yourself: can you easily add text before a move, add symbols such as 'with attack', and add a '!' without a mouse? Let's start mastering the tools!

10/13/2021 – Most players look at endgame study as a necessary evil, akin to taking a very bitter medicine, that may yield results, but is boring. However, what if your study of endgames was punctuated at every corner and turn by fireworks and wondrous moves? This can be achieved, at least partially, thanks to the Studies app from ChessBase Account, making your study of endgames much more fun!

10/7/2021 – Solving tactical puzzles can be fun, but what if you could automatically create your own, even from your own games? Nothing could be easier thanks to the analysis tools in both the Fritz interface or ChessBase. In fact, it can be a fun way to review your online games and be tested on the moves where you or your opponent missed a shot. Read on to learn how!

9/26/2021 – When mentioning the name Mega Database, many players automatically think of either the millions of games contained in it, or the equally impressive number of annotated games – well over 80 thousand. However, the price tag also includes a full year of weekly updates, which can then be renewed every year. Learn all here.

9/23/2021 – While the Solve Tactics mode is undoubtedly the meat of the of the Tactics web app, there are two other modes that provide a very different sort of training, excellent to stay sharp. Both are based on trying to solve as quickly as possible, but each with a slightly different angle. They are also the perfect trainer for bullet chess. You will also find part one demonstrated in a video!

9/20/2021 – Among the myriad apps and services offered with a subscription to ChessBase Account is the Tactics web app. This concept is hardly new, and readers undoubtedly are aware of a plethora of rival sites and apps offering this same service, so what makes this one so special? What makes it deserving of the headline "best by test"? Read on to find out!

7/25/2021 – Many of the ChessBase products have been around for more than 30 years, and we now have ChessBase 16, Fritz 17, over 200 ChessBase magazines, as well as more than 500 training programmes from chess masters. With so much choice, it is easy to lose the overview, and sometimes you ask yourself: what is which software good for, what can I do with it, and what are the main functions? With the newly made shopping assistant, we have created a guide for you in a short description + videos.

7/7/2021 – If you are a true chess aficionado, you will want to stay updated with the latest games from tournaments all over the world! ChessBase 16 lets you do that with a single click. You can see all currently running tournament games, with machine analysis, the important novelties that were played, and even the most interesting tactical shots that occurred in the latest games. IM Sagar Shah explains it all to you in this tutorial video. It is just five minutes long, but will save you hours of tedious searching and copying.

6/23/2021 – We have renovated: the ChessBase video portal presents itself in a new look. But the most important thing: you will now find what you are looking for much faster! Over 5,000 training videos are ready for you! All of them are fully indexed, so that you can use the search board to search all the videos for positions. Content has also been cleaned up: while we now offer "chess entertainment" on our YouTube channels, the focus on the video portal is now on chess training. High-quality training material on openings, middlegames, endgames. We regularly publish new training lessons from top trainers such as Daniel King, Karsten Müller, Herman Grooten, Robert Ris or Lawrence Trent. Real premium content for premium users! Come in!

6/8/2021 – Train and analyse with video - almost like in a chess club, but simply via the browser! The new training functions in the PlayChess web browser are already being actively used by Stefan Kindermann and the Munich Chess Academy! You can see, hear, analyse, train and of course play! Anyone can create their own virtual room, invite friends and training groups and get started. Martin Fischer explains step-by-step how it works. Online training has never been so much fun!

1/18/2021 – Everyone knows the situation: you get some impressive new software, work happily with it for a year – and then suddenly discover that it can do way more than you thought. Why not find out straight away what it has to offer. ChessBase 16 has some incredible functions, designed to rapidly improve your playing strength and add to your Elo rating. Let a consummate power user show you how they work.

12/11/2020 – Jeroen van den Belt has already explained how the search booster came about and how it works in an interview with Frederic Friedel. But how the high-speed tool will be used in practical tests may still be unclear to some. That is why we have simply opened ChessBase 16, and let the booster work.

11/27/2020 – The latest version of our database program, ChessBase 16, is creating waves in the chess world. But do you know everything that is under the hood of this remarkable training tool for chess players? How it will find new interesting lines for you to play, and look after your repertoire, keep it fully up-to-date? Today IM Sagar Shah discussed the new features live with the head of the programming team. Watch the video recording for a unique tutorial on how to use the new program. That will repay you with additional rating points – for sure!

11/27/2020 – What distinguishes the Mega Database from other databases? For one, it does not become obsolete and remains "up to date" with just a few clicks! Because the delivery of the Mega Database 2021 includes not only more than 8 million games but also the weekly mega update service. Every week we provide you with a database of around 5,000 new games. At the same time the search booster of the reference database is updated, which allows you to continue your work immediately and without losing time. With a few clicks in ChessBase 16, your Mega Database will always be up to date. A "mega help" for every tournament player. Here's how...

11/17/2020 – ChessBase 16 has the key to fresh ideas, precise analyses and targeted training! With the new repertoire recommendations, main variations, secondary variations, attacking, gambits, and brand new, "fashion", you can focus on openings better than ever. Furthermore, recognition to detect weak points against your opponents can be added to your opening preparation. With the Novelty-Mining feature, you can dig deep for opening treasures. And there are many more novelties...

11/16/2020 – ChessBase 16 is already in the starting blocks and will be released on 17th November 2020. Now everyone wants to know: what are the new features in this version? What innovations are on the horizon? And what is the "key to new ideas"? Jeroen Van Den Belt, who has been active for ChessBase since Fritz 7, presents interesting innovations in the video. The last part of the five-part series deals with the new "chat" design and its features.

11/13/2020 – ChessBase 16 is already in the starting blocks and will be released on 17th November 2020. Now everyone wants to know: what are the new features in this version? What innovations are on the horizon? And what is the "key to new ideas"? Jeroen Van Den Belt, who has been active for ChessBase since Fritz 7, presents interesting innovations in the video. Part 4 of the five-part series deals with "raytracing", what it means and what it can be used for.

11/12/2020 – ChessBase 16 is already in the starting blocks and will be released on 17th November 2020. Now everyone wants to know: what are the new features in this version? What innovations are on the horizon? And what is the "key to new ideas"? ChessBase co-founder Matthias Wuellenweber, who has developed all ChessBase versions since 1986 with his team, presents the most interesting innovations in a video. Part 3 of the five-part series (in which ChessBase programmer Jeroen van den Belt is also involved) deals with "Novelty-Mining" and how it is done.

11/11/2020 – ChessBase 16 is already in the starting blocks and will be released on 17th November 2020. Now everyone wants to know: what are the new features in this version? What innovations are on the horizon? And what is the "key to new ideas"? ChessBase co-founder Matthias Wuellenweber, who has developed all ChessBase versions since 1986 with his team, presents the most interesting innovations in the video. Part 2 of the five-part series (in which ChessBase programmer Jeroen van den Belt is also involved) deals with "opening surveys" and how they are calculated.

11/10/2020 – ChessBase 16 is already in the starting blocks and will be released on 17th November 2020. Now everyone wants to know: what are the new features in this version? What innovations are on the horizon? And what is the "key to new ideas"? ChessBase co-founder Matthias Wuellenweber, who has developed all ChessBase versions since 1986 with his team, presents the most interesting innovations in the video. Part 1 of the five-part series (in which ChessBase programmer Jeroen Van Den Belt is also involved) deals with "opening novelties" at the highest level.

9/3/2020 – It is not clear when we will get to play over-the-board team tournaments again. Online competitions are the only alternative. But where can you play serious team matches using a classical formats? On PlayChess! For example at the DSOL (German Online Chess League), in which 246 teams are participating. You do not need to play at the DSOL to play with your team though — anyone can do it! You can set up a round-robin event with a fixed board order or use the Scheveningen system. As in over-the-board tournaments, the players can concentrate exclusively on their games and do not have to worry about the pairings or how to challenge others. Only the team captains have to put in some more work, just like in “normal” team matches.

8/30/2020 – Many users have comfortable — one could almost say “huge” — computer screens. So it is not surprising that texts in our databases and also those of ChessBase Magazine look almost “ridiculously small”. But that does not have to be the case! Solution: in the latest versions there is a zoom function which becomes available after you update your software online!