What are Jim Ablett complied versions of Chess Engines?
Jim Ablett’s page contains many executable files of chess engines that are available nowhere else. Some of these chess engines originally did not work in a Windows environment. Some were intended to run on other operating systems [such as: Linux, DOS, or CP/M]. Other engines were not originally written for Winboard protocol and don’t work inside Winboard or Arena. Still other engines are only available in source code form. As such it is up to kind souls like Jim Ablett to do things like adding Windows compatibility, or Winboard protocol compatibility, or fixing bugs. Jim compiles the source code into a workable Windows executable for people who don’t know how to compile them, or prefer Jim to do the work for them. While anyone can run a compiler, Jim Ablett’s expertly compiled versions are generally among the fastest available. NOTE: many people use (ja) to indicate that they are using a Jim Ablett compiled version. Dann Corbit’s ftp site is another useful resource for compiled version
