I am happy to see the discussion(s) over the interpretations of several rules on this forum. Why? I believe that the posts that those dialogues generated has given everyone that participated as a poster or reader a much better understanding of the intent and enforcement of those rules. Those discussions point out that the rules are subject to many valid interpretations. The rules are living breathing representations of the flexibility that the rules provide to meet the needs of chess players and TDs across a diverse chess nation that have differing chess needs. One size does not fit all.
Tim:
How hard is it to come up with a revised editin every three years? Could a more frequent revision generate more income?
Hmmm…perhaps–I don’t really know. The last edition took about two years from start to finish. I suspect in this digital world (and one where I have done a pretty good job of keeping the rulebook updated with changes) that the time from start to finish could be one year or less (especially if, unlike last time, the delegates refer the job with the proviso to implement).
I have a personal goal of finding a way to get the rulebook posted on-line while meeting the Random House/McKay-player-TD needs that fit the contract signed in the last century, before the advent of the Net. Are there any pro-bono lawyers and/or negotiators out there?
I’d like that too, but would be satisfied for any electronic version that is easy to search on the laptop even if it wasn’t available online.
Perhaps. It would also cost the TDs and players more. This would be a bad thing. The rules should not be changed frequently or without dire necessity.
Especially for those organizer/TD’s such as I who have my own personal copy and a couple extra for the TD’s I’m showing the ropes to. I’d have preference for an electronic or online copy that can get updates and a new edition every 6-10 years based on major changes?
With the update capable electronic copy, it may be closer to the 10 year mark than sooner.
It doesn’t makes sense to me that a game’s rules for governing rated play are something one can copyright, however, I distinguish such rules from the volume the USCF calls the Official Rules of Chess, published and understandably copyrightable by McKay. That volume does include the rules, but also so much more like TD and organizer tips.
Heck, even the Swiss pairing system cornerstone is nothing more than a giant TD tip since basically any part of it can be abrogated by thorough pre-tournament publicity. Most of the rules on touch move or time controls are probably not copyrightable, even word for word, despite what McKay might claim. However, stuff like how to handle illegal positions is more likely to enjoy copyright status, as the rules in their basic form preclude illegal moves in the first place. Or more pointedly, a rule like 14H1 saying that a player may initiate a claim of insufficient losing chances is probably not copyrightable but all the rest of the language in 14H2 onwards would more likely be copyrightable since it is nothing more than a guide to the director on how to handle the claim. Or again, language amounting to “set your clock correctly” might be fine but not “TDs, make sure all clocks are set correctly at the beginning of the round”. One is a rule; the other is a how-to manual. Meh, all supposition on my part, of course, but I hope some of what I said makes sense.
If my take on this were correct, it would be helpful to have a mid-range set of rules for which the USCF would have exclusive rights. It would, of course, encompass all the laws of chess, but broaden them to cover any rule that effects any single rated game without necessitating a third-party tournament director being present. I hope I am wrong and the Official Rules can be published in electronic form in their entirety, but unfortunately we haven’t been lucky. Tim, is this midrange rulebook idea at all plausible and/or possible?
There sees to be some misunderstanding about what copyright covers. You can’t copyright facts or ideas. You can copyright only a specific manner of presenting facts or ideas. If you wanted to paraphrase the USCF rules and post them on line, you most likely could – though the copyright holder might try to claim that your paraphrase was too close to the original and therefore an infringement. That’s why lawyers get rich.
Even if it’s possible, it would be an extremely bad idea.
The basic rules, presented without the explanatory information such as TD Tips, would be difficult to understand and susceptible to grossly distorted interpretations by players and less experienced TDs.
Bill Smythe
That question is why a lawyer needs to get involved, pro bono would be nice. Anyone?
Thanks, everyone! 
I’ve learned a lot by “listening” and asking in the last month, much of it stuff I could never learn by simply reading the rulebook. I’d have had to direct for several more years to encounter this many case studies on the floor.
Perhaps another book or booklet or online publication would help: TD case studies–not the law, but the interpretation of the law.
Due to the almost unlimited space available (unlike paper/printing) this kind of project would be very useful on-line or in some sort of e-format.
It might be done thus:
…One or more NTDs might volunteer to be case study editors.
…TDs could submit case studies to these editors, or the editors could keep an eye on this forum and grab good case studies that came up.
…The case study editors would vet the cases and make sure that they were clear and conformed to the rules (or were reasonable acceptable interpretations of the rules)
…The case studies would be published in some subsection on the USCF web page, and sorted under subject categories. When the case study archive became large, the case studies could be tagged and made searchable by tag.
The other advantage of doing it on the computer is it is more modular. If rules changes make a certain case study obsolete, you just delete that particular one.
I like the idea. As the database grew larger, the TDCC would have to come up with more complex questions for the ANTD and NTD tests as their examples became ‘covered’ by the case studies. (o;
Would it be possible to forgo the use/need of a rulebook?
Why can’t USCF have a “Rules of Chess” document that explains how to play? Something that has nothing to do with tournaments. There are players out there that just want to learn how to play the game of chess and if the come to the USCF what do we have to offer them? [Most of Section 1, rules 1A-14F and Section 3 in the current rulebook]
A “tournament guidelines” document that explains the rules of tournament play?
touch move, clocks, insufficient losing chances, notation with paper or a “gizmo”, making claims, spectators, appeal process
[The rest of Section 1, 4, and 5 of the current rulebook]
A “tournament director’s guide” that offers information for the unfortunate souls who’ve agreed to organize and run chess events?
pairings, tie-breaks, prize payout, round-robin tables, TD certification requirements [Most of Section 2, 7, 8, 11, 12, and 13 in the current rulebook]
Some things may be duplicated, some completely removed, but that stuff can be determined by the Rules Committee (or whoever “writes” the current rulebook). If we can have other documents and regulations on our website, I don’t see why we can’t create these three and just start following them.
- Enrique
My experience with disputes at tournaments is that having a printed rulebook to show someone is often necessary.
What happens when there is a rule covering a situation available online but no online access at the tournament site?
I dunno…there’s nothing wrong with more people being knowledgeable and competent enough to pass the tests as currently written.
If TDs use the database, their knowledge would likely be broader and their rulings better-informed, regardless of their level of certification and what test they had taken.
Same thing I do now. I pull up the electronic copy (PDF works nicely) and I look for the necessary rule. All I’m saying is that the official rules can be maintained and made available online. Players and directors can download them and store them electronically.
- Enrique
Tim,
Check your email on this and other topics.
–Brennan