Computer Go
| Table of Contents |
| Software That Plays Go |
| Online Go |
| Software That Teaches Go |
| Software That Helps You Study |
| Software for Playing Go on the Internet |
| Pairing Programs |
| For Programmers |
| Other Programs |
Software that Plays Go
Commercial products
These are programs you can purchase on the Internet, from a vendor (Yutopian has a very good selection) or in most cases from the author.
- Tensai Go: More than 400,000 copies sold in Japan. Try it for free; buy it for $20.
- Ego: by Bruce Wilcox. It plays with nine different personalities.
- FunGo: Includes a tutorial and 200 life and death problems. Play against the computer, or against a human opponent over the Internet. Click here to download a 9x9 version.
- Go++ : Author Michael Reiss claims his program is "the strongest in the world"
- Handtalk: DOS-based Winner of the 1993 World Computer Go Congress. Click here to download a 9x9 version.
- Many Faces of Go: Purchase David Fotland's award-winning program here, or click here to download Igowin, a 9x9 freeware demo.) above.
- NEMESIS Go Master: Bruce Wilcox's classic program for Windows or MacIntosh
- SmartGo: Anders Kierulf's sophisticated tool for creation and review of computerized game records contains a library of over 45,000 professional games, It also plays against human opponents. 15-day free trial download.
- SmartGo Touch:SmartGo touch: Over 10,000 professional games and 2000 Go problems in your pocket. Can also be used to record your own games.
- WULU: Winner of the 2000 Ing Computer Go Championship.
The other programs listed below are available for free download; some work well on a variety of platforms, with others, you get what you pay for.
- PANDA-glGo is a 3D and 2D Goban, game viewer and editor, client for IGS-PandaNet and interface for GNU Go.
- GTKGo is a GTK+-based version of the oriental game Go. You can play go against another player or against a weak computer player. This program's main advantage is a pretty interface.
- Tetsuki: An IGS client that lets you observe and play games online.
- Aigo: Shareware plays go on your Palm Pilot
- Augos 6: Joachim Pimiskern test
his theories of intelligence
- Dariush: 13x13 freeware, compatible with Kogo's Joseki Dictionary
- Explorer: Claims to be the strongest program for the Mac
- GnuGo: An open source program
- GoSuite: A complete go application for your Pocket PC or SmartPhone: play against GnuGo, record your games, view sgf files
- Igo: DOS-based 9x9 version of Dave Fotland's Many Faces of Go rates your play as you progress
- Lumpy: Fast, easy to beat, uses Chinese scoring
- Minimago: 9X9 version of the DOS-based ImaGo program
- Peirson: DOS-based program
- Star Of Poland: The shareware version only plays the first 50 moves
- SW1: You can't beat the price!
- TMW: Another DOS-based demo
- TurboGo In DOS (318K) amd Windows (1.14M) versions -- both versions include a tutorial. Don't miss their screen saver -- use it to play through games when the computer is idle.
- Wally: A simple program with C source code
- XO: DOS-based program with ASCII interface by Colin Walker
- GoRilla: GoRilla is a freeware Windows product that loads/edits/stores SGF files
* WCGC = World Computer Go Championship, also currently known as the FOST cup.
Online Go
Thousand of people are playing go at all levels on the Internet right now! Click here for a list of go servers and "clients" software for use with open-source servers like IGS).
Software that Teaches Go
These programs do not play, but they are designed to show you things that may improve your play. Searchable game collections, joseki tutors and other 'treating software" can be found in this category. Most of these programs are commercial products.
- Fuseki Made Easy: Lessons on common opening patterns, annotated pro games and 500 problems. (Yutopian)
- Go At Ease: A lively animated introduction. (Yutopian
- GoTools 1.1: Estimates your strength by testing you with life and death problems.
- The Jujo Go Lectures: 24 lectures by the great Chinese champion Zhu-jiu Jiang on CD-ROM. Windows Media Player required. (Samarkand)
- Go Dojo: Contact Fights: by Bruce Wilcox. 1400 interactive pages teaching contact skills.
- Go Dojo: Sector Fights: by Bruce Wilcox. 1900 interactive pages teaching sector/approach skills.
- Compogo: An easy to use game database.
- Deepthinking Game review software that compares your game to its library of 2200 pro games
- Drago Browse and edit files; print and export; play against GnuGo.
- Fuseki.info: Online database of more than 28,000 professional games
- Go Game Assistant : Play online, record and analyze your own games or study the library of 33,000 professional agmes or other teaching materials included with this shareware program
- GoGap: Guess the next move as you play through games and this Windows-based program from China keeps score. (Yutopian)
- Go2000: Game record database management system with pattern recognition.
- GoGoD: Thousands of professional games in sgf format. (Yutopian)
- GoGod95: Free download of the above program without the database.
- GoGrinder: a Java program for practicing go problems in SGF format. 347 problems are included in the install, and thousands more are easily downloadable (pointers in the documentation).
- GoWrite: Recording software with many advanced options for printing game records.
- Hibiscus Go: An oldie but goodie -- this shareware editor has been around since 1997.
- Infowalker Game Viewer: a lightweight HTML-based approach, which walks the reader through commentary while dynamically updating a corresponding go board. Nifty, but very little content.
- JaGo: This game recorder also works as an IGS client.
- MasterGo: A collection of >33,000 pro games -- search by player or by opening pattern. Demo includes 800 games with san-ren-sei openings. (Slate and Shell)
- MoyoGo: Game analysis tool containing game records that were acquired from other collections without permission. This is a controversial practice. Click here to read more about this issue in The American Go E-Journal. To view further discussion Click here.
- qGo: Linux/Windows
- RPGo: Windows based, uses ishi format. With source code.
- SGView: DOS-based
- SmartGo: Windows software to play, replay, analyze, study, and print go games. With over 38,000 professional games and over 2000 problems. Free 15-day trial.
- TeleGo: Play go with a friend directl;y by modem, not on the Internet.
- WinMGT: "My Go Tutor", a Windows-based program for recording and reviewing games.
- Miniban: Help Sebastian Helm beta-test his recording/reviewing program for Windows CE.
- BadukTracer: for the Macintosh.
- Pon-nuki: for the Macintosh.
- Goban: Free from Sente Software for Mac OS X 10.3
- GoMo: Free game recording software for the Mac OS/X.
- Go for Palm OS: Free game record/review software for the Palm operating system.
- PilotGone: Free recording software for the Palm operating system.
- PalmGo: Free game record/review software for the Palm operating system.
- Gome : Play on IGS, access online game database, review games.
- Mgo: Record, replay and analyze games on your PDA or cell phone.
- GoReader : lets you download and review sgf files on your java-enabled cell phone.
- Cgoban 1: UNIX source code for the Kiseido Go Server's client.
- Hikarunix: Download this 190 MB Unix operating system, burn to a CD and then use the CD to start your computer under Unix. (To return to DOS/Windows, remove the CD and restart again.)
- Xmgt: for Unix/X-windows
- Cgoban: client for the KGS Go Server.
- JiGo: Source code for a Java-based game recording program.
- GoBoard: Free "intelligent go board" for Psion 3a/c/mx system.
- TiGo: Record and review games on the Texas Instruments TI-89.
- Went: Record and review games on the Psion EPOC32, Series 5, 5mx and Ericsson MC 218.
- GoKnot: Play or observe up to 24 games at once.
- Netgame: Play by e-mail or direct P2P connection, no server required.
- SmartGo: Anders Kierulf's multi-function go study tool also enables you to play and observe games on the Internet Go Server (IGS).
- TanGo: Allows you to connect to several servers at once.
- TGWin: Shareware from Stephen Richard.
- ViziGo: Free with source code.
- Cgoban_1: KGS creator Bill Shubert's client includes the source code.
- STigc: Available with source code.
- Go Black and White: Sung-jin Kim's work in progress allows two players to link and play directly over the Internet. In the future he hopes to add audio chat and other features.
-
PyTD, a Python-based pairing application by Christopher Sira, will produce Swiss-McMahon style pairings and out put results in AGA compatible format.
- AccelRat: uses the algorithm that powers the AGA rating system to "rate" players, pairing those who seem closest in strength.
- WinTD: Capable of pairing knockout, Swiss-McMahon and other formats, and generating reports compatible with the AGA rating system. Click here to download the instruction manual as a pdf file. NOTE: This program requires Microsoft Access 2000. A run-time version is available for users who do not have Access 2000. Write to author Chuck Robbins at chuck@ctipc.com for more information on the latest version of this program.
- An Introduction to Computer Go: Jay Burmeister's comprehensive review of programming principles, the history of computer go, and related resources.
- Hikarunix: Download this 190 MB Unix operating system, burn to a CD and then use the CD to start your computer.
- GoClubsOnline: Integrated online tools for managing your club's tournaments, registrations and memberships.
- Corinnax Rendersoft SGF Reader: Diagram preparation utility that purportedly appears inside your application, but we had a hard time getting it to work.
- Jacoto: Java-based sgf file maintenance utility.
- sgf2misc: A utility that converts sgf files to other popular formats.
- Screen Saver: When your computer is idle, this utility will play through any collection of games at random on your monitor.
- Go in Tex: A utility for typesetting Go diagrams in Tex.
Software that Helps You Study
The following programs enable you to record games for later review. Some also allow you to save variations, make comments, mark alternate moves, print diagrams and so on. Each has its own interface, unique features and drawbacks. They are sorted by platform.
Windows:
WindowsCE:
Macintosh:
PalmOS:
MIDP 1.0 Java enabled cell phone:
Unix/Linux:
Java:
Other Platforms:
Software for Playing Go on the Internet
Some go servers on the Internet require you to provide your own "client", a graphic interface that converts code transmitted by the server into a user friendly visual display. Some of these programs also allow you to read sgf files.