The Checker Maven
The World's Most Widely Read Checkers and Draughts Publication
Bob Newell, Editor-in-Chief
Published every Saturday morning in Honolulu, Hawai`i
Three Years of Publication
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Today The Checker Maven completes three years of uninterrupted, on-time publication. During that time, we have been fortunate to hold the interest and attention of thousands of readers from all around the world, who have made us what is surely the most widely-read periodical publication in the centuries-old history of the game of checkers. We're very proud of that distinction, and in return we can only wish to continue to publish and to provide Saturday-morning pleasure to all of you who are kind enough to drop by our electronic home.
During this past year, we've done less electronic book publication than we might have wished, and a new on-line feature or two didn't get completed, as we weren't able to function at full force for some months due to medical issues that required our concentrated attention. But that is all in the past, and the prospects for the year ahead look bright. Our plans include, in addition to our regular weekly columns, two e-books and a very exciting new interactive checker experience.
Thank you, one and all, for your continued support and patronage!
You can email the Webmaster with your comments on this article.
Konane Kane
Ed Gilbert generously sent along a copy of his 10-piece KingsRow endgame database (see previous story) for the use of The Checker Maven, and we've been having a few pleasant adventures getting it all set up and ready to use. We in turn send our thanks to Ed for supporting our ongoing work of bringing checkers to the public each and every week.
Our general policy is not to solicit donations and not to accept them if offered, as we believe that The Checker Maven should be free for everyone, and we don't want to have class distinctions between donors and non-donors. But Ed's offer was very special and very much appreciated. (We did also once accept a generous donation from Brian Hinkle, which is subsidizing a future electronic republication of a classic checker book.)
To install Ed's database, we really needed a faster and larger computer system, so, at Ed's advice, we built one from an assemblage of parts ordered from the component vendor Newegg. It took a little time and effort but our new system is running fine. We've called it Konane Kane which in Hawaiian roughly means Checker Dude. (The game Konane is sometimes called "Hawaiian Checkers.")
Here's a picture of the new system in the basement laboratory of our Santa Fe offices.
"Konane Kane" in our Santa Fe Computer Laboratory
Sometime later next year, Konane Kane will likely travel to "Hawai`i nei" and become the main computer at our Honolulu offices. In the meanwhile, we'll be using it and Ed's phenomenal database to bring you exciting new features and articles. It's a big win all around. Mahalo nui loa!
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We're Open for Business
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The Checker Maven offices have reopened after about three weeks of closure, during which time our weekly publication continued on an automated basis. We're glad to be back to work, and there's surely plenty to work on as we continue to prepare new articles, features, and electronic book editions. Of course, some of our projects have gotten behind schedule but we hope to make up some time over the next little while. Thank you to one and all for your continued readership.
You can email the Webmaster with your comments on this article.
Reservation Deadline Approaching
Gerry Lopez has reminded us again that the National GAYP tourney will be held at the Plaza in Las Vegas from July 23-27, and players need to make their hotel reservations no later than the 15th of June.
Reserve now, and avoid having to find another hotel at the last minute. The reservation number is 1-800-634-6575. Make sure that you ask for the special checker rates of only $29 plus tax from Sunday through Thursday and $65 plus tax for Friday and Saturday. Tournament entrants will also be required to pay $60 to help cover the cost of the large playing room. Gerry invites you to call him with your questions at (951) 695-2499.
You can email the Webmaster with your comments on this article.
A Message from Gerry and Alan
Our postal mail today brought us a very nice letter from none other than Gerry Lopez, who is a top player and a tireless organizer and promoter of our great game. Gerry is a major force behind this year's Nationals, coming up sooner than you think in July, 2007.
Gerry enclosed two short notes, one from himself and the other from American Checker Federation President Alan Millhone. We're pleased to be able to reproduce these messages here.
From Gerry: "It took a lot of work to get a good deal at the Plaza in Las Vegas for the GAYP National. Now the ACF needs help with pledges to meet the bid that we made to get it there. Anything you can do to help with a check or pledge will be much appreciated. Please help our game by mailing your check or pledge to: Gerry Lopez (ACF Nat'l), 41959 Corte Selva, Temecula, CA 92591. My phone number: (951)-695-2499. Email: prof237@netzero.net."
From Alan: "The National Tourney is coming up in July. Unfortunately, for many people, one of the measuring sticks for the value of a game is its prize fund. Checkers, one of the most beautiful games in the world, is not understood by most people. They think it's a game for children. When they read that the National Champion of the game receives a first prize of only $1,000, their conception is strengthened. It's high time to support our game. If every checker player contributes something, that terrible misconception can be changed. Let's do something to affect that change with your contribution, big or small, to this year's National. To support the game, please mail your check to Gerry Lopez, GAYP 2007, at 41858 Corte Selva, Temecula, CA 92591. All contributions will be credited in the ACF bulletin. Let's get more respect for our game!"
We couldn't agree more, and The Checker Maven encourages you to help out in any way you can. We'll be sending in a little something ourselves, and we challenge you to do the same if at all possible.
You can email the Webmaster with your comments on this article.
ACF and GoldToken Sign Contract
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The American Checker Federation and GoldToken have announced the signing of a contract agreement which will make GoldToken the official ACF online checker play site. Under the terms of the contract, GoldToken will provide a wide-ranging set of checker-play enhancements to their site.
GoldToken was chosen by the ACF via a rigorous competitive bidding process. Potential bidders were pre-qualified and those who passed the first screening were sent a detailed set of bid specifications. The responses were evaluated and GoldToken emerged as the top bidder. Contract negotiations proved successful and contract signing was completed a little over a week ago.
The exact contract terms and conditions contain vendor proprietary information, so we're not allowed to give all the details here. But we can tell you that GoldToken will be adding a lot of checker-related improvements and additions to their site in the coming months. Completion of this work is expected in six to twelve months, and we know we'll find the wait practically unbearable--- but definitely worth it.
You can email the Webmaster with your comments on this article.
SQL Injection
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The Checker Maven was subject to another cyberattack: our checker postcard site was mildly defaced. It seems that, unknown to us, the postcard software we use had a certain flaw which allowed a type of attack called "SQL injection." We won't bore you with all the technical details; suffice it to say that we've restored the site to normal and patched up our software to hopefully avoid such problems in the future.
More importantly, we do need to (someday!) redo our postcard site. While we think it's a great feature, it relies on the postcard recipient clicking on a link to our site to see their postcard. Unfortunately in today's world, clicking on links to sites that are unfamiliar (and we admit that not quite everyone knows about our site, at least not yet!) can be very risky. So when we redo the site, we'll provide a postcard mechanism that won't require anything more than opening your email.
Editor's Note: The postcard feature has long been discontinued as of our 2026 site update.
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ACF Announces Five Thousand Dollar Youth Prize
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It's been said that practically no one has made a living at checkers, and those few that did found that living to be pretty slim.
We're not saying that this has all changed now, but thanks to the great generosity of an anonymous donor, Big Money has come to youth checkers!
This year's Arther Niederhoffer Youth Tournament, to be held in Las Vegas at the Plaza Hotel on July 21 and 22, offers a five thousand dollar first prize to the winner of the top section. That's no misprint; the top prize is five thousand dollars in the "Expert Youth" group, intended for ages 16-21. Clocks will be used and games recorded, just like they do uptown.
If you're in the age range listed and have what it takes (or you know someone who qualifies), you won't want to miss this incredible event, with a cash prize the likes of which youth checkers has never seen.
More information can be found on the American Checker Federation website.
You can email the Webmaster with your comments on this article.
A Joe Job
The Checker Maven has suffered from what computer geeks call "a joe job." It's an almost universal spammer's trick: they take an email address or domain name found on the internet, and then use that address as a phony "from" address for millions of spam emails. The idea is that bounced and undeliverable mail, and especially angry complaints, won't get forwarded back to the spammer, but instead go to the address that the spammer "borrowed."
Believe us when we tell you The Checker Maven hasn't been sending out solicitations to buy pirated software or the like! Unfortunately, there's nothing we can do about this rash of spam mail which some low-life has sent out in our name.
You can email the Webmaster with your comments on this article.
What's on the Tube?
Editor's Note: As of our 2026 site update, some of these videos may no longer be available for viewing.
In this article, we're offering you something quite different: a quick survey of what's on the tube. The "tube" we're referring to, of course, is the popular internet video site YouTube. Curious about the hype surrounding this site and its recent acquisition by Google for a fantastic sum of money, we decided to take a look for ourselves, and see if--- against all odds--- YouTube had anything to offer the checker enthusiast.
Apparently, YouTube has something for everyone, and we found checker-related videos (at least of a sort) in great quantity. We spent a little time (actually a little too much time) sorting through some of these and have selected a small sampling that might interest our readers.
Don't expect great technical production and professional acting, and above all don't expect great checkers. But do expect some unusual and unexpected checker-related entertainment. Here's our pick of the bunch, and we'd be interested to hear what you think. Write us at webmaster@checkermaven.com.
Xtreme Checkers
A video game spoof.
King of Checkers
Rather humorous video about "crowning."
Checker Shots
An attempt to teach checkers; rather hard to follow.
Checkers
They use red and white pieces but ignore compulsory jumps!
Checker Master
An amazing win;
apparently Turkish checkers.
Checkers Gone Wrong
A surreal experience; some rough language.
Ghost Checkers
Checkers and the supernatural!
Checker Battle
Checkers as drama, played on an unusual board.
Split Personality
As suggested by reader "Pal" Bucker.
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The Checker Maven is produced at editorial offices in Honolulu, Hawai`i, as a completely non-commercial public service from which no income is obtained or sought. Original material is Copyright © 2004-2026 Avi Gobbler Publishing. Other material is public domain, AI generated, as attributed, or licensed under CC1, CC2, CC3 or CC4 and the various CC options. Information presented on this site is offered as-is, at no cost, and bears no express or implied warranty as to accuracy or usability. You agree that you use such information entirely at your own risk. No liabilities of any kind under any legal theory whatsoever are accepted. The Checker Maven is dedicated to the memory of Mr. Bob Newell, Sr.
