Which version is best for me?

[TimC]

Hey Mark... Thank you for replying.
I did read the faq before buying and the faq kinda 'got me'. https://www.hiarcs.com/mac-chess-explor ... .html#FAQ6



Its probably my bad for assuming that supports M1 and M1 Pro chips meant native. So changing that will definitely be helpful to some poor fool such as myself in the future. $119 for a non-native app is pretty steep for someone like me.

You mentioned that the database functionality was such that there is no real gain on the M1's... however, what about analysis with Hiarcs engine? I also would think that you're charging this price mainly for the engine vs. the database features. I've played around with the database stuff tonight and, while it's pretty good, I'm not sure that it's $120 good...

Of course, this is jut my first impression and I don't know what I don't know. I'm not trying to be nasty at all... But this has left a fairly bad taste in my mouth...

DECG

Wow, good luck finding a "native" chess database app. $120 is not very much compared to what Chessbase charges (and which is next to impossible to run on an M1) and doesn't come with a very highly regarded engine. I wish you all the luck in the world on this. Let all of us know what, if anything, you do find. Thanks!!

I don't know what is so 'wow' about not knowing something, asking questions and trying to figure stuff out... I guess you were born knowing all of this stuff. I didn't get that honor.

Maybe I'll write a "native" chess database app (I certainly have that skillset - in spite of being ignorant of what is currently available). Or maybe I'll just figure stuff out and re-buy Hiarcs. The future has so many possibilities in spite of this weird 'wow' moment for you.

DECG

"Wow" as defined in dictionaries is meant as an expression of surprise. That is all I meant by it. Minimal research will show you that HIARCS is the most powerful chess database/engine program available for Apple. I apologize for offending your seemingly tender sensibilities. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

If you reread the rest of my note again, you will see that I wished you ..."all the luck in the world"... on finding something better AND IF you did to please let us all know what you found. That was NOT meant as a sarcastic remark. The Apple universe is very limited on chess offerings.

I see that Mark as treated you fairly and gave you a refund without a hassle. Keep that in mind as you continue your research. HIARCS is a great company to do business with and is always trying to help their customers and do right by them. This is not a behavior you will see from most of the rest of the corporate world anymore.

Don't take offense so easily and you will find that these forums are a great resource for information on HIARCS products.

[xyzzy01]

Hey folks.
I'm new to the forum.. I'm an old dude (51) that is trying to get back in to chess after about 15 years. I own an M1 MBP 14" that I absolutely love and am looking for some good database software for trying to improve, make opening repertoire, etc.

I've come across Hiarcs and its database as really the only solution for native M1 mac users (is this correct? Am I missing anything else?)

To that end, I see there are 3 versions... which would you folks recommend for someone like myself and my specific setup?

Thanks,
DimEye (Tom)

I'm in a similar situation - I'm almost 50, and I stopped playing when I started at the university a very long time ago. I picked it up a couple of years ago, and now I use it to track and analyse my games across all platforms. With Caissabase added, it's also nice for looking up games in variations I play.

If you want to know which version is best for you, I think a good starting point would be to identify what your use case is.

It is, as you have discovered, not native - but it runs very well on my M1 systems (one laptop, one stationary). While a native solution would be better - and eventually upcoming - it doesn't matter much.

The database software is really snappy already, and while the engine would be slightly stronger than now, it's much, much stronger than any human anyway. You could download and build Stockfish 16 if you want an even stronger engine, but for most of us that doesn't really matter. Opening prep among top players is probably the only scenario I'd think that matters.

[EloDeficit]

Thank you Mark... I just need to figure stuff out. I may re-buy (it seems that this may be my only/best choice for what I'm doing).

Again, I don't know what I don't know so I just need to figure it out.

DECG

I strongly encourage you to reconsider and purchase HIARCS Chess Explorer Pro. It is highly functional, has a very friendly user community, and is supported by people whose engagement with the community is at the highest level possible. The program has the right mix of functionality and simplicity to not get in your way, and let you simply enjoy the game. The more you use it, the more you'll like it. The engine is one of my four top engines to play that additionally includes Rodent, Chess Tiger, and Shredder.

Good luck!

[e4-homie]

For my Macbook Air M2, I got HIARCS Deep to fully utilize multiple cores. I like the software so far! It runs well. My only concern is that running HIARCHS on Apple chips requires the installation of Rosetta 2, which may potentially be discontinued someday. I'm sure, though, that the developers of HIARCHS will redesign it so that it runs natively on M series processors.