what purpose does that little box with the buttons on top serve?
what does it time ?

what happens if you do not use it?

Chess clocks (also called a 'game clock'), are commonly set for 20 Min (or 5 Min in "Blitz Chess"). They set a time limit for you or your opponent to respond to a move.

H&K-Guy

so it makes a noise because you took to long and then what ?

The universe ends. I mean the game, yeah, the game ends.

These games can go on for 7 hours easy. Especially when the clock is set for 1 hour or 30 Min.

H&K-Guy

In some matches, each player has a finite amount of time to make all of his moves. When an opponent makes his move, he hits a button that stops his time clock, and starts yours. When you make your move, you hit a button to stop your time clock, and start his. If a player exceeds the allotted time, he loses.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chess_clock

chess clocks are used for tournaments, not normally for friendly games, unless you want to practice. you'll also notice that as soon as they make their move, they pick up their pencil and note their move, and they also note their opponents move, on a game sheet.

a good chess movie to seek out: Searching for Bobby Fischer.

I'm old school analog. It'll survive an EMP.

It adds to the excitement of the game!

Workers in downtown DC play chess during their lunch hour in Lafayette Park using them.

Some newer time controls include a fixed amount of seconds to be added to your time after each move, or in some cases there is a delay of a fixed amount of seconds before your clock starts using time on your move.

FIDE time controls for classic chess are game/90 with an addition of 30 seconds per move. FIDE is the international chess organization that governs chess worldwide and game/90 means the game is over after one opponent has used all of his/her time.

Yeap time clock.

Skip chess, learn GO.

When the clock goes off, somewhere in the world someone dies.

quote:

Originally posted by Deqlyn:
Yeap time clock.

Skip chess, learn GO.

Learn both!

That little red flag drops after you use up your 3 or 5 or whatever minutes and first player to lose his flag loses regardless what is going on in the game.

I Earned a varsity letter in chess in hi school. No shit, my school had a competitive. Hess team and we would travel to other schools for matches. I was also probly the only one in school history to also earn one in football. I loved playing 5 of 4 minute per side blitz chess. Make you think fast.

so for 90 min game, no player can take 90 min total for all of their moves
45 sec + 33 sec.+ 28 sec. + 2min. 44sec + and so on until the 90 minutes is up

quote:

Originally posted by bendable:
so for 90 min game, no player can take 90 min total for all of their moves
45 sec + 33 sec.+ 28 sec. + 2min. 44sec + and so on until the 90 minutes is up

For a 90 minute game, each player would get 45 minutes on the clock. Whenever it's 'your turn' your clock is counting down. When you complete your move your tap your button on the clock and the opponents clock starts winding down. You would actually get 44 minutes and 59 seconds as at 45 minutes your flag would fall And your game is over assuming you have not beaten your opponent in less than your 45 minutes

got it thanks,

so are there clocks that handicap ?

because Myron has been playing for 24 years and Gil has only been playing for 6 years.

can Myron's be set for 60 min. and Gill's be set for 90 min?

No, for a 90 minute game each side gets 90 minutes on the clock. Game/90 means 90 minutes per side. In the scenario I gave above regarding the FIDE time control of game/90 plus 30 seconds per move, If you make your first move in 10 seconds your clock would show 90 minutes and 20 seconds left for the game. You would receive the 30 seconds after you pressed your clock's button down to start your opponents clock.

When you play a five minute blitz game each side gets five minutes, not 2 and half minutes.

 
Dupont Circle games were fun, speed chess usually. I participated frequently in the early 1970's. They use to have dedicated concrete chess tables around the periphery of the circle park.
 

quote:

Originally posted by bendable:
got it thanks,

so are there clocks that handicap ?

because Myron has been playing for 24 years and Gil has only been playing for 6 years.

can Myron's be set for 60 min. and Gill's be set for 90 min?

To answer your question, yes the clocks can be set for different times exactly as you have proposed.