TurboGo

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TurboGo
Author: Arnoud van der Loeff
License: proprietary
Price: 30$ (sept.'12)
Category: player, joseki-tutor
Operating system: Windows
Reads format(s): sgf, .go, .gam (propr.)
Writes format(s): .sgf
Languages: English, cz, de, es, fi, fr,...
... it, nl, pl, ru, ro, se
Stable Version: 5.0 ([ext] aug.'00)
Development status: discontinued?
Programming language: Vis.Pascal
Homepage: [ext] turbogo.com
Size of installer: 1.5mby
System needs: Win95
Infos last checked:

Table of contents

TurboGo

TurboGo is a Go-playing program for Windows. It has an extensive help section, containing the rules of Go, advice on how to play Go, an example of a game, and a couple of Go problems, among other things.

TurboGo is distributed as shareware, although only differences between registered and shareware version is:

  • 3 (from 5 in total) AI level are available
  • Inability to save program preferences (all changes are back to initial settings after program quit)
  • Registration windows displayed when starting the program.

TurboGo has unique (in comparison to most other software) real-time help utilities able to automatically display the following information on the board/screen:

  • Rationale and explanation (in plain English)of AI moves decisions.
  • Numerical evaluation of each AI move with info regarding move value, strength of group, possible outcomes etc.
  • Dead groups on the board (visual display)
  • Board influence of each player (visual display)
  • Ladder-catch groups (visual display)
  • Liberties for each stone/group
  • Move numerical values(from 0 to 99) of possible moves.

A joseki tutor with 43414 moves, and 2544 comments is built in to the program.

For nicer GUI the program allows to use built-in and own bitmaps and own sounds (.wav ; play, pass, atari, illegal move).

The homepage is [ext] turbogo.com. Software is free to download.

Author: Arnoud van der Loeff

Users' Comments

JanDeWit Another program I play against quite a lot is TurboGo, which is shareware, but only with the lowest 3 strength levels (out of five). This program has the advantage of being able to play on the three main board sizes, it's available in many languages, it can explain its moves, it has a 45000 move joseki database (I only use the 3-3 point invasion section for handicap games :-)

I think I'll stick with this program while I'm learning. The registration fee is quite modest, but I'm not sure what increase in playing strength it'll get you... (the program was European Computer Champion in 1999).

Anonymous: I love TurboGo! It's the best for someone learning the game.

Another anonymous: I agree. I've now graduated from it, but it was my beloved partner when I was learning the game. I found it very user-friendly.

TheBigH: I think it's good for learners like me. The weakest difficulty is about my strength with me playing black with no handicap, so it makes for good games that I learn from; up until the end game. Stop playing once the borders are settled. It has a terrible habit of launching futile suicide attacks into territory it simply cannot survive in, forcing the player to play "hunt the harmless stone" for half an hour. Bo-ring.

RueLue: As the development of the program sleeps since around 2000, it can be assumed, that it is not really strong, compared with actual programs and engines. The default setup and also the (advertising!) homepage show only the minimum graphics of the program. Resizing the board doesn't give automatically a quadratic board. Adding some simple (low-bit) wav-files (each 1-2kby) for the standard installer would have been a good idea. I tried a fast game 19x19, 9 handicap, chinese rule, level 3 (2012, not a fast machine, fast response) and had a 30 points win (around 2k in Germany) so you can assume, that the program plays (at level 3) around 14 kyu. The program pretends to save games also in .gam-format, but looking into the file showed a normal sgf-file, trying to load that file (as .gam) with TurboGo gave an error. I assume, the .gam-format is proprietary and from older versions of TurboGo.

BramGo: It was a pretty educational program for studying joseki back in its days (~2005). I consider the funny graphics a bonus.

Arnoud's Go Screensaver

Arnoud's Go Screensaver
Author: Arnoud van der Loeff
License: freeware
Price: none (2012)
Category: screensaver
Operating system: Windows
Reads format(s): .sgf, .go
Languages: English, Dutch, Spanish
Stable Version: 2.1 (1999)
Development status: discontinued
Homepage: [ext] turbogo.com
Size of installer: 380kby
Size if installed: 550kby
System needs: Win95
Infos last checked:

  • it is a lightweight program (around 500kby)
  • it's an oldie, but works also in Win-Vista
  • it can be configured to use nice graphics for board and stones (windows-bmp, the program adjusts the size and tiles for the board)
  • 6 games built in
  • give it a file or a complete folder to randomly select a file
  • takes sgf and ishi format files
  • adjust replay speed from 20 moves per second (why so fast?) to 1 move per 30 seconds
  • wait after game end for display of the next game (adjustable)
  • displays also games on 9x9 boards and handicap games (no, not bigger as 19x19)
  • languages: english, dutch, spanish
  • no, it cannot handle games with chinese or similar handicap
  • markers of "last move" are a bit too descreet

TurboGo last edited by 2.87.81.68 on July 18, 2023 - 13:30
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