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1. One of my opponents has gold stones! Another one has stones that look like smoked glass. How did they get those cool playing pieces? At the end of 2001 it became clear that we needed a new game server in order to keep up with the level of activity the Pente Net web site was enjoying. Twenty-four players chipped in money to help purchase a new server. These players were awarded glass or gold stones depending on the amount of money they donated. Give these players your thanks -- their timely support helped resurrect Pente Net and keep it a free game site.     2. I have an opponent who refuses to make another move in our game because no matter where his next stone is placed, I will win in the next move. What can I do about this? The Pente Net system discourages this poor-sport type of behavior in two ways. First, a player who recognizes imminent defeat can click a "SURRENDER" button instead of having to play the game out to its bitter end. Second, if a player has any games that have kept an opponent waiting for 10 days or more, they are "locked out" of their other games and prohibited from starting a new game until they have first moved in the overdue games.     3. Why not automatically award a win in a game to a player whose opponent hasn't made a move in a reasonable amount of time, say, two weeks? Pente Net welcomes players who can play every day as well as players who only have occasional access to a computer or the Internet. For this reason, no time limits are imposed on games.     4. My opponent takes a really long time to move in between turns. What can I do about this annoyance? Challenge other players to new games, particularly those whose names appear on the Active Players list on the "Start a new game" page. There are many players at Pente Net who check their games regularly, so finding "faster" opponents shouldn't be hard.     5. Hey! All my games have disappeared except for a couple listed as "Overdue Games." What's up? Overdue games are those which have kept your opponents waiting for 10 or more days. You must make a move in these games (or surrender them), before you can access your other games.     6. I use Move Confirmation in my games so I can see how my next move looks before I commit to it. When my tentative move would capture stones, is it possible to have those threatened pieces taken off the board before the move is submitted, so that I can see how the board would look with the pieces removed? In the real world version of Pente, you can "try out" a move by putting your stone down and keeping your finger on the stone. If you like the move, you commit to it by lifting your finger. If you decide on another spot instead, you can still pick up your stone and move it, so long as your finger has't lost contact with the stone. It is the same on this site when you use Move Confirmation.   Also in the board game version of Pente, you do not pick up captured stones until after you have committed to your move. In other words, you cannot place a tentative move, pick up the theoretically threatened stones, and then see how the board would appear. You must visualize the results of your capture. We are keeping with that traditional rule here.   To explain it another way, learning to visualize the effects of your moves is essential to improving as a Pente player. While showing a preview of the captures might lead to winning more games, that feature could easily become a crutch. We prefer that players practice visualizing for themselves, and become more skillful as a result.     7. I have attempted to use the "REFRESH" button, but it does not seem to work. After I have moved and hit this button, the screen does not change. It is still my turn. Your opponent is probably not online. Give it some time and check back later. Also, you can turn on "Automatic move notification" under your "Account" tab, and you will get an email notice when it is your turn to move.     8. I have no more games with my move but when I log out I have an email message that it is my turn to move. What am I missing? Chances are, that message is an old email that you previously forgot to delete.     9. I am wondering how I can get rid of all the "game over" items listed in my current games list. They sit there a long time and I'd like to delete them once the game is over. Open up the game that is over by clicking the "SEE" button to its left. You'll see the final results, how the game ended, and a button at the bottom of the screen will read "Continue..." Click that button to confirm that you've seen the finished game, and the system will remove it from your list of current games. (The system is set up this way so you can see how a game ended before the game disappears.)     10. How do I cancel a game with a player I challenged by mistake? You can cancel any new game before your opponent accepts the challenge. Go to your "Current Games" list and find the new game. There will be a light yellow highlight around the "LAST MOVE" time. Put a check in the box to the right of this game (in the "CANCEL" column), and then click the "CANCEL" button at the top of your Current Games list. The game will be removed without affecting your score.     11. I only want to play Pente with my friends, and I am familiar with their player names. How can I stop people I don't know from challenging me? Check your "Player name visibility" setting under the "Account" tab. You want the "Invisible" setting. If you choose the "High Scores list only" setting, you might occasionally receive challenges from players who see your name there.     12. Will I lose points if I decline a lot of challenges? No, you will never be penalized for declining challenges.     13. Why is there no time listed under "LAST MOVE" for some of my games? This can happen if the server's clock was reset or adjusted. The time of the next move should show up normally.     14. Is there any way to review my past finished games? Not at the present time.     15. Is it possible to see other players' wins and losses? Not yet.     16. Is it possible to view other players' current, on-going games? -- or -- I have a really cool game I'd like to show to friends. How can I do this? Currently, only the two players involved in a game can see that game.     17. Have you given any consideration to creating a real-time version of Pente? Why is the web site set up in the way it is? I originally put Pente Net together to keep track of games between my long-distance friends, and we all made moves at different times. Real-time playing wasn't something we could do because of our schedules. The only step toward real-time playing that's included is the "REFRESH" button that you can click, after you've moved, to see if your opponent has moved while you waited. For actual real-time Pente playing, a Java application would be more appropriate than the PHP form-based application Pente Net currently uses. When it was just my friends and myself, such a system was fine. Now that the public has been invited in, and lots of people are around wanting to play, real-time gaming has become an item of interest. As you can see from this brief history, the site is outgrowing its original aims.     18. The High Scores list doesn't seem to show which players are the best, just the players who have played a lot of games. Shouldn't your ranking be based on who you play and how they are currently ranked? Yes! The scoring section of Pente Net definitely needs improvement.