Badminton History The beginnings of Badminton can be traced to mid-18th century British India, where it was created byBritish

military officers stationed there. Early photographs show Englishmen adding a net to the traditional English game of battledore and shuttlecock. Being particularly popular in the British garrison town Poona (now Pune), the game also came to be known as Poona. Initially, balls of wool referred as ball badminton were preferred by the upper classes in windy or wet conditions, but ultimately the shuttlecock stuck. This game was taken by retired officers back to England where it developed and rules were set out. As early as 1860, Isaac Spratt, a London toy dealer, published a booklet, Badminton Battledore a new game, but unfortunately no copy has survived. The new sport was definitively launched in 1873 at the Badminton House, Gloucestershire, owned by theDuke of Beaufort. During that time, the game was referred to as "The Game of Badminton," and the game's official name became Badminton. Until 1887, the sport was played in England under the rules that prevailed in British India. The Bath Badminton Club standardized the rules and made the game applicable to English ideas. The basic regulations were drawn up in 1887. In 1893, the Badminton Association of England published the first set of rules according to these regulations, similar to today's rules, and officially launched badminton in a house called "Dunbar" at 6 Waverley Grove, Portsmouth, England on September 13 of that year. They also started the All England Open Badminton Championships, the first badminton competition in the world, in 1899. The International Badminton Federation (IBF) (now known as Badminton World Federation) was established in 1934 with Canada, Denmark,England, France, the Netherlands, Ireland, New Zealand, Scotland, and Wales as its founding members. India joined as an affiliate in 1936. The BWF now governs international badminton and develops the sport globally. While initiated in England, competitive men's badminton in Europe has traditionally been dominated by Denmark. Asian nations, however, have been the most dominant ones at the world level. Indonesia, South Korea, China, and Malaysia along with Denmark are among the nations that have consistently produced world-class players in the past few decades, with China being the greatest force in both men's and women's competition in recent years.

Rules

Playing court dimensions

The court is rectangular and divided into halves by a net. Courts are usually marked for both singles and doubles play, although badminton rules permit a court to be marked for singles only. The doubles court is wider than the singles court, but both are of same length. The exception, which often causes confusion to newer players, is that the doubles court has a shorter serve-length dimension.The full width of the court is 6.1 metres (20 ft), and in singles this width is reduced to 5.18 metres (17 ft). The full length of the court is 13.4 metres (44 ft). The service courts are marked by a centre line dividing the width of the court, by a short service line at a distance of 1.98 metres (6 ft 6 inch) from the net, and by the outer side and back boundaries. In doubles, the service court is also marked by a long service line, which is 0.76 metres (2 ft 6 inch) from the back boundary.The net is 1.55 metres (5 ft 1 inch) high at the edges and 1.524 metres (5 ft) high in the centre. The net posts are placed over the doubles sidelines, even when singles is played. The minimum height for the ceiling above the court is not mentioned in the Laws of Badminton. Nonetheless, a badminton court will not be suitable if the ceiling is likely to be hit on a high serve. Equipment rules

Badminton rules restrict the design and size of racquets and shuttlecocks. Badminton rules also provide for testing a shuttlecock for the correct speed: 3.1 To test a shuttlecock, use a full underhand stroke which makes contact with the shuttlecock over the back boundary line. The shuttlecock shall be hit at an upward angle and in a direction parallel to the side lines.

3.2 A shuttlecock of the correct speed will land not less than 530 mm and not more than 990 mm short of the other back boundary line. Equiptment Racquets

Badminton racquets are lightweight, with top quality racquets weighing between 70 and 95 grams (2.4 to 3.3 ounces) not including grip or strings.[8][9] They are composed of many different materials ranging from carbon fibre composite (graphite reinforced plastic) to solid steel, which may be augmented by a variety of materials. Carbon fibre has an excellent strength to weight ratio, is stiff, and gives excellent kinetic energytransfer. Before the adoption of carbon fibre composite, racquets were made of light metals such as aluminium. Earlier still, racquets were made of wood. Cheap racquets are still often made of metals such as steel, but wooden racquets are no longer manufactured for the ordinary market, because of their excessive mass and cost. Nowadays, nanomaterials such as fullerene and carbon nanotubes are added to rackets giving them greater durability. There is a wide variety of racquet designs, although the laws limit the racquet size and shape. Different racquets have playing characteristics that appeal to different players. The traditional oval head shape is still available, but an isometric head shape is increasingly common in new racquets. Strings

Badminton strings are thin, high performing strings in the range of about 0.62 to 0.73 mm thickness. Thicker strings are more durable, but many players prefer the feel of thinner strings. String tension is normally in the range of 80 to 160 N (18 to 36 lbf). Recreational players generally string at lower tensions than professionals, typically between 80 and 110 N (18 and 25 lbf). Professionals string between about 110 and 160 N (25 and 36 lbf). Some string manufacturers measure the thickness of their strings under tension so they are actually thicker then than specified when slack. Ashaway Micropower is actually 0.7mm but Yonex BG-66 is about 0.72mm.

Grip

The choice of grip allows a player to increase the thickness of his racquet handle and choose a comfortable surface to hold. A player may build up the handle with one or several grips before

applying the final layer.Players may choose between a variety of grip materials. The most common choices are PU synthetic grips or towelling grips. Grip choice is a matter of personal preference. Players often find that sweat becomes a problem; in this case, a drying agent may be applied to the grip or hands, sweatbands may be used, the player may choose another grip material or change his grip more frequently.There are two main types of grip: replacement grips and overgrips. Replacement grips are thicker, and are often used to increase the size of the handle. Overgrips are thinner (less than 1 mm), and are often used as the final layer. Many players, however, prefer to use replacement grips as the final layer. Towelling grips are always replacement grips. Replacement grips have an adhesive backing, whereas overgrips have only a small patch of adhesive at the start of the tape and must be applied under tension; overgrips are more convenient for players who change grips frequently, because they may be removed more rapidly without damaging the underlying material. Shuttlecock

A shuttlecock (often abbreviated to shuttle; also called a birdie) is a high-drag projectile, with an open conical shape: the cone is formed from sixteen overlapping feathers embedded into a rounded cork base. The cork is covered with thin leather or synthetic material. Synthetic shuttles are often used by recreational players to reduce their costs as feathered shuttles break easily. These nylon shuttles may be constructed with either natural cork or synthetic foam base, and a plastic skirt. Techniques and Strategies Singles Badminton Strategies

One simple badminton strategy often used in singles is to serve long and high to your opponent's back court. This will force your opponent to move back to the baseline and open up his forecourt. Throw in some disguised low serve occasionally and you might just catch your opponent off guard and win a point outright. Nowadays in professional men's singles, you seldom see them use the long serve. This is because the professional players are extremely athletic and possess great techniques. They can jump really high and smash powerfully even from the baseline.It all depends who you are playing with. If the high serve turns out to be your opponent's favorite and put you under pressure, use the low serve.Always try to hit the shuttle away from your opponent and make your opponent move around the court. One exception to this rule is that when you encounter a tall opponent, you might want to smash straight to his body to gain an advantage. Observe your opponent's strength, weakness, favorite shots and pattern of play. Use it to your

advantage.Your aim is to make your opponent play a weak return, such as a weak backhand shot from the back court. If your plan works and forces a mistake or a poor return which you can make a 'kill', use it again. If it is not working then have the courage to make changes. The key is to be flexible.If you are in a difficult situation in the game and your opponent is not, you need to make time for yourself to get back to a favorable position. Do this by hitting the shuttle high towards the back of the court, preferably near the middle of the baseline. Your opponent will find it difficult to catch you out with acute angled returns from there. Remember always to get back to your base position in the midcourt area after making each shot. This is a position where you can possibly reach any of your opponent's shots. Doubles Badminton Strategies

In doubles play, the tactic is to serve low so that the serving side would not be placed in a defensive position. If you are serving low, take position on the front and part of the midcourt area immediately. Your partner shall then cover the back court. This is known as the Attacking Formation (Front-Back).

You can also use the flick serve to prevent your opponent from rushing to the net. But you and your partner will have to take up a defensive position standing side by side. This is known as the Defensive Formation (side-side).

When you defend, try to hit the shuttle deep into your opponent's court. This is to prevent your opponent in the front position intercepting the shuttle from mid to front court. When a chance presents itself, push or drive the shuttle to the area in between your opponents. Or make a return to the front court of your opponents, forcing them to lift the shuttle. In this instance, the player who played that shot will have to take up the front position

immediately while the partner takes the back. An attacking formation shall be formed. If you are taking the back position, your aim is to make shots that can create openings for your partner to 'kill' in the front court.In all types of doubles play, teamwork is the key in forming a formidable partnership. Although an ideal player will be skillful in all areas of the court, most will either show greater flair around the net or be more effective with overhead shots.You and your partner have to figure out how to make the best out of your skills together. Play to your own strengths and your opponent's weaknesses.You will find this much easier if you communicate well with each other. Do not leave it to guesswork! Talk to your partner. Is there a leader in the partnership or is it all a matter of shared responsibility? A quick word on court might change the result of a game which is slipping away from you. Mixed Doubles Badminton Strategies

In mixed doubles, the women usually play in the front of the court, and her partner takes the shots that get past her. The man should try to hit downward shots or horizontal shots, while the woman should play net kills and tight net shots. Both players should be in a good position to push the shuttle low over the net to the mid court area, just past the front player's area but in front of the back player. The woman should always assume a front position in an attacking formation (Front-Back) unless forced to move to the back. When defending, the defensive formation (Side-Side) is used. Apply flick serve frequently to the woman receiver forcing her to the back court. Badminton is not only a physical demanding game, it is mentally challenging as well. You will come to a stage where skills and fitness alone will not be enough to beat your opponent. Having the right Badminton Tactics in place will give you that extra edge. Terms
Attacking clear : An offensive stroke hit deep into the opponent's court. Backcourt : Back third of the court, in the area of the back boundary lines. Backhand : The stroke used to return balls hit to the left of a right-handed player and to the right of a left-handed player. Base position : The location in the centre of the court to which a singles player tries to return after each shot; also called "centre position". Baseline : The back boundary line at each end of the court, parallel to the net. Carry : An illegal stroke in which the shuttle is not hit, but caught and held on the racket before being released; also called a "sling" or "throw". Centre line : A line perpendicular to the net that separates the left and right service courts. Clear : A shot hit deep into the opponent's court. Doubles : A game where a team of two players play against another team of two. Doubles sideline : The side boundary of a doubles court. Drive : A fast and low shot that makes a horizontal flight over the net. Drop shot : A shot hit softly and with finesse to fall rapidly and close to the net in the opponent's court. Fault : A violation of the playing rules. Feint : Any deceptive movement that disconcerts an opponent before or during the serve; also called a "balk".

Flick : A quick wrist-and-forearm rotation used to surprise an opponent by changing an apparently soft shot into a faster passing shot. Forecourt : The front third of the court, between the net and the short service line. Forehand : The stroke used to return a ball hit to the right of a right-handed player and to the left of a left-handed player. Game : The part of a set completed when one player or side has scored enough points to win a single contest. Hairpin net shot : A shot made from below and very close to the net and causing the shuttle to rise, just clear the net, then drop sharply down the other side so that the flight of the shuttlecock resembles the shape of a hairpin. Halfcourt shot : A shot hit low and to midcourt, used effectively in doubles play against the upand-back formation. High clear : A defensive shot hit deep into the opponent's court. Kill : Fast downward shot that cannot be returned. Let : A minor violation of the rules allowing a rally to be replayed. Long Service Line : In singles, the back boundary line. In doubles a line 2-1/2 feet inside the back boundary line. The serve may not go past this line. Match : A series of games to determine a winner. Midcourt : The middle third of the court, halfway between the net and the back boundary line. Net shot : A shot hit from the forecourt that just clears the net and drops sharply. Passing shot : A shot which passes the opposing player or team. Push shot : A gentle shot played by pushing the shuttlecock with a little wrist motion. Rally : The exchange of shots that decides each point. Serve : The stroke used to put the shuttlecock into play at the start of each rally; also called a "service". Service court : The area into which a service must be delivered. Different for singles and doubles. Set : To choose to extend a game beyond its normal ending score if the score is tied with one point to go. Short service line : The front line of the service courts 1.98 metres from the net. Singles : A game where one player plays against another player. Singles sideline : The side boundary of a singles court. Smash : A hard-hit overhead shot that forces the shuttle sharply downwards into the opponent's court. Wood shot : A legal shot in which the shuttle hits the frame of the racket.

Chess History Chess is commonly believed to have originated in northwest India during the Gupta empire, where its early form in the 6th century was known as caturaga (Sanskrit: four divisions

[of the military] infantry, cavalry, elephants, and chariotry, represented by the pieces that would evolve into the modern pawn, knight, bishop, and rook, respectively). The earliest evidence of chess is found in the neighboring Sassanid Persia around 600, where the game came to be known under the name chatrang. Chatrang is evoked inside three epic romances written in Pahlavi (Middle Persian). Chatrang was taken up by the Muslim world after the Islamic conquest of Persia (633644), where it was then named shatranj, with the pieces largely retaining their Persian names. In Spanish "shatranj" was rendered as ajedrez ("al-shatranj"), in Portuguese as xadrez, and in Greek as zatrikion (which comes directly from the Persian chatrang), but in the rest of Europe it was replaced by versions of the Persian shh ("king"), which was familiar as an exclamation and became the English words "check" and "chess".Murray theorized that Muslim traders came to European seaports with ornamental chess kings as curios before they brought the game of chess. The game reached Western Europe and Russia by at least three routes, the earliest being in the 9th century. By the year 1000 it had spread throughout Europe. Introduced into the Iberian Peninsula by the Moors in the 10th century, it was described in a famous 13th-century manuscript covering shatranj, backgammon, and dice named the Libro de los juegos. Another theory contends that chess arose from the game xiangqi (Chinese Chess) or one of its predecessors,[ although this has been contested.

Rules Setup

Chess is played on a square board of eight rows (called ranks and denoted with numbers 1 to 8) and eight columns (called files and denoted with letters a toh) of squares. The colors of the sixtyfour squares alternate and are referred to as "light squares" and "dark squares". The chessboard is placed with a light square at the right-hand end of the rank nearest to each player, and the pieces are set out as shown in the diagram, with each queen on its own color.The pieces are divided, by convention, into white and black sets. The players are referred to as "White" and "Black", and each begins the game with sixteenpieces of the specified color. These consist of one king, one queen, two rooks, two bishops, two knights, and eight pawns. Movement

White always moves first. After the initial move, the players alternately move one piece at a time (with the exception of castling, when two pieces are moved). Pieces are moved to either an

unoccupied square or one occupied by an opponent's piece, which is captured and removed from play. With the sole exception of en passant, all pieces capture opponent's pieces by moving to the square that the opponent's piece occupies. A player may not make any move that would put or leave his king under attack. If the player to move has no legal moves, the game is over; it is either a checkmateif the king is under attackor astalemateif the king is not. Each chess piece has its own style of moving. In the diagrams, the dots mark the squares where the piece can move if no other pieces (including one's own piece) are on the squares between the piece's initial position and its destination. The king moves one square in any direction. The king has also a special move which is called castling and involves also moving a rook.

The rook can move any number of squares along any rank or file, but may not leap over other pieces. Along with the king, the rook is involved during the king's castling move.

The bishop can move any number of squares diagonally, but may not leap over other pieces.

The queen combines the power of the rook and bishop and can move any number of squares along rank, file, or diagonal, but it may not leap over other pieces.

The knight moves to any of the closest squares that are not on the same rank, file, or diagonal, thus the move forms an "L"-shape, two squares vertically and one square horizontally or two squares horizontally and one square vertically. The knight is the only piece that can leap over other pieces.

The pawn may move forward to the unoccupied square immediately in front of it on the same file; or on its first move it may advance two squares along the same file provided both squares are unoccupied; or it may move to a square occupied by an opponent's piece which is diagonally in front of it on an adjacent file, capturing that piece. The pawn has two special moves: the en passant capture and pawn promotion. Castling

Once in every game, each king is allowed to make a special move, known as castling. Castling consists of moving the king two squares along the first rank toward a rook (which is on the player's first rank and then placing the rook on the last square the king has just crossed. Castling is permissible only if all of the following conditions hold: Neither of the pieces involved in castling may have been previously moved during the game.

There must be no pieces between the king and the rook.

The king may not currently be in check, nor may the king pass through squares that are under attack by enemy pieces, nor move to a square where it is in check. En passant

When a pawn advances two squares and there is an opponent's pawn on an adjacent file next to its destination square, then the opponent's pawn can capture iten passant (in passing), and move to the square the pawn passed over. However, this can only be done on the very next move, or the right to do so is lost. For example, if the black pawn has just advanced two squares from g7 to g5, then the white pawn on f5 can take it via en passant on g6 (but only on white's next move).

Promotion

When a pawn advances to the eighth rank, as a part of the move it is promoted and must be exchanged for the player's choice of queen, rook, bishop, or knight of the same color. Usually, the pawn is chosen to be promoted to a queen, but in some cases another piece is chosen; this is called underpromotion. In the diagram on the right, the pawn on c7 can be advanced to the eighth rank and be promoted to an allowed piece. There is no restriction placed on the piece that is chosen on promotion, so it is possible to have more pieces of the same type than at the start of the game (for example, two queens).

Check

When a king is under immediate attack by one or two of the opponent's pieces, it is said to be in check. A response to a check is a legal move if it results in a position where the king is no longer under direct attack (that is, not in check). This can involve capturing the checking piece; interposing a piece between the checking piece and the king (which is possible only if the attacking piece is a queen, rook, or bishop and there is a square between it and the king); or moving the king to a square where it is not under attack. Castling is not a permissible response to a check. The object of the game is to checkmate the opponent; this occurs when the opponent's king is in check, and there is no legal way to remove it from attack. It is illegal for a player to make a move that would put or leave his own king in check.

End of the game

Although the objective of the game is to checkmate the opponent, chess games do not have to end in checkmate either player may resign which is a win for the other player. It is considered bad etiquette to continue playing when in a truly hopeless position.[3] If it is a game with time control, a player may run out of time and lose, even with a much superior position. Games also may end in a draw (tie). A draw can occur in several situations, includingdraw by agreement, stalemate, threefold repetition of a position, the fifty-move rule, or a draw by impossibility of checkmate (usually because ofinsufficient material to checkmate). As checkmate

from some positions cannot be forced in fewer than 50 moves (such as in the pawnless chess endgame and two knights endgame), the fifty-move rule is not applied everywhere, particularly in correspondence chess. Terms Absolute pin A pin against the king, called absolute because the pinned piece cannot legally move as it would expose the king to check. See relative pin. Active Describes a piece that is able to move or control many squares. See also passive. Adjournment Suspension of a chess game with the intention to continue at a later occasion. Was once very common in high-level chess, often soon after the first time control, but the practice has been abandoned due to the advent of computer analysis. See Sealed move. Adjudication The process of a strong chess player deciding on the outcome of an unfinished game. This practice is now uncommon in over the board events, but does happen in online chesswhen one player refuses to continue after an adjournment. Adjust or j'adoube To adjust the position of a piece on its square without being required to move it. Adjustment can only be done when it is the player's move and the adjustment is preceded by saying "I adjust" or "j'adoube". Advanced pawn A pawn that is on the opponent's side of the board (the fifth rank or higher). An advanced pawn may be weak if it is overextended, lacking support and difficult to defend, or strong if it cramps the enemy by limiting mobility. An advanced passed pawn that threatens to promote can be especially strong. Algebraic notation The standard way to record a chess game using alphanumeric coordinates for the squares. Amateur The distinction between professional and amateur is not very important in chess as amateurs may win prizes, accept appearance fees, and earn any title including World Champion. In the 19th century, "Amateur" was sometimes used in published game scores to conceal the name of the losing player in a Master vs. Amateur contest. It was thought to be impolite to use a player's

name without permission, and the professional did not want to risk losing a customer. See also NN or N.N. Announced mate A practice, common in the nineteenth century, where one player would announce a sequence of moves, believed by him to constitute best play by both sides, that led to a forced checkmate for the announcing player in a specified number of moves (for example, "mate in five"). Antipositional A move or a plan that is not in accordance with the principles of positional play. Antipositional is used to describe moves that are part of an incorrect plan rather than a mistake made when trying to follow a correct plan. Antipositional moves are often pawn moves; since pawns cannot move backwards to return to squares they have left, their advance often creates irreparable weaknesses. Anti-Sicilian An opening variation that White uses against the Sicilian Defense (1.e4 c5) other than the most common plan of 2.Nf3 followed by 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 (the Open Sicilian). Some Anti-Sicilians include the Alapin Variation (2.c3), Moscow Variation (2.Nf3 d6 3.Bb5+), Rossolimo Variation (2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5), Grand Prix Attack (2.Nc3 Nc6 3.f4 g6 4.Nf3 Bg7 and now 5.Bc4 or 5.Bb5), Closed Sicilian (2.Nc3 followed by g3 and Bg2), Smith-Morra Gambit (2.d4 cxd4 3.c3), and Wing Gambit (2.b4). Armageddon A game which White must win to win the match, but which Black only needs to draw to win the match. White has more time than Black: the discrepancy can vary, but in FIDE World Championships, White has six minutes, while Black only has five. Typically used in playoff tiebreakers where shorter blitz games have not resolved the tie. Artificial castling Refers to a maneuver of several single moves by the king and a rook where they end up as if they had castled. Also known as "castling by hand". Attack An assault, either short-term (e.g., after 1.e4 Nf6, Black is attacking White's pawn on e4) or long-term, for example in the form of a sustained mating attack against the enemy king or a minority attack against the opponent's queenside pawn structure. See defence.

Games of the Generals

History This game was invented by Sofronio H. Pasola, Jr. with the inspiration of Ronnie Pasola (his son). The Pasolas first tried the Game of the Generals on a chessboard. Even then, the pieces had no particular arrangement. There were no spies in the experimental game; but after Ronnie Pasola remembered the James Bond movies and Mata Hari, he added the spies. Making the pieces hidden was the idea of the Pasolas after remembering card games. The Game of the Generals' public introduction was on February 28, 1973. Facilities and Equipment

Board Pieces

The player's set of pieces or soldiers with the corresponding ranks and functions consist of the following 21 pieces. A higher ranking piece will eliminate any lower ranking piece, with the exception of the spy, which eliminates all pieces except the private. The pieces are bent at an angle in order to hide the piece's rank or insignia from the opponent. In plastic sets, the colours commonly used in the pieces are black and white. There are also sets composed of wooden boards and steel pieces. Those pieces have insignias that are either coloured red or blue. In metal sets, the color of the board is commonly brown and the pieces are aluminum colored. The pieces are still bent. Apart from the flag (the Philippine flag) and the spy (a pair of prying eyes), the insignias used in the game are those used in the Philippine Army.
Pieces No. of Pieces Function

Five-star General 1

Eliminates any lower ranking officer, the private, and the flag.

Four-star General 1

Eliminates any lower ranking officer, the private, and the flag.

Three-star General

Eliminates any lower ranking officer, the private, and the flag.

Two-star General 1

Eliminates any lower ranking officer, the private, and the flag.

One-star General 1

Eliminates any lower ranking officer, the private, and the flag.

Colonel

Eliminates any lower ranking officer, the private, and the flag.

Lt. Colonel

Eliminates any lower ranking officer, the private, and the flag.

Major

Eliminates any lower ranking officer, the private, and the flag.

Captain

Eliminates any lower ranking officer, the private, and the flag.

1st Lieutenant

Eliminates any lower ranking officer, the private, and the flag.

2nd Lieutenant

Eliminates the sergeant, the private, and the flag.

Sergeant

Eliminates the private, and the flag.

Private

Eliminates the spy, and the flag.

Spy

Eliminates all officers from the rank of Sergeant up to 5-Star General & the flag.

Flag

Eliminates the opposing flag as long as it takes the aggressive action against the enemy flag.

Scrabble History

In 1938, architect Alfred Mosher Butts created the game as a variation on an earlier word game he invented called Lexiko. The two games had the same set of letter tiles, whose distributions and point values Butts worked out meticulously performing a frequency analysis of letters from various sources includingThe New York Times. The new game, which he called "CrissCrosswords," added the 15-by-15 game board and the crossword-style game play. He manufactured a few sets himself, but was not successful in selling the game to any major game manufacturers of the day. In 1948, James Brunot, a resident of Newtown, Connecticut and one of the few owners of the original Criss-Crosswords game bought the rights to manufacture the game in exchange for granting Butts a royalty on every unit sold. Though he left most of the game (including the distribution of letters) unchanged, Brunot slightly rearranged the "premium" squares of the board and simplified the rules; he also changed the name of the game to "Scrabble," a real word which means "to scratch frantically." In 1949, Brunot and his family made sets in a converted former schoolhouse in Dodgingtown, a section of Newtown. They made 2,400 sets that year, but lost money. According to legend, Scrabble's big break came in 1952 when Jack Straus, president ofMacy's, played the game on vacation. Upon returning from vacation, he was surprised to find that his store did not carry the game. He placed a large order and within a year, "everyone had to have one. In 1952, unable to meet demand himself, Brunot sold manufacturing rights to Long Island-based Selchow and Righter (one of the manufacturers who, like Parker Brothers and Milton Bradley Company, had previously rejected the game). Selchow & Righter bought the trademark to the game in 1972. JW Spears began selling the game in Australia and the UK on January 19, 1955. The company is now a subsidiary ofMattel, Inc. In 1986, Selchow and Righter sold the game to Coleco, who soon after went bankrupt. The company's assets, including Scrabble andParcheesi, were purchased by Hasbro.[9] In 1984, Scrabble was turned into a daytime game show on NBC. Scrabble ran from July 1984 to March 1990, with a second run from January to June 1993. The show was hosted by Chuck Woolery. The tagline of the show in promo broadcasts was, "Every man dies; not every man truly Scrabbles." Scrabble is slated for a new television adaptation in 2011, and is expected to air on "The Hub" cable channel, which is a is a joint venture of Discovery Communications, Inc. and Hasbro.

Rules

The game is played by two to four players on a square (or nearly square) board with a 15-by-15 grid of cells (individually known as "squares"), each of which accommodates a single letter tile. In official club and tournament games, play is always between two players (or, occasionally, between two teams each of which collaborates on a single rack). The board is marked with "premium" squares, which multiply the number of points awarded: dark red "triple-word" squares, pink "double-word" squares, dark blue "triple-letter" squares, and light blue "double-letter" squares [In 2008, Hasbro changed the colors of the premiums squares to orange for TW, red for DW, blue for DL, and green for TL]. The center square (H8) is often marked with a star or logo, and counts as a double-word square. In an English-language set the game contains 100 tiles, 98 of which are marked with a letter and a point value ranging from 1 to 10. The number of points of each lettered tile is based on the letter's frequency in standard English writing; commonly used letters such as E or O are worth one point, while less common letters score higher, with Q and Z each worth 10 points. The game also has two blank tiles that are unmarked and carry no point value. The blank tiles can be used as substitutes for any letter; once laid on the board, however, the choice is fixed. Other language sets use different letter set distributions with different point values.

Notation system In the notation system common in tournament play, columns are labeled "A-O" and rows "1-15". A play is usually identified in the format xy WORD score or WORD xy score, where x denotes the column or row on which the play's main word extends, y denotes the second coordinate of the main word's first letter, and WORD is the main word. Although unnecessary, additional words formed by the play are occasionally listed after the main word and a slash. In the case where the play of a single tile forms words in each direction, one of the words is arbitrarily chosen to serve as the main word for purposes of notation. When a blank tile is employed in the main word, the letter it has been chosen to represent is indicated with a lower case letter, or, in handwritten notation, with a square around the letter. Parentheses are sometimes also used to designate a blank, although this may create confusion with a second (optional) function of parentheses, namely indication of an existing letter or word that has been "played through" by the main word. Example 1: A(D)DITiON(AL) D3 74 (played through the existing letter D and word AL, using a blank for the second I, extending down the D column and beginning on row 3, and scoring 74 points) The parentheses can be omitted, though, if each play states how many tiles were laid on the board in that play.

Sequence of play Before the game, the letter tiles are either put in an opaque bag or placed face down on a flat surface. Opaque cloth bags and customized tiles are staples of clubs and tournaments, where games are rarely played without both.

Next, players decide the order in which they play. The normal approach is for players to draw tiles: the player who picks the letter closest to the beginning of the alphabet goes first (with blank tiles ranked higher than A's). In North American tournaments, the rules of the US-based North American Scrabble Players Association (NASPA) stipulate instead that players who have gone first in the fewest number of games in the tournament have priority, or failing that, those who have gone second the most. In the case of a tie, tiles are drawn as in the standard rules. At the beginning of the game, and after each turn until the bag is empty (or until there are no more face-down tiles), players draw tiles to replenish their "racks", or tile-holders, with seven tiles, from which they will make plays. Each rack is concealed from the other players. During a turn, a player will have seven or fewer letter tiles in their rack from which to choose a play. On each turn, a player has the option to: (1) pass, forfeiting the turn and scoring nothing; (2) exchange one or more tiles for an equal number from the bag, scoring nothing, an option which is only available if at least seven tiles remain in the bag; or (3) form a play on the board, adding its value to the player's cumulative score. A proper play uses any number of the player's tiles to form a single continuous word ("main word") on the board, reading either left-to-right or top-to-bottom. The main word must either use the letters of one or more previously played words, or else have at least one of its tiles horizontally or vertically adjacent to an already played word. If words other than the main word are newly formed by the play, they are scored as well, and are subject to the same criteria for acceptability. When the board is blank, the first word played must cover H8, the center square. The word must consist of at least two letters, extending horizontally or vertically. H8 is a premium square, so the

first player to play a word receives a double score.A blank tile may take the place of any letter. It remains as that letter thereafter for the rest of the game. Individually, it scores no points regardless of what letter it is designated and its possible placement on a premium square. However, its placement on a double-word or triple-word square does cause the appropriate premium to be scored for the word in which it is used. While not allowed in official or tournament play, a common "house rule" allows players to "recycle" blank tiles by later substituting the corresponding letter tile.After playing a word, the player draws letter tiles from the bag to replenish their rack to seven tiles. If there are not enough tiles in the bag to do so, the player takes all of the remaining tiles.After a player plays a word, their opponent may choose to challenge any or all the words formed by the play. If any of the words challenged is found to be unacceptable, the play is removed from the board, the player returns the newly played tiles to their rack and their turn is forfeited. In tournament play, a challenge is to the entire play rather than any one word, so a judge (human or computer) is used, and players are not entitled to know which word or words caused the challenge to succeed. Penalties for unsuccessfully challenging an acceptable play vary within club and tournament play, and are described in greater detail below.Under North American rules, the game ends when (1) one player plays every tile in their rack, and there are no tiles remaining in the bag (regardless of the tiles in their opponent's rack); or (2) when six successive scoreless turns have occurred. (For several years, a game could not end with a cumulative score of zero-zero, but this is no longer the case, and this has occurred a number of times in tournament play. When the game ends, each player's score is reduced by the sum of his/her unplayed letters. In addition, if a player has used all of his or her letters, the sum of the other player's unplayed letters is added to that player's score; in tournament play, a player who "goes out" adds double this sum, and the opponent is not penalized. Scoreless turns can occur when a player passes, when a player exchanges tiles, or when a player loses a challenge. The latter rule varies slightly in international tournaments.

Scoring

Each word formed in the play is scored this way: Any tile played from the player's rack onto a previously vacant square that is a "doubleletter" or "triple-letter" premium square has its point value doubled or tripled as indicated.

Add the normal point value of all other letters in the word (whether newly played or existing).

For each newly played tile placed on a "double-word" premium square, the total of each word containing that tile is doubled (or redoubled).

For each newly placed tile placed on a "triple-word" premium square, the total of each word containing that tile is tripled (or re-tripled).

Premium squares affect the score of each word made in the same play by constituent tiles played upon those squares. Premium squares, once played upon, are not counted again in subsequent plays.

Players occasionally achieve quadruple (4x) or nonuple (9x) word scores by spanning two double-word (called a "double-double" or two triple-word premium squares (called a "triple-triple") with a single word. Septenviguple (27x) word scores spanning three tripleword squares are possible, if only in constructed games. (A hexuple [6x] or octodecuple [18x] word score is also possible under the rules, but only remotely so, since it would require that the opening play have missed the center square and not have been challenged off as a result. Game-construction enthusiasts have disavowed this ruse.) Acceptable words

Acceptable words are the primary entries in some chosen dictionary, and all of their inflected forms. Words that are hyphenated, capitalized (such as proper nouns), or apostrophized are not allowed, unless they also appear as acceptable entries: "Jack" is a proper noun, but the word JACK is acceptable because it has other usages as a common noun (automotive, vexillological, etc.) and verb that are acceptable. Acronyms or abbreviations, other than those that have been regularized (such as AWOL, RADAR, LASER, and SCUBA), are not allowed. Variant spellings, slang or offensive terms, archaic or obsolete terms, and specialized jargon words are allowed if they meet all other criteria for acceptability. Foreign words are not allowed in the English language Scrabble unless they have been incorporated into the English language for example, the words "patisserie" and "glace". Proper nouns and other exceptions to the usual rules are allowed in some limited contexts in the spin-off game Scrabble Trickster. There are two popular competition word lists used in various parts of the world: TWL and SOWPODS (also referred to as "Collins"). Collins Scrabble Words In all other countries, the competition word list is the Tournament and Club Word List (Collins), also known as Collins Scrabble Words. It was published in May 2007 (see SOWPODS) and it lists all words of length 2 to 15 letters and is thus a complete reference. This list contains all OWL2 words plus words sourced from Chambers and Collins English dictionaries. This book is

used to adjudicate at the World Scrabble Championship and all other major international competitions outside of North America. Collins Scrabble Words 2012 Edition will be used from 1 January 2012 for countries currently using the Tournament and Club Word List (Collins). Challenges Main article: Challenge (Scrabble) The penalty for a successfully challenged play is nearly universal: the offending player removes the tiles played and forfeits the turn. (However, in some online games, an option known as "void" may be used, wherein unacceptable words are automatically rejected by the program. The player is then required to make another play, with no penalty applied.) The penalty for an unsuccessful challenge (where all words formed by the play are deemed valid) varies considerably, including: "Double Challenge", in which an unsuccessfully challenging player must forfeit the next turn. This penalty governs North American (NASPA-sanctioned) tournaments, and is the standard for North American, Israeli and Thai clubs. Because loss of a turn generally constitutes the greatest risk for an unsuccessful challenge, it provides the greatest incentive for a player to "bluff", or play a "phony" a plausible word that they know or suspect to be unacceptable, hoping their opponent will not call them on it. Players have divergent opinions on this aspect of the double-challenge game and the ethics involved, but officially it is considered a valid part of the game.

"Single Challenge"/"Free Challenge", in which no penalty whatsoever is applied to a player who unsuccessfully challenges. This is the default rule in the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland, as well as for many tournaments in Australia, although these countries do sanction occasional tournaments using other challenge rules.

Modified "Single Challenge", in which an unsuccessful challenge does not result in the loss of the challenging player's turn, but is penalized by the loss of a specified number of points. The most common penalty is five points. The rule has been adopted in Singapore (since 2000), Malaysia (since 2002), South Africa (since 2003), New Zealand (since 2004), and Kenya, as well as in contemporary World Scrabble Championships (since 2001). Some countries and tournaments (including Sweden) use a 10-point penalty instead. In most game situations, this penalty is much lower than that of the "double challenge" rule. Consequently,

such tournaments encourage a greater willingness to challenge and a lower willingness to play dubious words. Historic evolution of the rules The North American "box rules" (that are included in each game box, as contrasted with tournament rules) have been edited four times: in 1953, 1976, 1989, and 1999.[11] The major changes in 1953 were as follows:

It was made clear that:

words could be played through single letters already on the board.

a player could play a word parallel and immediately adjacent to an existing word provided all crosswords formed were valid.

the effect of two word premium squares were to be compounded multiplicatively.

The previously unspecified penalty for having one's play successfully challenged was stated: withdrawal of tiles and loss of turn.

The major changes in 1976 were as follows:

It was made clear that the blank tile beats an A when drawing to see who goes first. A player could now pass his/her turn, doing nothing. A loss-of-turn penalty was added for challenging an acceptable play.

If final scores are tied, the player whose score was highest before adjusting for unplayed tiles is the winner. The editorial changes made in 1989 did not affect game play. The major changes in 1999 were as follows:

It was made clear that:

a tile can be shifted or replaced until the play has been scored. a challenge applies to all the words made in the given play.

Playing all seven tiles is officially called a "Bingo".

A change of wording could be inferred to mean that a player can form more than one word in one row on a turn.

Dominoes History Domino pieces were historically carved from ivory or animal bone with small, round pips of inset ebony. The game's name comes from the pieces' resemblance to Venetian Carnival masks known as domini, which were white with black spots. These masks were so named, in turn, because they resembled French priests' winter hoods, being black on the outside and white on the inside. The name ultimately derives from the Latin dominus, meaning "lord" or "master."Many different domino sets have been used for centuries in various parts of world to play a variety of domino games. Dominoes are played by grown-ups and young people throughout the world. Each domino originally represented one of the 21 results of throwing two dice. One half of each domino is set with the pips from one die and the other half contains the pips from the second die. Chinese sets also introduce duplicates of some throws and divide the dominoes into two classes: military and civil. Chinese dominoes are also longer than typical European dominoes. Over time Chinese dominoes also evolved into the tile set used to play Mah Jong, a game which swept across the United States in the early to mid 1920s and has enjoyed moderate popularity, especially in its "solitaire" form, since that time. It is played a lot in the Caribbean, especially in Barbados and Jamaica.The early 18th century witnessed dominoes making their way to Europe, making their first appearance in Italy. The game changed somewhat in the translation from Chinese to the European culture. European domino sets contain neither class distinctions nor the duplicates that went with them. Instead, European sets contain seven additional dominoes, with six of these representing the values that result from throwing a single die with the other half of the tile left blank, and the seventh domino representing the blank-blank (00) combination.Ivory Dominoes were routinely used in 19th century rural England in the settling of disputes over traditional grazing boundaries, and were commonly referred to as "bonesticks" (see Hartley, Land Law in West Lancashire in the mid- 19th Century, Farm Gazette, March 1984). Facilities and Equipments Domino tiles, also known as bones, are twice as long as they are wide, a line in the middle suggesting a division into two squares. The value of either side is the number of spots or pips. In the most common variant (Double Six) the values range from blank or 0 (no pips) to 6. The sum of the two values, i.e. the total number of pips, may be referred to as the rank or weight of a tile, and a tile with more pips may be called heavier than a lighter tile with fewer pips.

Tiles are generally named after their two values; e.g. 25 or 52 are alternative ways of describing the tile with the values 2 and 5. Tiles that have the same value on both ends are called doubles, and are typically referred to as double-zero, double-one etc. Tiles with two different values are called singles. Every tile belongs to the two suits of its two values, e.g. 03 belongs both to the blank suit (or 0 suit) and to the 3 suit. Naturally the doubles form an exception in that each double belongs to only one suit. In 42, the doubles are treated like an additional suit of doubles, so that e.g. the double-six 66belongs both to the 6 suit and the suit of doubles. Domino sets The five most common domino sets commercially available are: Set Tiles Pips Double-6 28 168 Double-9 55 495 Double-12 91 1092 Double-15 136 2040 Double-18 190 3420 These numbers may be computed quite easily using triangular numbers: for double-n dominoes, there are tiles and pips. Generally the most commonly used sets are double-6 and double-9, though the other three sets are more popular for games involving several players or for players looking for long domino games.

Rules

Basic rules

Most domino games are blocking games, i.e. the objective is to empty one's hand whilst blocking the opponents. In the end, a score may be determined by counting the pips in the losing players' hands. In scoring games the scoring is different and happens mostly during gameplay, making it the principal objective.

Block game

The most basic domino variant is for two players and requires a double six set. The 28 tiles are shuffled face down and form the stock or boneyard. Each player draws seven tiles; the remainder are not used. Once the players begin drawing tiles, they are typically placed on-edge before the players, so that each player can see his own tiles, but none can see the value of other players' tiles. Every player can thus see how many tiles remain in the other players' hands at all

times during gameplay. One player begins by downing (playing the first tile) one of their tiles. This tile starts the line of play, a series of tiles in which adjacent tiles touch with matching, i.e. equal, values. The players alternately extend the line of play with one tile at one of its two ends. A player who cannot do this draws another tile from the boneyard until they can use one in the line. The game ends when one player wins by playing their last tile, or when the game is blocked because neither player can play. If that occurs, whoever caused the block gets all of the remaining player points not counting their own.

Draw game

In the Draw game, players are additionally allowed to draw as many tiles as desired from the stock before playing a tile, and they are not allowed to pass before the stock is (nearly) emptyThe score of a game is the number of pips in the losing player's hand plus the number of pips in the stock. Most rules prescribe that two tiles need to remain in the stock. The Draw game is often referred to as simply "dominoes". Adaptations of both games can accommodate more than two players, who may play individually or in teams.

Line of play

The line of play is the configuration of played tiles on the table. Typically it starts with a single tile, from which it grows in two opposite directions when the players add matching tiles. (In practice the players often play tiles at right angles when the line of play gets too close to the edge of the table.) The rules for the line of play often differ from one variant to another. In many rules the doubles serve as spinners, i.e. they can be played on all four sides, causing the line of play to branch. Sometimes the first tile is required to be a double, and serves as the only spinner. In some games such asChicken Foot, all sides of a spinner must be occupied before anybody is allowed to play elsewhere. Matador has unusual rules for matching. Bendominouses curved tiles, so that one side of the line of play (or both) may be blocked for geometrical reasons.In Mexican Train and other Trains games, the game starts with a spinner from which various trains branch off. Most trains are owned by a player, and in most situations players are only allowed to extend their own train.

Scoring

In blocking games the scoring happens at the end of the game. After a player has emptied their hand, thereby winning the game for their team, the score consists of the total pip count of the losing teams' hands. In some rules the pip count of the remaining stock is added. If a game is

blocked because no player can move, the winner can often be determined by counting the pips in all players' hands.[2] In scoring games each individual move potentially adds to the score. E.g. in Bergen, players score 2 points whenever they cause a configuration in which both open ends have the same value and 3 points if additionally one open end is formed by a double. In Muggins, players score by ensuring that the total pip count of the open ends is a multiple of a certain number. In variants of Muggins the line of play may branch due to spinners. In British public houses and social clubs the scoring version of "fives and threes" is used. Score is kept on a cribbage board and the objective is to score 61 points. The points are scored by making totals at the ends of the lines that are divisible by five and three, thus a score of 15 (say double five at one end and a single five at the other) scores a total of eight points (five threes and three fives). If at the end game your score is more than the points remaining you cannot peg out and must wait to score lower (for example if you have 54 and you score 8 points you cannot peg that, so you must wait for the opportunity to score fewer points). This is played in a number of competitive leagues in the British Isles.

Games using more dominoes

With bigger domino sets, especially with the Double Fifteens and Double Eighteens, it is possible to have more players. Double 9s is good for 4 to 6 players and each player would start with 10 dominoes in their hand. Double 12s, 15s, and 18s are good for up to 10 to 15 players, each with 7 dominoes. If you have fewer players and more dominoes, start with more dominoes in each player's hand, but leave enough dominoes in the bone pile to draw from. When using the larger sets, make sure you have plenty of playing room as they can spread out considerably. Double 6s = 7 rounds, double 9s = 10 rounds, double 12s = 13 rounds, double 15s = 16 rounds, double 18s = 19 rounds.

Card games using domino sets

Apart from the usual blocking and scoring games, there are also domino of games of a very different character, such as solitaire or trick-taking games. Most of these are adaptations of card games and were once popular in certain areas to circumvent religious prescriptions against playing cards A very simple example is a Concentration variant played with a double-six set; two tiles are considered to match if their total pip count is 12.A popular domino game in Texas is 42. The game is similar to the card game spades. It is played with four players paired into teams. Each player draws seven dominoes, and the dominoes are played into tricks. Each trick counts as 1 point, and any domino with a multiple of 5 dots counts toward the total of the hand. 35 points of "five count" + 7 tricks = 42 points, hence the name.

Word Factory Boggle is a word game designed by Allan Turoff and trademarked by Parker Brothers, a division of Hasbro. The game is played using a plastic grid of lettereddice, in which players attempt to find words in sequences of adjacent letters. Rules The game begins by shaking a covered tray of sixteen cubic dice, each with a different letter printed on each of its sides. The dice settle into a 4x4 tray so that only the top letter of each cube is visible. After they have settled into the grid, a three-minute sand timer is started and all players simultaneously begin the main phase of play. Each player searches for words that can be constructed from the letters of sequentially adjacent cubes, where "adjacent" cubes are those horizontally, vertically or diagonally neighboring. Words must be at least three letters long, may include singular and plural (or other derived forms) separately, but may not use the same letter cube more than once per word. Each player records all the words he or she finds by writing on a private sheet of paper. After three minutes have elapsed, all players must immediately stop writing and the game enters the scoring phase. In the scoring phase, each player reads off his or her list of discovered words. If two or more players wrote the same word, it is removed from all players' lists. Any player may challenge the validity of a word, in which case a previously nominated dictionary is used to verify or refute it. For all words remaining after duplicates have been eliminated, points are awarded based on the length of the word. The winner is the player whose point total is highest, with any ties typically broken by count of long words. One cube is printed with Qu. This is because Q is nearly always followed by U in English words (see exceptions), and if there were a Q in Boggle, it would be unusable if a U did not, by chance, appear next to it. For the purposes of scoring Qu counts as two letters: squid would score two points (for a five-letter word) despite being formed from a chain of only four cubes. The North American National Scrabble Association publishes the Official Scrabble Players Dictionary (OSPD), which is also suitable for Boggle. This dictionary includes all variant forms of words up to eight letters in length. A puzzle book entitled 100 Boggle Puzzles (Improve Your Game) offering 100 game positions was published in the UK in 2003 but is no longer in print. Word Length 3 Points

4 5 6 7 8+

1 2 3 5 11

Different versions of Boggle have varying distributions of letters. For example, a more modern version (with a blue box) in the UK has easier letters, such as only one "K", but an older version (with a yellow box, from 1986) has two Ks and a generally more awkward letter distribution. Using the sixteen cubes in a standard Boggle set, the list of longest words that can be formed includes Inconsequentially, Quadricentennials, and Sesquicentennials, all seventeen letter words made possible by q and u appearing on the same face of one cube.[1][dead link] Words within words are also allowed, for example: "Master", the two separate words being "Mast" and "aster." Neither the cubes nor the board may be touched while the timer is running.

Board Games
Submitted by: Marjorie Castillon Submittes to: Ms. Febe San Antonio