HOW TO USE THE PANDANET APP

GETTING STARTED

How do I register?

After you have filled in the registration form, you will get a mail with a link to complete the registration. When you have clicked that link your account is ready to be used: Go to the Pandanet app and Log In with your new username and password. This procedure (including the last step) must be completed within 24 hours.

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What if the app doesn't recognize my password?

If you fail to log in the first time within 24 hours, then your new account is automatically removed. But don't worry, you can simply register again. Make sure to use your account within 24 hours.

If you used your account before, but somehow the Pandanet mobile app won't accept your password then you can reset your password here.

Where can I learn the rules of this game?

Before you play against other people on Pandanet, you better know the rules of go. You can learn then here.

To practice you can visit the beginners room. There you will find other beginners and robots (computer programs) to play against.

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WATCHING GAMES

How can I watch interesting games?

Any time of the day you will find strong amateurs playing on Pandanet. Simply go to Observe, and pick one of the games from the top of the list.

Sometimes, important professional title games are shown live on Pandanet. Go to the News section for announcements.

How can I chat with other people?

When watching a live game, you can chat with the other observers. When playing an online game, you can chat with your opponent. The Pandanet mobile app does not yet support chatting in other circumstances.

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PLAYING

How to start an online game?

There are three ways to start a game:

Invite someone:
Tap "Send Invitation", choose an opponent and specify board size, timing etc... And wait to see if your opponent accepts your invitation.
Get invited:
Set your status to "Looking for a Game", wait until someone sends you an invitation and accept it.
Let Pandanet find your opponent:
Or tap "Find me an Opponent" and specify a maximum difference in rank. As soon as a suitable opponent does the same, you are automatically paired and the game begins.

Remember that it takes two people to start an online game, so you might have to be a little bit patient.

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What is the purpose of my status?

By setting your status, you let other people know if you are interested in playing a game. These are the available statuses:

Refusing Games: This status indicates that you are currently not interested in playing. You can not receive any game invitations.
Accepting Games: You can receive game invitations, which you can choose to accept or reject.
Looking for a Game: This status indicates that you want to play a game. Your name is marked with a dot to let other people know that you want to receive game invitations.

You can you see or change your current status in the bottom right corner on iPad, or on top of the Pandanet Home screen on iPhone.

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What's the deal with these rooms?

You can only play against someone that is in the same room. The Main Playing Hall is where usually most of the action is. The Beginners room is interesting for beginners to play against robots or other beginners. There can be other rooms for specific events like online tournaments. If you join such a tournament, you will receive instructions by email.

Note: You don't have to switch rooms to watch games because the game list in the Observe view includes all the games from all the rooms.

How does the ranking system work?

The ranking system helps you find interesting opponents of similar strength. Here you can read all about it.

Do all my games count for my rank?

In the following cases a game does not affect your rank:

Games on a smaller board (not 19x19)
Games in the No rated games room
Games that end after less than 2 moves
Teaching games: Games against professional players and other games where the handicap is 3 or more stones below a fair handicap

Otherwise, the game result will be taken into account for your rank.

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What do all these time settings mean?

All games on Pandanet have some kind of time limit. These time settings are agreed between the two players as part of the game invitations:

Each player starts with a fixed amount of thinking time. (Your timer is only running if it is your turn.) After you have spent all that time, there is possibly some extra time. Pandanet supports 4 types of extra time:

Absolute Timing: No extra time. As soon as you have spent your main time you loose.
Canadian Timing: When you go into extra time, you get an amount of time to play a number of moves (eg. 10 minutes for 25 moves). After those moves, you get the same time for the same number of moves, etc...
Japanese Timing: When you go into extra time, you get a number of periods each of equal length (eg. 6 periods of 10 seconds). If you think throughout an entire period, then you have consumed that period. Otherwise it is restored to its original length by the next move.
Kouryo Timing: This is a variation on Japanese Timing: When you go in extra time, you get a certain amount of thinking time for each move (eg. 10 seconds). If you go over that time, you consume one (or more) of your extra periods.

Note: When you invite a person that is running old software, it is possible that you have fewer options to choose from.

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How does a game end?

A game can suddenly end:

Resign: When one of the players resign. To resign (give up) tap on the flag .
Out of Time: When one of the players has used up all of his time.
Disconnect: Sometimes a game can end when one of the players looses his connection. More about disconnecting...

Otherwise the game ends on points: To enter scoring phase:

The game needs 3 passes in a row. To pass, tap on the flag .
After 3 passes your opponent and you have to mark dead stones and dame-points.
When you believe you are done, tap the flag and choose Done Scoring.
When both players are done scoring, the game is over and the score is final.

At any time in this process, you can tap the info button and see the (intermediate) score.

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What if I loose my internet connection while I am playing?

Usually you have 5 minutes to reconnect and continue the game. Nevertheless on Pandanet disconnecting is considered rude and should be avoided. If you disconnect too often, then you can automatically loose the game. Read the whole story in the Pandanet Disconnect Policy.

My opponent and I don't agree on counting the score. What to do?

If you suspect bad intentions or misbehavior, then you can report the game to the Pandanet jury. Tap the flag and choose Stop and Report.

Can I chat with my opponent, and what's the etiquette?

Most people use the chat feature to thank their opponent for the game. If both players feel like it, they can keep chatting and discuss the game, but many players on Pandanet prefer to start a new game quickly.

Remember that there are many people on Pandanet that speak little or no English.

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REPLAYING GAMES IN THE ARCHIVE

Can I analyze a game that I just played/watched?

Absolutely: When the game is over, tap the info icon and choose Archive Game. This will copy the game to your Archive, where you can replay it, or try alternative scenarios.

By default, the game is in View mode so that you can't change it accidentally. To edit the game (eg. add variations), tap the info icon and switch to Edit mode.

Can I use Pandanet without using an internet connection?

For most features of the app you need an internet connection. If you are not connected, you can only edit or view games in your archive. If that's all you need, and you want to avoid any mobile data traffic, then you can disconnect: Tap your username in the Home screen (on top on iPhone, at the bottom on iPad), and choose Disconnect.

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Can I export games?

Yes, you can send emails with one or more games as attachment. The attachments will have the .SGF format:

First make sure the game is stored in your archive.
On iPhone, open the game in the archive and tap the info button , then choose Email Game.
On iPad, go to Archive, tap in the top bar. Select one or more games and choose Email.

Why can't I place stones?

If you are in the archive, then probably the game is in view mode. In this mode the game is protected against accidental modifications.

To edit the game (eg. add variations), tap the Info button and set the game to Edit mode.

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