I might buy a membership...

...if I wasn't threatened so much.

I can't go on this site without getting threatened for playing chess and most of it is pretty ridiculous.  If I abort a game because I realize I should pee before I start another..a threat.  Internet diconnects...threat.  Respond to some trash talk...threat.  Start a thread that isn't "Fischer v Kasparov"..threat.  And lurking out there is the dread "Cheater's list" and they will take away your account and publicly shame you but not disclose how they decide to do it or feel the need to justify it (in other areas of my life, such behavior would earn them a defamation and breach suit). 

I've been threatened enough times in my life.  Why should I be threatened because I wasted - literally - 15 seconds of someone's time by aborting a chess game?  An 1800 player playing chess on the internet just can't care about losing 15 seconds of his life.

This hamster will calm you.  

Try not to take the computer generated messages so personally.  There are a lot of unruly and unsupervised children playing onsite and the messages are an attempt to keep them somewhat behaved.  Yes, you do have to watch your language and make sure you are really ready to play when you start, but is that really so hard to do?  And if your internet connection is maybe not first rate, you can always play correspondence ("online" in Erikspeak).  Diamond membership here is IMHO totally worth it.

Oh good.  I should pay so that they can treat me like an "unruly and unsupervised child". 

If you don't pay up they will send someone to your home.

you won't be a premium member and give some excuses. Just keep playing. You don't have to be one.

PS. Not a threat.

I'd sympathize more except I recently had a staff member tear me a new body orifice for freely expressing my opinion.  The site is still worth it...

Right.  Who needs this?  Then they can mute you so you can't say "Well done" when your opponent pulls out a brilliant combo and smacks you. 

not with me around =D

Thanks for the tip! I was about to leave the house wearing clothing that looked somewhat like guinea pig food pellets from an angle. You may have saved my life.

I'm def going to stop wearing that carrot top hat I've been sporting; I was wondering what that gnawing feeling at my ankles was....thought it was my blood pressure medication...thanks for the tip. 

all the guinea pigs run away from me =D

Perhaps if you didn't disconnect so much? Are internet connections really that unreliable these days? I have been on this site as both a paid and unpaid member for a number of years now and have had very few disconnects in that time.

In our game (which was very poor quality from both sides!) you didn't disconnect until you lost your queen for nothing. I don't think I have ever had someone disconnect on me when they have been in a winning position. Your position was comfortably winning due to my earlier blunder, until of course you left your queen hanging and then mysteriously you got a disconnect. I take these at face value personally, so I forwarded the message generated to your wall just now so that, just in case you do have your account restricted, you might be able to offer the guys that run this site some sort of explanation.

Good luck with your chess.

Tim

You won't land on the cheater's list if you don't cheat, don't worry...

And you can always sue them if you do

What happened 2 the hamsters?

Lately I've been playing on ICC. Its more expensive but I like it better.