Define Cheating!

I have seen a lot of posts about cheating and cheats, but could someone give a clear concise definition of what is cheating on chess.com?

http://support.chess.com/Knowledgebase/Article/View/124/0/cheaters--cheating-what-you-need-to-know

Good day!

By layman's definition, cheating on chess.com is any behavior that can be flagged by the website's continuously-refined cheating algorhythm, which for obvious reasons, is not public knowledge.

You want to stay away from using databases to help you make up your mind about your next move, and from other unnatural means, and you shouldn't ever have to worry. 

surely playing through moves on a board, researching games in books or databases is a valid way to play correspondence (live chess obviously is player versus player, no outside help). There seems to be a grey area there?

SirBenjamin should've been a bit more specific, databases are perfectly fine in correspondence shess.

Databases are allowed in correspondence style ("Online") chess. Engines and other chess programs - are not.

What are the rules?

• No chess programs or engines (e.g. Chessmaster, Fritz, Houdini, Stockfish, Chessbase with any active UCI engine, etc.) can be used to analyse positions in ongoing games.  
• In turn-based chess, you may consult books or databases (including the Chess.com Explorer) for opening moves.  "Tablebases," which are specialized databases of particular endgame positions, may NOT be used.  
• In Live Chess, no outside assistance OF ANY KIND is permitted.
• Fixing game results by playing with multiple accounts or losing intentionally is also considered cheating

So, if i ask my wife (who does'nt give a t**s about chess) what her thoughts are about my next move, that is cheating??

Indeed. :)

Otherwise, how can we tell the husband of a WGM that he's not allowed to consult HIS wife? 

U realise staff are going to tell us to join the cheating group... 

...that's what normally happens. 

Not a group... but a forum ...lol

http://www.chess.com/groups/view/cheating-forum

Oh you guys would love the forum.  We have discussions about whether a computer analysis done as research on an opening can be used in subsequent correspondence games.  The consensus seemed to be that if you print it out: yes; if it's still on the computer: no.  Oh BTW one of the reasons for joining the forum is that a number of the members not only know how many angels can dance on the head of a pin; they've also promised to teach the rest of us as well.

That confused me a bit, but are they serious about the printing out thing? Of course it should be completely allowed to research an opening and then play the moves.

But the analysis came from an engine and the use of engines in an ongoing game is forbidden.  Anyway this is probably about to be locked.

Need help on this one..It happened at least 4 times to me.

I play a game against another player at 30 mins.We make about 6 moves apiece then He stops..Hes in check and just stops.His clock goes down to 15 mins I have 27 mins left

all of a sudden after no move by him for 10 mins he goes back to 28 mins im down to 7 mins andf its my move??

How can this be? it seems someone is tampering with the game?

http://support.chess.com/Knowledgebase/Article/View/91/13/why-did-the-clock-times-suddenly-change-the-clocks-seem-broken

Actually, the problem is probably from your side. It's either a connection problem, or a glitch.

Anything that breaks the rules of fair compeition examples:

1) Using a sophisticated engine like Houdini or Rybka to play your moves

2) Allowing a third party such an IM or Expert or NM to borrow your account to beat up another player or players he or she doesn't like they have a major beef with

3) Sandbagging

4) Playing moves against yourself with an alternate account to artifically inflate your rating sky high

5) Mirroring your moves setting up a game on another site against a strong player and tricking him or her into playing your game against someone on this site with neither player aware of what's going on.

6) Pre-arranging your games with your opponents in tournaments

AND.. what the hell does he mean about 'angels' dancing on pins... does he not mean 'devils'.

Sorry to confuse you Connor but it's a fairly common expression in the USA.  It may actually have had its' origins in medieval theological discussion, I don't know, but contemporary use is to indicate a speculative discussion of little use.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/How_many_angels_can_dance_on_the_head_of_a_pin%3F

Thanks for that... i've learnt something. yay!!