Paddachee App Usage Details

Immediate Threats

To make scoring less of a surprise, the app displays immediate threats. An immediate threat is a scoring pattern that a player can complete by claiming one more cell. The points for that pattern are shown in the threatened cell, using that player’s color.

Points are not awarded until the player actually claims the cell. If the opponent claims it instead, the threat disappears. If the player completes the pattern, the points are added to her score and remain marked in the scoring cell.

Inspecting Threatened Patterns

If you have trouble visualizing a threat, control-click the threatened cell. The app highlights the first scoring placement that is currently threatened. Additional control-clicks show any other threatened placements through the same cell.

This is especially useful when several differently oriented scoring patterns pass through the same cell.

Inspecting Possible Patterns

You can also inspect all scoring placements through a cell, whether or not they are currently threatened. Shift-click a cell to show the first viable placement through it. Additional shift-clicks cycle through the remaining placements.

This can be useful before your first move in an unfamiliar game, because it shows the shapes and orientations that can score through different parts of the board.

Inspecting Completed Patterns

If it is ever non-obvious how points were awarded at a cell, hovering over that cell and pressing the at sign starts inspection of all the completed placements through that cell.

Dead Cells

When it is no longer possible for either player to score through a cell, that cell is removed from play and shown in gray.

Human and Computer Players

You can switch either player between Human and Computer. When a player is computer-controlled, the player panel also lets you adjust the computer’s smartness. Smartness varies from 100 (smartest) down to 0 (least smart). Setting 0 gives completely random play—i.e. you will be playing against a computerized chicken pecking at the board.

The app does not allow two computer players at the same time. You can, however, temporarily switch the non-current player to human, then switch the current player to Computer to let the computer make that move.

Move Suggestions

A human player can ask the computer to suggest moves without turning control of the player over to the computer. The app highlights up to three suggested cells in that player’s color. You can also press the space bar to request suggestions.

Suggestions are based on the computer player’s evaluation of the position. When several moves are tied, asking again may show a somewhat different set of suggestions. The computer player's smartness setting is not involved in the suggestions.