English Chess Forum

Let's resolve this one once and for all! I've listed above seven potential penalties for a mobile phone going off during a game. It will be interesting to see which type of punishment seems to be most popular.

EDIT: I tried to edit the poll to add "Arbiter's Discretion", but it sadly deleted the previous votes. Please can all 14 of you who had previously voted vote again?

There you go, warning and then default is my preference

I went for the time bonus and then default as I think the current rules are too draconian, but there should be some punishment to discourage people from leaving their phones on. I would probably want there to be an exemption built in that allows a player to leave his phone on with the permission of both the arbiter and his opponent, to account for the cases of doctors on-call etc.. I don't think we should drive such people away from playing the game they love.

I, also, have gone with a warning and then default.

I like the underlying assumption of the poll that one should be permitted the phone in "silent" mode.

Can I vote for "it should be the organizer's decision"? A rule similar to the default time rule, with the ability for individual organizers to choose whatever penalty they felt appropriate to the event in question.

Yeah - it's hard to make a poll to cover such a wide range of possible opinions. Really, there should probably be a kind-of "parent poll" to this asking something like: Should phones be allowed in the venue and, if so, what mode should they be in? But hopefully anyone who thinks they should not be permitted will just vote for one of the last two options and this poll can still incorporate their views.

IM Jack Rudd wrote:Can I vote for "it should be the organizer's decision"? A rule similar to the default time rule, with the ability for individual organizers to choose whatever penalty they felt appropriate to the event in question.

To be honest, I prefer not having that option there, as I want to see what people's individual views on the matter are, rather than what they think the rules should say. So, if you like, imagine that this is the rule and that you are the organiser.

Eoin Devane wrote:

IM Jack Rudd wrote:Can I vote for "it should be the organizer's decision"? A rule similar to the default time rule, with the ability for individual organizers to choose whatever penalty they felt appropriate to the event in question.

To be honest, I prefer not having that option there, as I want to see what people's individual views on the matter are, rather than what they think the rules should say. So, if you like, imagine that this is the rule and that you are the organiser.

OK, what sort of event am I organizing?

IM Jack Rudd wrote:OK, what sort of event am I organizing?

Oh no! See, I told you all (see post 6) that this one was too complicated for a single poll! We probably need a nested set of polls, each conditional on the results of the previous one.

I'd say that you're organising a normal weekend congress - standard-play, ECF graded, not FIDE rated. In what circumstances would your response differ?

Probably extra time to the opponent, then. A known serial offender or someone I believed to be using it to cheat, probably loss of game.

I'd probably want to be stricter for a title-norm event, and less strict for an evening league.

Fair enough. This is exactly the adaptability and flexibility that the current FIDE rules do not allow.

I expect to turn my phone off if going into a meeting / attending Church / going tro a concert / going to friends for dinner / etc. etc. seems logical that entering a tournament which is based on concentration that phones should be off... what reason would there be for a player to ever have their phone on? If they need to answer an important call - if it is that important: don't enter the competition / be prepared to lose the game / arrange for someone else to answer for you (organiser?) / etc. if the call is that important you won't mind losing / if it is not, then you won't mind turning the phone off. If you were entering a sports match e.g. football etc. do the players take their phones onto the pitch?

seems simple to me -if it rings you lose

Alasdair

Alasdair Kirk wrote:I expect to turn my phone off if going into a meeting / attending Church / going tro a concert / going to friends for dinner / etc. etc. seems logical that entering a tournament which is based on concentration that phones should be off... what reason would there be for a player to ever have their phone on? If they need to answer an important call - if it is that important: don't enter the competition / be prepared to lose the game / arrange for someone else to answer for you (organiser?) / etc. if the call is that important you won't mind losing / if it is not, then you won't mind turning the phone off. If you were entering a sports match e.g. football etc. do the players take their phones onto the pitch?

seems simple to me -if it rings you lose

Alasdair

I wonder if it's a red card offence if a footballer's phone rings when he's on the pitch.

Should we be adding "Arbiter's discretion." to this?

Eoin Devane wrote:Let's resolve this one once and for all!

I fear not, but I've voted anyway.

Warning then default was my choice. I'm not sure the time penalty plus default is worth the faffing around although I wouldn't particularly object to it either.