I was wondering if the rules here are the same as USCF correspondance chess rules. For instance at an OTB tourney you can't use any tools other than your mind, but in correspondance chess where the players aren't face to face there is the official rule of don't use computers aid your game, but it is ok to use study materials such as books, endgame studies, etc.

I often like to skim through a book on openings when I'm learning a new one so that I can understand the different ideas in it. Is this considered acceptable i.e. correspondance chess, or is chess.com trying to emulate an OTB experience during prolonged correspondance style games. -And is it the same rules for individual games as for tournaments 

Turn based chess on chess.com is closer to correspondence chess than OTB. Books and databases are allowed. Live chess is closer to OTB in intent and such aids would probably be frowned upon but how would anyone know you were using them?

In Live chess, any type of assistance at all is more than frowned upon, it is strictly prohibited. It is just like playing in an OTB tournament.

The turn-based section is, as Sharukin said, more like correspondance. Books, databases, magazine articles, etc. are all allowed. What is not allowed during the game is the use of computer engines and help from other people.

           good question.

Neurionb: You are correct. For the most part I think people feel safe that in live chess people aren't using help or aids... but it isn't absolutely impossible either.

I think baseball fan was just clarifying the rule, that there is a differntiation between the turn based and the live chess rules.

People get kicked off of ICC for cheating in blitz games. It would be far too much for me to use another laptop and feed the moves into an engine etc... but if a cheater were motivated enough... it's certainly been done before.

But for the sake of clarifying what is accepted and what is not... you are all by yourself for livechess.

Modern chess engines on reasonably fast hardware are stronger at blitz than longer time controls. The reason is that short time controls emphasise tactics which is just where an engine shines.

neurionb: You could always ask erik or something?

meaning?