Cheating is Forbidden.

Updating this post from 2020. I'd like to add that cheating as an individual is detrimental to that individual, but cheating when playing for a team hurts the whole team. I'm not saying that any of our players are cheaters, but I'd like to reiterate the club's policy on cheating, and note that the WCLL takes cheating very seriously.

All WCLL team captains recently received the following notification from league director Peter Hornsby:

Back to Damian Nash's 2020 post: anyone who plays a game for the Hawaiian Islands Chess Team must understand that cheating is not allowed.  Cheating takes the fun out of chess and wrecks the game for everyone.  It is not pono.

The main kind of cheating is using a computer to help you choose your moves in a live game.  It is also cheating if another person gives you advice or ideas during a chess game.

To have the privilege of playing chess for the Hawaiian Islands, you must agree that you will never cheat.

Is there a place for computers and advice in chess?  Sure!  After a game is over it is good to use a computer to check your moves and help you improve.  Sometimes there are special events where players are allowed to use computers or consult their friends.  But those events are rare.   If you want to play a game with a friend where both of you can use computers to help you think, and you both agree to the same rules ahead of time, it is not cheating.  But for games in this club, NEVER use a computer or get advice from another person during that game.  We don't cheat here.