After searching through the ports tree for suitable software, I cam across a program called eboard, that can be easily mated both with chess engines and servers. Not as spectacular as some of the chess apps I’ve encountered, in fact, I think there’s a graphics heavy one on my cd rack somewhere… but who wants to see if it works under WINE! eboard is both simple and to the point, and despite the lack of photo-realistic graphics, it does present a very familiar interface. I also installed gnuchess to serve as a sparing partner, since I haven’t really played a game of chess since the early 2000s, when Cyborg, Lioness, and I used to drop into an occasional parlor game in between drops. Perhaps I’ll hit FICS someday, but an automaton will do just fine for the time being.
Having something to analyze intently, helps a bit….