FEN

Forsyth–Edwards Notation (FEN) is a text format that represents a board position in a game of chess.

Although it may be stored in a file by itself, it is probably more common for it to be embedded in some other type of text document, such as a web page. From there, it can easily be copied and pasted into a chess application.

Software

 * XBoard/WinBoard

Links

 * Wikipedia article
 * chessgames.com page about FEN