How to learn a Chess Opening

I've played Chess many years ago but never had any formal instruction or training. Recently I started playing OTB and while I don't have a rating yet, I guess I'm somewhere U1400.

In this context, I've been trying to build a repertoire and learn openings. One way that appeals to me is from Fragile Kitty. In particular, the advice on training differently for positional and tactical lines makes much sense.

Again, the biggest hurdle  for me seems to be a lack of time to spend on Chess learning. It remains to be seen how I can put this in practice.

First thoughts on Chessimo for iPhone

I've been using Chessimo for a few days now. Current version of Chessimo has numerous exercises organized into

1. Tactics
2. Strategies
3. Endgames
4. Commented Endgames, and
5. Openings

Typical user would set a goal (a date many months away) to complete all the exercises. Chessimo then tracks the user progress against this goal and highlights categories that one needs to spend more time on. Presumably the pace for each category is set based on how a beginner needs to focus ones time amongst these areas of learning. For someone that needs a visual motivation or just a sense of how they're doing this is a very valuable management tool indeed.

I found that the exercises are progressively difficult and build on the previous sets. So it makes sense to go through each unit in sequence if one were starting out learning chess. Further there is reasonable interplay between the categories as might be expected. So it makes sense to use the tracker to focus on where one is lacking - i.e., make sure that one trains in each category equally. [Do not be thrown off by the word equally here. To progress a singe percentage point requires one to solve way more problems in Tactics than in Openings.]

One unit consists of a set of problems that are solved twice - once to actually solve the exercises and a second time to reinforce the concepts presented in that unit. I've also found that the exercises from prior units are repeated in later units as a test of learning retention.

The biggest issue I have with this software is that it takes too much time to complete. I currently take around 90 minutes to complete one unit. As a rough estimate, I'll need to spend 4 hours everyday for the next 9 months to completely solve all of the units. Sigh!

The exercises/units are not named and do not facilitate skipping to a section we need to improve on. Completion is tracked per unit and if the software were closed in the middle of a unit, the unit restarts at the beginning upon restarting.

All that being said, the software does help train the mind and eye to see the various patterns. I hope that I would do the exercise faster as I progress further in the program.

I'll update this review after a few more weeks of using the software.

PS. If you're looking to buy the software, please be aware that the exercise sets need to be purchased separately for the iPhone (Chessimo), iPad (Chessimo HD), and so on. While I'm turned off by such obvious money grabs, this is the vendor's model. So before you buy, do decide upon the one device that will help you learn the most and buy for that device. Another reason decide on the device up front is that the progress is tracked on your specific device and will not transfer to other devices if you do switch over.

Another loss

Another loss at the club :(  I play Black.

Highlights the need to follow a consistent thought process.

Space Grabbing

Continuing on from my last post on opening rules...

Is it appropriate to grab space in the center in the opening? Or should I focus on development? What would you play in this situation - Black to play.

I'm tempted to say d4.

Comments?

Rules for the Opening

I have been finding that opening preparation works to a very limited extent in my online and OTB play. I'm tempted to think that this is due to my own rating and the rating category of the people that I play. On reviewing after the fact, I've found that we differ from the book knowingly or unknowingly by not following the main line is, or by getting into gambit play, or changing the move order.

It makes these rules from Reuben Fine all the more important for someone like me to keep in mind.

1. Center pawns first.
2. Develop with Threats.
3. Develop knights before bishops.
4. Don't move the same piece twice.
5. Make no more than one or two pawn moves.
6. Do not bring the queen out too early.
7. Castle asap, preferably on the king's side.
8. Play to get control of the center - usually with minor pieces.
9. Keep at least one pawn in the center.
10. Do not sacrifice without a clear and adequate reason, e.g.:
    • it secures a tangible advantage in development (3 tempii or more)
    • it deflects the opponent's queen
    • it prevents the opponent from castling
    • it enables a strong attack to be developed
    
    

More opening rules at DrDave's.

Links

Just posting a list of chess links I use repeatedly...

Learning Chess

http://chess4real.com/



Training

http://chesstempo.com
http://www.chessproblems.com/


Online Play
http://www.chess.com
http://www.freechess.org/ (Free Chess Server - FICS)
http://www.ficsgames.org/ (You can find FICS games archived here)
http://www.ficgs.com/ (Correspondence chess etc)


News

http://chessvibes.com/


Puzzles

http://www.wtharvey.com/


Reviews etc

http://www.jeremysilman.com/


Club, USCF, etc
http://www.metrowestchess.org/


Utilities et. al.
http://www.freewebs.com/pc-chess/

Player Blogs
http://wangschesshouse.wordpress.com/

Training Tactics

Realizing that I need to improve on Tactics I have been a) reading various opinions on which software is better and b) trying out various demo's myself.

I have read opinion by BDK that CT-Art is better. I have also read other opinion that Chessimo is better. All very confusing...

Well, time to make up my mind. I think the software I really use will be better than the software that I rarely use. To wit, CT-Art, while better is available for the PC and I need to be in front of the one I install it in to train. While with Chessimo for iPhone, I can get a few minutes in on the train, or waiting for the dentist and so on. Thus, I intend to purchase Chessimo for the iPhone. I already use Tactics Trainer for the iPhone - the older version before the change of ownership.

Comments?

Premature Attacks

One of the issues I'm working on is premature attacks - as in, I have a propensity for them. Here's an example from a correspondence game (Online game in Chess.com terminology).

I play White in this game. Here is the position where I started my premature attack with Bxh7. What would you have done?


Later on in the game, I missed a checkmate. I guess I have to work on tactics as well. Sigh.

Can you find the mate?


The full game follows if you care to follow along.

Chess Publishing

Check out Chess Publishing for publishing chess diagrams and games on blogspot.com.

Butterflies

I used to play chess fairly regularly back in college. Life got in the way and here I am many years later trying to rekindle my passion for Caissa. Or is it the other way - I thought I'd escaped - but maybe she just gave me a leave of absence.

At any rate, I joined the MetroWest Chess Club a few months ago and started playing OTB. It is a nice and friendly club. We meet every Tuesday for a standard USCF rated game. I play in the U1700 section and have been losing a lot of games. WOW! Maybe I'm not as good as I thought I was :)  What a revelation. By the way, I still get butterflies playing online or OTB.

This blog is my attempt at documenting my efforts to improve at chess.

Caissa, you have me hooked.