Rook Van Winkle's Chess Blog

Chess Events on the Agenda

2008-08-04T08:18:00.001-04:00

Over the next few months there an unusual number of first class chess events on the agenda. First, here are a handful that are going on at this moment.

Chess Classic Mainz, 07-27 through 08-03-2008
British Championship, 07-27 through 08-09-2008
FIDE Grand Prix, Sochi, Russia, 07-30 through 08-15-2008
World Junior Chess Championship, Gaziantep, Turkey, 08-02 through 08-16-2008

Coming up we can look forward to a World Championship Match, a Women's Chess Championship, an Olympiad, and much more.

World Women's Chess Championship, Nalchik, Kabardino-Balkaria, 08-28 through 09-18-2008
Grand Slam Chess Final Masters, Bilbao, Spain, 09-02 through 09-13-2008
World Championship Match, Anand - Kramnik, Bonn, 10-14 through 11-02-2008
European Club Cup, Kallithea, Greece, 10-16 through 10-24-2008
World Youth Championship, Vung Tau, Vietnam, 10-19 through 10-31-2008
38th Chess Olympiad, Dresden, Germany, 11-12 through 11-25-2008
World Championship Challengers Match Topalov - Kamsky, Lvov, Ukraine, 11-26 through 12-15-2008

If that doesn't satisfy your craving for top level chess, nothing will!

Via www.chessabout.com.

Experts Link Leonardo da Vinci to Chess Puzzles

2008-03-14T14:09:00.001-04:00

Experts say the Renaissance genius, whose interests included painting, mathematics, music, engineering, anatomy and botany, may have illustrated the puzzles in a long-lost chess treatise recently recovered in the library of an aristocratic family in northern Italy.

Read the full USA Today article here.

Chess and Social Networking

2008-02-29T08:23:00.001-05:00

It's your move

Even if you just checkmated your new friend in India or took your Russian opponent's rook, new chess Web sites like Chess.com are encouraging niche social networking. CNET News.com's Kara Tsuboi sat down with the site's founder to find out what has attracted more than 100,000 members in less than a year. Watch this video

via www.cnet.com

Dover Publications Sale - Classic Chess Titles

2008-01-23T12:44:00.001-05:00

Dover Publications specializes in reprinting older publications at fantastic prices - even when they are not having a sale. I've done business with them going back to the 1970's and I highly recommend that you check out their available chess titles for some real gems.

-Rook

Now on Sale: Save up to 50% on Chess Books!
The most legendary players in history abound in the new Winter Sale titles: Fischer, Morphy, Steinitz, Lasker, Capablanca, Alekhine, Botvinnik, and more. Plus, they'll help you improve your game with expert advice on techniques and strategies—and they're all available at up to 50% off our already famous low prices. Here are just a few of the great chess titles that are now on sale:

Bobby Fischer: Profile of a Prodigy (Revised Edition)—Save 35%!
Epic Battles of the Chessboard—Save 50%!
How Good Is Your Chess?—Save 40%!
Technique in Chess—Save 45%!

Use this link to browse Winter Sale chess books—

http://www.doverpublications.com/wintersale8

Chess as Played in the Real World - No. 10 - My First Rated Tournament

2007-10-30T11:57:00.001-04:00

On Sunday my wife and I had the opportunity of playing in our first rated chess tournament.

Speaking for me, "playing" might not be the best word. Let's say that I've "participated" in my first rated to chess tournament :-) My performance in my games would hardly qualify as "playing" chess.

Although it was a lot of fun, I don't think I came to the tournament with as much determination as I probably should've. I played my games way too much relaxed - almost as if they were casual skittle games. Consequently, I didn't play very good chess. I did manage to get one win out of three possible games and that was my last pairing with a talented six-year-old with a 800-something rating.

My final provisional rating after three games now stands at 956 points. Ironically, my best game, and a game I was actually happy with and enjoyed playing and found challenging and interesting, was a skittles game I played with my second opponent after the section that we were entered in had ended. This is the game, therefore, that I feature below in today's post. Also, for the sake of completeness - and to publicly shame myself into playing better chess - I include (without annotation) my three games from the official event.

The second opponent I mentioned above - Jeff - is a friend of my wife at work whom I had yet to meet. He'd come to the tournament with his daughter Clarice, and like me, was wanting to finally establish an official USCF rating. My wife has played chess with Jeff at work a number of times - casually in some skittles games - so I was looking forward to meeting him and in playing some chess with him also.

It turned I did have that opportunity - as luck would have it I was paired with Jeff in the second round - and played a miserable game against him I must admit. Even more interesting, my wife who had entered the "reserved" section (for those under 1000 or un-rated) was paired with Jeff's daughter Clarice - a 1st grader - in the final 4th round.

So with all said and done, my wife actually came away with a better score of 2.0 than I did. I could only muster a 1.0 out of a possible 3.

But it was a good experience. It was enjoyable. I wish I had approached my actual tournament games with a little bit more seriousness, because I realize now that your initial rating is quite influenced by those first couple games. Afterwards, I played around with the United States Chess Federation's on-line ratings calculator and found that, gee, if I had won all three games (and I was capable of doing that I think) I might have had a provisional rating of 1700 or something although I play no where near that - so maybe that isn't a good thing :-) but even if I had won two games I would have been very happy with my provisional rating which would have been much higher than what I ended up. So, currently, I stand 956 provisional after 3 games. For comparison, after 242 games on the ICC my current rating is 1223, with a momentary peak rating of 1320 back in August.

UPDATE

Sigh of relief! Smiles of joy. I just finished the October 2007 Monthly ICC Tourney with my best score ever: a 3.0 (thanks to a 1 point bye unfortunately). But I did manage to defeat two higher rated players to finish up with two wins! And I now have a new rating (for the fleeting moment) of 1247:

October 2007 ICC Standard Time Tourney

RookVanWinkle

1247

B---

3.0

Romp With Rook: Chess History - A Rare Morphy Photograph

2007-10-27T12:49:00.001-04:00

A rare photograph of Morphy making a move against Louis Paulsen during the First American Chess Congress (New York, 1857). This certainly must have been a "posed" picture judging by the abominable playing conditions (LOL) and the state of photography in 1857.

Chess as Played in the Real World - No. 9

2007-10-23T21:08:00.000-04:00

Coming tomorrow...

Rant - Time to Replace the Swiss System Tournament Pairings?

2007-10-17T15:30:00.001-04:00

Recently on the USCF web site there was an editorial Greg on Chess: The Swiss is Terrible. I have to agree with Greg Shahade. Although I have never played an OTB rated tournament using this system I have experienced some of the same problems in ICC tournaments - which also use the Swiss system. Why can't we change this system?

In almost every open chess tournament, one is confronted with the Swiss pairing in which players are paired based on their rating. The field of every score group is split in half and if colors match and players haven't been paired before, the top player in the first half of the field will play the top player in the second half. (So, in a ten player tournament, #1 would play #6, #2 plays #7, and so on.) The pairing method is called "Swiss" because it was first used in 1895 at a chess tournament in Zurich. Since then, it's been commonplace. Because we have been born in a world where the Swiss is the only way, people have simply accepted it and don't seem to realize all the tremendous flaws behind the system. One of my greatest regrets in my chess organizing career is that I used the Swiss System in the New York Masters tournament series that I used to run. It was a perfect chance to be a catalyst for change that went to waste. I would never run a tournament again using this system.

Read the entire editorial here.

Chess as Played in the Real World - No. 8: Playing to Win

2007-10-16T20:40:00.000-04:00

Playing to win or playing it safe? Personally, I'd rather take a risk playing for a win than playing not to lose. Coincidentally, yesterday's issue of The Chessville Weekly put it this way, quoting Jean Claude Killy: "To win, you have to risk loss."

My ICC tournament game from today could not be a better example of this philosophy - although I lost the game by taking some risks I almost won. In fact, I missed a forced mate in four after 24. Qxf3 (see diagram). I'll take consolation in the fact I can partially blame time troubles for that as I had 40 seconds left on my clock and just didn't have enough time to confirm and work out the combination. Ah, the joys and sorrows of chess.

Although it is depressing to lose a game, I'm rather proud of the attempt I made to win -sacrificing both a Bishop and a Knight to try and make it happen... and it almost did happen as the following game will show.

After 24. Qxf3 - Black to mate in four:

Replay the entire game below:

Rook's Rudimentary Resources - Yasser Seirawan "Winning Chess Series"

2007-10-15T12:16:00.001-04:00

This is not necessarily a recommendation (or even a review), I'm listing it simply as a resource to be explored.

This series was first brought to my attention by Greg over at Greg's Chess Progress. Greg has used several books in the series to improve his game, and having moved on to more advanced things and through a very magnanimous gesture - Thanks, Greg! - sent me several books in the series he no longer had a use for.

From what I can gather about the series, they were first published by Microsoft Press as four volume set and then later expanded to six volumes. Eventually the series was picked up by Everyman Chess and they currently publish the entire series. Everyman says the Winning Chess Series is "probably the best-selling series of chess books ever published." It certainly seems to be a comprehensive series, starting from the very basics with volume one Play Winning Chess and from there covering tactics, strategies, openings, endgames, and combinations.

So far, I have only been able to read a single chapter, chapter one entitled "Early Days" in the Winning Chess Openings book. It was great fun to read! I actually laughed out loud while reading it because, in the example games he gives, I saw myself doing the same things he did (and millions of other beginners have done) when they first learn how to play the opening. Not only were the games amusing they were very educational - thanks to the insightful comments by Mr. Seirawan. If the rest of the material is up to this quality I expect this series to be very good. As I work through the books I hope to give full reviews of each. That's going to takes some time though ;-) For what it's worth, I noticed the customer review’s at Amazon were uniformly high – 4 to 5 stars – for all seven volumes!

Here is a detailed list of the series (including the back cover summaries):

Winning Chess Series by Yasser Seirawan

Play Winning Chess - An introduction to chess and some basic strategies. "In this first of a four part series, Seirawan talks to the chess novice. He explains the game's development and basics of play, sharing stories of some of the wild and wonderful characters from chess history and Seirawan's own experiences. The language is simple and nontechnical enough for the greenest newcomer, who will hardly seem green at all after absorbing the lessons of this terrific introduction to chess."
Microsoft Press 1990, 1998
Winning Chess Tactics - An introduction to tactics with puzzles. "This is the second in Seirawan's four volumes, taking the reader from the very basics of chess through appreciation of advanced play. He does a remarkable job of discussing tactics that usually appear only in books for advanced players and communicating them to anyone with a grasp of playing fundamentals. The first part of the book deals with basic tactics and how they can be used individually and in combination. In the second part, Seirawan introduces some of the great chess tacticians and their games, further illustrating tactics as they work out in real-life play. "
Microsoft Press 1992, 1998
Winning Chess Strategies - A book on how to use small advantages and use strategies to make them. "This is the third of Seirawan's four-volume series, which takes the reader from chess greenhorn to a player advanced enough to understand grandmaster play. Here, Seirawan shows how to set long-range goals for a game and systematically gain a superior position. His deft explanations give anyone with basic chess knowledge (covered in his previous books) the insights to leap levels in play. As usual, he tackles the subject with an infectious enthusiasm, communicating the sporting thrill as each piece of a meticulous plan comes together. Throughout the book, engrossing chess puzzles help teach strategic points."
Microsoft Press 1994, 1998
Winning Chess Brilliancies - Notable games in chess that are analyzed by the author. "Seirawan does more than present 12 of the most brilliant grandmaster games of the past 25 years. His lively move-by-move analysis delves into the minds of many of chess's greatest players, explaining the reasoning (or errors) behind each. Readers with a grasp of chess basics, tactics, and strategies (covered in the first three books of Seirawan's four-book series) will come away with an appreciation of the subtleties of grandmaster play and the inspiration to stretch their skills and understanding to higher levels. Have another chess player nearby when you read it--you'll want to play afterwards."
Microsoft Press 1995, 1998
Winning Chess Openings - Gives a brief description on hundreds of the most popular openings, as well as opening strategies. "The two greatest challenges for beginning chess players are not only to survive the openings phase, but also to choose appropriate attack and defense formations in the process. Winning Chess Openings shows you how to do both. In Yasser Seirawan's entertaining, easy-to-follow style, you're shown formations that can be used with other White or Black pieces. Winning Chess Openings explains how to: build a safe house for a king; estimate losses of ten moves or fewer; utilize the elements: time, force, space and pawn structure; plan strategy based on time-tested opening principles; employ a defense for Black against any White opening; apply an opening for White used by World Champions."
Microsoft Press 1998
Winning Chess Endings - Introduction to the endgame. "Good books about endgames for beginners are few and far between. Winning Chess Endings is a great one - a gripping introduction to what you need to know to win chess endings, taught by American Grandmaster Yasser Seirawan. His entertaining, easy-to-understand style, incisive stories and insiders advice will help you develop a solid grasp of proven principles that you can apply with confidence whenever a game goes the distance. You'll learn to prevail time and again in endgames with common and uncommon combinations and pieces. Winning Chess Endings explains how to: relentlessly find checkmates, from easy to hard, in all basic endgame patterns; master the intricacies of King and Pawn Endings; win consistently in the most common endgame - the Rook ending; master the pros and cons of Bishop vs. Knight Endgames; seize the advantage in Rook Pawn and Queen Pawn endings; play like a grandmaster in solitaire endings."
Microsoft Press 1999
Winning Chess Combinations - Teaches players how to recognize the main combination patterns; somewhat of a follow up to Winning Chess Tactics. "Winning Chess Combinations is a unique work that doesn't merely repeat the wonderfully rich and vast numbers of combinations, asking readers to solve a particular diagrammed position; it is a work that is far more realistic. A combination involves a sacrifice upsetting the balance of forces, but will it work or tragically boomerang? The reader is invited to solve this critical question by identifying the advantages that a specific position holds which might make the combination successful."
Everyman 2006

Romp with Rook - An English "Barley Corn" Chess Set from 1820

2007-10-13T18:32:00.001-04:00

I really like this set - including the "removable" flags on the rooks. Nice!

Fridays by the Fireside No. 8 - More Odd, But True Chess Trivia

2007-10-13T18:17:00.000-04:00

In our eighth installment of Fridays by the Fireside we feature some more odd, but true chess trivia from the Irving Chernev and Fred Reinfeld book The Fireside Book of Chess.

Chapter - The Magic of Chess
Section - Odd, But True
Item - 8 - 12
Page - 72

Many a good player would like to try his skill against the masters in a tournament, but dreads the possible outcome—a long string of zeros. Not so Colonel Moreau, who played in the Monte Carlo Tournament of 1903. He played two games with each of 13 opponents, and lost 26 times in succession. Not even so much as one measly draw could he get!
What is the best move to begin a game? At one time the masters began automatically with 1 P—K4; then they switched to 1 P—Q4. Paul Morphy, considered by many critics the greatest chess genius that ever lived, never played 1 P—Q4. In contrast, Ernest Gruenfeld, one of the greatest living authorities on opening play, ventured on 1 P—K4 only once in his entire tournament career (against Capablanca at Karlsbad 1929). When asked why he avoided 1 P—K4, he answered, "I never make a mistake in the opening!"
Chess is thought of so highly in the Soviet Union that it is taught in the public schools. Yet, blindfold play is forbidden by law! (Do they realize, we wonder, that a master player analyzing a combination ten moves deep is really playing blindfold chess?)
Franz Gutmayer wrote a book on how to become a chess master, but could never become one himself! Gutmayer never won a Hauptturnier first prize, a requisite in Germany for the title of master.
Dr. Lasker was certainly a hard man to beat. Marshall won from him in May 1900, and then once again on another May day. But that second victory came after forty years of tournament and match play, in the course of which they had met many times.

Romp with Rook: Halloween Costumes for the Chess Nut

2007-10-06T08:44:00.001-04:00

...and you'd have to be nuts to wear these costumes from BuyCostumes.com:

For those who look to the past here's an idea from the National Archives of Canada:

Chess Hats from MegaChess.com:

Chess Tunics from MegaChess.com:

Rave - "The Immotal Game" Now in Paperback

2007-10-05T16:34:00.001-04:00

I've blogged about David Shenk's excellent book "The Immortal Game" several times (here and here) and I'm happy to say it is now available in a paperback edition ($10.17 from Amazon). If you are looking for a very entertaining chess book you can read away from a chess board this is it. Mostly it is a history of chess, but it also examines why the game has fascinated so many millions over the past millennium or so. You don't even need an understanding of how to play chess to appreciate this book - just an interest. The most technical thing in the entire volume is an on-going examination (between chapters) of the famous "Immortal Game" a chess game played in 1851 by Adolf Anderssen (playing white) and Lionel Kieseritzky. There are plenty of diagrams and easy-to-understand explanations of what is happening in the game. This would be a great book to give someone that may have expressed an interest in chess but, for whatever reason, has been hesitant in taking up the game. Highly recommended!

Fridays by the Fireside No. 7 - More Odd, But True Chess Trivia

2007-10-05T16:20:00.000-04:00

In our seventh installment of Fridays by the Fireside we feature some more odd, but true chess trivia from the Irving Chernev and Fred Reinfeld book The Fireside Book of Chess.

Chapter - The Magic of Chess
Section - Odd, But True
Item - 108 - 113
Page - 103

In 1891 a match was played at the Manhattan Chess Club between the bald-headed members and the hirsute ones (hirsute: one who removes his hat when he gets his hair cut). The baldheads won the match by 14 points to 11.
Playing simultaneously in Europe from June 1927 to March 1928, Geza Maroczy compiled the almost incredible score, from a total of 943 games, of 825 wins, 113 draws and only 5 losses!
One of Harry N. Pillsbury's favorite stunts in the realm of memory and imagination was to give a simultaneous display where he engaged ten chess players and ten checker players blindfolded, meanwhile taking a hand in a rubber of whist!
In ten years of tournament and match chess, from 1914 to 1924, Capablanca lost only one game!
Dr. Emanuel Lasker complimented Fred Reinfeld and Reuben Fine on their Dr. Lasker's Chess Career, but regretted the fact that none of his lost games were included in the book! (A modest chess master is a rare bird!)
Leonardo da Vinci may have been "perhaps the most resplendent figure in the human race," but Benjamin Franklin was a worthy runner-up. So many and varied were his interests that it should occasion little surprise that the man who was a printer, publisher, philosopher and Postmaster-General, the inventor of the lightning-rod, the rocking chair and bi-focal spectacles, should also have been the first player and writer on chess in America. For more on Benjamin Franklin and chess see Rook Van Winkle's Chess Blog: Regal Games from the Realms of Yore - Benjamin Franklin and André Danican Philidor

Rave - Age Over Youth: Viswanathan Anand Oldest World Champion Since Mikhail Tal

2007-10-03T09:31:00.000-04:00

According to an article at the USCF, Viswanathan Anand is the oldest player to win the World Championship since Mikhail Botvinnik regained the title in 1961 from Mikhail Tal. I take great comfort in that :-)

Some other interesting "oldest in chess" (courtesy of Bill Wall's Oldest in Chess)

The oldest world chess champion was Wilhelm (William) Steinitz, who won a world championship match from Chigorin at the age of 56. He was world champion until he lost it in a match with Lasker in 1894 at the age of 58 years, 10 days.
The oldest qualifier for the World Chess Championship was Vassily Smyslov (1921- ), who became a Candidate by taking 2nd place in the 1982 Las Palmas Interzonal at the age of 61.
The oldest player to become a master was Oscar Shapiro. He became a USCF master at the age of 74.
The oldest person to win a national chess championship was Edith Price (1872-1956), who won the British Ladies Championship in 1948 at the age of 76.
The oldest person to win a state chess championship was Harlow Daly (1883-1979), who won the chess championship of Maine in 1969 at the age of 85.
Encrico Paoli is the oldest active chess player in the world as of 2004. He is 96.

Romp wth Rook - The Chess Art of Veronika Kasatkina

2007-09-29T10:26:00.000-04:00

Here is a sample of chess art designed by the famous Russian graphic artist Veronika Kasatkina. Her work graces the covers of software made by Convekta and the Russian Chess Magazine 64. She works mostly with digital media, and deals with a chess theme. You can purchase a set of 28 Chess Art Postcards or a set of eight 8" x 12" posters from ChessCentral. Individual posters are also available from Convekta Chess Store. Here are a couple of my favorites:

"Night"

"River of Time"

A collage of her work:

Fridays by the Fireside No. 6 - More Odd, But True Chess Trivia

2007-09-28T15:03:00.000-04:00

In our sixth installment of Fridays by the Fireside we feature some more odd, but true chess trivia from the Irving Chernev and Fred Reinfeld book The Fireside Book of Chess.

Chapter - The Magic of Chess
Section - Odd, But True
Item - 52 - 57
Page - 89

Emanuel Lasker made a clean sweep at the New York tournament of 1893. He won 13 games straight, without allowing a single draw! But history repeats itself. In the New York tournament of 1913, Capablanca too faced 13 opponents and mowed them all down in quick succession, without allowing a single draw!
Do you sometimes wish your opponent would let you move the pieces around to help analyze a position? In 1911, Spielmann and Alapin played a match at Munich, in which analysis by means of moving the pieces was permitted. Alapin used this privilege; Spielmann decided not to do so. P.S. Spielmann won the match!
Steinitz and Capablanca had race horses named after them!
Steinitz was once misjudged to be a spy! Police authorities assumed that the moves made by him in playing his correspondence games with Tchigorin were part of a code by means of which important war secrets could be transmitted.
Rubinstein won only six games at Teplitz-SchOnau in 1922. But of these six games, four were winners of brilliancy prizes!
G. A. MacDonnell was the winner of a tournament played at London in 1868. All the competitors began their games with the positions of their Knights and Bishops reversed. The reason? They wanted to avoid book play! (And this was way back in 1868!)

Rook's Recommendations - Chess Articles at Wikipedia.com

2007-09-27T17:49:00.000-04:00

There is a great wealth of chess material at Wikipedia that is worth exploring. Thanks to the "categories" feature you can explore areas of interest. Here are some of the categories I think you'll find useful and interesting:

Chess books A short list of the most famous books on chess.

Chess checkmates Links to articles on checkmate patterns that are so common they have names.

Chess games A short list of the most famous games of chess.

Chess magazines A list of chess magazines.

Chess openings A comprehensive listing of the articles pertaining to chess openings.

Chess organizations A list of the major chess organizations.

Chess players A list of well-known chess players.

Chess tactics A good summary list common chess tactics.

Chess traps A list of the most notorious chess traps.

Chess terms Links to articles covering a large variety of chess terms.

Timeline of chess A fascinating chronological list of chess history.

World records in chess Another interesting short list of chess records.

If you need a master index look here:

List of chess topics Something in this list from the incredible amount of chess material at Wikipedia will catch your eye.

Wikipedia is a great chess resource - use it to learn and improve.

Rant - No Hope for Adults to Improve Their Chess Rating?

2007-09-26T11:00:00.000-04:00

Abandon hope! That's seems to be the general message from the August 2007 Chess Life's Chess Coach Symposium article when the following question was put to the experts: "If an adult has been the same rating for many years, does she/he have any hope of improving?"

Here are the answers supplied by the chess coaches:

IM Greg Shahade says "...it's a large, large mountain to climb. You have to be happy after you gain 20 points; it’s a miracle if you get 50. You have to refocus your attitude towards being completely, completely obsessed by the game. Of course, you can also get a little worse, if you get too old. Like Korchnoi."

FM Craig Jones says "As we age, we lose the ability to change. And, if you think about it, the only way to improve is to change."

FM Aviv Friedman "It’s very hard. I can’t think of anyone who has. "

GM Miron Sher says "From age 25-40, there are many possibilities for improvement. After age fifty, it’s good if you can stay the same rating."

Thoughts, anyone?

Chess as Played in the Real World - No. 7

2007-09-25T20:16:00.000-04:00

I've finished the ICC September tournament with a score of 0-4. I lost my last game. I think mostly because I came out of the opening pretty poorly. Well, at least I didn't throw the game away with a complete blunder. Still, it's a bit disappointing not to win (or draw) a single game! I was next to the lowest ranked player (and that player even scored above me thanks to a bye in an earlier round). Here's the game:

Rook's Rudimentary Resources - Correct Pronunciation of Chess Words

2007-09-24T16:54:00.000-04:00

If you are new to chess you will start building a new vocabulary pretty quickly consisting not only of new terms but also names of famous chess players. Don't get in the bad habit of mispronouncing these words - learn how to pronounce them correctly from the start.

Fortunately there are some good resources to help you with correct pronunciation. For the more common chess terms you can visit the Merriam-Webster on-line dictionary site. At their site you can listen to correct pronunciation (and definitions of course) for the following chess terms:

en passant
en prise
j'adoube

Correctly pronouncing the names of famous players presents a slightly more difficult problem - this is especially true when you hear players talk about chess openings. Here's a sampling:

Alekhine - pronounced ahl-Yeck-een
Giuoco Piano - pronounced Joke-o Pee-Ah-no
Najdorf - pronounced NIGH-dorf
Pirc - pronounced Peerts

For an exhaustive list see Pronounce that Chess Word by Bill Wall

And these last two are just plain fun to say:

Zugzwang (TSOOKS-vahng) position in which the move makes a worse result
Zwischenzug (TSVEYE-shun-tsook) in-between move

Finally, we have this excerpt of a poem from the Edinburgh University Chess Club:

A rather funny poem appeared in Chess Review in 1949 entitled "Pronunciation." Some excerpts:
Oh! she is the Tarrasch
Of this parish.
Tartakover
Is her
lover,
and Ragozin
is her cousin.
Will she, will she
Always Flohr me?
Will she never Phil-adore
me?
Will she never
Care a damn bit
For my Center
Counter
Gambit?
I will have to pull my neck in
For she dotes upon Alekhin.
I will have
to pull my oar in
For she dotes upon Tchigorin!
Yes --
An' what of
Kotov?
The full text may be found in "The Treasury of Chess Lore" by Fred Reinfeld.

Regal Games from the Realms of Yore - Benjamin Franklin and André Danican Philidor

2007-09-23T16:36:00.001-04:00

Today, in our Sunday series Regal Games from the Realms of Yore, we feature Benjamin Franklin - one of the most talented and remarkable men from the annals of history. It should come as no surprise that Franklin was a chess player. Bill Wall has done an admirable documenting information concerning Benjamin Franklin's life long involvement with chess at his web page Benjamin Franklin and Chess by Bill Wall and John McCrary, past president of the USCF and the US Chess Trust has authored an interesting PDF document Chess and Benjamin Franklin: His Pioneering Contributions

That got me thinking whether or not there are any games on record as having been played by Benjamin Franklin. The answer appears to be "no." So, as a substitute I shall have to offer a game by Captain Smith vs François André Philidor, London, England 1790, Bishop's Opening: Berlin Defense (C24), 0-1 which features "a good sample of Philidor's ideas about pawns; plus a nice mating combination at the end." Franklin had the opportunity of meeting and playing chess with Philidor, probably the greatest chess player of the 18th century, at the famous Café de la Régence in Paris.

Romp With Rook - Little Known Chess Facts

2007-09-22T11:26:00.000-04:00

The longest chess game theoretically possible is 5,949 moves.
The record number of moves without the capture of a piece is 100.
The longest recorded time for a chess player to make a move is 2 hours and 20 minutes.
The word "checkmate" comes from the Persian phrase "Shah Mat," which means "the King is dead."
Rookies are named after the rook in chess. Rooks generally are the last pieces to move into actions, and the same goes for rookies.
Iran is the only country in the world that bans chess. Ayatollah Khomeini said the game "hurts memory and may cause brain damage."
The most popular PBS television show aired was the 1972 Bobby Fischer-Boris Spassky chess match.

Source: Daytona Beach News Journal

Fridays by the Fireside No. 5 - Chess As It Is Played - The Two Rook Sacrifice

2007-09-21T17:48:00.000-04:00

In our fifth installment of Fridays by the Fireside we feature a dramatic two rook sacrifice from the Irving Chernev and Fred Reinfeld book The Fireside Book of Chess.

Chapter - Chess As It Is Played
Section - The Two Rook Sacrifice
Page - 315

When a master has a reputation for brilliancy, his opponents play against him with extra caution and thus reduce his opportunities for combinative fireworks. But despite his reputation as a 'Peck's bad boy,' Mieses was still able to produce such light-hearted classics as this one:

English Opening - London 1939
Craddock vs. Mieses

News Item - Is Your Chess Set from China? Is It Safe?

2007-09-21T09:07:00.000-04:00

I guess I really didn't give this much thought, but an article on MSNBC.com mentions chess sets as being tested for safety reasons. I imagine most all chess sets are made in China these days. How many kids are playing chess with potentially dangerous chess sets?

...product testers [at an international product testing company] who normally would check tools or candles are working on chess sets and plastic cars.
To check for lead, lab workers use a razor blade to scrape off paint from the toy's painted surface. They need .1 grams of paint to test, which can be a challenge when dealing with something like dice which has only painted dots, or a chess set with lots of nooks and crannies.

Rook's Recommendations - Checkmate with Bishop and Knight vs. Lone King

2007-09-20T17:24:00.000-04:00

One of the fundamental things the chess novice must learn is how to force checkmate against a lone King (or if it is even possible to force checkmate at all). To briefly summarize what we all should know:

Checkmate CAN be forced in the following situations:

Queen vs. King
Two Rooks vs. King
Rook vs. King
Two Bishops vs. King
Knight and Bishop vs. King

Checkmate CANNOT be forced in the following situations:

Two Knights vs. King (Checkmate is possible but cannot be forced)
Knight vs. King
Bishop vs. King

The conventional wisdom is that learning to checkmate with two Bishops vs. lone King or Bishop and Knight against vs. lone King is so rare they are not worth learning. In fact, Jerry Silman in his excellent book (see Great New Book - Silman's Complete Endgame Course: From Beginner to Master ) goes so far as to say:

Bishop and Knight [vs. lone King] might never occur in your whole chess lifetime and is far too difficult to waste your precious study time on.

Is that true? I've heard a contrary opinion that says, even though you'll probably never experience a game with a Knight and Bishop vs. a lone King, learning how to checkmate in this situation is very helpful because 1) it helps you to better understand how Knights and Bishops can work together in other situations and 2) it is helpful to learn how the King can be used as an active piece (together with the Bishop and Knight) in the endgame.

Well, as Rook has a little time on his hands and is always up to a challenge, I going to try and find out for myself. Can a novice actually learn this forced checkmate? Will practicing this help my game at all? Of course, my rational side agrees with Silman that doing ANYTHING other than this would be a better use of my chess improvement time. I'm sure that is probably true. But I have another motivation. I would really like to pay back Chessmaster 10 by proving to it I can force checkmate against it no matter how much it tries to resist. Sounds like fun - or perhaps complete folly - anyway I'll play with it awhile and let you know what happens.

Rant - Doing Algebraic Notation Right

2007-09-19T14:57:00.001-04:00

Although I am a product of a "descriptive notation" generation (1. P-K4 P-QB4) I adapted relatively painlessly to algebraic notation. In fact, I wouldn't want to go back. But there are some things that irk me concerning the implementation of algebraic notation in books and on chess boards:

Using Long Algebraic in Beginner Books. I've seen a number of books for beginners that seem to think long algebraic notation (1. e2-e4 Ng8-f6) is somehow beneficial or easier to learn than short algebraic (1. e4 Nf6). I think it is a horrible mistake to give the chess novice a wobbly crutch that will soon be taken from them as soon as the pick up their next chess book! Is short algebraic really THAT much harder to learn than long algebraic? I don't think so. Personally, I find long algebraic so distracting when reading it I can't visualize the moves in my head - whereas with short algebraic I have no problem at all. Take for example The Simon and Schuster Pocket Book Of Chess by Raymond Keene. I picked this up on a whim some years ago in a Barnes & Noble store. Not a bad book for $8.00 or so - but I can't read it (or recommend it) because every chess move in the book is in that dreaded long-notation. Is it just me, or does anyone else find it impossible to "think" in long notation?
Labeling of Algebraic Chess Boards. Why do the majority of chess boards insist on using UPPER-CASE letters to label the file names - when it is universally accepted to write the file names using lower-case letters? You don't often see 1. E4 NF6 do you? That looks so odd I can hardly visualize it, whereas 1. e4 Nf6 is so much easier - probably because it is easier to pick out the piece names because they stand out. Are kids or beginners (learning from these chess boards) more likely to write down what they see - upper-case rather than lower-case letters for those file names? If so, please label those files with lower-case letters - thank you very much.
Why Can't One Purchase a Chess Board with Individually Labeled Algebraic Squares? I've looked long and hard for a chess board that labels EACH square with the correct algebraic coordinates (from both white and black's perspective). Of course, this would have to be done unobtrusively - perhaps with small print in each corner? This would greatly help the learning process - or even ensure better accuracy with more experienced players - especially when playing from the black side of the board. Does anyone know of such a board being available? I haven't found one!

Chess as Played in the Real World - No. 6

2007-09-18T17:17:00.000-04:00

It's a little discouraging to be 0-3 in the ICC tournament I'm playing in - but that's what happens when you completely ignore your opponent's threat. I'm still at the stage where I'm playing "hope chess" as Dan Heisman puts it - and until I get by that stage I will continue to have embarrassing losses like this.

Rook's Rudimentary Resources - Bobby Fischer Teaches Chess

2007-09-17T14:11:00.000-04:00

Bobby Fischer Teaches Chess has gotten a lot of criticism, from complaints that it was "ghost written" (i.e. Margulies and Mosenfelder wrote it while Bobby just lent his name) to condemnation that this book doesn't really teach you chess. I don't disagree - both these criticisms are well taken - and yet I still think it is ONE of the best books to read for the absolute chess novice.

Without an understanding of checkmate, most beginner's lose track of the ultimate object of the game and aimlessly move their pieces around or gleefully try to capture ever piece within range. Reading this book, after having learned how the pieces move, will help focus a new player on the real goal of the game - the ultimate checkmate of the opponent's king.

So let's be clear about this. If you are looking for a single book that "teaches chess" this is NOT it. This book does not even TOUCH on the subjects of algebraic notation or opening principles or simple endgame positions. If you already know a bit about chess and what checkmate is and how to do it, again, this book is NOT for you. However, if you have JUST learned how the pieces move, and you need to understand ultimate the object of the game - checkmate and how it is achieved - THIS IS the book for you.

The book really should be titled Bobby Fischer Teaches Checkmate. This would be an accurate title that would squelch the main (and truthful) criticism of the book - that it fails to teach you all you need to know to play chess. But it does do a great job of making sure you understand what checkmate is and how it is accomplished. You also learn some of the basic tactics - pins and forks and the like - that are put to use in the process of giving checkmate.

So learn how the pieces move first and then, with the aid of this excellent book, learn the goal of the game. Once you have done that, you can then proceed to learn more of the basics with a general purpose instructional book on chess. More on those books later...

Regal Games from the Realms of Yore - George Koltanowksi vs. Humphrey Bogart

2007-09-16T16:11:00.000-04:00

Today, in our Sunday series Regal Games from the Realms of Yore, we feature a game by Humphrey Bogart. Bogart was actually an accomplished chess player (you can read more about that in my previous blog entry Humphrey Bogart - Chess Expert). In this game, Bogey puts up a good effort against International Master George Koltanowski. The game is variously reported as being either a simultaneous exhibition or blindfold game.

Koltanowski is also an interesting chess player. He set the world's blindfold record on September 20, 1937, in Edinburgh, by playing 34 chess games simultaneously while blindfolded. His record still stands in the Guinness Book of Records.

Romp with Rook - Queen and Pawn Endgame Puzzle

2007-09-15T09:59:00.000-04:00

Here’s a chess puzzle that Women’s Grand Master Susan Polgar rates as a one-and-a-half stars out of four for difficulty. Even Rook should be able to solve that! I've created my own version of the puzzle using ChessVideoTV's free puzzle generator.

This puzzle is from an actual Grand Master game played just this past Thursday (09-13-07) between David Navara vs Jan Timman at the Czech Coal Carlsbad Tournament 2007.

White to move and win in 1 turn. I doubt I would have seen this move if it had been in my own game - but I did figure it out after about a minute of thinking it through. If you are an absolute beginner the hints I have added may be helpful.

To use the puzzle – once you have figured out the solution – make the winning move on the chess board (it appears you must use the 'Full Size' view to do this with this particular puzzle). If you are correct a message will appear showing how White wins. If you find it too difficult – you can get up to two hints by clicking the “Need a hint?” link near the top (hints are available only from the 'Full Size' view of the puzzle).

You can replay the complete game here thanks to the nice people at ChessGames.com.

Romp With Rook - Chess and the Great Flood

2007-09-15T09:54:00.000-04:00

How the game of Chess survived the great flood:

Chess Ark by Kosobukin Juri (USSR)

Fridays by the Fireside No. 4 - Odd, But True - A Challenging Mate-in-Six Problem

2007-09-14T13:25:00.000-04:00

In our fourth installment of Fridays by the Fireside we feature a very challenging "Mate-in-6" problem from the Irving Chernev and Fred Reinfeld book The Fireside Book of Chess.

Now, even if you find mate-in-one puzzles difficult - don't panic in despair - I feel very confident you can solve this "Mate-in-6" problem if you give it your best effort.

Chapter - The Magic of Chess
Section - Odd, But True
Item - 70
Page - 94

To use the puzzle, make each correct winning move for White on the chess board. If you pick the correct move for White Black will automatically respond. If you make all six of the correct moves in order Black will be checkmated. If you find the puzzle too difficult – you can get up to two hints by clicking the “Need a hint?” link near the top (from the 'Full Size' view of the puzzle).

Rook's Recommendations - Chess Tactics Server

2007-09-13T19:05:00.000-04:00

No one will argue that a mastery of chess tactics is essential to improving your game. So one of my goals is to set aside time each day to practice tactics (see Chess Improvement Plan - Part One: Goals).

There are many chess puzzle books and chess tactic computer programs you can buy, but before spending too much money on those, Rook recommends (as always) looking for the most bang for your buck - and better yet - not parting with those bucks at all. Which brings us to today's recommendation: The fabulous (and free!) Chess Tactics Server website.

By working through the problems you establish a rating to track your progress and with 23,803 (!) tactical chess problems to solve ranging from novice to Master level you're not going to run out of challenges any time soon. The site registration is free so don't hesitate to try it out. With great Internet chess resources like this, improving your game has never been so easy - or so cheap ;-)

Rave - WorldChessLinks.net

2007-09-12T15:16:00.000-04:00

I just came across a chess web site today and thought it was so good it required immediate mention:

WorldChessLinks.net - "Best collection of chess links and free chess online resources."

That tag line is no lie! This is a very clean and uncluttered site collecting together links to some of the best chess sites on the web. Links are superbly organized into the following categories:

Online Chess Where playing online chess is possible and what are the best graphic interfaces to connect free of charge or to payment to the best worldwide chess servers.

Chess Programs The best freeware programs and commercial ones to play chess, databases, graphic interfaces and chess engines, game viewers, utilities and much other.

Theory Selection of the best traceable sites in net which propose free of charge changing analyses of the openings and the single ones, of the middle and endgame.

Chess Games Database Our runable archive of matches drawn by the greater chess events worldwide, recent and past, consultable online or free of charge in pgn format.

Online Databases Online chess databases, national databases, game collections of many of the best players and tournaments.

Chess Archeology Historical analysis of the writers, players and chess schools of the last centuries.

Chess Links Collection, regularly up-to-date, of the best links for connecting to the leading and the most interesting chess sites of the web.

Chess Books A comprehensive review of chess books and magazines of the leading publishing houses that are specialized in this sector.

The Chess Books section is how I arrived at the site. It is incredible - it is organized by publisher, and then within each publisher books are listed according to subject matter and even by ECO opening classifications! If you are looking for a chess book on a particular topic I can think of no better place to begin.

And the chess goodness at this site doesn't end there - each section is meticulously organized by subject and thoroughly documented with summary comments. This site is SO GOOD I'd pay money for it! Wait - you can. Using PayPal you can make a contribution to the site (PayPal recipient: infotiscali@worldchesslinks.net). I think I'll do just that - you should too!

Rook gives this 5 out of 5 stars - you must check this site out! Why have I not heard about it before this?

Rant: Why Isn't There a Serious Contender to the Staunton Chess Set Design?

2007-09-12T10:34:00.001-04:00

Uniformity is a good thing I suppose, but it flies in the face of the old adage "Variety is the spice of life."

It seems to me a bit of a shame that we only have a single choice when it comes to a chess set design for serious play - the Staunton design. Why can't we have one or two other acceptable alternatives to the Staunton design? Of course, by "serious" I mean a design that would be agreeable for play to the majority of chess players - not some ridiculous "Simpson" or "Lord of the Rings" theme set.

So let me present some possible candidates (drawn from actual historical examples) for alternatives to the "officially" sanctioned and endorsed Staunton design.

The St. George Style:

The Northern Upright Style:

The English Barleycorn Style:

The French Regency Style:

And Two Different Calvert Styles (We call them "A" and "B")

And finally, maybe all we need is a "streamlined" Modern Staunton:

What do you think? Could you see yourself playing a serious (tournament?) game with any of these alternatives to the tried-and-true Staunton design? I could.

Chess as Played in the Real World - No. 5

2007-09-11T16:19:00.000-04:00

I'm feeling a bit depressed over this loss. Oh, well. I took my time and I tried hard. Hopefully I'm a little wiser. The game is from the second round in the ICC Monthly Tournament for September. I'm playing White.

Chess News - FIDE World Chess Championship 2007 Starts This Week

2007-09-10T17:12:00.000-04:00

Just a reminder - the FIDE World Chess Championship 2007 will be held in Mexico City, starting this Wednesday, September 12, 2007, as an eight-player, double round robin tournament. Visit the official site for more information. Live game replay from the official site is here.

Rook's Rudimentary Resources - Online Chess Databases

2007-09-10T15:15:00.000-04:00

"Chess is an aesthetic experience – the more you understand, the more you enjoy the beauty of this game."

One of the best ways to appreciate the "aesthetic experience" AND improve at chess is by studying the games of great players. Here are several FREE Internet chess database collections which will give you a wealth of great chess games to explore:

ChessGames.com. ChessGames.com is a web-based chess database and community. It contains over 400,000 searchable chess games and offers daily features, such as a "Game of the Day" and a "Puzzle of the Day", taken from games in the database. There is also a "Premium Membership" ($25 annually) which adds access to numerous features including a "Guess-the-Move" chess training tool and the Opening Explorer, Endgame Explorer, and Sacrifice Explorer.
ChessLab.com. A collection of "two million interactive chess games online (1485 - 2006)" which you can search and analyze online. Also included is a puzzle section which includes things like "find mate in 2" and "find the best move."
ChessBase Online. This is a high quality database of 2.4 million unannotated chess games that is kept updated with new and historic games on a weekly basis.
NICBase Online. Sponsored by New in Chess, this online database features "over 1.25 million chess games." Online consists of 4 major functions: Searching for a game, Classifying a game, Browsing through NIC-Key Tree, and Viewing a game.
MonRoi World Databank of Chess Free database of recent tournament games.

If you have a PGN file viewer or a chess database program for managing games (e.g. ChessBase or Chess Assitant) you can also download complete collections of chess games in a PGN file format to your PC. For more recent games, Convetka has a good collection here.

Regal Games from the Realms of Yore - Gioachino Greco vs. NN

2007-09-09T18:51:00.000-04:00

Today, in our Sunday series Regal Games from the Realms of Yore, we feature a game by Gioachino Greco (1600–c.1634) an Italian chess player and writer. Greco recorded some of the first chess games on record, 77 in total. His games, all against anonymous opponents ("NN" or No Name), were quite possibly constructs, but acted as highly useful tools for spotting opening traps.

Here's one of the earliest games on record (from the year 1619). A nice little game!

Romp With Rook - Big Game Hunting

2007-09-08T11:23:00.000-04:00

Fridays by the Fireside No. 3 - Odd, But True - Famous Chess Firsts

2007-09-07T21:48:00.000-04:00

This is the third installment of Fridays by the Fireside where I will feature an item of interest from the wonderful Irving Chernev and Fred Reinfeld book The Fireside Book of Chess. Below is the excerpt:

Chapter - The Magic of Chess
Section - Odd, But True
Item - 80-89
Page - 96-97

The first known historical document connected with chess is an inscription on a tablet in a pyramid at Gizeh, dating back to 3000 years before Christ!
The first chess problem, as far as can be ascertained, was composed by the Caliph Mutasim Billah during his reign in Baghdad from 834 to 843.
The first legal document in Europe dealing with chess was a testament of Armengo of Urgel in January 1010.
The first book dealing with chess was published in 1472, under the title Dass Goldin Spil, in the city of Augsburg.
The first International Chess tournament was played at Madrid in 1 575, at the court of Philip the Second.
The first newspaper column on chess appeared in the Liverpool Mercury, July 9, 1813.
The first match to be played by correspondence was begun in April 1824 between the London and Edinburgh Chess Clubs. The match lasted two years, and was won by the Scotsmen. They scored two wins, lost one, and drew two games.
The first chess magazine appeared in Paris in 1836. It was called La Palamède, and its editors were Labourdonnais and Méry.
The first chess match by telegraph was played in 1844, the year in which the telegraph was invented. The players represented the cities of Baltimore and Washington, D. C.
The first problem-composing tournament was held at London in 1854. It was confined to Englishmen, and was won by Walter Grimshaw.

Rook Recommends - Chessmaster 10

2007-09-06T13:56:00.001-04:00

NEWS FLASH! Two new versions of Chessmaster are on their way in October 2007 (the current version, Chessmaster 10, was released in 2004 - so we're long over due for an update). They are Chessmaster: Grandmaster Edition for Windows PC and Chessmaster: The Art of Learning for the Nintendo DS.

Some highlights of the new edition:

PC Version on DVD - presumably to facilitate the large chess instruction video files presented by Josh Waitzkin
Annotated Famous Games: Players have access to 900 of the most important chess games, which are analyzed to provide key tactics
An Additional Chess Game Database of 600,000 games
Chess Variants:

Dark Chess, in which the opponent’s pieces are invisible
Extinction Chess, where the winner is the first player to capture all of the opponent’s pieces
Losing Chess, a game that rewards the first player to lose all of his/her pieces!

6 "Mini Games"

Minefield, in which chess pieces are used to locate mines hidden in the board
Breaking the Lines, where the knight is moved to capture all of the pawns
Fork My Fruit, a game that uses chess pieces to fork fruit of the same kind

Wireless Play - The Nintendo DS version features wireless play with other DS owners

...Now back to Rook's Recommendations for Raising Ratings:

Today in our Thursday series, Rook takes a look at Chessmaster 10.

For only $20 (here at Amazon.com) it's hard not to recommend this program. There are plenty of other chess playing programs Fritz, Hiarcs, Junior, Shredder, but it would be a mistake to turn down one's nose at this consumer product - especially if you are novice.

Now, I'm not a fan of playing chess against the computer (see Why I Hate Playing Computer Chess!) so my reason for recommending Chessmaster is mostly for it's educational value. In particular you get the following useful tools:

Chessmaster Academy: Josh Waitzkin's Academy. This is the featured (and largest) tutorial.
Chessmaster Academy: Larry Christiansen Attacking Chess. Annotated games of "classic chess battles."
Chessmaster Academy: Chessmaster Series. Some of the many topics:

Beginning Strategy by Yasser Seirawan
Opening Moves by Bruce Pandolfini
Basic Themes by Bruce Pandolfini
Larry Evans Endgame Quiz
Diagnostic Rating Exam by Bruce Pandolfini
Match the Masters by Bruce Pandolfini
John Nunn's Favorite Puzzles

Opening Practice

Many of the introductory lesson are narrated. This is especially useful to new or younger players as they hear the correct pronunciations of terms like en passant, FIDE, Ruy Lopez, etc. I could have used that kind of help when I was a kid as I had no adult chess players to learn from.

Of course, you can play chess with this program too - both against the computer and online - although I would recommend other online chess playing sites like the ICC or FICS over what Chessmaster offers.

All-in-all, I think this is the best $20 a novice could spend on chess software.

NOTE: If you look at the average review rating at Amazon you might think this was only an average program with a 3-star rating. However, the reason for the low score is primarily due to the obnoxious copy-protection the original release had (weed out the reviews complaining about that and the program is more like a 4 or 5 star rating) Fortunately, Ubisoft has redeemed themselves by removing the copy-protection when you install the latest patch for the game.

Rant: Don't Make Excuses for Not Playing Chess

2007-09-05T12:17:00.000-04:00

It constantly amazes me how many people that enjoy chess find excuses not to play it:

"I don't like losing." No one does. Use it as an opportunity to learn from your mistakes. Dan Heisman wisely observes in Everyone’s 2nd Chess Book "You'll more likely learn from losing [than winning] as long as you identify the cause of the loss and make a positive correction for the future." And keep things in perspective - the important thing about winning and losing was best stated by Vince Lombardi: "Winning is not everything, but wanting to win is."
"I don't know the chess openings well enough (or the middle game, or the endgame, whatever)". Nobody does - except maybe Deep Fritz ;-) I think a lot of the fun in chess is discovering what you don't know for yourself - when your opponent either does something clever or punishes you for doing something stupid. Yeah, sure you could learn all the traps and tricks from books, videos, and chess software - but it is much more fun to learn them the hard way across the board from a fellow player.
"My rating might go down." So what? Chess is supposed to be a recreation - an enjoyable recreation - if it isn't why play at all? Don't spoil the game by obsessing over a largely meaningless number. Your rating is simply a tool, which it seems to me has two purposes 1) as a tool to help in pairing up players of similar strength 2) and, possible, as measurement for tracking one's chess progress.

So, get out there and play - no more excuses! Enjoy the world's greatest game! This is supposed to be fun, right?

Chess as Played in the Real World - No. 4

2007-09-04T18:06:00.000-04:00

For once I can actually post a game I don't need to feel embarrassed about. I'm actually pretty proud of this game - even if I did lose what I believe to be a won game (by making a mistake on move 45). The game is from the first round in the ICC Monthly Tournament for September. I'm playing Black. My opponent is rated a couple hundred points higher than me.

Rook's Rudimentary Resources - Chess Score Sheets

2007-09-03T16:41:00.000-04:00

In the 2nd installment of our series, Rook's Rudimentary Resources, we look at score sheets. Yes, the humble chess score sheet.

Earlier I mentioned (Advice for the Chess Novice - Improve Your Game for Free! ) that in order to improve your chess it is essential to record all your games. If you're playing at your computer or over the Internet it's likely your moves are already being recorded - if not make sure you turn on that feature. When playing Internet chess at the ICC for example, you can configure both the Blitzin and the Dasher software to log all your games to a PGN file or even have them e-mailed to you after each game.

But if you really want form a good habit, and improve your chess at the same time, try recording your games using paper-and-pencil even though you are at the computer. There are several good reason for this because it will help you:

Learn notation better (or faster if a beginner)
Re-enforce good habits for over-the-board (OTB) play
Force you to play just a little bit slower (which is a good thing)
Allow you to remember and learn from your game better.
Studies show the more of your senses you involve in an activity the better you learn - there's a whole book written about this which you can read about in my blog entry entitled Keep Your Brain Alive

As for actual over-the-board play, with all the technology today, you'd think there'd be alternative methods developed for recording our moves -- and you'd be right. The problem is, unless you've recently won the lottery, you're not going to be able to afford the MonRoi Personal Chess Manager at $360, or even more extravagantly, never worry about recording a game ever again with the $700 DGT Projects - DGT Electronic Chessboard. BTW, Santa, if you ever win the lottery and you are feeling generous, Rook will gladly take one of these for playing his games on the ICC ;-)

In the meantime, you'll need to record your games the old-fashioned way - using paper and pencil. You can purchase bound score sheet pads (Google "Chess Supplies" or "Chess Tournament Supplies") or find plenty of free ones for downloading (Google "Chess Score Sheets"). If you have trouble finding one, here's a simple paper-saving one from ChessAssistance.com you can download as a PDF format and print out (requires the free Adobe Acrobat Reader required).

There was a time when you could buy chess score notebooks with refillable pages. These were great - you could rearrange the pages or insert dividers to help organize your games. Sadly I'm not aware of anyone making them anymore.

I've saved the best option for last - and the one I think offers the best benefit all-around: individual 5" x 8" carbonless copies score sheets. You can find them at The United States Chess Federation store at a reasonable price of $11.95 for 200 sheets.

OK, these are used for tournaments, why would I use them to record my own personal games? Here, I think, are two very compelling reasons.

First, since they are individual pages you can rearrange them anyway you like. Buy yourself a 5' x 8" three-ringer binder and a hole-punch and your set to go.

It's the second reason, though, that makes it really compelling - the carbonless copy. The second copy can be very valuable - not necessarily to you but to your opponent. Here's why:

If you are playing somebody who is into chess (like you) they are probably recording there games too. However, since we all seem to be prone to making score sheet mistakes it's great if you can compare your score sheet with that of your opponent. That's where that carbonless copy comes in - just hand it to them and they are set.
If you are playing someone new to chess, chances are they are not recording the moves of their game. Chances are too that you are also trying to sell them on the fun and benefits of chess. So when the game is over you hand them the carbonless copy. Of course, it might look like Greek to them, but you've given them something that just might spark an interest in chess. Sure they might throw it away, they might hang on to for awhile and then throw it away, or they might actually keep it, and maybe someday, be curious enough about the game of chess and that mysterious piece of paper you gave them to actually learn the game and to eventually decipher that mysterious score sheet. If they do ever do that and take up chess that score sheet might even be something they treasure.

Regal Games from the Realms of Yore: Morphy vs Duke Karl and Count Isouard 1858

2007-09-02T18:24:00.000-04:00

Today, in our Sunday series Regal Games from the Realms of Yore, we feature the first (and so far only the second) game of Paul Morphy that I am familiar with - primarily because it was featured in one of my first chess books (see Rave - The World of Chess).

I'm sure I can't add much to what has been said about this game, but for the novice it's an excellent introduction to Morphy's games - because as Saidy and Lessing said, in The World of Chess, it is a "miniature jewel." I whole-heartedly agree.

One nice thing about being a chess novice (just getting back into chess after 25 years) is I still have ahead of me the whole collection of Morphy's brilliant games to explore and enjoy.

Romp with Rook - A Funny Chess Cartoon

2007-09-01T17:07:00.000-04:00

Here's one of my favorite chess cartoons - especially appropriate for Rook Van Winkle :-)

Romp with Rook - Chess Bumper Stickers, Chess T-Shirts, And Chess Mugs

2007-09-01T15:23:00.000-04:00

Do you know of a good chess bumper sticker, T-Shirt, or mug? Or do you have a good slogan for one?

My personal favorite bumper sticker was this one offered by the USCF back in the 1980's:

(Click on the above picture to view full-size)

It's those little fists that I like. :-)

ChessUSA has three chess bumper stickers for sale, including the familiar "Chess Nut" one:

Cafe Press have a wide selection of chess-related T-shirts, mugs, and other things. A sample:

It's always better to sacrifice your opponent's men. - GrandMaster S. Tartakower

For even more visit there Chessopolis Shop.

Finally, there are many crude (and sometimes rude) attempts to use the word "mate" in a bumper sticker slogan, but here's one that is really rather nice:

Romance is like a game of chess: one false move and you're mated

Next Saturday we'll be back with another installment in the series Romp with Rook. Until then, have fun with chess!

Fridays by the Fireside No. 2 - Odd, But True - Alekhine vs. Four Allies

2007-08-31T20:23:00.000-04:00

This is the second installment of Fridays by the Fireside where I will feature an item of interest from the wonderful Irving Chernev and Fred Reinfeld book The Fireside Book of Chess. Below is the excerpt:

Chapter - The Magic of Chess
Section - Odd, But True
Item - 6
Page - 70

Many a miniature game owes its existence to an early mistake made by one of the players. But when four allies discuss their ideas with each other, and then get mated on the sixth move, that is unique.

Advice for the Chess Novice - Improve Your Game for Free!

2007-08-30T12:18:00.000-04:00

In today's Thursday series, Rook's Recommendations for Raising Ratings, I'm going to suggest you save some cash (at least for now) by taking some free advice rather than spending your money on all the enticing chess books, videos, software, and paid services (like hiring a chess coach or enrolling in an on-line tutorial subscription service) out there.

So here are three things you can do to improve your game that won't cost a penny:

1. Play Chess! My first recommendation is the most obvious -but surprisingly often overlooked. Play chess. Play more chess. Play everyday. Like a musician learning to play an instrument, without regular practice you are not going to be very good. Fortunately we live in the age of the Internet, so finding an opponent to play (for free) is a piece of cake. Read Starting out with Online Chess Play to get started. And don't forget the Internet is not the only place to play - there are other excellent options: Where to Play Chess : Introduction. And don't make excuses for not playing chess.

2. Record All Your Games Assuming you have learned chess notation, you should be recording all your games. It's important to learn from your mistakes - you need to be able analyze your games in order to determine what you did right or what you did wrong. The other great reason to record all your games is that you'll be able to revisit them years later so you can appreciate just how much you have improved or to wistfully reflect on that win over your opponent who was rated 300 points higher than you.

3. Use the free chess resources on the web. There is a mind-boggling amount of chess improvement stuff on the Internet, which you can easily find using a Google search. Finding chess resources is not the problem- picking a few select sites to begin with is (Rook Van Winkle's Chess Blog being a given, of course). Start with these three chess sites and explore them thoroughly before going further afield looking for all the other wonderful and useful chess improvement sites out there:

Mark Week's About Chess. If you are totally new to chess begin with the "Essentials" section (top left) or better yet, click here to start directly at the beginner's page. Next step, proceed to the Improve Your Game Section.
Novice Nook. After you have a little experience under your belt it's time to head off to Dan Heisman's "Novice Nook" site. Again, there is the ever present danger of being overwhelmed with too much of a good thing. Fortunately Dan addresses this problem with his First NNs to Read - a list, in chronological order, of the first 12 Novice Nook columns to read.
ChessVideos.TV. Register at this site and get some free video training, starting with the Beginner's section. There's no easier way to learn than watching.

Rave - The World of Chess

2007-08-29T07:13:00.001-04:00

Rave - The World of Chess by Anthony Saidy and Norman Lessing. 274 pages. Ridge Press/Random House. 1974. $17.95 (in 1974 dollars).

Before there was David Shenk's the The Immortal Game there was Saidy and Lessing's The World of Chess. Time Magazine reviewed the book back in 1975, when "Fischer fever" was on the rise concerning a possible Fischer-Karpov match in the Philippines for a purse of 5 million dollars:

The World of Chess, by International Master Anthony Saidy and Senior Master Norman Lessing, is the handsomest and most informative chess picture book ever produced. Its illustrations include Persian paintings, medieval manuscripts,18th century court scenes, 20th centmy abstractions, a few sly cartoons and some arresting photographs of the strange cold men who become grand masters.

In the text, Saidy has provided some moving excerpts from his diary of a fumbled tournament that cost him a grand master's rating. Lessing has wittily recalled a misspent youth in one of Manhattan's less salubrious chess and coffeehouses. The authors have also taken care to make the historical sections pert and amusing. "Can you forgive me this indiscretion?" Benjamin Franklin writes to a wealthy Frenchwoman. "Never hereafter shall I consent to begin a game [of chess] in your bathroom."

You gotta love that Ben Franklin character :-)

This book complimented very well another favorite of mine - The Fireside Book of Chess by Irving Chernev and Fred Reinfeld. Unlike the Fireside Book, this book was up-to-date at the time and contained dozens of great black and white and color pictures. It was more than just a "coffee table" picture book, however, as it was filled with interesting chess facts and stories, fascinating anecdotes, several dozen classic chess games, and some very insightful thoughts about the game from two chess masters who were intimately familiar with the topic the were writing about.

I don't imagine this will ever be republished, but it must be added to the list of Chess Books That Should Be Reprinted.

Look for the next installment of the series Rook's Rambling Rants & Raves each Wednesday.

Chess as Played in the Real World - No. 3

2007-08-28T09:41:00.000-04:00

In our last installment I featured a short "skittles" game I played with my wife in which she was checkmated in 8 moves (Chess as Played in the Real World - No. 2). We played four games that day, and it is only fair to include the last game we played - which she won! If you're a novice player, I'm sure you will relate to a game like the one below - where "defeat is snatched from the jaws of victory." Play through the game - and then see the advice at the bottom:

Some comments:

I'm pretty sure 6. Bxf7+ is unsound, but I'm playing my opponent and not the board (bad!) and I figure it will be interesting to see what this accomplishes - if anything (bad again!) - I need to take the time to think through all the ramifications.
15. Re6. Wanting to pressure the defending rook (or exchange it away), I foolishly miss the fact that the c8 Bishop is attacking the e6 square too! Argh!
17. Bf5. Not even looking at the danger the rook poses. Well, I deserve what I got.

There are several lesson to be learned from this game - each of which Dan Heisman addresses in his remarkable book “Everyone’s 2nd Chess Book”:

Think and take your time! Dan Heisman calls this "Guideline Zero" because "all other guidelines are useless if you don't follow this one!" So true.
"Think with your head, not with your hands."
Before each move make sure ALL your pieces are safe (including the king!) Duh!

What's really embarrassing is, that although I have learned these rules, I stupidly insist on "flunking out" and repeating the lesson ad infinitum. You'd think someone of my age would play a little bit better than an 8-year old and learn from experience :-)

Note: Dan Heisman is the host of the ICC’s radio show “Ask the Renaissance Man”, writes the “Novice Nook” column at ChessCafe.com, and is a Full-Time chess Instructor, and is the author of 8 chess books. If you are a novice player, visit some of the links above. You really should take advantage of Dan Heisman's expert advice aimed directly at the chess novice.

Look for the next installment of the series Chess as Played in the Real World each Tuesday.

Rook's Rudimentary Resources - ChessVideos.tv

2007-08-27T14:30:00.000-04:00

Josh Specht called my attention to his excellent ChessVideos.TV site back in February of this year (at that time it was called ChessVideos.com). What is ChessVideos.TV, you ask? Josh explains:

ChessVideos.TV is a community driven site where anybody can record and upload and videos of themselves playing chess or analyzing games. Of course, our resident chess expert, Josh Specht is always there to provide his expert analysis whether in the forum or through his videos.

Did I mention everything on the site is FREE! All you need to do is register for access to the discussion forums and from there you can view the entire collection of videos - which are organized into the following categories:

Beginner's Videos

Int/Advanced Videos

Game Analysis Videos

Endgame Lesson Videos

Chess Puzzle Videos

In the realms of education (I'm a former teacher) we had the saying "Tell me I forget, show me I remember, involve me I understand." Well, the "show me" part is definitely here, but what's even better is the "involve me" part is also present thanks to this neat little twist:

Our secret is to embed the videos directly in the forum, so you can conveniently view and discuss the videos at the same time!

There is a lot of interesting stuff here. Of course, the quality of the material varies quite a bit (both the presentation and the information) but this is to be expected given the "community' nature of the site. Even so, you are bound to find some items that will not only entertain you, but educate you at the same time. With the recently added live "chat room" and the ability to search for a particular video the site keeps getting better.

In addition to the videos, you'll also find a "puzzle of the day" and a set of very useful chess blogging tools:

Puzzle of the Day - An interactive chess puzzle (you can make the moves right on the board). Currently, there are over 100 "Past Puzzles of the Day" you can also try.

Diagram Generator - Simply set up the pieces on the board (or generate them from FEN) to create a Chess Diagram which you can add to your blog (the resulting chess diagram is hosted on the ChessVideos.tv server and you then link to it).

Game Replayer - Paste your PGN chess game into the text box and your are given a link to play back your game using their replayer, or you can post the game in their forums, or you can grab some code to display the game on your blog or website (Like the diagrams, the games are hosted on their servers permanently - the won't be deleted unless you ask.)

Puzzle Creator - Uses a wizard to set up and generate a chess puzzle - complete with hints. You can replay the puzzle from their link or grab the code to use in your blog or website.

Qoute of the Day - "Every day we will pick a new chess quote, which you can insert right into your web page or blog. Inserting it is simple and every day it will update automatically with a fresh quote!" Cool - I'm using it now - look in the upper left of this blog page.

Overall, because of the usefullness of this site and that fact that it is free, I would rate ChessVideos.TV a definite 4-out-of-4 stars!

Look for the next installment of the series Rook's Rudimentary Resources each Monday.

Regal Games from the Realms of Yore: La Bourdonnais vs McDonnell 1834

2007-08-26T19:22:00.000-04:00

Today, in our Sunday series Regal Games from the Realms of Yore, we feature the famous fiftieth game of the McDonnell-La Bourdonnais Championship Match of 1834. Wikipedia says of the match:

It was the first match of any importance in the history of chess and is still referred to today as the World Championship of 1834. The games were published widely, and were annotated and discussed by enthusiasts all over Europe. In the course of the mammoth encounter, both players introduced several innovations, a few of which are still seen today. It might even be said that the modern era of chess began with the McDonnell-La Bourdonnais match of 1834.

Like the first game in the Regal Game series (Celebrated Chess Games from History - Stefan Levitsky vs Frank James Marshall 1912), this is one of the earliest "classic" games I remember playing through. The game was included in the Random House book The World of Chess by Anthony Saidy and Norman Lessing, which is where I came across it in 1974.

Like Chernev and Reinfeld did earlier, Saidy and Lessing hooked me into playing over this game with an intriguing statement:

McDonnell sacrifices his queen on the 13th move, a sacrifice that only leads to fruition twenty -three moves later.

White resigns - he is helpless against the threat of ...Ng2 check followed by ...Rh3 mate.

The authors conclude:

Beyond inserting a number of exclamation points it is useless to try and analyze the wildly uninhibited game. Howard Stauntion, the famous English player, made the attempt some years later, only to give up with the historic remark: "It seems uttertly impossible for either player to save the game!"

Romp With Rook - Chess: A Poem

2007-08-25T21:34:00.000-04:00

Written by a member of the Cambridge University Chess Club:

Chess: A Poem

Anonymous

THE WRETCHED captive in the dungeon laid,
His body wasted and his mind decay'd,
Unwept, unfriended, comfortless, alone,
With nought but horror now to call his own,
Pines o'er his limbs with ruthless bonds confin'd,
But most deplores th' enthralment of his mind.
Yet yield him here the luxury of Chess,
To soothe his sorrows and abate distress.
And lo! once more dear Freedom's breath he draws,
Tho' clasp'd his chains, and barr'd his prison doors
His soul unshackled and his fancy free
He broods no more on his captivity.

—1858

Romp with Rook - Horsing Around

2007-08-25T15:39:00.000-04:00

For our first installment in Rook's new series Romp with Rook, Rook does a little horsing around - sharing this amusing little cartoon "Chess Centaur" by Estis Oleg (SSSR):

Fridays by the Fireside No. 1 - Odd, But True - Weiss vs. Schwartz

2007-08-24T18:21:00.000-04:00

This is the first installment of Fridays by the Fireside where I will feature an item of interest from the wonderful Irving Chernev and Fred Reinfeld book The Fireside Book of Chess. Below is the excerpt:

Chapter - The Magic of Chess
Section - Odd, But True
Item - 121
Page - 107

A chess game where White and Black play perfectly theoretically should end in a draw. Theory should be strengthened when the players themselves are named White and Black! In the Nuremberg tournament of 1883, Weiss (which means White) met Schwartz (which means Black) in the fifth round. This is what happened:

After 27... Bxd4 the game was called a draw. Appropriately enough, the positions of 'White and Black (or Weiss and Schwartz) are completely identical!

Chess Blogging in Search of Improvement

2007-08-23T11:22:00.000-04:00

Today's entry in my weekly series, Rook's Recommendations for Raising Ratings, concerns using one of the best resources on the web for improving your game - personal chess improvement blogs.

When I decided to get back into chess last year, naturally I searched the Internet to find advice on how to improve my game. Lucky for me I came across this:

The Chess Of Edwin ‘dutchdefence’ Meyer
Checks, captures, threats, combinations… Weblog of an amateur chess player determined to improve.

Part of the appeal Edwin Meyer's website was that he, like me, was taking on the task of improving his game later in his life - having first learned to play chess between the age of 29 and 30.

I read several of his blog entries. They were really interesting and very helpful - so helpful in fact that I went back to his very first entry (and to his original blog And Then There Was Chess) and read everything from the beginning!

There was (and is) a tremendous amount of useful information at both his blogs. I can give it no higher recommendation than to say it served as an inspiration for my own.

Since then I have come across several other excellent personal improvement chess blogs. Here are some other great ones:

Begin Chess - A beginner's journey into the complex world of chess... A superbly designed and organized web site - everything is categorized so it is easy to explore a topic of interest. Like Edwin Meyer's blog, this was one of the first to catch my eye - since the writer of it is on a journey very similar to that of yours truly, Rook Van Winkle. If you too have decided it's time to give chess a try I think you'll find a lot of interesting reading here and lots links to good information.

Confessions of a Chess Novice - Chess is too serious to enjoy, and too frivolous to take seriously. Eric Thomson is a member of the Knights Errant, a group of chess enthusiasts blogging about their quest to improve at the game. He started playing chess in 2005 and says "After six weeks of playing chess, I entered a tournament in Raleigh, North Carolina and lost 3/4 games, ending up with a provisional rating of 900. That puts me in the F class, which is the bottom 10% of all rated chess players." Form there Eric chronicles his chess improvement with an astounding amount of thoughtful and very useful chess improvement material that could keep you occupied for weeks!

Steve Learns Chess - Never enough time, but trying to improve my chess game anyway! Steve Eddins says "I’m a borderline class C / D player with a USCF rating fluctuating around 1400. I’m an adult player who’s trying to study and improve my game in between devoting time to my family and my job." That sounds familiar to must of us! This is a good blog to visit once your chess improvement plan is under way to see what life is like in the trenches.

SquirrelChess.com - A journey into the world of chess. Squirrel says "This website is about learning to play chess, random things I discover on the long way to chess mastery, and the game of chess itself." Another must see site with all kinds of content: articles, reviews, annotated games, a chess glossary, and more.

Chess Tales - Chess, chess players and tournaments worldwide, online and in the media. Roger, by his own admission is "probably quite a good player" and there is a lot of interesting material on his site. In particular, for advice on improving your chess, start with his Chess Improvement Tips

Finally, although not a personal chess blog, I want to end this post with an absolutely essential resource for the chess novice:
Dan Heisman's Chess Page. Dan is a National Master, full-time chess instructor, hosts a regular chess broadcast as "Phillytutor" on the Internet Chess Club and (best of all) is the award-winning Novice Nook columnist over at the Chess Cafe. Whew! I've mentioned Dan before in my blog (here and here) and I cannot recommend highly enough the fabulous advice he has for the chess beginner and novice.

I'll end with this bit of advice: "When in the same boat we should all pull together." :-) Thanks to the great chess improvement blogs out there, we are "pulling together"!

The One Chess Compuer I (Almost) Liked

2007-08-22T23:26:00.000-04:00

The Fidelity Chess Challenger Sensory 9 from 1982

Rave - The One Chess Computer I (Almost) Liked

We'll need to take a trip in the "Way Back Machine" for this one - all the way back to 1982. Presenting the Fidelity Chess Challenger Sensory 9! My first (and best) computer chess experience.

My brother, a year or two before, had purchased the Chess Challenger 8 so he would have something to entertain himself at school. Strange to say, my brother really never played chess much - but he thought this would be a cool way to kill some time.

The Chess Challenger 8 was sort of cool - but it had some definite faults - the worse being it couldn't play chess - at least not very well, about the level of a 900-1000 player and its opening book consisted of a measly 80(!) positions. The other thing I didn't like about it was you had to trace the LED coordinates along two sides of the board to find the piece to be moved - then you pressed an enter key as I seem to remember - and you then repeated the process to find the destination square. Time consuming and awkward.

Enter the Sensory Chess Challenger 9 to the rescue! For 1982 it was an incredible technological achievement. It was a fantastic chess computer. It played very strongly - as far as I was concerned - about a 1600 rating with an opening book of 3,000 positions. It was also very convenient. The board had a "sensory" feature - to register a move you simply had to push down a piece on its square! Better yet, since each square had its own individual LED you simply repeated the press-and-move feature from one LED to the next to register the computer's move. Fantastic.

The only problem was I couldn't beat it past about level 3 or so. OK, maybe that was my problem and not its. :-)

Anyway, to this day it was the only computer chess playing experience I (almost) enjoyed.

Here's is an summary of the Chess Challenger 9 details:

Manufacturer: Fidelity Electronics
Dates from: 1982
Processor: 6502B 1.6MHz
Memory: 16 KB ROM
Programmers: Dan & Kathe Spracklen
Rating: Occasional Players / Weak Club Players (Elo 1570)
Other details: pressure-sensitive board with LEDs on all squares
Expandability; A cartridge slot for additional opening book modules - the CB9 with an additional 8160 positions and the CB16 with an additional 16,100 positions

I never did get either of the opening book expansion modules :-(

Look for the next installment of the series Rook's Rambling Rants & Raves each Wednesday.

Why I Hate Playing Computer Chess!

2007-08-22T21:45:00.000-04:00

Today Even Grand Masters Hate Chess Computers!

Rant - Why I Hate Playing Computer Chess!

I have never enjoyed playing chess against a chess computer. I just don't find it much fun.

I think, for me, part of it is the need for competition - the desire to beat your opponent (at the end of this post you'll see some quotes from famous player's that echo this sentiment). I think the whole element of a "battle of the minds" seems rather pointless when your opponent is a machine.

The other big problem I have with computer chess, is computers just can't play like a real human being would. Human players can exhibit artistry, cleverness, craft, and cunning and just as easily display awkwardness, incompetence, inefficiency, and just plain ineptitude. We humans share one infallibility however - we will make mistakes. Computers can't mimic those "human" attributes in a believable way - especially the "making mistakes" part of the equation. I'm not sure they ever will.

Of course, perhaps the real root of the problem is I just can't beat the damn things. ;-)

- Rook Van Winkle

Famous chess players on the element of competition in chess:

"I like to make them squirm." - Bobby Fischer
“It’s just you and your opponent at the board and you're trying to prove something”(Bobby Fischer)
“Chess is like war on a board”(Bobby Fischer)
“I like the moment when I break a man's ego”(Bobby Fischer)
Chess is ruthless: you've got to be prepared to kill people. - Nigel Short
You cannot play at chess if you are kind-hearted. - French Proverb
Chess is a sport. A violent sport." - Marcel Duchamp
“Life is a kind of Chess, with struggle, competition, good and ill events”(Benjamin Franklin)

Look for the next installment of the series Rook's Rambling Rants & Raves each Wednesday.

New! Daily Chess Blog Entries (Planned)

2007-08-22T20:48:00.000-04:00

Starting today, Rook is planning daily blog entries! The operative word here is planning :-) My ongoing health issues have a tendency to side track my best intentions. But, hey, we'll see how long a streak I can make this!

As part of this plan, I am assigning each day of the week a special topic:

Monday will feature Rook's Rudimentary Resources, recommended books, videos and DVD's, Internet sites, chess software, and anything else I can think of that will either improve your game or enhance your enjoyment of the game...

Tuesday's topic is Chess as Played in the Real World - to be more precise, as played in Rook Van Winkle's world. Each entry will feature an interesting (I hope) annotated game played by Rook Van Winkle

Wednesday is Rook's Rambling Rants and Raves, a chance for me to sound off on a variety of chess topics.

Thursday I will present Rook's Recommendations for Raising Ratings in which I will offer tips and suggestions, based on my own experience and those of the experts, for improving your game. I will also give a weekly status report as to how I am doing in meeting - or not meeting - my goals .

Friday is Fridays by the Fireside where I plan to feature a few select items of interest from the wonderful Irving Chernev and Fred Reinfeld book The Fireside Book of Chess.

Saturday is Romp with Rook (chess for fun). Entries on this day will feature items as diverse as chess problems and puzzles, chess variants, chess poems and stories, chess art, jokes, etc.

Sunday Rook presents Regal Games from the Realms of Yore in which I will feature a celebrated chess game of the past.

I hope will will find these daily entries enjoyable, entertaining, and educational.

Chess as Played in the Real World - No. 2

2007-08-21T10:42:00.001-04:00

I've been encouraging my wife to take up the game of chess, and ocassionally I can get her to play a game or two with me. Below is an amusing little game we played in June. I know I should go gentle on her but the killer instinct is too strong :-) To see the first entry in this series go here.

[Event "Skittles Game"]
[Site "Home"]
[Date "2007.06.21"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Judy"]
[Black "RookVanWinkle"]
[Result "0-1"]
[Opening "Tennison (Lemberg, Zukertort) gambit"]
[ECO "B01"]
[NIC "VO.17"]

1. e4 d5 2. Nf3 dxe4 3. Nh4 e5 4. d3 Qxh4 5. dxe4 Bc5 6. Qd5 Qxf2+ 7. Kd1Bg4+ 8. Be2 Qxe2#

Chess Books That Should Be Reprinted

2007-08-20T21:21:00.000-04:00

Speaking of The Fireside Book of Chess, here is a fantastic list of "Chess Books That Should Be Reprinted" compiled and commented on by by C. Dunn over at Amazon.com. I have heard a lot about some of these titles - it is a shame that they are no longer being published. Are there other books we should add to this list?

Winning Chess by Irving Chernev. "The best chess book ever! Teaches tactical combinations in the most effective way."

My 60 Memorable Games by Bobby Fischer. "One of the best game collections ever. Fischer's annotations are instructive for all levels of players. There was controversy over the reprint, but both editions are hard to obtain cheaply."

Essential Chess Endings: The Tournament Player's Guide by James Howell. "If not this book try Silman's Essential Chess Endings Explained Move by Move, or Griffiths' Endings in Modern Theory and Practice."

Impact of Genius: Five Hundred Years of Grandmaster Chess by Richard E. Fauber. "Reprinted recently, but hard-to-find now. This has far more 19th century games than The Development of Chess Style by Euwe and Nunn, and even includes games of the early 19th century French master Labourdonais! Interesting perspective on players' styles."

March of Chess Ideas: How the Century's, The: Greatest Players Have Waged the War Over Chess Strategy (Chess) by Anthony Saidy. "Wonderful book. A very fun read. Interesting. And in Algebraic Notation. A good companion to Fauber, as the overlap is minimal. Chapters on Bronstein and Tal, and emphasis on later players."

Morphy Chess Masterpieces by Fred Reinfeld. "Alternatives include David Lawson's Morphy, The Pride and Sorrow of Chess or Shibut's Paul Morphy and the Evolution of Chess Theory. Sargeant's collection of Morphy games is not well-annotated."

The Fireside Book of Chess by Irving Chernev. "Another gem by Chernev (with Reinfeld, who was a less consistent author). Fun stories to read at the fireside. Also, see Reinfeld's Human Side of Chess (aka Great Chess Masters and Their Best Games)."

Mammoth Book of the World's Greatest Chess Games: Improve Your Chess by Studying the Greatest Games of All time, from Adolf Anderssen's 'Immortal' Game to Kramnik Versus Kasparov 2000 by Graham Burgess. "Great book. Intermediate to advanced annotations. Wonderful selection of games. Interesting commentary ahead of each one. Instructive game summaries. And cheap!"

What's the Best Move?: The Classic Chess Quiz Book that Teaches You Openings with No Memorizing of Moves (Fireside Chess Library) by Larry Evans. "A useful way for intermediate players to learn openings. Instead of memorizing move sequences, use this book to train yourself to see (and avoid) subtle tactics,and to improve your position gradually."

Winning Chess Traps (Chess) by Irving Chernev. "A top ten chess book, wonderful for improving players under 1500. Maybe it will be converted to algebraic notation? Hardly matters for such short games."

Invitation to Chess by Irving Chernev. "A classic for novices, but I guess the birds-eye chessboard photos would have to be re-shot."

Masters of the Chessboard by Richard Reti. "436 pages; a bargain when it was in print. There are other books like this (Euwe, Fine, Fauber...) but many players enjoy Reti's annotations."

Russian Chess (Fireside Chess Library) by Bruce Pandolfini. "Pandolfini's 2nd best (after his best-selling endgame book), this is a perfect follow-up to Chernev's Logical Chess, being similar but slightly more advanced. Very entertaining!"

Smyslov's 125 Selected Games by Vasily V. Smyslov. "Not only the best Smyslov collection, but a wonderfully well annotated one. Hopefully, Everyman will put out a new edition."

The Test of Time (Russian Chess) by Garry Kasparov. "Great games. Great annotations. For very advanced players."

Point Count Chess by I. A. Horowitz. "I'm told that this book has some great instruction on assessing the merits of a position. A great early-intermediate book."

Larsen's Selected Games of Chess, 1948-69; by Bent Larsen. "An under-rated collection of Larsen, by Larsen."

Grandmaster Meets Chess Amateur (Batsford Chess Library) by Steve Davis. "Short, but instructive and very amusing. Master vs. Amateur games are the best way to learn, and humor never hurts. The level of advice here is similar to Sadler's Tips for Young Players."

Mastering the King's Indian Defense (A Batsford Chess Book) by Robert Bellin. "For club players, few books on openings are worth the paper they're printed on. This one is superlative, like the others (with Ponzetto) on the Spanish and the Benoni/Benko."

Chess Openings: Theory And Practice by I. A. Horowitz. "Best openings manual for the intermediate player ever. Not just key variations, but also plans, traps, ideal set-ups, typical board positions, and sample games. Plenty of verbiage."

The Middlegame in Chess by Reuben Fine. "This IS the reprint, but there are so many typos that it needs to be reprinted again."

The Art of Positional Play (Chess) by Samuel Reshevsky. "Ditto. Fire Burt Hochberg and fix the damn typos!"

The Genesis of Power Chess: Effective Winning Technique for Strategy and Tactics by Leslie Ault. "This would be the next level past Pandolfini. The right way to teach positional ideas to advanced beginners."

Road to Chess Mastery by Max Euwe. "Excellent followup to Chess Master vs. Chess Amateur. This book has the master playing against Class B up to Expert, with every move explained in detail. Also, ideas in the openings."

Chess Secrets I Have Learned from the Masters by Edward Lasker. "A delightful book, full of anecdotes, biography, autobiography, chess tips, and of course games. Ed Lasker had contact with dozens of masters through the decades of his career. And he loves chess."

Favorite Chess Books - The Fireside Book of Chess

2007-08-20T20:52:00.000-04:00

The Fireside Book of Chess by Irving Chernev and Fred Reinfeld is perhaps my favorite chess book of all time. I'm sure part of the reason for that is nostalgia - it was the second chess book I purchased - my first being The Complete Chess Course by Fred Reinfeld (see my post on that book here). Although originally published by Simon and Schuster in 1949, fortunately for me this book was reprinted in 1971 and that is about the time I got it.

I still have that book - its pages have begun to yellow and some of the pages are loose - but that's just a result of me being so fond of it. I spent a good part of this past weekend reliving happy memories reading some of the stories in the book and in playing over some of the wonderful games included in this volume.

Sadly this book is out of print - but trust me - it is worth searching around for a used copy of it.

If you are not familiar with this book, FrKurtMessick gives an excellent overview of it:

This is a chess book of a different sort - it is not a how-to manual for beginners, nor is it a strategy and tactics book for the more advanced player. This is just what Fireside books are meant to be - collections of memories, anecdotes, puzzles, lists and other trivia (and not so trivial) bits about chess. This is of interest to those who have a deep abiding passion for chess, as well as for those who only dabble in it occasionally. Both editors have written other books on chess; both Irving Chernev and Fred Reinfeld have written some of the better books on learning chess separately, and together they also collaborated on a book showing strategy and skills development toward winning at chess.

This book is divided into three main sections. The first section contains stories and articles, collected from various publications such as the New Yorker and other newspapers and magazines. Included are also comics from the New Yorker, the Saturday Review of Literature, the New York Herald and other sources. Here are fake histories of the game, tongue-in-cheek stories, poignant memories and more. From the 'Capsule History of the Game' by Chielamangus, we get this snippet:

'The next great figure was Wilhelm Steinitz; a very deep player - also wide, though short. He held the world's championship for twenty-six years, and was therefore considered by his rivals to be very obstinate and pig-headed. Dr. Lasker then held the championship for another twenty-six years. Critics explained that this was because he made weak moves. This was psychology. Lasker thus became known as the apostle of common sense.'

The second section is entitled 'The Magic of Chess'. The entry 'Odd But True' includes a feast of trivia items. How can a game be won (or lost) in two moves? Was there really a master-level game that concluded in four moves? What was the longest master-level game, in number of moves? Many people through history have played through correspondence; given the amount of time permitted between moves, one would not expect too many mistakes, but the shortest of these types of games concluded in a mere six moves. There was also a book published once in Germany with the title, 'Advice to Spectators at Chess Tournaments'. All the pages were blank save one, which had but two words on it - 'Halt Maul!'

The third section is a collection of classic games and strategies, which includes a lot games more interesting for the circumstances surrounding them as much as for the play that takes place. These include miniatures (short games), blindfolded games, and even 'the perfect game'. This has a strange quality about it in chess - according to Chernev and Reinfeld, the perfect game is not one in which all the moves are 'perfect': 'A game in which neither side has made a mistake does not add up to perfection; in such games we find only a sterile dullness which lacks every memorable feature.'

Chernev and Reinfeld had the reputation for being able to speak for hours on end about chess without notes or books, much in the way many people will talk about sports, movies, politics or other areas. They write with wit and skill (much like the way they play the game), and have the hope that through their writing their love of the game is contagious. Judging from this book, one of my earliest books on chess, they are indeed.

Celebrated Chess Games from History - Stefan Levitsky vs Frank James Marshall 1912

2007-08-19T08:58:00.000-04:00

David Shenk, in his excellent book The Immortal Game describes how, in an attempt to improve his game, he needed to "seek some expert help." As part of that quest he came upon a book of famous chess games, and from there upon one game in particular - "The Immortal Game" by Adolf Anderssen vs. Lionel Kieseritzky played June 21, 1851 in London.

For me, the first classic game I stumbled upon, after first learning the game of chess, was "Levitzky vs. Marshall", Breslau 1912. Why this particular game? Well, the book I was reading made this statement:

The most brilliant move ever seen on a chessboard was made by Frank J. Marshall, in a game against Levitzky. So electrifying was the effect on the spectators that they showered his board with gold pieces!

I had never played through classic game up to that point (I was about 9 or 10 years old), but with a claim like "the most brilliant move ever seen on a chessboard" and the mention of gold pieces being showered on the board I was hooked. This I had to see.

What a game! Marshall's last move consisted of a stunning queen sacrifice, seemingly out of the blue, allowing Levitsky to capture it in three different ways! Even with my limited understanding of chess I could appreciate the shock such a move must have created. Here is the game:

1.d4 e6 2.e4 d5 3.Nc3 c5 4.Nf3 Nc6 5.exd5 exd5 6.Be2 Nf6 7.O-O Be7 8.Bg5 O-O 9.dxc5 Be6 10.Nd4 Bxc5 11.Nxe6 fxe6 12.Bg4 Qd6 13.Bh3 Rae8 14.Qd2 Bb4 15.Bxf6 Rxf6 16.Rad1 Qc5 17.Qe2 Bxc3 18.bxc3 Qxc3 19.Rxd5 Nd4 20.Qh5 Ref8 21.Re5 Rh6 22.Qg5 Rxh3 23.Rc5 Qg3!! 0-1

To this day, I remember it fondly as the first "classic game" of chess I ever played over.

What was your first memorable classic game?

UPDATE: I found an interesting discussion about the legend that "spectators showered the board with gold pieces" in a discussion in the Kibitzer's Corner at www.chessgames.com/:

"It is not strange that a game as old as chess should have its fabulous legends. Columbus's voyage to America, for example, according to one tale, would not have been possible had not King Ferdinand of Spain managed to retrieve a lost game (with the assistance of one of Columbus's well-wishers). A battle in the Revolution could have been won had a British general not pocketed a note during a chess game, in which he was much absorbed, warning him of the approach of the Americans. One myth has made the rounds so often that it has gained wide currency through reiteration, even though there isn't a grain of truth in it. It concerns the famous brilliancy at Breslau in 1912 in the game Marshall-Lewitzky [sic]. On his twenty-third move, the late U.S. champion won fantastically by subjecting his Queen to capture in three different ways on one move. This was dubbed the most beautiful move ever made on the chessboard. Enthusiastic spectators are alleged to have showered the board with gold pieces. But Caroline Marshall, who ought to know, disclaims knowledge of even a shower of pennies." I.A. Horowitz, All About Chess, 1958.

And this follow-up comment:

Its difficult to know for sure, but Caroline Marshall is probably right. Andrew Soltis in Frank Marshall, Chess Champion (McFarland, 1994) had Marshall's original notes for the "My Fifty Years in Chess". Marshall says only that he received "a purse" after the game. Why did he get money after the game? Apparently, some Russian nationals like P.P. Saburov and Alekhine bet that their countryman Levitsky would win. After the game, they dumped their coins on board to pay off Marshall. The story was recounted by Walter Korn in American Chess Heritage. Korn was not present but told the story as it was circulated around Europe.
Still, why didn't Caroline Marshall see the payoff? And why did Marshall after the publication of the book insist that the shower of gold story was true? The rumor has always been that Fred Reinfeld helped with My Fifty Years in Chess, so perhaps it was he who exaggerated the facts a bit and Marshall simply loved the idea.

Play "Cooperative Chess" at Work

2007-08-16T12:19:00.000-04:00

I was certain that the game of chess would be mentioned in the excellent book Keep Your Brain Alive - 83 Neurobic Exercises to help prevent memory loss and increase mental fitness by Dr. Lawrence C. Katz and Manning Rubin. (You can read my blog entry about the book here: Rook Van Winkle's Chess Blog: Keep Your Brain Alive)

Sure enough, on page 83 they recommend using an "ongoing chess game" at work as one of their exercises for "preserving and enhancing the brain's capabilities into the senior years."

Basically the idea is to set up a chess game near the water cooler (or some other public place were co-workers gather) "where an employee can come to the board, assess the situation, and make a move."

Although this doesn't allow for the development of long term strategies, according to the authors of the book:

... It does require visual-spatial thinking that is different from what most of us do at work. The brief gear switching provides a break from verbal, left-brain activities and lets the 'working brain' take a breather."

I think this is a fantastic idea! You will need some method to indicate whether it is white's or black's turn to play.

Why not use this as a great way to get a chess club started at your work? It would certainly attract the attention of any chess playing co-workers, and the novelty of the 'shared game" might even spark some interest among your non-chess playing co-workers - perhaps they might even want to take up the game themselves?

The Evolution of Chess - Chess Variants - Part One

2007-08-14T10:51:00.000-04:00

One nice thing about being a rather weak amateur chess player is that there is no danger (at least in my lifetime) of chess becoming so easy and predictable as to not be worth playing. However, this may soon be a problem for chess professionals and chess computer programs, especially with the news that the game of checkers has been "solved" by a computer program called "Chinook". Will chess soon follow? Not likely, says computer scientist Jonathan Schaeffer:

Whereas checkers has a mere 500-billion-billion positions (5 followed by 20 zeroes), chess is though to have about a billion-trillion-trillion-trillion positions (1 followed by 45 zeroes).

"Given the effort required to solve checkers," Schaeffer reports, "chess will remain unsolved for a long time, barring the invention of new technology."

Well, I'm glad to hear that. Even so, I have always had an interest in chess variants since I first learned the game, going all the way back to the 1970's when I purchased the fascinating Dover Publications (they have a lot of great classic chess books available) volume "Guide to Fairy Chess" by Anthony Stewart Mackay Dickins.

Here, summarized from Chess-Poster.com are some of the more common suggestions for "improving" the game of chess:

Modify (or abolish) the castling rules.

Add new chess pieces that combine the movements of several pieces i.e. a piece that combines the moves of a rook and knight or a bishop and knight - or even a queen and knight.

Change the initial starting positions of the chess pieces. This is one of the more popular proposals as found in Chess960 (also known as Fischer Random Chess).

Changing the way pawns move (the ability to move three squares forward on the first move or to move one or two squares forward each turn) or the ways pawns can be promoted (promotion of pawns to minor pieces on reaching the seventh rank).

Changing the size or layout of the chessboard (very often to accommodate the extra chess pieces as mentioned in the 2nd bullet).

In parts two and three, I'll take a look at two of the most popular (and intriguing) commercial variant chess available - Gothic Chess and Omega Chess.

In the meantime, if you have an interest in chess variants start with the excellent Wikipedia article on chess variants or visit the The Chess Variant Pages.

Keep Your Brain Alive

2007-08-14T09:59:00.000-04:00

If you've read my profile, you know one of the reasons I decided to take up chess again was for the good of my brain. Recently, PBS Television has started a new series called Life (Part 2) for those of us approaching (or past) the age of fifty. On the show there has been a lot of good advice on how to exercise the aging brain to keep it healthy. In one episode, The Aging Brain, Dr. Rudy Tanzi, Ph.D., (a Harvard-trained neurobiologist, and the director of the genetics and aging research unit at the Massachusetts General Institute for Neurodegenerative Disease) was asked how can we keep our brains healthy:

The best way to do this is exercise, both physical and mental. Learn new things, or do routine things in a different way. Take a new route to work, or try golfing or brushing your teeth with your non-dominant hand. (Hey, it just might improve your game!)

As part of the recommendation "do routine things in a different way" Dr Tanzi recommends the book Keep Your Brain Alive - 83 Neurobic Exercises to help prevent memory loss and increase mental fitness by Dr. Lawrence C. Katz.

I purchased a copy of this book and I highly recommend it. It makes for fascinating reading and has dozens of intriguing brain exercises. The 83 exercises given are not logic puzzles or memory exercises but "nuerobic exercises" that "use the five senses in novel ways to make the brain more agile and flexible overall so it can take on any mental challenge, whether it be memory, task performance, or creativity."

Learn to Play Chess (and Practice Basic Checkmates!) for Free on the Internet

2007-07-30T09:36:00.000-04:00

Here is a great free service offered by Chess Magnet School in conjunction with the U.S. Chess Federation and sponsoring chess coaches. Using this website you can "learn to play chess according to the official rules, to play against the computer, and to practice your checkmates."

Here are the details courtesy of the United States Chess Federation (USCF) website:

Learn to Play Chess Interactively!
In conjunction with the USCF, Chess Magnet School is offering an interactive program to teach you chess. Practice until you're good enough to play a real game! Discounts for more advanced chessmagnetschool programs are also avaliable for USCF members. Learn the Rules of Chess on chessmagnetschool.com.

Note: "Rules of Chess" requires Java 1.3 or above. Be patient- It may take a full minute to load. If you get a white screen, visit Java.com and upgrade your version of Java (which is free), and/or check your browser settings to make sure Java is enabled.

Also be sure to check out (pun intentional) the USCF's "New to Chess" section for more great information on learning about the "Game of Kings."

Great New Book - Silman's Complete Endgame Course: From Beginner to Master

2007-07-12T10:29:00.000-04:00

If you're a rank amateur like me, you may not even survive long enough to experience the endgame. :-) And if you do, how can you play the endgame well if you rarely get there in the first place?

Perhaps there is finally a solution for the likes of me.

I first heard about this book in an e-mail from Raphael Neff at The Chess House (BTW, I highly recommend Raphael Neff's The Chess House - it's one of the best on-line chess dealers I've had the pleasure of doing business with.)

The e-mail goes on to explain how Raphael's brother Elliot, who develops scholastic chess programs, is so taken with this book that he insists Raphael order and stock it for The Chess House to sell.

Now if that sounds like too much of a clever marketing come-on, you probably had the same initial reaction I did. But after reading Raphael's complete e-mail I was impressed enough to check it out further. So doing a little more research, (Amazon's customer reviews for example), I became convinced this could really be a great book and very much worth having - so much so I've ordered a copy from The Chess House.

In my particular case, two things convinced me to buy the book. First, I don't have a book on endgame instruction and would like to have one, and second, this statement from a customer review of the book:

"[What sets this] book apart from other instructive books, is that this one breaks down the material first according to USCF classes: Beginners, Classes E, D, C, B, A, expert and finally, Master. The Beginner's chapter, for example, is primarily concerned with "overkill" mates such as two rooks plus king vs. king. Class C players get a certain selection of pawn endings, minor piece endings, the Lucena and Philidor positions, and queen vs. advanced pawn. Masters receive examples of "Cat and Mouse," the "Principle of Two Weaknesses," and other more advanced topics. Each chapter builds upon earlier material in a logical and satisfying way, and each concludes with a dozen or two exercises. In this manner the reader can focus on the material that is appropriate for his or her level, and not get overwhelmed by the amount of theory. As that reader progresses along the rating ladder, he or she will then advance to the next chapter. The final chapter is devoted to endgames for pleasure, featuring entertaining and instructive examples from the all-time greats."

Overall, the book scored nearly complete 5-star reviews, except for two 4-star reviews only because of a few typos and other errors in the text (corrections of which are available at Jerry Silman's website.)

UPDATE: Joel Benjamin, over at the USCF site gives the book a very positive review saying:

Silman's Complete Endgame Course offers universal appeal. With a whopping 530 pages, all levels receive significant coverage. Even players who feel themselves beyond the "basics" can feast on the 200 pages of master material. The last chapter, "Endgames for Pure Pleasure," features examples from five all-time great endgame players. Teachers will find plenty of useful positions, or can assign the book to students. Kids and adults will both enjoy this book. Silman's Complete Endgame Course will likely take its place among the classics.

Follow this link to preview and/or order the book.

Chess Monsters!

2007-07-12T09:52:00.000-04:00

I'm a big fan of the fantasy role-playing game Dungeons & Dragons. What connection does this have with chess? Well, not much really - except for an interesting article in the August issue of Dragon Magazine which present "6 Chess Monsters."

The table of contents goes on to say "Command kings, seduce queens, move castles, influence bishops, slay knights, and have pawns worship you." Clever write up.

Basically the idea is to provide players of D&D with "six new creatures [that] bring the cold strategy of the chessboard to life. Face powerful foes like the black king or take command of an entire chess legion for the ultimate battle of wits."

The idea here is that the chess pieces become "monsters" called "chaturani" for players of the D&D game to oppose in combat. For those of you with some understanding of D&D here are the specifics:

"The chaturani are intelligent, extraplanar constructs designed to resemble life-sized humanoid chess pieces. Their dangerous version of chess is performed on a gigantic battlefield rather than a small table-sized board. While chaturani can provide something as innocent as an afternoon's relaxation, the reality is that they all to often have a far deadlier use."

Of course, the idea of chess pieces taking on a life of their own (Lewis Carroll's Through the Looking Glass) and fighting it out (as in various computer chess games) is not an entirely new idea, but those of you who like Chess and the D&D game must check this out! Cool stuff.

Note: The illustration is of a chaturan rook creature.

The Future of Internet Chess is Arriving Soon..

2007-06-01T09:49:00.000-04:00

Microsoft had just announced their incredible new "Surface" computing platform (for details please see www.microsoft.com/surface and the article at Popular Mechanics).

This new computer system will revolutionize the way we play chess on the Internet. See for yourself in the "Microsoft PlayTogether" demo video from Microsoft TechFest 2007.

Note: You can also access the video at the bottom of the 3rd page of the Popular Mechanics article (www.popularmechanics.com/surfacecomputing).

Very cool stuff!

A Great New Chess Website

2007-06-01T09:45:00.000-04:00

Can't get enough chess news and information? Check this web site out! http://www.chesszilla.com/

Chess as Played in the Real World - No. 1

2007-02-05T08:24:00.000-05:00

A new year and a new beginning. Rook Van Winkle has fallen asleep here for a couple months distracted by some persistent health issues. But the game is far from over - even if my "opponent" is up a minor piece or a passed pawn or two! Time to play harder still! With that as my call to action I will attempt to pick up where I left off with a little annotated game (the first I've played since November 2006). It is not a great game or anything - but it does illustrate chess "as it is played" in the real world by those such as myself:

Looking at it now, this game shows how recklessly White (me) played the game. I'll add some comments and diagrams soon. Playing Black is my younger sister - who has not played chess in 25 years - but does very well!

Opening "(ECO: C21) Center Game: Maróczy"

White "James M. (Rook Van Winkle)"

Black: "Heather M."

[Event "Family Skittles Game"]

[Site "MSN Chess"]

[Date "2007.01.01"]

[Round "1"]

[White "RookVanWinkle"]

[Black "Heather"]

[Result "1-0"]

[Opening "King's pawn game"]

[ECO "C21"]

[NIC "KP.10"]

1. e4 e5 2. d4 d6 3. d5 Be7 4. Nf3 Bg4 5. Bb5+ Nd7 6. O-O Nh6 7. Qd2 O-O 8.Ng5 Bxg5 9. Qxg5 Nf6 10. f3 a6 11. fxg4 axb5 12. h4 Nhxg4 13. h5 h6 14. Qf5 Qd7 15. Bxh6 gxh6 16. Nd2 Rad8 17. Rf3 b4 18. Rg3 Qb5 19. Rxg4+ Nxg4 20.Qxg4+ Kh8 21. Rf1 Qc5+ 22. Kh2 Qxc2 23. Rf6 Rd7 24. Rxh6#{White mates} 1-0

Sign of the Times - Using Technology to Cheat

2006-12-27T14:26:00.000-05:00

Cheating at chess is making more headlines. Today CNET, a site that covers technology news reports the following:

Checkmate for Indian chess player after phone ploy "Caught using his mobile phone's wireless device to win games, player is banned from competition for 10 years."

I'm not sure there will be anyway to stop this now that computers can beat the world champion. The possibilities for relaying computer moves to a player whether electronically or through some other means (pre-arranged codes or signals) may make competitive chess events impossible to hold.

As much as I embrace technology, there are times when I long for the good old days when chess expertise was a skill and talent possessed only by human beings and not machines.

Knight-time Practice

2006-11-28T10:39:00.000-05:00

These two free on-line computer "knight" games were mentioned at Susan Polgar's magnificent chess blog. Personally, I can't really play them for more than a minute or two because of some painful RSI conditions, but from what I have seen of them they look like fun and could actually help your children (or yourself for that matter) learn to move and more effectively use the knight in an actual game of chess. I suspect they are also highly addictive - so you've been warned.

Crazy Chess - Chess comes to life, in this original, highly addictive real-time chess game by 2DPlay. Play as the White Knight, engaged in a fierce battle of skill against the dreaded army of Black Pawns. Defend your castle against their merciless onslaught by moving in the knight's 'L' move to kill the pawns. But here's where it gets a gazillion times more exciting - it's not turn-based! Move your Knight as fast as you can, across the board, taking out the black pawns and halting their attack march towards your castle. There are also some really neat power-ups of speed, stealth, freeze and destruction to name a few. This is a game like no other - it's Crazy Chess!

Play here at www.2dPlay.com or from Susan's original link at www.filebomb.com play here.

Troyis - The Chess Knight Puzzle Game. Welcome to Troyis, probably the most original and addictive puzzle game since Tetris! The funniest way to train your brain in minutes a day! How to play: Paint all the white cells on the board as quickly as possible, by way of the chess knight movement rule (L-shape). The faster you are, the more points and better world ranking you will get. Easy to start, but difficult to master...

USA TODAY from United States says: This clever online game utilizes the knight's movement from chess. It sounds simple; trust us on that and we'll let you figure out for yourself that it's also insanely addictive. Â AG

Play here at http://www.troyis.com.

Deep Junior Triumphs in the World Computer Chess Championship

2006-10-28T12:45:00.000-04:00

I came across this link just by chance at CNET News.com, the technology news web site in the "Resource center from News.com sponsors" section. IBM may have given up on "Deep Blue" computer chess sponsorship but Intel seems to have taken up the void left by IBM.

"Like a pit crew attending to a Formula 1 race car, an Intel application engineering team worked closely with Deep Junior developers Amir Ban and Shay Bushinsky before the competition—as well as between matches—to optimize Deep Junior performance on a next-generation Dual-Core Intel Xeon processor 5100 series-based platform (codenamed Woodcrest) to help secure the win."

ChessBase.com has an article on the tournament here: Shay Bushinsky: How Deep Junior Conquered Turin

To read more from Intel about the technology used to power "Deep Junior" click on the following link for a PDF article: Deep Junior Triumphs in the World Computer Chess Championship

Chess Improvement Plan - Part Two: Taking Inventory

2006-10-17T14:14:00.000-04:00

The Complete Chess Course by Fred Reinfeld. My very first chess book - which I purchased around 1969 or 1970 (as detailed in my post My Early Days with Chess). My original edition long since fell apart - quite literally - all the pages came loose as the glue in the binding cracked. For some reason I kept "Book One - The Basic Rules of Chess" - I still have that chapter stapled together. The rest of the book was eventually discarded. For nostalgia's sake, I went ahead and purchased the current Doubleday edition from Amazon. (The cover jacket illustrated here is the one I remember - which an Internet image search kindly revealed.)

I don't believe I ever got beyond book five or six. But I am enjoying reading it again - amazingly I still remember some of the example games - rather remarkable considering I last read the book in the 1970's! I'm comfortable with the old "descriptive notation" the book uses (1. P-K4 P-QB4 etc.) but it would be nice to have an algebraic edition.

I'm sure they're better books available today - but there is still a lot of good stuff here.

The Next Big Match - Fischer vs. Karpov !!!

2006-10-13T12:37:00.000-04:00

Don't count on this ever really happening... but the report is that Fischer will play Gothic Chess against Karpov for $10 million. What is Gothic Chess? It is a chess variant with a 10x8 board and two new pieces! Check it out (sorry about the pun) at the official site www.gothicchess.com and at The Chess Variant Pages article "Gothic Chess - Ed Trice's improvement to Capabalanca's chess, played on a 10x8 board with the Archbishop and Chancellor as new pieces."

Vladimir Kramnik becomes the Unified World Chess Champion!

2006-10-13T12:20:00.000-04:00

Quite an exciting finish! I was backing Topalov the Bulgarian. Topalov is more my style. An attacker - even if it means losing some games - or in this case the World Championship. But it is better for Chess that Kramnik won - it puts to rest a lot of potential controversy over the forfeit win that was given to Topalov when Kramnik refused to play game 5. And Kramnik did, when all is said and done, out-play Topalov. For more on the deciding final game see Susan Polgar's commentary.

October 9th is National Chess Day

2006-10-09T11:37:00.000-04:00

Today is National Chess Day by "Presidential Proclamation". With the World Chess Championship down to the wire (see Kramnik Strikes Back) now is a good time to get yourself - and your family and friends - playing the game.

Poor Rook, however, has not been playing chess much of late. My wife and I have been involved in purchasing and moving to a new house - and if that wasn't bad enough - I suffered some minor injuries in a fall off of the backporch stairs. But the worst is behind me and I look forward to getting back in the groove playing chess and in updating this blog with more chess items of interest and progress updates on my chess improvement plan.

Bathroom Break Scandal to End World Chess Championship?

2006-09-29T09:20:00.000-04:00

You just can't make up this kind of stuff. From the New York Times:

"On a day in which no game was played, Silvio Danailov, the manager of Veselin Topalov of Bulgaria, sent a letter to the appeals committee of the match detailing what he said were an excessive number of bathroom breaks — more than 50 per game — by Vladimir Kramnik of Russia." For the rest of the saga read here.

Topalov showed up for game 5 (with complaints) but Kramnik's demand to have his bathroom unlocked was not met and thus he forfeited game 5. Topalov gains a point so the score is now Kramnik 3 and Topalov 2.

At least the match will now get the media coverage it has been missing! There's no such thing as bad publicity after all :-)

Rook Takes First Place in OTB Tournament!

2006-09-26T11:00:00.000-04:00

In 1979 I took first place with a 4-0 finish in the 1979 Beginners/Unrated section in the 2nd Annual Pontiac Open Chess Tournament. That was my first and only tournament experience until just a few months ago.

History repeats itself. On Saturday, September 16th, twenty-seven years later, I took first place 4-0 (shared with another 4-0 finisher) in the "All the King's Chessman's" Beginner's Unrated Chess Tournament. Unlike last time where I only got a cash prize, this time I did get a trophy! (See picture).

To be fair, the pairings worked in my favor. Although there were four or more adults entered, in rounds 1-3 I was paired with a novice teenager, a 5-year old, and a 10-year old. In the last round I played board 2 against an adult player. Since my game finished quickly, I had an opportunity to view board 1. I'm pretty certain if I had been paired with either player from board 1 they would have trounced me - it was obvious by the way they played they were very experienced chess players.

Here is my winning game from the last round:

Opening "Scandinavian (Center Counter) Defense"
ECO "B01"
White "James M. (Rook Van Winkle)"
Black: "Rod B."

1. e4 d5
2. e5

I have no idea what opening this is. I decline the pawn offer and push forward to prevent Nf6 and to follow up with d4. The opening information above is what the ICC reports it is.

2. ...Nc6
3. d4 e6
4. Nf3 Bb4+

5. c3

The bishop will retreat and I will continue an advance in an attempt to trap it.

5. ...Ba5
6. b4 Bb6

7. b5

If not the bishop, hassle the knight. I know I am probably violating opening principles by making all these pawn moves and ignoring piece development - but I can't resist the temptation.

7. ...Nce7
8. Ng5

I move here just because I can. It will annoy black and threaten the f7 square, especially if I can follow up with 9. Qf3.

8. ...h6

With 8. Ng5 I didn't even think to consider what black's response would be - I'm still very much playing like a beginner! I was annoyed at moving the knight there only to have to move it a second time to safety. It was at this point I found something interesting that I had not planned for at all.

9. Qh5!?

Threatening the f7 square with the queen. Black can now take the knight with the pawn, but he is loath to give up the rook after 9. ...hxg5 10. Qxh8.

9. ...Nf5??

Just about the worst move black could make since the d7 flight square will be lost with the displacement of the knight from e7.

10. Qxf7#

P.S. In the 1979 tournament I checkmated my last opponent in 12 moves - a bit surprising considering my opponent had won his previous 3 games. In this tournament I checkmated my last opponent, who also won his first three games, in only 10 moves. It was SPOOKY that I won so quickly because it felt exactly like a moment in time had repeated itself. Unfortunately I cannot credit any great skill or technique on my part in either win – it really was more a case of my opponents losing their games :-)

Kramnik Takes a 2-0 Lead Over Topalov

2006-09-24T08:45:00.000-04:00

See the Susan Polgar Chess Blog for the best up-to-date coverage of the 2006 World Chess Championship Match and check out her analysis of game one and game two. You can also get live coverage of the match at the Internet Chess Club or official coverage at FIDE.

Hopefully, Topalov will rebound just as Bobby Fischer did when he was down 2-0 back in 1972. I'm pulling for Topalov (Bulgarian) over Kramnik (Russian) simply on the principle that the Russians have dominated chess much too long :-)

What World Chess Championship?

2006-09-22T17:23:00.000-04:00

"In what is regarded as the most important match for 13 years, Veselin Topalov and Vladimir Kramnik will face each other across a board for the right to be undisputed world chess champion."

And yet there is absolutely zero coverage by the American media! Fortunately, there are alternatives sources for information on the match - but anyone outside of the world of chess will know nothing about it. How sad.

For those in the know, here at least is a good article on the match at www.timesonline.co.uk.

P.S. Rook has been tied up in a new home purchase - but lots of new material coming soon...

Chess Improvement Plan - Part One: Goals

2006-09-17T12:06:00.000-04:00

Chess: The cerebral frontier. These are the voyages of the patzer, Rook Van Winkle. His never ending mission to explore the strange world of chess, to seek out new tactics and odd openings, to boldly move where no pawn or piece has gone before...

I was just working on a brief statement defining my overall goal in undertaking my chess improvement plan and somehow Star Trek popped into my mind.

But now let me be serious. My "About Me" section describes why I have gotten back into chess after all these years - so I won't repeat that. What I need is a simple statement describing why I want to become a better chess player.

Ultimate Goal: To become a better chess player in order to enjoy the game better.

I don't want to set any artificial goals such as a) I will become an Expert Level Player before I die, or b) I will win 75% of all the games I play, or c) I will complete 5000 tactical problems in five minutes.

The better I am and the more I know about chess the better I will a) appreciate my games and the games of others (amateur and master alike) b) grasp the nuances of the openings, middle, and end games and c) derive satisfaction from every hard fought well-played game that I play - win or lose.

Obviously, concerning item c), the stronger I am as a chess player the more likely I can offer myself and my opponent a hard fought well-played game :-)

My Specific Goals:

These are based mainly on recommendations by Dan Heisman, Susan Polgar's advice to Emily Liu at Emily's Chess Blog, and other suggestions I've come across from other chess player's chronicling their own chess improvement plans.

Play at least one game of chess per day.
Improve my knowledge and utilization of chess tactics and set aside time each day to practice those tactics - even if only 15 minutes per day to start.
Pick one opening to specialize with when playing white and learn it well.
Learn two good openings as black to use against 1.e4 and 1.d4.
Improve my understanding of endgame positions.
Improve my understanding of middle game strategies.
Improve my time management during a game, i.e. slow down and make the most use of the time allocated.
Learn not to always recklessly attack but to play defensively when the situation requires it. (This is a particularly bothersome deficiency of mine)
Annotate my own games immediately after playing them – especially my losses in order to learn from my mistakes
Get more practice at recording my moves in algebraic notation.
Get more practice playing games with a chess clock.
Observe some annotated games of the top rated players.

Some possible additional long term goals :

Have a basic recognition of all the major openings by name, their first few defining moves, and the resulting board positions or "tabiyas".
Become familiar with some of the classic games of the "masters" past and present.
Read (and hopefully learn from) some of the classic books on chess.
Teach other novices, kids and adults, the basic of playing chess.

That ends my initial list of goals - although I may come back to them later to add, delete, or re-order them.

"The Mad Genius of Bobby Fischer" Cable TV Special

2006-09-16T10:34:00.000-04:00

PROGRAM LISTING

The Mad Genius of Bobby Fischer - Repeat. "The tactics Bobby Fischer used to become
one of the world's best chess players."

... is showing on the Game Show Network (GSN) ON September, 23rd from 9:00 AM - 10:00 AM EDT. You can find the GSN channel and program guide for your region here.

I probably watch TV less than 98% of the American population - maybe about 4 or 5 hours per week. However, because we have a Microsoft Media Center PC I can search the program guide for the word "chess" - which is how I came across the program when it aired back in August. It is now being repeated if you care to see it.

Needless to say, the show is less about chess than it is about the tragic life of the man himself. However, I did find the show interesting because there was a lot of video of Bobby Fischer playing chess from his early career up to the point when he abandoned serious play. The other great thing about the show is that they interview many famous US chess personalities. After hearing some of these names mentioned for years and years it was nice to actually match their names up with faces.

The 2nd half of the show had a lot of coverage (and video) too but it was less interesting from a chess perspective and probably of more interest to behavioral psychologists.

Whatever one thinks about Bobby Fischer, with all of his appalling behaviour and hateful invective, he did inspire a whole generation to get involved chess and made the game an exciting thing for those of us growing up in the fifties, sixties, and early seventies.

NOTE: The picture above is from the Time Magazine covering the 1972 match - which I still own and treasure to this day.

Chess D-Day - An Improvement Plan

2006-09-12T12:00:00.000-04:00

On June 6^th of this year I asked my wife to play a game of chess. I can mark that as the day that Rook Van Winkle awoke from his 25-year chess slumber.

It is now fourteen weeks later. Since then I’ve played maybe a 150 or so games (mostly on the Internet), participated in one OTB beginner’s tournament and successfully competed in my first Internet chess tournament.

But now it is time for me to stop procrastinating and to begin in earnest a “chess improvement” plan.

Before I proceed, I need to mention the number one thing I have learned about improving at chess. Play chess. Play more chess. Play even more chess. In an earlier post I complained that chess was being played better today than it was 25 years ago (What Happened to the Woodpushers?). I still think that is true. The amazing thing though is how much better I am playing just by playing. I’ve not really done any serious reading or study or practice. Just through hard earned experience (winning and losing) I am getting better.

Sidebar - To be honest, I also have to give some credit here to Dan Heisman. He is the host of the ICC’s radio show “Ask the Renaissance Man”, writes the “Novice Nook” column at ChessCafe.com, and is the author of the remarkable book “Everyone’s 2nd Chess Book”. So far I have only perused his book (I’ll write a full review of it once I’ve read it all). By following the list of guidelines in his book I’ve seen a tremendous improvement in my game. Thank you, Dan Heisman. Take this advice: If you are a chess novice or a low rated experienced player you must really buy this book. You will not regret it.

As a former teacher, I know the importance of a curriculum. My very first step then is to design my personal chess curriculum. To begin, I need to complete some tasks. For now I will simply list these tasks. Later I will follow up on each of them with more detailed posts:

Define my goals. What is it that I personally want to accomplish with my chess improvement plan? How will I measure my progress?
List of the chess resources I already have and those I may wish to add:

Books I already own
Books I may wish to purchase
Software I already own
Software I might wish to purchase
Helpful Internet resources I can use
My chess history – what score sheets and PGN records of my games do I have?

Plan an agenda using selected resources from my list.
Implement a schedule for study and game playing.
Follow through conscientiously with my plan and see what
happens.

Listen to the KQED Radio Interview with the Author of the "The Immortal Game"

2006-09-08T11:18:00.000-04:00

Michael Krasny discusses the intersection of chess, war, art and science with David Shenk, author of "The Immortal Game: A History of Chess."

Host: Michael Krasny

Guests: David Shenk, author of The Immortal Game: A History of Chess, or How 32 Carved Pieces on a Board Illuminated Our Understanding of War, Art, Science, and the Human Brain

Mystery Chess Set

2006-09-07T05:37:00.000-04:00

Yesterday I came across a picture of an English "Barleycorn" chess set. Suddenly, my memory was jogged. I seemed to recall a somewhat similar set that my grandmother once had. It was part of a collection of games she had brought from Scotland when she moved to America in the 1920's. Checking with my family it turns out that my brother had latched on to it - and he was kind enough to supply a picture of it which you can view above.

They are very inexpensive light wood pieces. They are not weighted and do not have felt bottoms. There was never a chess board (that we know of) that went with it.

Doing a little research, I have come across somewhat similar sets on the web. The House of Staunton calls them "Pre-Staunton Sets." Evidently this style was quite popular in Great Britain and Germany in the 19th and early 20th century before losing out to the more standard Staunton design. But what do I call it? An English Barleycorn? A French Regence? Or perhaps a St. George or a Calvert design?

Any comments would be appreciated...

The World Chess Championship 2006 or What Ever Happened to Dr. Zukhar?

2006-09-05T12:33:00.000-04:00

Having recently come back to chess, I’m greatly looking forward to following my first major chess championship since 1978. I got a chuckle recently reading an old Time Magazine clipping I saved concerning that match – the one between Korchnoi-Karpov-Zukhar. I of course jest here concerning Dr. Zukhar – but at the time he seemed to be as much a part of the contest as the players themselves.

As a refresher to the 1978 match, let me quote from Wikipedia’s entry on Anatoly Karpov:

In 1978, Karpov's first title defence was against Viktor Korchnoi, the opponent he defeated in the previous Candidates tournament. The situation was vastly different from the previous match, because in the intervening years Korchnoi had defected from the Soviet Union. The match was played in Baguio in the Philippines, and a vast array of psychological tricks were used during the match, from Karpov's Dr. Zukhar who allegedly attempted to hypnotize Korchnoi during the game, to Korchnoi's mirror glasses to ward off the hypnotic stare, Korchnoi's offering to play under the Jolly Roger flag when he was denied the right to play under Switzerland's, to Karpov's yogurt supposedly being used to send him secret messages, to Korchnoi inviting two local cult members (on trial for attempted murder) into the hall as members of his team.

Now I’m not sure this latest match will be as entertaining off the board as that match was, but it does look to be interesting.

Check out the excellent article Who will win the Topalov-Kramnik world championship? at Chessbase.com.

If you read only one article on the match, this should be the one. It presents an excellent background to the match, especially helpful to people like me who have been away from chess or for new players just taking up the game. The article also explains the match format, provides player’s biographies, and even speculates who will win the match. Best of all, it concludes with a complete “Schedule of the World Chess Championship 2006” which you can copy and paste somewhere so you don’t miss a game. Highly recommended.

Chess on the Web - Installment One

2006-09-04T11:12:00.000-04:00

Bill Gates once said [at least I think he did] the ultimate goal of technology would be to have all the world's "information at your fingertips." We seem to be getting there at an alarming pace, especially as concerns information on the Internet. The exponential growth of this information is mind boggling.

Which brings me to the topic of chess resources on the web. Where do I begin? There are so many great resources it is impossible even to list them all. What's worse is that nearly every site leads you on to another and another and another… so I will show some much needed restraint here and limit myself to mentioning (every so often) several fantastic Internet chess destinations you definitely must visit.

Today I would like to mention three "chess blogs":

Getting into Chess "A beginner's Journey into the complex world of chess."

This blog was one of the first to catch my eye - since the writer of this blog is on a journey very similar to that of yours truly, Rook Van Winkle. If you too have decided it's time to give chess a try I think you'll find a lot of interesting reading here and lots of links to good information.
Chessola - "The David Moody Chess LiveJournal."

I just recently discovered this site by a fellow Michigander. It appears to have an incredible list of very interesting games of all types and at all levels of play. David provides a lot of entertaining commentary on each of the games. In fact, he is on a mission to preserve thousands of chess games "from average players" played in Michigan tournaments over the last 20 or 30 years. Amazingly he has built up a database of 27,000 of these games! I wonder if he has any score sheets from "The 2nd Annual Pontiac Open - Unrated Section" held in Rochester, Michigan in December of 1979? As you can read in an earlier post, that's was the only chess tournament I had ever played in until just this past July. I am fortunate to have score sheets from the first and last of my games, but not the second and third.
Susan Polgar's Chess Blog "The Official Chess Blog of Susan Polger - The #1 female player in the US and #2 rated in the world."

This is one incredibly good chess blog. Susan has it constantly updated with recent chess news, recent events and games, chess problems and puzzles. She also includes a lot of inspirational articles about young players and has published a number of student written essays. It is worth checking every day because there is always something new. In fact, she is so up-to-date she seems to have the scoop on all the latest events in the chess world before any other of the "chess news" sites get around to publishing them. She is also one of our greatest American "chess ambassadors" promoting the game as a very worthwhile activity, not only for women and girls, but for young and old alike.

There are dozens of other very interesting chess blogs you should check out. Thanks to the incredible work of Mark Weeks at http://www.about.chess.com/ I can simply refer you to his list Chess Blogs - First Posts. And while you are there, be sure to check out the rest of his site for great advice, articles, chess resources, and hundreds of chess related links….

ABC News: How Chess Can Help Stave Off Alzheimer's

2006-09-04T09:36:00.000-04:00

I was glad to see the game of chess getting some good press this morning - or any kind of press for that matter :-) - on the September 4, Labor Day edition of ABC's "Good Morning, America."

The lead in to the segment was "It is one of the most beloved games in the world... and it [may help] to prevent Alzheimer’s disease..."

The interview was with best-selling author David Shenk, who has written a new book on the history of chess titled "The Immortal Game." He has also written a book on Alzheimer's disease. When asked about the connection between the two he responded:

"Everyone in the Alzheimer's community is searching for a way to prevent Alzheimer's and it turns out that one important way - it's not a sure fire way - but you need to use your brain. As you get older, particularly, you need to exercise your brain in any way and the more exercise you get in your brain - it's just like keeping fit and keeping your body fit - the better off you are, the better chance you stand for preventing diseases like Alzheimer's.”

“Chess turns out to be a particularly good brain builder for this..."

Here's an excerpt from the http://www.abcnews.com/ web site:

How Chess Can Help Stave Off Alzheimer's
Writer David Shenk Traces the History of Chess in 'The Immortal Game'

Sept. 4, 2006 — In a wide-ranging examination of chess, David Shenk uncovers the hidden history of a game that was invented in India around 500 A.D. and seems more popular than ever today.

From its enthusiastic adoption by the Persians and its spread by Islamic warriors, to its 21st century importance to the development of artificial intelligence and use as a teaching tool in inner-city America, chess has been a omnipresent factor in the development of civilization.

Research shows that brain is much like the body — it needs continual activity to remain strong and supple and fight off the predations of old age. And researchers have determined that chess is uniquely well-suited to "exercising" the brain. It is simple to play, but offers nearly limitless variation.

It requires memory, problem-solving skills, abstract thought, and creativity. And it turns out that the people who play it regularly in their older years — along with related activities like crossword puzzles — are less likely to develop Alzheimer's and related conditions.

You can read the entire article and an excerpt for Shenk's new book "The Immortal Game" here: How Chess Can Help Stave Off Alzheimer's.

The author's website can be found here: "The Immortal Game"

The book can be ordered here: The Immortal Game: A History of Chess, or How 32 Carved Pieces on a Board Illuminated Our Understanding of War, Art, Science and the Human Brain (Hardcover) by David Shenk

Chess on TV?

2006-08-31T15:12:00.000-04:00

Would you, or anyone you know, actually watch a game of chess on TV for entertainment?

ChessBase News has an interesting article that proposes an idea that might work. Hey, if it can work for TV poker why not chess?

ChessBase columnist, Steven A. Lopez, makes the claim "Yes, chess on TV works if you do it right. The whole trick is to engage the audience."

Read the article - I think he might have a workable idea. What do you think?

Technology Making This Blog Possible

2006-08-31T14:59:00.000-04:00

Although not chess related, I really do want to put in a plug for two pieces of technology that have made this blog possible.

Having suffered repetitive stress injuries (RSI), I am not able to use a computer for extended periods of time using ordinary means. With the help of a "Tablet PC" and voice recognition software (see Dragon NaturallySpeaking) things have become much more tolerable.

The Tablet PC provides great flexibility in terms of how you can position the computer for working with it and it offers numerous alternative methods for inputting data - from handwriting and pointing to voice recognition.

Voice recognition software has actually become practical - as the very existence of this blog proves. If you are still a skeptic concerning just how good it can be check out the following three links: Dragon Naturally Speaking — First Impressions, David Pogue's New York Times Review, and jkOnTheRun - Dragon Naturally Speaking 9 Released

All is not perfect using these two tools - there are many computer tasks - like application development and programming for example - that you just can't do in any kind of practical way with voice recognition software and other alternate input methods.

And I still haven't found a workable way to play Internet or computer chess using only my voice for making moves. If anyone one has any advice or suggestions as to how to accomplish that, I would love to hear your comments.

Just a final note. If you find it painful working at a computer, do not ignore the pain. Permanent injury can result. For more information please see Computer Injury? Me? and Your computer may be a pain in the neck.

My Third Chess Tournament - Good Results

2006-08-31T12:38:00.000-04:00

Well, after an embarrassing start, I have finished up my first Internet Chess Club tournament with positive score of 2.5 out of a possible 4 - two wins, a 1/2-point bye, and one loss. This was also my first "rated" tournament, the other two tournaments I have played being unrated OTB (over-the-board) beginner tournaments.

I had to take a 1/2 point bye in the first round since I had a scheduling conflict. I then lost the first game by putting myself into a back-rank mate - that just happened not to be on the back rank but along the g and h files. On the bright side, a painful lesson is a lesson well learned. But I played well in my last two games and won both of them.

All in all, I am very happy with how well I played. I am now looking forward to three more tournaments – the September Standard Time Tourney at the Internet Chess Club, another OTB unrated beginners tournament in September, and my first USCF (United States Chess Federation) "rated" OTB tournament (if I am physically up to it) in October.

Humphrey Bogart - Chess Expert

2006-08-31T11:51:00.000-04:00

Here's something I didn't know. In looking over the "Famous Games" in Chessmaster 10, there is an entry from 1952 "George Koltanowksi vs Humphrey Bogart!" Turns out that this was a game played by Humphery Bogart against chess writer and columnist George (Kolty) Koltanowski who "in his newspaper office played without sight of the board against movie star and chess expert Humphrey Bogart, who lost by a mere pawn."

According to GameColony.com "It turns out that Bogart was a very accomplished chess player. (Bogart's rating would probably be equivalent to modern 2100.)"

The City Collge Chess web site has some more interesting details: "Before becoming a movie star, Humphrey Bogart hustled strangers at 5-minute chess for 50 cents a game in chess parlors in New York Times Square. In 1943 the FBI prevented him from playing postal chess, thinking the chess notation were secret codes. He was a USCF tournament director and active in the California State Chess Association. He once drew a game against Reshevsky in a simultaneous exhibition. He made 75 films and chess appears in several of his movies. He and his wife, Lauren Bacall, appeared on the cover of CHESS REVIEW in 1945 playing chess with Charles Boyer."

Play it again, Sam... :-)

Exercise Smartens Up the Aging Brain

2006-08-31T11:20:00.000-04:00

To play chess well, don't negelect the body. Exercise is important for chess players as well.

Susan Polger, the #1 female player in the US and #2 rated in the world, was asked how she prepares for a big chess event and replied in the Susan Polgar Chess Blog: My weekly commentary "One of the most important parts of training for me is physical fitness. I cannot stress this enough. I worked very hard on my physical condition before World Championships, Olympiads, Women’s World Chess Cup and big events..."

Lack of physical fitness is something old Rook Van Winkle will have to address even with his disabilities. One can always find excuses... but neglect of physical health has such serious consequences that excuses cannot be tolerated. Trust me on this one :-)

The following recent article form HealthDay lends even more truth to this:

Review of the data finds activity keeps mental decline at bay
-- Robert Preidt

(HealthDay News) -- Exercise may slow age's impact on brain function, helping maintain whip-smart cognitive ability well into the senior years and preventing dementia-like illness, a new review of the data shows.

While there are varying opinions on the brain benefits of exercise and activity, "our review of the last 40 years of research does offer evidence that physical exercise can have a positive influence on cognitive brain functions in older animal and human subjects," wrote the study authors from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

"We have found that physical and aerobic exercise training can lower the risk for developing some undesirable age-related changes in cognitive and brain functions and also help the brain maintain its plasticity -- [the brain's] ability to cover one function if another starts failing later in life," the authors wrote.

The researchers presented their findings Friday at the American Psychological Association's annual convention in New Orleans.

Some studies that included men and women over age 65 found that those who exercised three times a week for at least 15 to 30 minutes a session were less likely to develop Alzheimer's disease -- even if they were genetically predisposed to the condition.

And a study that examined the association between exercise and brain function in people ages 62 to 70 found that "those who continued to work and retirees who exercised showed sustained levels of cerebral blood flow and superior performance on general measures of cognition as compared to the group of inactive retirees."

Another study that compared older adults who walked and those who did stretching and toning found that those who walked were better able to ignore bothersome distractions.

"Aerobically trained older adults showed increased neural activities in certain parts of the brain that involved attention and reduced activity in other parts of the brain that are sensitive to behavioral conflict," the review authors said.

Pasted from <http://health.msn.com/centers/alzheimers/articlepage.aspx?cp-documentid=100142626>