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| From | Message | Posted by nemesis1010 austinfilmfestival.org
6/21/2008 14:50:18 Play online chess | Subject: Books on Openings
Message: Can anyone recommend a good book on openings that you've used and has genuinely improved your game? A quick search on Amazon produces far too many and very similar looking results, so I don't really know where to begin :). Basically I'd like one or two books that demonstrate the pros and cons of all popular openings and defences, so that I can hopefully expand my game beyond my current staple of Queen's pawn and English openings, and French defence.
Cheers in advance
Mike
| Posted by tag1153 austinfilmfestival.org
6/21/2008 19:21:10 Play online chess | fwiw
Message: I have about 100 chess books....probably 95 were impulse buys at tourneys, and they sre doing a wonderful job of collecting dust on the bookshelf. The one book that any serious student needs imho is an MCO (or other encyclopedic style opening manual). My MCO is about 20 years old now, and practically falling apart - but it has 20 years of my handwritten notes on the "trees" of just about every opening you've ever heard of....it is the one tool that helped me to be able identify openings better. But keep this mind - this "advice" is coming from a lifelong class C patzer, so it is probably best to disregard it:)
tag1153
| Posted by chessisvanity austinfilmfestival.org
6/21/2008 20:15:40 Play online chess | MCO no thanks.
Message: MCO covers lines but no explanation.
I suggest "Understanding the chess openings" by Collins.
——— Solving Bobby Fischer (book review) — In the summer of 1972, the world’s attention was directed toward Reykjavik, the capital of Iceland, to watch a championship chess match. Called “the Match of the Century,” the contest between the Russian chess champion, Boris Spassky, and the American challenger, Bobby Fischer, attracted that attention because of its cold war implications. But people were also fascinated by the mercurial Fischer — a prototypical genius whose incessant demands and unpredictability were more associated with the behavior of a diva than with what one expects from a master of a demanding game of logic. Fischer won the chess match in brilliant style, setting off a wave of enthusiasm for ...
Posted by bogg austinfilmfestival.org
6/22/2008 00:09:33 Play online chess | nemesis1010
Message: It is hard to go wrong with books written by John Watson. Although I haven't read them, his two volume set 'Mastering the Chess Openings' has been spoken highly of by friends.
CTCampbell (Bogg) ——— Vasily Ivanchuk and Nigel Short produce memorable finish in Gibraltar — Gibraltar, backed by Tradewise Insurance, is the world's strongest open chess event next to Moscow Aeroflot. Its latest edition produced a memorable race as Vasily Ivanchuk and Nigel Short finished clear of the field with 9 and 8.5/10. The Ukrainian won their individual game, both had very high rating performances and Ivanchuk jumped to No5 in the world. Tradewise Gibraltar overlaps with the great Dutch chess event at Wijk and Zee and its dates are close to Aeroflot, yet it continues to gain in popularity due to the Rock's benign January climate, its high prizes and its efficient and friendly organisers. Its awards for women start with £10,000 for first, more than the winning man receives at ...
Posted by mathemagician_ austinfilmfestival.org
6/22/2008 04:40:28 Play online chess |
Message: I would recommend 'Chess Openings' by Mike Basman, it's quite an old book - first published in 1987 - but inside it describes some general principles etc. then goes onto give insight into The Guico Piano, Sicilian, Nimzo-Indian and Morra-gambit. So if those openings interest you, and you can find a copy (I found my copy in a second-hand-book store), it has my seal of approval - quite an honour if i do say so myself. ——— King Tut in Chess Puzzles — King Tutankhamun, or simply King Tut, is the most famous Egyptian pharaoh. He was called the boy-king since he was only nine-years-old when his 10-year reign began in 1,333 B.C. He died at the age of 19 and his tomb, undisturbed for 3,245 years, was well-preserved when it was discovered in 1922 by Howard Carter. King Tut's golden burial mask became the symbol of ancient Egypt. But how did he make it into chess? Protecting a king is vital in every chess game and pawns are best suited to do the job. When the pawns surround the king in chess problems and studies, we see some beautiful and astonishing creations. Entombing the king became a popular theme among chess composers ...
Posted by mathemagician_ austinfilmfestival.org
6/22/2008 04:52:37 Play online chess |
Message: *Giuoco Piano, of course. ——— Iranian Claims Chess Record — To the intense rivalry between Israel and Iran add another facet: the game of chess. In a literal game of one-upmanship, an Iranian chess grandmaster played 614 people simultaneously on Tuesday and Wednesday at Shahid Beheshti University in Tehran in an attempt to break a world record set by an Israeli chess grandmaster last October. According to a report in Agence France-Presse, the Iranian, Ehsan Ghaem Maghami, 28, won 590 games, lost 8 and drew 16 in an exhibition that took 25 hours. The Israeli grandmaster, Alik Gershon, 30, played 523 games over 19 hours, beating 454, losing 11 and drawing 58. Mr. Gershon broke the previous record set by ...
Posted by doctor_knight austinfilmfestival.org
6/23/2008 08:49:40 Play online chess |
Message: I'm not sure how advanced a book you're looking for, but if you're not looking for an advanced book, Yasser Seirawan's Winning Chess Openings is quite good. I've also got a big book by Graham Burgess (I believe it was my first real chess book) that has a fairly comprehensive overview of openings. He usually shows the main line with some commentary and depending on the importance of the opening, he may show and comment on all the major variations and show a game or two for each. I believe the book was called "Chess Strategy" or something similar and it is big and red. It has lots of other interesting/useful information too. ——— World’s Top Chess Players on Hand for Aeroflot Open — The Tradewise Gibraltar Chess Festival, which ended last week, is a popular chess tournament, attracting many strong players. And the World Open, which is held every year in the Philadelphia area around Independence Day, usually has more than 1,000 chess players between all its sections. But for sheer quality of competition, the annual Aeroflot Open, which starts on Tuesday, trumps them all. Sponsored by the Russian airline, the chess tournament is divided in three sections. The A group usually features many of the world’s top chess players, and this year is no different. Twenty-six of the world’s top 100 players are competing, and 73 of the 87 players in the top section are ...
Posted by thunker austinfilmfestival.org
6/23/2008 12:03:43 Play online chess |
Message: "Ideas Behind the Chess Openings" by Reuben Fine
| Posted by ccmcacollister austinfilmfestival.org
6/25/2008 13:15:40 Play online chess | Just dropping in ....
Message: to say I certainly second BOGG's recommendation of IM John Watson. (Of Course ... BOGG's
always right on Chess, in case you haven't noticed yet :)
Great books and author. I especially liked Play The French #1. The info there was enough to
boost several adherents from Iowa alone, into Sr. Master Postal Performances in the French at
that time. Of course there was something of a French Conspiracy here at the time :)
Very popular.
| Posted by nemesis1010 austinfilmfestival.org
6/26/2008 04:33:02 Play online chess | Cheers everyone
Message: Though I'm still undecided, lol :)
I will probably start doctor_knight's Yasser Seirawan recommendation and then move onto John Watson's series (I note on Amazon there's a third volume due for release in October).
mathemagician_'s Mike Basman book does sounds interesting. But also appears to be a bit of a rarity - can't see it at all on Amazon or Ebay.
I actually find this link useful as an encyclopaedia of all openings, although the strategy and thinking behind them is very minimal:
www.csm.astate.edu
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