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How best to study chess?

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13th September 2008, 11:01am
#1
by LOB
Wicklow Ireland
Member Since: Apr 2008
Member Points: 1828

I have reached 1500 with turn based.

That is thanks to tactics trainer, a tiny bit of endgame study with ebooks and plain practice.

How should I study chess to improve more?

I have a lot of schoolwork right now so time is scarce until the weekends.

Any ideas?

 

Thanks ~ LOB Laughing

13th September 2008, 11:22am
#2
by ghostofmaroczy
United States
Member Since: Aug 2007
Member Points: 626

Buy a program such as Rybka, Fritz, Shredder, etc.  Compare your games to what the program would play and find out what mistakes you are making.

13th September 2008, 02:41pm
#3
by AlexCn
United States
Member Since: Apr 2008
Member Points: 565

Programs succh as Fritz and chessmaster are supposed to be good. Read books in the areas you stuggle endgame, etc

13th September 2008, 06:55pm
#4
by alec94x
Canada
Member Since: Jul 2007
Member Points: 1224

LOB wrote:

I have reached 1500 with turn based. How should I study chess to improve more?

I have a lot of schoolwork right now so time is scarce until the weekends.

Any ideas?

 

 


If you don't have an OTB Chess Teacher to assess all aspects of your game I'd suggest getting Chess Exam and Training Guide and the second book Tactics by Igor Khmelnitsky.

The goal of these two books are to help you identify all areas of your Chess game which are weak it also gives you a numerical rating of your playing strength. The book tests you on  Attack, Counterattack, Defense, Opening, Middlegame, Endgame, Tactics, Strategy, Calculation, Standard Positions, Recognizing Threats.

He provides advice on how to improve in each of these 13 areas and he makes suggestions for what books you should buy and study on your own.

1st October 2008, 11:27am
#5
by Cleptomania
Tacoma, WA United States
Member Since: Jan 2008
Member Points: 189

You asked such a great question. 

It is the same question I have been working on for decades. Here is my humble opinion.

In my experience, the answer is different for different people.  For example, if you are new to chess, then you have few wrong ideas deeply ingrained in your mind.  If you are like me and have been playing for decades, you may have to find out what your deeply ingrained wrong ideas are, and then erradicate them. 

One of the risks of study is spending time studying the wrong information that does not yield results.  If you do that, you can become discouraged and quit studying altogether.  Another risk is spending time "studying" when, in reality, you are only entertaining yourself. To avoid these pitfalls (and more), it is best to find a teacher you can meet face to face to facilitate your learning.  Your teacher should be at least master strength and should possess solid teaching skills as well (he/she should have a reputation for helping folks to learn). 

In the meantime, try the "Novice Nook" by Dan Heisman:

http://www.chesscafe.com/heisman/heisman.htm

His column deals well with this subject.  Check out the archives there for a valuable source of training material that is easy to understand and to the point.

Good Luck!

 

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