These don't make much sense to me, how do you get 100%
You can get 100% if you pass the problem in much less than the average time. If you don't like the timing/rating system though, you can always change the tactics trainer to unrated in your tactics trainer settings.
I like the idea of a rating system, I just don't understand how it is determined that if a player takes 1 min instead of 30 seconds to find a tactic that they should LOSE rating points. I could see maybe not gaining anything, or only a minimal gain if your time is 7 sigma above average (for example). But to loose such a large number of points seems a bit off to me.
I agree with the time issue and I understand why. But in all the tactics are there to help you improve your game, atleast there should be an ability to switch on/off time as required.
If you ask me I think tactic trainer scoring needs to be revisited :) Still waiting on chess.com input?!?
One of the goals of the tactic trainer is to make you more perceptive. The quicker you are able to recognize a tactic, the more likely you are to recognize it at all. Also, if you are having trouble recognizing tactics at the level you're at, it makes sense to balance out your points by having the ones you took too much time on lower your score. If they didn't do that, you would either be gaining points or not losing any. It wouldn't accurately gauge your skill level and would be giving you tactics that you aren't ready to undertake.
I have pondered the same problem as the OP.
Even getting the right answer, but slow, does take its toll. That is, I believe, the OP's point.
Maybe this is fair. Or...maybe the time factor is too blitz oriented.
e5nf3-Thanks for the support!
I understandthat the faster you see a tactic better you should score, but I often feel like I am playing against the clock rather than focusing on the position and trying to find the best moves. My mind is not as fast as it use to be I guess (too much college fun maybe?!) But I just thought I would drop a note and see if anyone else has this issue.
You may want to check chesstempo.com, as well. We chess players are all unique though. So, there are plenty of tools here and elsewhere, as well, to fine tune-our individual tastes.
I practice tactics as much as I can, however, I like to use a small chess board to look at the tactic and solve it "OTB" rather than on the screen. I found I never really remembered much from screen positions but I do when I use a chess set.
The point I am making really is that I want to be graded on my tactics as it is a good indication of my improvement, or not. I cant use the tactics trainer on here so much because I am losing time as I set up the board and so it makes it pointless from my perspective.
I use all the training available on here and find it brilliant, but use Chess Tempo for my graded tactics as I don't use the timed setting, then I can use my board and seem to benefit from this.
This isnt a critisism of the tactic trainer, just a matter of preference for me.
Time is a part of the game so I find the feature to be a useful feedback mechanism (e.g. learning on average how fast I am finding solutions compared to a pool of other players). I also find it to be good training for working under time pressure (e.g. you learn to take the time to get it right and not be rushed into a mistake by the ticking clock) To me, being upset over losing some points due to thinking for an extra few seconds seems more like an ego issue related to ratings (I can say this as I am fighting the same demons). If it annoys you, just change the settings to unrated and you can then enjoy them and learn to your hearts content. Having said that, I do however understand that people wish to use the obtained ratings as an indicator of improvement. Just my two cents.
first off,don't worry about "points",too many people worry about their precious points that don't mean squat over their actual tactical ability.
Second,if the puzzle is easy you get taxed heavily for failing to find the right answer instantly.
Let me say this: If you stare at a tactical puzzle for more than 5 seconds,and you don't pick off what to do,you simply don't get the puzzle. I'm not saying that every puzzle needs to be solved in 5 seconds,but if you recongize the theme right away (such as removing the defender),the moves should come easy. It should take sometime to calculate things out,but you should know right away from looking at a puzzle what it's "theme" is. If you don't,you'll likely spend over a minute looking for something.
I agree with not worrying about the points. I disagree a little about "if you don't recognize the theme of the puzzle within 5 seconds". A little. If one is playing a blitz or bullet game primarily, then yes, working on your speed recognition is helpful. But for an OTB player, taking a full minute to realize the theme is of little overall detriment than having it come to you in 5 seconds. IMHO.
PS. There is also a "percentage correct" score on your tactics trainer personal page. This is the measurement you should be striving to improve. IMHO.
I use tactics trainer a lot and I use the point system to guage whether or not I'm improving over the course of 100 problems or so. Funny thing is, my tactic trainer score hasn't improved, but I feel like my game has. But, I also get a little disheartened when I get a problem correct and lose points because it took a while to see the correct move. I'd rather just not get any points and lose points only if I fail the problem. I also feel like it rushes you a bit and the clock encourages poor moves making a training tool feel more intimidating for us beginners.
Problem Rating: 1727 (+10)
Avg. Time: 0:29
Attempts: 2792
Pass Rate: 62.9%