Online chess community where you can play chess, learn strategies and tactics, read chess news, see book reviews, find rules & tips, get free downloads, and more! http://www.chess.com/ 2007 Chess.com Just a short blog:   As the live chess servers are currently down to maintenance (wondering what the site staff has in store for us.. exciting stuff!) I was coupled with a silicon partner on medium strength. A quick game ensued (I think it took 5...http://blog.chess.com/RC_Woods/playing-the-computer2Sat, 12 Feb 2011 07:24:03 -0800http://blog.chess.com/RC_Woods/playing-the-computer2 It has been a serious while since my last blog post. I have been taking it easy as a chess player. In fact, I'm getting the impression that it is like that for many of us: periods of frenzy alternate with periods of relative calm. I guess because...http://blog.chess.com/RC_Woods/picking-up-serious-play-againWed, 08 Dec 2010 23:05:07 -0800http://blog.chess.com/RC_Woods/picking-up-serious-play-again  Post Mortem Chess Snacks & My return to Live Chess. About 1,5 month ago I was frustrated by bad results in live chess (standard time controls) and at the same time other things in life demanded attention. I decided it was time for a brea...http://blog.chess.com/RC_Woods/post-mortem-chess-snacksSun, 09 May 2010 17:08:06 -0700http://blog.chess.com/RC_Woods/post-mortem-chess-snacks http://blog.chess.com/RC_Woods/a-fun-coffehouse-gameThu, 22 Apr 2010 17:16:42 -0700http://blog.chess.com/RC_Woods/a-fun-coffehouse-gameWhen reading chess writings, you will be often find yourself presented with the following wisdom: "When playing, you have to come up with a plan and stick to it". Now of course this is a general rule - and sometimes it may not work. Many things ...http://blog.chess.com/RC_Woods/following-through-in-chessFri, 05 Mar 2010 12:51:05 -0800http://blog.chess.com/RC_Woods/following-through-in-chessThe game below is my 250th 'standard' game since the introduction of live chess 2.0, which is why I'm blogging it. It may not be one of my best games, but it was quite entertaining in its own right. Playing white I encountered a Sicilian defense....http://blog.chess.com/RC_Woods/my-250th-live-gameMon, 15 Feb 2010 11:22:29 -0800http://blog.chess.com/RC_Woods/my-250th-live-gameIn the game beneath I played an exchange french to ensure myself (being white) of open play. It is not known to be a very ambitious line, but I'm thinking it may suit my style better. After going for the exchange french I did play ambitious moves...http://blog.chess.com/RC_Woods/fire-on-the-boardTue, 09 Feb 2010 17:27:42 -0800http://blog.chess.com/RC_Woods/fire-on-the-board  Most chess players know there are three widely recognized stages in a chessgame, chronologically being: the opening middle game endgame Since the opening is where it all begins it seems sensible to start improving there, but many titled pl...http://blog.chess.com/RC_Woods/sexy-developmentTue, 09 Feb 2010 11:39:03 -0800http://blog.chess.com/RC_Woods/sexy-developmentAs you may have read in a recent article by kurtgodden on the value of chess pieces ("Is the queen worth 9.94 pawns?") pawns are usually regarded as the most expendable infantry. Most of us are also aware that in endgames, pawns usually decide th...http://blog.chess.com/RC_Woods/lethal-pawnsMon, 08 Feb 2010 03:40:06 -0800http://blog.chess.com/RC_Woods/lethal-pawnsIn the following Budapest Gambit my opponent played some minor inaccuries in the opening. These allowed me to get equality as black, and from there on to build some kingside pressure. Just when I was about to be chased back, I decided (after some...http://blog.chess.com/RC_Woods/my-best-sacrifice-so-farThu, 28 Jan 2010 19:39:21 -0800http://blog.chess.com/RC_Woods/my-best-sacrifice-so-farThe white rain's falling,roaring thunder breaks our peace. Has us take up arms of calling,darkly patient piece by piece. As they batter down,we pray for their crown, and in clashing say: "Miss one strike, fail to move as fast.To pawns and Ki...http://blog.chess.com/RC_Woods/playing-blackWed, 27 Jan 2010 09:30:19 -0800http://blog.chess.com/RC_Woods/playing-blackI played the following game as black on live chess (standard time controls) where I quite early on equalized after some opening inaccuracies by white. After a (decisive) blunder on my opponents side, I started to tear through his position with my...http://blog.chess.com/RC_Woods/deeper-tactics-and-defenseSun, 24 Jan 2010 05:52:02 -0800http://blog.chess.com/RC_Woods/deeper-tactics-and-defenseChess.com Themes One nice feature on Chess.com is that you can change its default appearance by selecting a theme suited to your taste. Some are provided by the webmaster (Standard Chess.com Themes), but with everyone free to create at least on...http://blog.chess.com/RC_Woods/chesscom-themesTue, 19 Jan 2010 19:30:39 -0800http://blog.chess.com/RC_Woods/chesscom-themesI played the following game at my local chess club yesterday. The time control was 2 hours for both players with no increments. During the opening (which was a bit odd anyway) the queens quickly left the board which usually means it is a bit hard...http://blog.chess.com/RC_Woods/bishop-pair-wins-the-gameTue, 12 Jan 2010 19:16:44 -0800http://blog.chess.com/RC_Woods/bishop-pair-wins-the-gameWinning the middlegame alone, as we all know, is not enough to win a chess game. While having the better position with a huge material advantage never hurts, more is required. "A decent endgame technique", I hear you say, but important as that is ...http://blog.chess.com/RC_Woods/time-pressure-killsSun, 10 Jan 2010 18:21:08 -0800http://blog.chess.com/RC_Woods/time-pressure-killsIn the following game I played the Budapest defense against 1. d4. It has been featured twice in articles of Silman, and it basically is a gambit. If white plays correctly then black has a lot of tactics and targets in return for the pawn (though ...http://blog.chess.com/RC_Woods/the-sad-king-in-budapestSun, 10 Jan 2010 06:48:54 -0800http://blog.chess.com/RC_Woods/the-sad-king-in-budapestI think the game below was one of the more interesting I played this week. My opponent was slightly stronger by rating but slipped in the opening and through some interesting tactics I reached what should be a clearly winning middlegame. In a sens...http://blog.chess.com/RC_Woods/winning-a-won-game2Fri, 08 Jan 2010 20:05:20 -0800http://blog.chess.com/RC_Woods/winning-a-won-game2This is a recent game under a 15 minute + 10 seconds time control. I have been having something of a bad streak lately, so I was happy to collect a nice win for a change. After a tense struggle in the opening black seems to be coming out just fine...http://blog.chess.com/RC_Woods/a-17-move-carnageSun, 27 Dec 2009 06:50:09 -0800http://blog.chess.com/RC_Woods/a-17-move-carnageOne pawn wins a game In this game between me and ag59 I faced a Queen's pawn opening. Usually these openings get me under pressure and this was no exception. In the post-mortem Fritz thought I was close to losing at some times but never quite the...http://blog.chess.com/RC_Woods/one-pawn-wins-a-gameTue, 15 Dec 2009 09:23:32 -0800http://blog.chess.com/RC_Woods/one-pawn-wins-a-gameWinning a tactical Sicilian This game was the second game between me and ag59. In the first he had opted for a Queen's pawn game (1.d4) and after being squeezed in the corner a bit I had managed to come out with a winning passer on the a-file. I...http://blog.chess.com/RC_Woods/winning-a-tactical-sicilanTue, 15 Dec 2009 08:34:34 -0800http://blog.chess.com/RC_Woods/winning-a-tactical-sicilan