Team Match Tips

Team Match Tips

• Please join Team Matches only if you intend to play and not time out.  Unlike personal games, Team games affect your fellow employees. Timing out has a greater demoralizing effect than simply losing. It implies lack of effort or caring. 
• Use your time wisely.  Similar to a Vote Chess game, spend your 1st day on considering all potential candidates. (Search wide before deep.) On the 2nd day analyze variations, consider your opponent's possible replies, and discard and narrow down your candidates. (Search deep after searching wide.)  Finally, on the 3rd day recheck your calculations and make your move.
• The time factor cannot be sufficiently stressed.  Recall that correspondence chess is not a sprint race with the quickest doing the best (like Bullet or Blitz).  Correspondence chess is a marathon.  Those who use their chess skills and resources wisely ultimately do best.  There is no "extra credit" for moving quickly and hastily.  The race goes to the one who has made the best moves not the fastest.  In turn, you can only find the best moves if you take your time.
• The use of databases and other reference materials (including books, websites, compact discs, etc.) may be used for all phases of the game including the opening and the endgame.  However, do NOT use a computer engine to play or computer endgame tablebases!  Chess.com has strict rules concerning cheating and they will close your account permanently for doing so.  KIA inc. adheres firmly to company policies and has zero tolerance for cheating as well. 
• What if you lose your games honestly?  That is well within acceptable parameters.  We participate in Team Matches for the purpose of engaging in the learning process.  Losing is an integral and important part of that process.

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  These additional suggestions were submitted by another member, zirtoc, in a different group. 

"Tip #1: Analyze!

When I first saw this button in a game, I thought it was for computer assistance or something.  If this is you, then rest assured that it's for the player to play out moves on a board, and has nothing to do with computer analysis.  Clicking on it will give you the current position, and then you can try out sample lines.  Extremely handy.

Tip #2: Copy and Paste the Moves

When I find a line that I think might happen in the game with Analyze, I click on 'Current' to get back to the current position.  Then I highlight and copy the moves I just made (Control+C) and click on the 'Notes' tab.  Then I paste the line into the notes (Control+V) and save it.  Sometimes I'll save two or three lines this way, so I'm ready for different moves by the opponent.  Just make sure the main match window has it saved also before you make your move, or you might lose your notes.

Tip #3: Explore!

I discovered early on with chess.com that I could go to Learn->Game Explorer and look through a database to find positions.  But weirdly, I never bothered to click on the 'Explore' button in a match until just recently.  It actually lists all games in the database at your current position.  This is available from both the main match window and the Analyze board.

Press those buttons!"

Live long and prosper KIA inc.