Using opening books to their full potential

Hello chess.com forum-readers,

Today I bought the book starting out: the modern authored by Nigel Davies.  I'm just beginning to read it, and it's full of notation - which I enjoy but can sometimes have a hard time keeping up with.  It goes over past games, scenarios, and other positions that could arise from 1... g6, the Modern Defense.

I think it's a really good book so far!  I'm not even 15 pages into it and I'm starting to learn a lot about the Modern Defense.

One problem.  How am I suppose to retain the plethora of information I'm being drowned in from this book?  How do all you guys use an opening book to its full potential so you can really understand the opening?  It might go over a line in the <insert variation here>, but how am I suppose to remember it?  Are there any chess exercises you all take yourselves through to help not only remember openings but apply their principles to other opening situations?

Thanks in advance,

photray94

If there is a skeleton of the variations presented in the back of the book (as they often are), learn from that, working up from basic knowledge of main lines.

The Modern for a beginning tournament player doesn't make much sense though,

no offense intended. I play the Modern at 1800 and lack knowledge of double

king pawn and double queen pawn openings, to my detriment I am sure. The

experience and lessons gained from playing them is essential. I'd stick with

Scotch, Giuoco, Petroff's, Queen's Gambit, etc. for quite a while before I

went over to hypermodern stuff. I only say this because you seem like a serious

student of our game. For someone who is just enjoying the game, I'd say do

and play whatever you like I guess. The latter category drop away with time so

what's the difference, but the hobbyist usually is around for decades. A good,

sound start to the game for them is worth something.

Don't just memorize the moves.  Find out why they are played, then you will have no problem remembering them.

The best way to learn your openings is to play here! Turn based chess is excellent in that you can consult your book before every move, in every game (until theory runs out). In this way you slowly memorize your openings.

Thank you goldendog, Zenchess, and ericmittens.  I think you have a really good point goldendog.  I'll go forth to study the more classical openings.  Though I'm 3 for 3 so far on live chess with the modern defense. :]

I like to play 2200+ players and see what works. Excellent way to see how moves can be punished.

So far, as opening moves go... I've found the following:

1. e4    This move simply doesn't work. i've lost 4 straight games with it.

1. d4    This move has been simply fruitless.

1. Nf3   I haven't gotten to move 25 with this move yet. Dump it.

1. c4    Only one try, I lost in 33 moves.

1. g4    The grob? Puhlease... mated in 16 moves.

1. b3   Actually I was trying to play Nc3 so I chalk this up to an opening blunder. Darn touch move. I lost.

So I haven't found my opening groove yet, but go ahead and chuck these opening moves right out the window. They don't work against 2200+ players.

I am truly winless against 2200+ players... but the problem MIGHT not be my opening move.

The problem may be that you're not ready to play 2200+ players.  Just because you lose with <insert opening here> doesn't mean it's horrible.

In the words of Fischer, "e4 I win!"  You sound extremely arrogant with your post just labeling off certain openings as useless, no offense oginschile.

He is joking!  There is no way he cannot be joking.

I hope so, otherwise he has some serious re thinking to do.

I do not mean to offend anyone - but I believe if you like to play Hypermodern openings then you should play Hypermodern openings. My theory is that you will do better if you play an opening that appeals to you and your sence of logic or even aesthetics. Chess games are won at the "end" of the game but they may be lost at the beginning. Study the end game. Pick an opening you like and play it alot. I play the Nimzo-Larsen Attack 1.b3 almost exclusively with white because I like it. With black I play the Modern/Hippo almost exclusively. A good book on the Modern is "Tiger's Modern" by Tiger Hillarp Perrson. Every now and then I venture into other openings to broaden my knowledge and to see what sort of positions arise and how they compare.

As a learning tool I downloaded a database program called Scid. It's free and you can find it here in the downloads section. Then you can download the games listed in your book and it makes a very nice and convienient way to browse through the games in your book(s) while reading the text. You can change the info in the [Event] and [Site] columns to reflect page # and/or game # and sort the database that way for quik reference.

I usually study particular variations as they arise in my online CC games. It's legal and you'll find that you are usually "out of book" in about five moves so it's not necessary to follow each game in your book to it's completion. But if you do - you'll come across an occasional beauty and pick up a few tricks. Study and learn the main variations for about ten moves or so

Right now there is a vote game (Classical vs Hypermodern) in which we are playing the Modern w/...a6. Come join us with the black pieces.

Another thing which I forgot to mention above is that the important information on each variation of an opening is usually explained at the start of each chapter before the illustrative games. If you go through the book and read the beginning of each chapter then you'll have a good overview. Then go back and play the illustrative games.

 And they say Americans have difficulty with sarcasm

If one is serious about the game then it is a mistake to avoid the kinds of positions that you are uncomfortable with. Imagine a 600 USCF player always closing the position because he's lost a lot and quickly in open games. Sound unwise? Well, the same applies to players a thousand points stronger. You are supposed to be establishing a sound foundation for future improvement. That serious student ought to--needs to--have a solid understanding of the kinds of positions that come from open games and closed games. You're not going to get far without it. Play reams of open games. Play reams of QGs. Hopefully with some superior players who can give you specific advice when the game is over. 99% of the value of playing chess at the early stage isn't about the win/loss, but what you are learning. (But hopefully win enough to not be discouraged from continuing with the game.)

Someone in another thread stated that there is no golden rule. If there is one

perhaps it is this: Work *hard* to spot your weaknesses and when you find one

confront it and work hard to turn it into a strength. The player that does that...you think he's going to be vastly superior to the guy who avoids the uncomfortable?

 Sorry to hijack the thread.  BUt, I have a hard time saving games on scid.  How do you do that.  I will try and save a game but when I come back it is gone. 

I have made this same mistake  When I was just starting out, I bought MCO 13th edition and I thought I'd be a chess supergenius in no time! Oops. My advice to an growing chess player... please please PLEASE study fundamentals first. My own experience in chess, as well as that of GM's like Seirawan, is that technical opening study can wait. Here is an exercise that I have done when I am studying chess that helped me see the path. When I would dive into that thick brick of MCO, it would gleefully inform me that 'black has a better game' or 'slight advantage to white'. Ok, well, I'm an 1153 USCF rated beginner (after my first tournament), so what does that mean to me? How do I apply that to my game? My question, the same question I seek the answer for today when I study is WHY? I'm not a dog, I'm not just going to chase the 'black is better' bone across the yard and follow the 'best' line. I demand to know why. My own quest for the answer lead me to study winning technique, i.e. endgames, checkmate patterns, middlegame study. In order to know what is 'winning', you have to know the actual winning technique, meaning this... what are the exact moves that end the game. When you study endgames and checkmate patterns, you learn the technique of 'white is winning'. From there, you will question HOW? Ok, so now I know what a win looks like, how do I get there? From this inquiry, I started studying the middlegame. I wanted to learn how to bring out the full potential power out of each of my pieces. By studying the pieces in isolation first, and then in combination, you will learn how to extract the maximum potential force out of them and how to overpower your opponents pieces and achieve technically won positions. So, if you made it to the end of this post, I beg of you please.... please put down that opening book and work on the fundamentals. You will be richly rewarded. Once you have that strong base, that opening book will be a raft in the ocean of chess, not a pair of cement shoes that drowns you.

My best advice is to pick an opening, and play it over and over again on this website.  Eventually you'll feel comfortable in it.  I'm still fairly new to chess and I had always played 1. e4 and I felt lost playing 1.d4 or playing against 1.d4.  So, I just played 1.d4 every new game as white for quite a while, and now I actually prefer it.  So basically, in sum, PRACTICE lol.

Instead of just trying to read a book from cover to cover, I think you should probably work on developing an opening repertoire.  Skim through trying to decide which variations look appealing to you, try these lines out in a few training games, and then look for "holes" in your repertoire i.e. lines that lead to a loss when your opponent plays the best possible moves.  Then look for improvements on the lines that are leading to trouble.

If you keep a record of your whole repertoire using a database such as Chessbase or Chess Assistant, then it will be easier to check your own games against it, and see which lines are leading to wins and which losses.  Then you can go to opening reference books or archives of grandmaster games looking for specific ideas that can help you.

For whatever it's worth, I had a pretty good chuckle.