Help me please ! - Chess Forums

daxypoo

Jul 28, 2019

0

#1

here is what i would recommend

get a tactics book
either physical copy or an online resource book that is geared for “beginner tactics” (dont be swayed by “beginner” in chess- many “beginner” books are useful for players into class a territory)

start working on the chess puzzles in the tactics book

familiarize yourself with john bartholomew’s “chess fundamentals” and “climbing the ratings ladder” series on youtube

start playing games (at the absolute least at 15/10 and better yet 30 min and even better than that- otb tournament games at classical time controls)

after a game it is important to go over your game, move by move, note any feelings, ideas, fears/worries, etc.

try to realize critical moments in the game and where a game was either won or lost
——
because i use chess.com app i needed an ios database app to allow me to copy my online games and paste them into the database app where i can make all the notes, annotations, and variants (getting this really helped in itself because i could organize games by “white” “black” “wins” losses” - whatever)
——

after going through the game like this i would go over it again with the software’s chess engine turned on; doing this after my first analysis keeps me from being influenced by engine as i make annotations and variants; the second analysis with engine allows me to blunder check (you will know a blunder happens when the “strength meter” makes a sudden jump of, usually, +/-2.0 or more (the two representing material worth two pawns)

after seeing a blunder then scroll back and see how the circumstances arose that led to blunder and how play afterwards was affected (many times both players will miss a blunder and not be affected by it)

really try to understand the what, where, why, and how of these blunders

after all of this you could play another game though quality is much better than quantity

try this for awhile and see where you are after a few months

***(when i started it was the post game analysis that really provided the most benefit)

****chess.coms tactics are ok but if you really want to get most bang for your buck a good tactics book with really good puzzles going over the motifs and themes and gradually becoming more complex really helped me more

RussBell

Jul 28, 2019

0

#2

Study the topics listed at the very beginning of the following article...i.e., opening principles, tactics, endgame, and finally positional concepts and techniques of chess...

Good Chess Books for Beginners and Beyond...

https://www.chess.com/blog/RussBell/good-chess-books-for-beginners-and-beyond

kindaspongey

Jul 28, 2019

0

#3

"... for those that want to be as good as they can be, they'll have to work hard.
Play opponents who are better than you … . Learn basic endgames. Create a simple opening repertoire (understanding the moves are far more important than memorizing them). Study tactics. And pick up tons of patterns. That’s the drumbeat of success. ..." - IM Jeremy Silman (December 27, 2018)
https://www.chess.com/article/view/little-things-that-help-your-game

https://www.chess.com/article/view/how-to-start-out-in-chess
https://www.chess.com/news/view/a-new-years-resolution-improve-your-chess-with-new-lessons

Thee_Ghostess_Lola

Jul 28, 2019

0

#4

Study French Grandmaster games....esp ur hometwon fav's - MVL's. That will help u the fastest & most.

Nwap111

Jul 28, 2019

0

#5

Daxypoo said everything I would say, with one exception. Try the woodpecker method, an idea of a master, not mine. You get a tactics book, with simple tactics in it and go over and over the same tactics, like a woodpecker. It works. The goal is to develop pattern recognition. There are two good books that cover this topic, but I think you get the idea.

KingSonicTheChessHedgehog

Jul 28, 2019

0

#6

yup

eheadsfan

Jul 29, 2019

0

#7

i see that you are playing 5 minutes blitz. for new player it is not recommended as you will develop bad habits and you will learn better at longer time control. at minimum, try playing at 15 minutes.

kindaspongey

Jul 29, 2019

0

#8

"... Sure, fast games are fine for practicing openings (not the most important part of the game for most players) and possibly developing decent board vision and tactical 'shots', but the kind of thinking it takes to plan, evaluate, play long endgames, and find deep combinations is just not possible in quick chess. … for serious improvement ... consistently play many slow games to practice good thinking habits. ... I know that a large percentage of my readers almost exclusively play on the internet - after all, you are reading this on the internet, right!? But there is a strong case for at least augmenting internet play with some OTB play, whether in a club or, better yet, a tournament. ... I would guess that players who have never played OTB usually gain 50-100 points of playing strength just from competing in their first long weekend tournament, assuming they play five or more rounds of very slow chess. ... Don't have two day? Try a one-day quad (a round-robin among four similarly rated players). How often should you play? … about 100 slow games a year is a reasonable foundation for ongoing improvement. ... Can't make 100? Then try for 60. If you only play three or fewer tournaments a year and do not play slow chess regularly at a club (or on-line, where G/90 and slower play is relatively rare), then do not be surprised that you are not really improving. ..." - NM Dan Heisman (2002)

https://web.archive.org/web/20140627052239/http://www.chesscafe.com/text/heisman16.pdf

Caesar49bc

Jul 30, 2019

0

#9

Bobby Fischer Teaches Chess

That book set the standard for introducing tactics to absolute beginners.

Nwap111

Jul 30, 2019

0

#10

This is a very good book to use the woodpecker method I mentioned above.

Caesar49bc

Jul 31, 2019

0

#11

Kindaspongey is right about openings, at your level anyway.

You should get a beginner's book on openings though, just to get a feel for how to play openings, and to avoid some of the opening traps that are popular with beginners.

Nwap111

Jul 31, 2019

0

#12

Learn tactics first. Learn opening principles,first.

Caesar49bc

Jul 31, 2019

0

#13

Nwap111 wrote:

Learn tactics first. Learn opening principles,first.

A good book on openings for beginners will explain opening principles and use various openings to explain why the moves validate opening principles.

I found that most beginners don't understand the dynamics of opening priciples without examples explained with at least some detail.

One of the problems with people posting on forums for beginners to learn opening principles is that without some structure to their learning, they just end up trying to memorize a list of the opening principles.

Not to mention that some of the opening principles only exist for absolute beginners that have no opening knowlege whatsoever.

Something as inane like telling a beginner not to trade a central pawn for a flank pawn only makes sense when you have 2 absolute beginners playing each other and have zero ability to properly read a chess board and incapable of seeing past 3 ply, and often only looks 2 ply ahead.

KeSetoKaiba

Jul 31, 2019

0

#14

In this forum, as well as glancing through other forums on chess.com, you can learn a lot from the advice. At a beginning level I'd recommend tactics, simple puzzles, and learning some basic theoretical endgames; you can worry about studying openings, traps, and positional ideas much later on in your chess journey. Many beginners make the mistake of trying to learn openings first and learn chronologically; the opposite is probably best! Learning the endgame motifs first (then middlegame and then openings) and reverse engineering chess is ironically more efficient in my opinion; a beginner doesn't yet have the skills to properly handle long calculation and opening theory memorization that opening study requires.

Some really basic endgames to learn well would be something like: King & Queen vs King, or King & Rook vs King. Then you can move onto endings like: 2 Bishops & King vs King, or King & pawn vs King (pawn endings can be extremely basic or very complex based on how the position is set up).

Once you get much better at chess, you can then post where you are at then and I'm sure the forums will give more advice specific to that level of chess. Hope this helps springboard your chess adventure

Parane

Jul 31, 2019

0

#15

My suggestion is to play games first and study books after.

Nwap111

Jul 31, 2019

0

#16

play games first. A beginner can see the mistakes he makes that lose games. Really good advice on these forums for learning opening principles, ie don 't move onto a unsafe square or move a piece under attack by a pawn.

kindaspongey

Jul 31, 2019

0

#17

"... In order to maximize the benefits of [theory and practice], these two should be approached in a balanced manner. ... Play as many slow games (60 5 or preferably slower) as possible, ... The other side of improvement is theory. ... This can be reading books, taking lessons, watching videos, doing problems on software, etc. ..." - NM Dan Heisman (2002)
https://web.archive.org/web/20140627084053/http://www.chesscafe.com/text/heisman19.pdf

"... If it’s instruction, you look for an author that addresses players at your level (buying something that’s too advanced won’t help you at all). This means that a classic book that is revered by many people might not be useful for you. ..." - IM Jeremy Silman (2015)
https://www.chess.com/article/view/the-best-chess-books-ever

It might be of interest to look at the table of contents of A COMPLETE CHESS COURSE by Antonio Gude: "... 3 Openings and Basic Principles 33 ... 4 Putting Your Pieces to Work 52 ... 5 Strategy and Tactics 76 ... 6 Endgame Play and Further Openings 106 … 7 Combinations and Tactical Themes 128 ... 8 Attacking Play 163 ... 9 Your First Opening Repertoire 194 …"
http://www.gambitbooks.com/pdfs/A_Complete_Chess_Course.pdf

DanielGuel

Jul 31, 2019

0

#18

Tactics, tactics, tactics. Practice, practice, practice.

KeSetoKaiba

Jul 31, 2019

0

#19

yakuza_ronin wrote:

I can understand the advice to play alot. By for myself it's just frustrating to be hopelessly clubbed like a baby seal and then embarassing to see my blunders in post analysis. Trying to find that balance myself between learning theory, grinding tactics, reading annotated master games to playing whole games versus strangers carrying big clubs.

Learning chess this way is a challenge, no doubt - especially mentally. The process seems less daunting when I try to make everything I can a learning process; losing games (especially to "strangers carrying big clubs" [if they are truly strong chess players]) can be a great source for learning. In chess, the real "blunders" are usually a bit more hidden to the untrained eye and are typically several moves before the move the computer calls a "blunder." One key about chess learning is identifying not only the mistakes, but also what causes them, so you can prevent them in the future.

For example: let us say that on move 10 you blunder your Queen. Obviously the computer tells you that hanging the Queen was the "blunder" but is it really what lead up to that position? Chances are that your position was already crumbling and the hanging piece was just a collapse; perhaps you didn't develop your pieces effectively, or perhaps you brought the Queen out too early. These are the kinds of things to note, so that you can identify and prevent repeating blunders in future games. Playing strong players can help you a lot, but even more so if they are kind and willing to share their own thoughts. Loses are likely best learning experiences, yet ironically is that opponent's are more willing to give you their insights on games they win - so they are more likely to help you in games that will teach you the most.

kindaspongey

Jul 31, 2019

0

#20

yakuza_ronin wrote:

I can understand the advice to play alot. By for myself it's just frustrating to be hopelessly clubbed like a baby seal and ...

Is most of the seal feeling coming in Blitz games? I think that that format is particularly favorable to those with more experience. Because of the way that Swiss system tournaments work, I think that participants are likely to have more of the clubber experience instead of just being the clubbie all the time.