IS THERE A DIFFRENCE

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Avatar of chessmaster102

Is there a diffrence between an active position and just developing or are they the same.

Avatar of Ziryab

No.

Development is a vague catch-all. It works as shorthand for concrete ideas, and most players understand it, but it is difficult to define in practical terms.

Avatar of Biarien

I would say that yes, there is a difference.  Speaking abstractly, playing Be2 is a developing move (it gets the bishop off the back rank, enables castling, and allows the bishop to come to two diagonals instead of just one), but playing Bc4 or Bb5 is (generally) more active.  From c4, the bishop targets the f7 square. From b5, the bishop often threatens a knight on c6.  From e2, the bishop doesn't have as much activity.  Maybe I'm missing something, but I would say you can develop your pieces passively or actively.  But of course you can't have an active position with no development. And sometimes less active development is necessary, so it's not inherently bad or anything.