English Chess Forum

Paul Dargan wrote:There's a much simpler method than the W-shape pattern normally taught using diminishing triangles, that makes much more intuitive sense - akin to electric fences and rooks, etc...

This video covers that way (the method of 'three triangles'):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PWZ7h2yrJME

Hi Colin - the Middx League rules currently state: "Unless the two players agree, before the start of the match, to adjourn or adjudicate, or one of the players is disabled, a quickplay finish shall be played." So I'd interpret that as meaning that a quickplay finish is not compulsory, but one of th...

I use the non-Flash on my PC, and ChessBomb if I want to see an engine running.

OK, if you're refusing to withdraw your defamatory statement, I'm not going to waste any more time in 'discussion' with you.

You've just changed the subject Roger.

The plan of playing an early h4 isn't mentioned in the book, later the author justified this omission by rubbishing the idea using general principles in the chesspub forum. I think a GM author would have preferred to demonstrate some concrete lines or suggestions rather than appeal to traditional p...

I can give an example. There's a book which advocates playing 1 .. g6, 2 .. Bg7 3 .. c5 against almost everything. Whilst the option by White of playing an early h4 is mentioned, it is rubbished on the general grounds of some rule about meeting action on the wings with moves in the centre. Hi Roger...

I found this info about the subject on the site http://www.vapestick.co.uk "Electronic cigarettes UK law does not regulate these devices as tobacco products, so you are completely free to smoke them in establishments where smoking has officially been banned. Of course, it is ultimately up to individ...

Apologies Loz - don't know how that happened, and I should have checked my preview more carefully, as I knew it was Richard I was quoting. All fixed now

Creating a GM norm tournament (and i don't know if that was a genuine aim of the Jersey organisers) requires a bit more than paying for a few GMs to turn up. In fact, if serious about creating a GM norm tournament there is as much, if not more, value in providing basic conditions to a few FMs/IMs t...

It's to be assumed that all strong players have studied rook endings, have studied isolated pawn positions, and so on. Where else, then, can they look for an edge? In 'Amateur to IM', Hawkins is of a different opinion: i.e. that most strong players can now develop a very high class opening repertoi...

Adam Raoof wrote:Out of interest why is this event not on the ECF calendar, when Guernsey is?

It's on the international calendar:
http://www.englishchess.org.uk/?page_id=21604

I find this an interesting discussion, because on the QC blog Jacob Aagaard recently said he recommends studying mostly middlegames and endgames (e.g. the Yusupov 9-volume series followed by the Grandmaster Preparation books) up to about 2300, and only spending a small fraction of time on opening st...

Nice blog Adam. The free Chess Microbase game player wth the in-built analysis engine works pretty well!

That's the thing: by the time a player reaches county strength, he doesn't need to be reminded of those "higher chess principles," which are rules of thumb, and have limited validity in any case. Just out of interest Ali, what does 'county strength' mean in terms of ECF grade? (Just so we're all th...