Hello Fellow Beginner's Corner Readers,

Let me preface by saying I am light years from any teaching ability whatsoever. I'm ~1000 on ICC. I can't help but notice though that there are often posts from players who are starting out or a beginner such as myself who are looking to improve. I'd like to share how I started. Hopefully this will help.

I started with Chessmaster (10th edition). The Chessmaster series is a great place to start. Then after that Chessmaser has the Josh Waitzkin Academy which is great. All the while playing games (and losing a lot, but learning).

I also did all the puzzles in Susan Polgar's "A World Champion's Guide to Chess". Now I do the puzzles in "Chess Tactics for Champions" and Dan Heisman's "Back To Basics:Tactics" book. The only other thing i read is Novice Nook on chess cafe (great Archives also). And that is it. No openings or strategy study.

Hope that helps..

-Tom

Sounds like you're off to a good start. You didn't mention the most important thing that any player can do to improve, though, so I'm going to point it out to you. Maybe you're already doing it, but if not, you should definitely start.

Study your own games! After the game's over, go through it to see what you did wrong. Try to find your own mistakes. For instance, if your opponent got in a tactical shot, back up the position a couple of moves to determine not only what you could have done to block it, but also what in the position should have clued you in that it was coming. If you can, double check your analysis with a stronger player or chess program, but try to analyze it yourself first.

--Fromper

Fromper - Yes I do that, but no where near as often as I would like. I play thru the games in Chessmaster and use the advice option

thx
Tom

Hi Tom,

It sounds like you're on the right track! The Novice Nook column is an excellent place to get your bearings when starting out. It sounds like you're focusing your "book study" time on tactics, which is also a great place to start.

Here's a suggestion that might help out. As you get more comfortable, consider playing longer games (G30, G60, or longer). Nothing beats long games / analysis when it comes to improvement. I'd also suggest joining your local chess club (if it is convenient, and you are in an urban centre that can support a chess club). This is the best way to meet people who share your passion - and get some friendly, over the board experience.

I also find it far easier to find willing opponents for long games playing in an organized club than playing on ICC or FICS.

Thanks JSeeds ... Great Advice

Also, you say that you use the advice button on chess master. You can get Rybka 2.2n2 for free. Just google it.