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Very Hot Topic (More than 25 Replies) Improvement as a strong player (Read 12962 times)
TopNotch
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Re: Improvement as a strong player
Reply #31 - 07/01/20 at 18:13:25
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Jupp53 wrote on 07/01/20 at 11:21:28:
TopNotch wrote on 06/30/20 at 19:52:41:
LordChaos21 wrote on 06/29/20 at 07:19:04:
Thanks TopNotch, I will try. But the main problem without a coach to help is in analysis - I find it very difficult to analyze games, positions and so on without a second opinion (and I don't think an engine can provide this).


Indeed, I have the same problem very often and there really is no simple solution to this other than maybe trial and error.


Finding someone of about equal strength and analyzing together helps expressing and questioning your thoughts to develop better understanding.


If it's possible then for sure I agree.
  

The man who tries to do something and fails is infinitely better than he who tries to do nothing and succeeds - Lloyd Jones Smiley
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Jupp53
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Re: Improvement as a strong player
Reply #30 - 07/01/20 at 11:21:28
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TopNotch wrote on 06/30/20 at 19:52:41:
LordChaos21 wrote on 06/29/20 at 07:19:04:
Thanks TopNotch, I will try. But the main problem without a coach to help is in analysis - I find it very difficult to analyze games, positions and so on without a second opinion (and I don't think an engine can provide this).


Indeed, I have the same problem very often and there really is no simple solution to this other than maybe trial and error.


Finding someone of about equal strength and analyzing together helps expressing and questioning your thoughts to develop better understanding.
  

Medical textbooks say I should be dead since April 2002.
Dum spiro spero. Smiley
Narcissm is the humans primary disease.
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TopNotch
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Re: Improvement as a strong player
Reply #29 - 06/30/20 at 19:52:41
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LordChaos21 wrote on 06/29/20 at 07:19:04:
Thanks TopNotch, I will try. But the main problem without a coach to help is in analysis - I find it very difficult to analyze games, positions and so on without a second opinion (and I don't think an engine can provide this).
Does anyone know any sources for studies to solve? And thanks Stigma and Jupp for the suggestions!


Indeed, I have the same problem very often and there really is no simple solution to this other than maybe trial and error.
  

The man who tries to do something and fails is infinitely better than he who tries to do nothing and succeeds - Lloyd Jones Smiley
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ErictheRed
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Re: Improvement as a strong player
Reply #28 - 06/29/20 at 14:51:25
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I'm not really strong enough to know for certain, but I would think that Dvoretsky's books would be excellent. Positional Play, Secrets of Chess Tactics, Endgame Manual, etc.
  
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an ordinary chessplayer
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Re: Improvement as a strong player
Reply #27 - 06/29/20 at 11:34:27
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Stigma mentioned some good books with studies. The best value is van der Heijden's Endgame Study Database, formerly from ChessBase but now at http://hhdbv.nl/.
  
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LordChaos21
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Re: Improvement as a strong player
Reply #26 - 06/29/20 at 07:19:04
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Thanks TopNotch, I will try. But the main problem without a coach to help is in analysis - I find it very difficult to analyze games, positions and so on without a second opinion (and I don't think an engine can provide this).
Does anyone know any sources for studies to solve? And thanks Stigma and Jupp for the suggestions!
  
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TopNotch
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Re: Improvement as a strong player
Reply #25 - 06/28/20 at 18:16:40
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LordChaos21 wrote on 06/28/20 at 02:46:22:
@TopNotch I do work with opening books - those are the only books I work with. Eg - I have done the Avrukh books in full as well as the Grunfeld book by ChessStars. I have never used any other books though. My coach used to provide me with plenty of studies, and we used to analyze a lot of games - my own and strong GMs (eg - I have almost every important Kramnik, Karpov and Rubinstein game analyzed on my own). Combined this with openings and tactics online.


Sounds like an excellent regimen, you just need to stay in shape and up to date.
  

The man who tries to do something and fails is infinitely better than he who tries to do nothing and succeeds - Lloyd Jones Smiley
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trw
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Re: Improvement as a strong player
Reply #24 - 06/28/20 at 16:53:20
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I didn't mean to start a war or take sides... I was just pointing out that I have run into this specific problem several times in actual conversation with players - specifically GMs.

an ordinary chessplayer wrote on 06/28/20 at 15:23:44:

In my mind there will always be an asterisk. (Wait, are we talking five books, or twelve?)



100% pretty much always have that asterisk when I am talking to GMs about those books.
  
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an ordinary chessplayer
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Re: Improvement as a strong player
Reply #23 - 06/28/20 at 15:23:44
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I'm actually not with me on this one. When I use "My Great Predecessors", I want to use it in the same way that the other person understands. If they take it to mean 12 books, that's fine. If they take it to mean five books, that's okay as well. I assumed five, trw assumed 12, and there was a bit of a mismatch. But I hope we are getting it sorted out.

In my mind there will always be an asterisk. (Wait, are we talking five books, or twelve?)
  
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Stigma
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Re: Improvement as a strong player
Reply #22 - 06/28/20 at 08:02:42
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trw wrote on 06/28/20 at 02:53:58:
an ordinary chessplayer wrote on 06/27/20 at 23:22:31:
@trw - TopNotch and LeeRoth both specifically referred to Kasparov's My Great Predecessors series, of which there were five. If you were including other Kasparov books, you should have said so.



Sorry but every GM I talk to when they refer to Great Predecessors series they aren't referring to just those 5 but to all 12 volumes. Very few people actually separate out the 12 volumes by just the title of the first 5 books.

Six of those books are on Kasparov's own games. Obviously he's not his own predecessor. I'm with an ordinary chessplayer on this.
  

Improvement begins at the edge of your comfort zone. -Jonathan Rowson
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Re: Improvement as a strong player
Reply #21 - 06/28/20 at 07:28:58
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There is a bundle by Everyman called "The Complete Kasparov Collection" which consists of all 12 books.
  
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an ordinary chessplayer
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Re: Improvement as a strong player
Reply #20 - 06/28/20 at 06:40:12
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Good to know, I'll keep that in mind the next time someone mentions "My Great Predecessors". But thinking the other way is not just me. If you buy My Great Predecessors "The Complete Set" from Everyman or from Amazon, you get five books.
  
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trw
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Re: Improvement as a strong player
Reply #19 - 06/28/20 at 02:53:58
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an ordinary chessplayer wrote on 06/27/20 at 23:22:31:
@trw - TopNotch and LeeRoth both specifically referred to Kasparov's My Great Predecessors series, of which there were five. If you were including other Kasparov books, you should have said so.



Sorry but every GM I talk to when they refer to Great Predecessors series they aren't referring to just those 5 but to all 12 volumes. Very few people actually separate out the 12 volumes by just the title of the first 5 books.
  
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LordChaos21
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Re: Improvement as a strong player
Reply #18 - 06/28/20 at 02:46:22
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@TopNotch I do work with opening books - those are the only books I work with. Eg - I have done the Avrukh books in full as well as the Grunfeld book by ChessStars. I have never used any other books though. My coach used to provide me with plenty of studies, and we used to analyze a lot of games - my own and strong GMs (eg - I have almost every important Kramnik, Karpov and Rubinstein game analyzed on my own). Combined this with openings and tactics online.
  
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an ordinary chessplayer
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Re: Improvement as a strong player
Reply #17 - 06/27/20 at 23:22:31
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@trw - TopNotch and LeeRoth both specifically referred to Kasparov's My Great Predecessors series, of which there were five. If you were including other Kasparov books, you should have said so.
  
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