Kids Chess Tips

How Do We Rate Ourselves With Computer Chess?

We do things purposively, either for our welfare of for others’. Even if it comes to games that we play, we count wins and loss. We always opt for the better. Is that why we succumb to ratings list?

Chess gamers agree at one thing – topping the list of grandmasters. It’s one way to prove that every game not just matters but is counted champion point. Ratings list is yet the proof of which the best player is, what the best computer game is or what is the most powerful or smartest chess computer ever. Fanatics look forward to the computer chess rating, be it annual, monthly, or weekly. When would it be in their wildest fancies to pay it forward?

When it comes to human players, it counts if we are so much like Kasparov and Anand or better than they are. We look at the list and wonder how it feels to be so honored and yet to play no human-to-human minds anymore. We salute Levy for making the ratings but might have despised him if he has lost against Chess 4.7. So did we ever do to Larsen, Kramnik and Adams or to Ehlvest, Dindzichasvili, and Milov. We got to idolize and opt for same victory.

FIDE adopted the “Elo” rating system as its own official benchmark. That is the rating system invented by Arpad Elo from Hungary. And, there are so many more. They all show the comparison between players’ relative strengths or chess computers’ or computer chess programs’ power. However, they are often not avenues for improvement but for change resulting to abuse. They just tend to tell probabilities of the next or future games and innovations.

For instance, there is a tournament for engines and from them will be chosen the strongest. And during the 2008 WCCC, Rybka won among Zappa (the winner in 2005) and many others. This prestige is used either for commercialization or marketing purposes.

The significant statistical measure of engine strengths is the aim to be provided by these chess engine rating lists. They do this by playing on their standard hardware platforms, thereby factoring out processor differences. Some factors pointed out are time control, the hardware used, operating system and processors; ponder settings, opening book settings and transposition table sizes.

Rating figures of computers or programs are calculated by combining computer results vs. graded players and computer vs. computer results. These are said to be able to analyze how battles matter between computers and between computer and humans.

Computer chess rating(s) has yet so much to say and it varies from how different people see it across the globe. If it’s either the top ranks of the most valuable super chess computers or the list of the invincible chess grandmasters, each chess fanatic or player has to decide what to act at.

After all, the choice is on the other players out there who did not make to the top, to achieve more or not. And also, it depends on the newest innovations on chess computers or programs. It’s either they upgrade their systems or remain at the bottom.

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Thursday, January 21st, 2010 Kids Chess Tips No Comments

Portable Computer Chess – Perfect for Chess Players on the Go

Portable computer chess is ideal for chess enthusiasts who are always on the go and those who are busy in their work. Busy people can play computer chess during office breaks or any time of the day that they have spare time. It is also perfect to bring along when you are travelling because it is handheld or you can just place it in your bag. Most advanced chess players do have portable computer chess wherever they go. Some of the portable chess include Mephistro Master, the Excalibur and the Novag are among the different models that you can choose.

If you are on the level of master players, you can choose the Mephistro Master that has a strong playing levels and good features. It is also ideal for travelling because it is just the size of a laptop that you can take it with you or even play at home. Mephistro has wide range of models from beginners to master level chess computer that you can choose. Features include set up modes and coaching ability as well as AC adapter. These are the top models in chess computers yet in low prices.

On the other hand, Novag has its own line of electronic chess computers. However, the chess pieces are made from beautifully carved Shishamwood with electronic chip implanted on it. The electronic chip enables the computer to recognize the move taken by the player. Novag also present an innovation of computer chess with high-speed program as well as robotic arm. The program can teach you play the game at the same time enhance your skills in chess.

The venue and environment should not be a hindrance for you to learn and play computer chess. With the latest innovation in chess, you have all the access to play the game. You can install software in your chess computer that will let you play against other people from other part of the world. Alternatively, you can also play live game against other player who is also online t the time of the game. Other option of playing computer chess is by playing against a player who is not online during the game or you can choose to play against the computer. Playing online allows you to choose opponent of your same level of skills or if you want to upgrade your skills, you can choose opponent who is superior to you. Doing so, will let you obtain and learn other techniques that you do not know yet. However, in playing a live game you have to complete the first game before you open another game. The losing playing should leave the game as well as when the time allotted is finished. You can also play correspondence chess in your portable computer chess. This kind of game does not entail time pressure.

There are computer chess programs that feature the game of famous chess grandmasters in tournaments. Having your own computer chess will enable you to practice more to improve your playing skills and upgrade your level.

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Monday, December 28th, 2009 Kids Chess Tips No Comments

How to make the most of chess strategies

Chess is a game which is full of tactics and strategies. Everyone playing chess won’t be a genius and who knows how to apply the strategy and tactics and at what time, will be a genius in chess. Mostly beginners won’t be a genius and they have to learn more tactics and strategies in chess. There are various chess strategies which they have to follow and learn to become a good chess player.

Before getting into chess strategies one should be strong in their basics such as the rules of the game, moves of each piece, and what is checkmate. After knowing all these they have to get into some of the tactics and strategies. Here are some of the strategies which the beginners must be get used to and also it could be used by the experienced players if needed.

• Take your own time before moving any pieces, this is the technique which has to be followed in each and every move, so that there won’t be any mistake in move.

• Castling has to be done whenever it is possible. Castling is the move done to safeguard your king by replacing king and rook, so that king is safer now.

• Keep at least three moves in mind so that the opponent could be handled easily.

• Pieces can be sacrificed only if you can wrap up the high value piece from the opponent otherwise don’t sacrifice your piece.

• Never sacrifice your Queen and even though bishop and knight are of same value always have your bishop at higher value than knight.

• Premature attacks must be avoided and take time to think of your move and play the game in an efficient manner.

• While moving pieces don’t advance on one side of your pieces, make sure all the pieces on your side are moved at a steady rate.

All these strategies will definitely help the beginners to play their game with confidence and also helps them to win the game.

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Sunday, December 6th, 2009 Kids Chess Tips No Comments

Game on: Playing online chess

There’s no doubting that strategic style games are much better than action or first person style games such as shooting and simulation games. Strategic games test you mentally and help increase your brain power and memory. These styles of games also help to develop and nurture a persons decision making abilities. There are many online chess games available that you can access and play completely free of charge. These online chess games are becoming increasingly popular because of their widespread availability and they ability they provide to play against people from all different parts of the world.

What’s the fuss about?

These virtual games can be played alone against a computerised opponent or against another human player from anywhere around the world. Another great advantage of playing online chess is that you can choose what level player you play against. In the event of the computer choosing your opponent it usually only assigns players of a similar experience so you can be a lot more assured of a fair game than you would be if you played against another player in person.

What are the advantages?

Chess is one of the kings of the strategy games and has been around for thousands and thousands of years. Thanks to technology and the internet playing chess is even easier and more convenient than ever before. When you play online chess you don’t need to worry about things such as a damaged board or lost chess pieces, both of which can ruin your game and your chess set. These items aren’t needed because your whole game is on the internet. Another great aspect is that you don’t have to have friend nearby to play against, there are thousands or even millions of online chess players so it’s certainly not hard to find someone to play against online.

Need help?

Many online chess games today also have a free tutorial feature which is a very helpful tool for those who are only new to the game. These tutorials will guide players through the rules and objectives of the game and will also detail every move made with an explanation as to why it was a good move in comparison to the other moves which may have been available. A bonus of a virtual tutor is that they are happy to repeat themselves if need be, they are friendly and because it’s a computer program or video it does not get impatient with you or annoyed when it has to repeat itself a few times.

As you learn more and gain more experience in your online chess games you can slowly ease yourself into playing against harder opponents at a higher difficulty level in order to improve perfect your game. Once you master the art of winning against these high level computerised players you can start to play against human players in both the online and offline world. The better your gaming skills get from playing online chess the more chances you will have at being victorious against real life players. The game of chess is great for the young and old alike and now that it can be played online it’s even more convenient than ever before.

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Friday, November 6th, 2009 Kids Chess Tips No Comments

Improve Your Game with Online Chess Coaching

Are you often struggling with your moves? Looking for a cost effective way to improve your game? Well, there’s nothing to fear of. It’s because online chess coaching is here to teach you everything about chess. No need to spend thousands of dollars in visiting chess schools. Just pay a reasonable amount using your paypal account and you do get what you pay for. As long as you have your own computer and internet connection, learning chess will no longer be a problem.

Actually, there are many ways to learn chess. The first one is by reading books. This way could be the cheapest yet the most difficult way. Perhaps, you will need to be a dedicated reader to understand it clearly. Besides, you will need to spend much of your time in reading books. Not to offend book publishers, but most of them are similar to math books which are really difficult to understand. And the second one is by playing chess games online. This could be a good idea. The only problem is the prices, its absolutely skyrocketing. There are free chess games, but the sad thing is that most of them are not that reliable. Some of them are loaded with ads and pop-ups. If you’re looking chess games for your kids, this sounds not good.

The only way that you can rely on at this moment is by getting a private coach online. Most chess coaches are international champions and grandmasters. If you want to get 100 percent improvement, this could be the best bet. As expected, you can start with the basic moves going to advanced tactics. Unlike chess programs out there, you will learn how to analyze your moves through game analysis. Chess coaching online focuses on chess openings and powerful strategies often used in the game such as chess openings and simple principles of chess. There’s no problem when it comes to location. It’s because chess coaching online usually takes place on the internet, through mails and chat boxes.

As for moms who want to engage their kids in playing chess, there are also a number of chess coaching devoted in teaching kids of all ages. Even if you can’t forced your kids to join huge tournaments, learning the game of chess will teach them several life skills such as tactical and logical thinking, self motivation, focus and problem solving. Likewise, your kids will also improve mathematical and speech ability. The question is, what age should you start teaching your kids? Well, even at the age of 2 children will surely love playing chess games. As you observe, many schools have included chess game in their curriculum. As moms, you can introduce to them the basics. Who knows? Maybe it will serve as their stepping stones of becoming an International Master someday.

Getting a private online coach is not that difficult. Actually there are popular sites that offer chess coaching like Yourchesscoarch and chessgames. You can take a visit with these sites if you want. But then, you can search for other reliable sites. Always remember that improving moves will not be learnt from reading books or playing chess games. The fast and easy way is to gain experience and to hire a private chess coach.

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Sunday, November 1st, 2009 Kids Chess Tips No Comments

Improving you mental abilities with chess

Many people play games both online and offline in order to amuse themselves and pass the time as well as playing for entertainment purposes. Seldom do some people realise though that these such games can actually be much more beneficial to them than just the odd entertainment and time killing. There are plenty of games around these days, with avenues to play them on such as playstations, computers, Xbox, wii’s and the general board games and online it comes as no surprise that there are millions of games worldwide to play. Many of the games we see today on the electronic platforms actually started out as a simple board game and progressed over time until the need to have the game available in more popular methods became more prevalent.

Name them

One of these games which is extremely entertaining as well as beneficial to those who play it is the game of chess. Chess can be played over the internet at many online chess rooms and also in person in the old fashioned chessboard game and even on many computer games as well as many other platforms. These days people can even download and access chess on their cellular phones. When you play online chess you can often select which difficulty level you would like to use when choosing an opponent or being dealt a computerised opponent.

What are the benefits?

One aspect of playing chess which is very beneficial is that it requires players to think not just of what is happening at the current time but to also think of things which may happen in the next few moves. This requires not only concentration and knowledge of the game but also an ability to focus on the board as a whole and as individual pieces rather than just your own pieces. Games such as this are somewhat a form of mental gymnastics, they are helpful to developing peoples mental skills in many ways no matter how young or old the person is.

Do you remember?

Playing chess whether in person or online chess, is a great way to improve your ability to focus on tasks at hand. For those people who find that their mind easily wanders and that staying on task is often difficult due to regular distractions the ability to improve their focus by playing chess is an absolute delight. Another great benefit to be gained by playing chess is the opportunity to improve the minds ability to recall. For anyone who finds themselves wondering where they left the keys to the house or what time they had booked that doctors appointment for, the ability to improve their memory skills whilst enjoying themselves is a very tempting one indeed.

To improve your memory by playing chess is free, these days thanks to technology you don’t even need to buy a chess set. There are many websites available on the internet which offer people the opportunity to play free online chess and the best part of this is that you can play anytime you like, twenty four hours a day seven days a week.

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Wednesday, October 14th, 2009 Kids Chess Tips No Comments

Free Computer Chess Online and Be a Top Chess Player

The evolution of man along with the technology, bring forth the development of computers and internet. Traditional books, games, etc. became part of the virtual world. The chess games which are played on traditional wooden board are now played on monitor screen in virtual reality with many variations of designs, colors, and animation of chess pieces and chess boards you can choose. Furthermore, chess games became more accessible to many chess players around the world. If they want to play chess, they will just look for a free computer chess game online, or look for an available human opponent to play against with. They can even play without leaving their room, or changing their clothes. Online computer chess is very beneficial to all the chess lovers in the world.

There are many chess websites in the internet that are popping everyday that offer chess playing with computer online or play with human opponent online. They established a community where players can be allowed to play for free and choose from those kinds of opponents. In this way, chess websites can attract many chess lovers to join their website for more chance of having potential customers for their chess products online. Chess players can enjoy more in playing with these websites because they can meet other chess players and discuss with them topics about chess.

The chess games are a very nice exercise for the human brain and well, no one can deny the excitement and fun it can bring to people. The online chess game is just the same because you can learn, practice, and play with different people without the need to travel or leave your room. Different opponent from the different country are available for game plays. If you can’t find a chess player that matches your skills and you want to play chess games online, you can always have the computer as your opponent. Computer chess online are always available so you can easily click it and play a game with your choice of settings. It would be a very good opponent for you.

You can find online the many chess websites that offer data bases in chess, chess opening books, online chess game practice mode, tutorials, loads of tips in chess games, and many other more that can help you enhance your knowledge in regards with the chess games. Furthermore, you can learn many great winning tricks or master the game in no time and develop your own chess strategy or recreate great combinations of movements.

Playing chess online can help your mind develop into thinking deep and thinking fast chess strategies and tactics that can give you advantages to win the game. You do not have to worry about paying money because they are absolutely free. You can enjoy without the need to think on how you are going to pay the website for the chess games you will play. It is really a great opportunity to have a free computer games online in today’s world when everything needs money.

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Friday, October 2nd, 2009 Kids Chess Tips No Comments

Want to test your chess skills? Play chess online

Chess is a thinking game that not only provides fun and entertainment to the player, but also challenges his brain and indirectly nurtures and trains his brain and mind. Similar to the physical exercises one person does to keep his bones and muscles fit, one can play the game of chess to exercise his brain and keep it fit, agile, sharp and healthy.

Brain is one part of our body with billions of neurons capable of guiding our body to do wonderful things in life through the mind. The unique feature of this brain is that the more you use it, the more it will be helpful. If you do not use the brain, you naturally lose the benefit of the brain. One ideal exercise for the brain is to play chess regularly and enhance your expertise in the game.

Though there are only 64 squares in the board, the opportunities and the challenges that the squares or the board itself provides to a chess player is innumerable. The game of chess is both a science and an art, and mastering this unique game that challenges the mind is the most fascinating and also difficult one.

It is in this context the contribution of the technology and the importance of playing chess online comes to the picture.

Many of us, having not heard of online chess or experimented with online chess, would have played chess with friends, relatives or other persons for the sake of fun and excitement. Depending upon the opponent, you might have ended up winning all the time or losing all the time. Chess is mostly viewed as a game played for fun. But, chess has invaluable lessons to offer for life. If we understand the game and realize the importance of it, then many of us will definitely give more importance to this game.

Knowing where you stand in the level of expertise is one way of motivating yourself to play the game more often and develop the passion for the game. For example, if I were to say you that your rating, depending upon your skill set, is 1100, and that of your friend or a relative is 1500, then obviously you will be enthused to achieve the rating of 1500 or more. How do you know your rating? Playing game in the conventional way with friends and relatives might not provide you with the means for knowing your rating on the game.

It is here that the contribution of online chess comes to the fore. Many online chess sites provide means to rate your game depending upon the basic skill set. If you describe yourself as a novice or a beginner, the online chess site assigns you some basic rating of say, 700, or so and assign that rating to you. Depending upon the number of games you play and win or draw, your rating will be calculated and assigned. If you lose a game, your rating will come down automatically.

This numeric barometer of the level of expertise will help you gauge your knowledge in the game. The more you play and win, the higher will be your rating. As you grow up the ladder of rating and get more points, the level of expertise will increase. From a novice or beginner, you will upgrade yourself to an expert.

The ideal way to improve in the game of chess is to select partners having more experience than you, play with them, and try to win a game over them or at best try to settle of a draw. If you constantly try to play with more experienced players and get reasonable success in settling for a draw, you are bound to gain more experience than by playing with beginners or players having similar skill set as you have.

How to choose an experienced player in online chess when you do not know who they are? It is here the rating comes to the picture. If you manage to enhance your rating from say, 700 to 1350, then you can look for a player having a rating of 1400 in the online chess site and virtual chess room, and invite him to play a game with him online.

In this way, playing chess online not only helps in understanding one’s own level of expertise or where he stands, and also paves way for improving the rating. This urge to improve the rating will make him or her play more often and enhance his rating. This is possible only through online chess. Let us exploit this wonderful concept of online chess and prosper in our qualitative way of living.

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Thursday, September 10th, 2009 Kids Chess Tips No Comments

Four simple steps to improve chess skills

Chess is one game in the world that can be compared with the life. The battle between the two kings in the board of chess is akin to the battle faced by a person in his day-to-day life with the opponent called Time. This unique similarity with the life and the challenges the game poses to a person’s mind is the primary reason for the worldwide popularity for this game, which, first played earlier in the 6th century AD is still very popular and would be there as long as humanity exists in this universe.

Many of us realize the importance of the game of chess and out of curiosity, learn the game with great interest and enthusiasm. Mere learning the game will not be sufficient to explore the depth of the game. One needs to gain expertise in the game, practice more, learn and implement new strategies and tactics in order to gain control over the board. It is here that many of us lack the strength or will power, and having failed to win the games in the early days, get dejected and fade out without becoming masters in the game.

Practice makes perfect – this saying fits for this game as well. One needs to play more number of games, learn from the mistakes and ensure that such mistakes do not recur – to gain expertise in the game. Playing with a same partner or just a group of players might not help you gain expertise, as you tend to anticipate the routine approach of the opponent. One needs to play more number of games with different kinds of players to gain expertise. How is this possible in this fast-paced world where finding a partner to play the game and allocating specific time for the game is becoming next to impossible for many of us? It is here the boon of Online Chess and Computer chess comes to our rescue. Thanks to the advancement of the technology and the patronage of our computer engineers, playing chess has been made much easier through the concept of online chess. Anybody with a computer and Internet connectivity can learn the game of chess, and start playing the game either with the computer or with other players available in dedicated online chess sites.

Each player or novice in the game should know and master chess vocabulary. The common concepts like castling, check, checkmate, enpassant, mobility, material, and such other concepts that are frequently used in the game of chess should be learnt and understood by the player. Knowledge of these concepts, their meaning and the importance will make it easy for the player to understand what is mentioned in the tons of books and material available on the game of chess. Without understanding the concept, there is no point in reading chess books written by grandmasters and experts in the game.

The game of chess typically has three distinct stages entwined together. The three stages are the opening game or opening stage, the middle game and the end game. It follows the same order. As a novice, one should understand each stage and should appreciate the difference and importance of each stage. A thorough understanding of the end game, especially the various strategies deployed in the end game, will help a player realize the importance of each piece in a better way. Typically, in the end game, the number of active pieces in the board will be relatively less and more open spaces. How the pieces move around, deploy effective tactics and corner the opponent king, or instead safeguard the king from opponent’s onslaught – all these are part of the endgame and one should take special efforts to learn the intricacies of the end game. A better understanding of the endgame will help a person gain expertise in the game.

The fascinating part of the game is the middle one, where each player, having laid the foundation work of opening up the pieces and occupying the strategically vital points, will deploy tactics and strategies to weaken the opponent and gain material advantage.

As a novice, one needs to play more games with different kinds of players, using the power of Online Chess, learn the chess vocabulary, and understand as well as appreciate the different stages of the game. Reading more chess-related books and trying to play out grandmasters’ games also will help in fast tracking the learning process.

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Thursday, September 3rd, 2009 Kids Chess Tips No Comments

Good Chess Openings For

Chess openings are the term used to describe the start of the game. This move is vital because this is the one which will set the tone for the rest of the game. Grandmasters are known to devote their time just to study different kinds of good openings for the improvement of the game and to come up with the right strategy. This article will discuss some of the most important phases of the game ofchess.

The first move would highly define the possibilities of the game. As a rule, the white should start first and the most common move would be to move the pawn in the frontal position two spaced forwards and then move the pawn in the frontage of the king two spaces going forward. Basically, there are other possibilities for the white although they are not really common. If you go for one of these two moves, you will be defining the possibilities of the opening for the Black. Expect that the Black can merely play certain opening strategies in order to respond to various moves by the white due to the fact that each opening would vary on various sequences of the moves. The moment when the white started the move, the Black will be given the chance to respond.

The game will progress; both the White and the Black will continue to play the game while each player would try to do their best to restrict their opponents from the possibility of winning. Both the black and the white must learn various chess opening strategies for them to be prepared for each possibility of the game. After some time, the game will go out from the shell of established opening theory in order for the player to simply play the game of chess without any rule attached.

The good chess opening for novice may vary. In fact, it may even be hard for a new player to decide which opening to use and which one to learn. However, there are ways to make the process of ‘learning’ easier. One of the many approaches is to view a certain website regarding chess games and try to watch the games done by grandmasters. Keep in mind that certain players will have certain openings hence it will be right for you to at least learn something from the expert. Just continue to learn from the expert and the moment when you felt the admiration from one player, you will somehow learn how to emulate their skills. A simple browse in the web will allow you to come to the right website about chess which contains the right database of the games and the details regarding the sequences of varied openings. Now, if you would like to take your studies into the next level then you will be happy to know that there are various books written by grandmasters, some of them may come in a form of an ebook which is cheaper because they will be delivered to one’s email.

Wednesday, August 26th, 2009 Kids Chess Tips No Comments