Timeforchess.com Rating
FICS Rating
Chess Tactics Server Rating
12/31/2005
12/28/2005
Bloggers Square off
So a couple of you guys decided to take me up on the challenge and play a game with me. So in tribute to them I thought I would post the games, and if you play through the .PGN viewer you can see what crafty had to say about a few of the crucial positions.
In the first game St. Patzer tries to get me with a cheapshot.
black to move
Then Josh plays a pretty strong opening, but goofs up a bit and lets me run his girl ragged while I develop.
White to Move
Big thanks for the games guys, and remember if you want to play me either live on FICS or on timeforchess.com post here.
In the first game St. Patzer tries to get me with a cheapshot.
black to move
Then Josh plays a pretty strong opening, but goofs up a bit and lets me run his girl ragged while I develop.
White to Move
Big thanks for the games guys, and remember if you want to play me either live on FICS or on timeforchess.com post here.
12/26/2005
Personal Chess Trainer
So I recieved my license code for Personal Chess Trainer today and as I have posted before I intend to use it for the circles starting on New Year's Day. The trouble is, how exactly will I work it.
Personal Chess Trainer has 6 Tactics Modules, 51 Units per module and roughly 90 (some have 60) Excercises per unit. Which gives you about 27000 excercises, using roughly 5000 unique problems. MDLM calls for 1000 problems starting with easy, ending at OMG HARD and doing them 7 times.
PCT is set up to begin at mate in 1, and move to hard, but the 27000 excercises include built in repetition. Basically repetition is built into the program but not in the full circle, repeat full circle style. Its more like.. Do 60 problems, do 60 slightly harder problems, repeat 30 of the previous 60. Which supposedly builds the patterns into your memory in time for you to make use of them when you get to the hardest problems that require you to know the patterns in order to solve them.
Anyway I think my "circles" Are going to consist of my working through all 27000 excercises PCT has to offer in its Tactics modules, in order, between now and May 7th. Well at least thats the goal. The good news is, I can do the first 300 or so in an hour as they are mostly mate in 1's that I can spot pretty easy.
Any suggestions on using this particular program? Anyone with experience with it please leave some comments.
------------
So.....
In order to keep pace I would need to do 2.4ish "units" or 225ish "excercises" a day, over the 127 days. However I told my wife that I would only tie up 5 days a week soo that cuts me down to 90 "problem solving days" over the course of 127 calendar days. Which puts me at 4.4 "units" per day, or 405 problems a day.
That seems really bold. In testing the PCT program before and after I licensed it I've found that by Module 1, unit 7 it took me 24 minutes to do a unit. As of Mod 1, unit 7 I'm just starting to have to think about the problems. Most of the problems prior to that are mate in 1's which are mostly trivial.
4.4 units at 24 minutes per unit would be 106 minutes a day. Although we can expect as the units get harder the time per unit will increase.
I had planned on 2hrs a day, 5 days a week. Given what I know right now I would say theres no way I make it through by May 7th. We will see. I will try to keep on schedule. As the difficulty in the excercises increases I will get back to you on my success.
Personal Chess Trainer has 6 Tactics Modules, 51 Units per module and roughly 90 (some have 60) Excercises per unit. Which gives you about 27000 excercises, using roughly 5000 unique problems. MDLM calls for 1000 problems starting with easy, ending at OMG HARD and doing them 7 times.
PCT is set up to begin at mate in 1, and move to hard, but the 27000 excercises include built in repetition. Basically repetition is built into the program but not in the full circle, repeat full circle style. Its more like.. Do 60 problems, do 60 slightly harder problems, repeat 30 of the previous 60. Which supposedly builds the patterns into your memory in time for you to make use of them when you get to the hardest problems that require you to know the patterns in order to solve them.
Anyway I think my "circles" Are going to consist of my working through all 27000 excercises PCT has to offer in its Tactics modules, in order, between now and May 7th. Well at least thats the goal. The good news is, I can do the first 300 or so in an hour as they are mostly mate in 1's that I can spot pretty easy.
Any suggestions on using this particular program? Anyone with experience with it please leave some comments.
------------
So.....
In order to keep pace I would need to do 2.4ish "units" or 225ish "excercises" a day, over the 127 days. However I told my wife that I would only tie up 5 days a week soo that cuts me down to 90 "problem solving days" over the course of 127 calendar days. Which puts me at 4.4 "units" per day, or 405 problems a day.
That seems really bold. In testing the PCT program before and after I licensed it I've found that by Module 1, unit 7 it took me 24 minutes to do a unit. As of Mod 1, unit 7 I'm just starting to have to think about the problems. Most of the problems prior to that are mate in 1's which are mostly trivial.
4.4 units at 24 minutes per unit would be 106 minutes a day. Although we can expect as the units get harder the time per unit will increase.
I had planned on 2hrs a day, 5 days a week. Given what I know right now I would say theres no way I make it through by May 7th. We will see. I will try to keep on schedule. As the difficulty in the excercises increases I will get back to you on my success.
12/24/2005
White Xmas
Since I'm fascinated by the hits Sitemeter tells me I get from all over the world, and since I don't know who sees snow often and who doesn't... Here is a white Xmas for all of you who won't get one.
By the way I hope someone enjoys the pics, because now I have to go shovel this stuff up, and thats never fun.
By the way I hope someone enjoys the pics, because now I have to go shovel this stuff up, and thats never fun.
12/23/2005
What makes a good online chess service?
DG, over at Boylston Chess Club points out a few recent posts about
cheating. These sorts of posts always get me thinking back to my days as a member of http://www.caissa.com which is a small, relatively old chess site that had a nice product. The trouble at caissa.com was that the admins saw the chess sight as a labor of love but not as their primary business proposition. Long periods of time with no admin interaction would take place and in the mean time the inmates ruled the asylum.
Well as with any place on the web, anonymity leads to some less than stellar behavoir. While the admins are away the mouse will play so to speak.
Cheating.. ahh yes, the reason I made this post. The problem with online chess (i've no experience with OTB tournament cheating to speak of) cheating is that it comes in a couple flavors. You have the cheaters and you have the disconnectors. On top of all that, and what finally pushed me off of Caissa.com was a message board ji'had about who was cheating and who wasn't.
What's worse than cheating in an online chess game, to me? People accusing anyone and everyone they lose to of cheating. That's just as bad sportsmanship as cheating itself. Names getting sullied, reputations spoiled, chess playing friendships destroyed and often with no real evidence. Which brings me to comparison of a persons moves to Fritz or Crafty. The rationale behind this supposed method of outing cheaters makes sense, but I question it in practice. Just because someones moves match a computer's moves does not, in and of itself, prove that person used a computer. It points to the likeliness of computer use. At what point does likeliness become enough evidence to tarnish an online persona? After 1 move? After 1 game with 85% simularity? Or after someone is 203/7 on FICS?
What needs to happen is these decisions need to be made by an abitrary Administrator. Not the players. The decisions need to be made even handedly and regularly, and by a human being not emotionally involved in the outcome of a blitz game. So back to what I was getting at... a good chess service needs live, involved, active admins. The interface and features are nice attractors, but the admins make these services run.
cheating. These sorts of posts always get me thinking back to my days as a member of http://www.caissa.com which is a small, relatively old chess site that had a nice product. The trouble at caissa.com was that the admins saw the chess sight as a labor of love but not as their primary business proposition. Long periods of time with no admin interaction would take place and in the mean time the inmates ruled the asylum.
Well as with any place on the web, anonymity leads to some less than stellar behavoir. While the admins are away the mouse will play so to speak.
Cheating.. ahh yes, the reason I made this post. The problem with online chess (i've no experience with OTB tournament cheating to speak of) cheating is that it comes in a couple flavors. You have the cheaters and you have the disconnectors. On top of all that, and what finally pushed me off of Caissa.com was a message board ji'had about who was cheating and who wasn't.
What's worse than cheating in an online chess game, to me? People accusing anyone and everyone they lose to of cheating. That's just as bad sportsmanship as cheating itself. Names getting sullied, reputations spoiled, chess playing friendships destroyed and often with no real evidence. Which brings me to comparison of a persons moves to Fritz or Crafty. The rationale behind this supposed method of outing cheaters makes sense, but I question it in practice. Just because someones moves match a computer's moves does not, in and of itself, prove that person used a computer. It points to the likeliness of computer use. At what point does likeliness become enough evidence to tarnish an online persona? After 1 move? After 1 game with 85% simularity? Or after someone is 203/7 on FICS?
What needs to happen is these decisions need to be made by an abitrary Administrator. Not the players. The decisions need to be made even handedly and regularly, and by a human being not emotionally involved in the outcome of a blitz game. So back to what I was getting at... a good chess service needs live, involved, active admins. The interface and features are nice attractors, but the admins make these services run.
12/21/2005
Challenge the Blogger
Comment to this thread if your interested in setting up a match/game with me on Time for Chess. If you already have an account on that site then you should be able to click here to instantly challengeme.
Or we can work out the details in via email or in the comments.
DreadPirateJosh Adds:
"timeforchess.com ... redhotpawn.com, chessatwork.com, redhotchess.com... are one and the same." Thanks Josh, but I notice you didn't challenge me to a game!
Or we can work out the details in via email or in the comments.
DreadPirateJosh Adds:
"timeforchess.com ... redhotpawn.com, chessatwork.com, redhotchess.com... are one and the same." Thanks Josh, but I notice you didn't challenge me to a game!
New Version of BabasChess client for FICS available
Go download this now if you play chess on FICS. It is simply the best chess client out there plus its free. How great is that. Here's a screeny of my play environment on FICS...
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
