tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23075362.post3927008314345155931..comments2024-01-29T13:41:11.764-05:00Comments on Blunder Prone .... Imagination, Inspiration and Improvement: Reassessing Imbalances Part 2: Silman’s thinking method and Thoughts on Superior Minor PiecesBlunderPronehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08316158004635698398noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23075362.post-47729971530171376142020-05-16T06:18:33.155-05:002020-05-16T06:18:33.155-05:00George, your blog posts really stand the test of t...George, your blog posts really stand the test of time! It's mostly because you are a strong enough player, but looking at these books through the lens of a teaching paradigm. You could donate this book away, as you are really beyond it. I think that most strong players have already subconsciously internalized anything of value from this book.<br /><br />I particularly like your old post on Eidetic imagery, combining the visual memory with the understanding, that was a good way to put it.<br /><br />For me, there is a spectrum between two very different types of positions. On the one hand, there are closed positions with lots of piece maneuvers and fixed pawn-structures, and on the other hand there are more open positions, like this game that I played yesterday. Again, for me the closed positions require a greater degree of chess understanding.<br /><br />https://lichess.org/aIwKqBLn#44<br /><br />12...Bc5 This could be considered to be the first move of a line, whereas the previous moves could just be memorized, for sake of argument. I've never seen or played this position before, but I can see how it would be a theoretical position.<br /><br />14.Bg2 This is one of those "nothing" blitz moves. 14.Nd5, which I had been looking at, is better.<br /><br />16.Rad1 Oh no's, blunder I immediately thought after playing this. My opponent spent a long time here. No, 16...Nf2, 17.RxBd7 KxRd7, 18.Rh5, and now how does Black save a piece against Kf3? 18...Ng4, 19.Kf3 and White will have two pieces for the rook. Best was 16...f6.<br /><br />16...Ne5?! 16...Be5 makes more sense.<br /><br />20....Ng4? <br />21.e5? I knew that this move wasn't right, but didn't want to spend time looking for alternatives. A strong player would do a quick-scan here regardless of any time issues, and find the continuation 21.RxBd7 NxBf6, 22.Rxb7. The point is that if 21...KxRd7, then 22.BxNg4+ is two pieces for the rook, and winning for White. The reason this combo works is because the rooks are not connected on the back-rank. Yes, I would have seen this combo, it's any easy one, if I had looked for it, but stronger players know to look!<br /><br />The positions in this game, after that opening tabiya, and before my last real blunder with the e5 push, are very concrete. IOW, the thinking goes beyond anything primary and hazy, such as the concept of imbalances. Actually, the imbalances are what lead me to many of my moves, even of the Nd5 move which I didn't play, and that combo that I missed would have been based on the imbalance of disconnected rooks. So, while imbalances are good for finding candidate moves, any analysis quickly moves beyond that.<br /><br />The one silver lining of blitz is that you can build up experience quickly by playing lots of games. My games are more often decided by endgames, regardless of openings, which requires experience, since there isn't much time to think them out correctly in blitz.<br /><br />What's interesting about my ratings on lichess, is that my bullet stays around 1500, my blitz 1800, and my rapid and classical ratings are both at 2000. This says more about which formats that I am best at than it says about any particular games that I play. A lot of the improvements, and breakthroughs that I have made in my chess abilities are less applicable to blitz situations, I've found. If anything, my abilities have improved, but there is still this forced impatience associated with blitz play.LinuxGuyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15764940044950170053noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23075362.post-33649469763219947432020-05-16T05:47:31.107-05:002020-05-16T05:47:31.107-05:00Didn't think you'd be purchasing the other...Didn't think you'd be purchasing the other edition, but also didn't take for granted what was in the photo was your only copy, heh.ChessAdminhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02231584333139931889noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23075362.post-51854296198668514042020-05-15T10:40:27.947-05:002020-05-15T10:40:27.947-05:00I only have the 3rd edition... I don't feel co...I only have the 3rd edition... I don't feel compelled to get another version of this book. Sorry. I think the general principles I covered are the same. It does sound like the book has been completely re-written with some claiming "it's a different book." I can't speak to it other than what I read in reviews. <br /><br />My journey was to use this book and to some extent Kotov's lofty platitudes and start a practice of evaluating positions from the workbook as well as key positions from openings I play following annotated games and such to grow my positional evaluation capabilities. I do feel I have a better positional vision and understanding... but I need to put in practice and test with slow games. Currently, the on-line community is more of a blitz environment so I have shifted a little on meeting that challenge lately. I'm planning on blogging about this shift a couple posts down the road. <br />-BPBlunderPronehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08316158004635698398noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23075362.post-60700568013921227622020-05-15T06:38:34.492-05:002020-05-15T06:38:34.492-05:00Your photo shows the 3rd edition. Silman basically...Your photo shows the 3rd edition. Silman basically rewrote it, including new examples, for the 4th edition. Any chance you can compare the two? I have the 4th edition and it's on my to-read list in the medium term.ChessAdminhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02231584333139931889noreply@blogger.com