He Stinks at Chess

Originally posted by greenpawn34
Hi Paul.

A nice idea but I fear it would read like a book of 'the best ever excuses for
losing a game of chess' (there is the title).

The real benefit of being a good chess player is that you can see your lose
coming a long way off and you have plenty of time to think up your excuse.

Some completley outplayed players sit there and don't mov ...[text shortened]... ." (there is the title of the sequal.)
Bobby Fischer giving advice in Boys Life.

We were all sick...

Originally posted by paulbuchmanfromfics
The revised edition will be "I Still Stink At Chess".

The foreward will contain testimonials from readers of the first edition:

"There is no denying that the author stinks."

"There is truth in chess advertising after all!"

"I applaud the author for his honesty! I can only hope the author stinks at other games as well."

"The auth have some interesting/instructive information in the book. I really have no idea.

Over 40 years ago when I was beginning to learn chess, you could buy paperback books on chess from 95 cents to $1.50. Everything seems to have gone up since then except for the value of the dollar. 😏

P.S. That was probably closer to 50 years ago. 😀

So often books are written from the perspective of the winner, that it might be more than just a novelty to view the games from the perspective of the loser to see what we might learn from them.[/b]

I took a military history course in college that was taught in this manner. The instructor's argument for doing it this way was that, for all practical purposes, the winner made no mistakes for which he had to pay a price. It's hard to learn a lesson when you got away with it.

Originally posted by greenpawn34
That is my main gripe as well and if I do another book. (and why not, I'd fill it with RHP games and you lot will buy it!!) then this is the angle I will be coming in from.

I've said it before and I'll say it again:

Bundle your blogs!

(This same gripe is also the reason why I thought "The Amateur's Mind" suited me much better than the other Silman books I've read.)

Richard

The bloggy things are the copyright of Russ, as are these threads.

He can bundle them.

Some of the threads would make a good book.
(a book on threads from a chess site.....dont' laugh....If we call it:
RHP's OPENING threads it will out sell the Bible.)

I still laugh even to this day about the lad who thought he was in checkmate
and both him and his opponent could not see why RHP had not declared it so.

The only way for the player to get out of check was by an EP capture.
Our two heroes did not know the rule existed. Brilliant.

A MOD with a sense of humour warned that anyone giving advice about
a game in progress would be banned and waited as the whole episode unfolded.

Enter loads of people trying to drop hints that he could play EP without
actually making it seem like they were giving advice to a game in progress.

What makes it even better was the lad's name was 'Total Learner' or something like that.

I have the 'Rank and File' I also have all the Gerald Abrahams books. Big fan.
I think his best was 'Technique in Chess.' I'm often in there looking for an idea.
Fellow Abrahams fans will notice a bit of lifting from there and handed to Endgame Ernie.
(did you think I had suddenly started studying endings? Find a an easy to explain
example, look for an RHP player who missed it and BINGO. )

Originally posted by greenpawn34
The bloggy things are the copyright of Russ, as are these threads.

He can bundle them.

Nope. From the TOS, point 8:

RHP does not claim ownership of Content you submit or make available for inclusion on the Service.

Russ has the right to use your content to promote the site, but it's non-exclusive, so you retain your own copyright on anything you post or blog. (Unless there's a separate TOS for the blog, that is, which us forum plebs aren't privy to.)

Bundle them. I'll do the layout for you if you need it.

I have the 'Rank and File' I also have all the Gerald Abrahams books.

Wot, including the one on hire purchase?

I've never come across any of his books. Probably never made it across the channel. Heavy fog, continent shut off, that sort of thing.

Richard

Hi Blue

When you said the 'Amatuer Mind' I got it as the 'The Chess Mind' by Gerald Abrahams.

Gerald Abrahmas did not write the Amatuer Mind so I don't know why you mentioned him. 😉

My muddled brain grabbed Abrahams because I've been re-reading him recently.

I have two copies of the Chess Mind. So PM an address and I'll send you a copy.
Send me your chess club address, I'll send it there.

Good thought provoking book, it's one of those love or hate type books.

Originally posted by greenpawn34
Hi Blue

When you said the 'Amatuer Mind' I got it as the 'The Chess Mind' by Gerald Abrahams.

Gerald Abrahmas did not write the Amatuer Mind so I don't know why you mentioned him. 😉

My muddled brain grabbed Abrahams because I've been re-reading him recently.

I have two copies of the Chess Mind. So PM an address and I'll send you a copy.
Sen nd it there.

Good thought provoking book, it's one of those love or hate type books.

I have it , next to my Petroff defence, its arguably my worst chess book. Instead of
reading books i have discovered the lecturebot, Go to FICS, type in, f lecturebot and
enjoy some awesome chess lectures, for free, on pc or smart phone. 🙂

Hi Robbie.

Then offer it up as freebie to someone who will get benefit from it.
(burn that Petroff thing or send it to someone you don't like.)

I have to confess. I bought an opening book recently. It was the d4/Nc3 opening(cant even remember what it is called and I cant find it, that says everything). I got it because it looked lightweight with few lines to learn. What I soon found out was it was lightweight for a reason, it missed out most of the obvious moves your opponent would make. Played maybe half a dozen games with it online, none over the board.

I'll chuck it on the Petroff bomb fire, as soon as I can find it.

I will never learn.

Originally posted by greenpawn34
I have two copies of the Chess Mind. So PM an address and I'll send you a copy.
Send me your chess club address, I'll send it there.

You'd have to send it all the way to the Netherlands, so you'd probably do better to save yourself the P&P plus rapacious international surcharge, and donate it to a local chess club. But thank you for the offer.

Richard