To Resign or Not to Resign (latest blog)

Originally posted by Green Paladin
One beneficial aspect of learning the B+N mate is that you're forced to look at which squares the pieces cover and can cover over the next few moves; rather than staring blankly at the squares the pieces are on. Your thinking also becomes more purposeful as you picture the mate and then work towards it.

Oh I agree (see my original post above), but I think that ending study in general does this. You see it in it's purest form king and pawn vs king endings, and it becomes more elaborate as other material is added.

If you study king and pawn, rook and pawn, and rook and minor piece endings, you have covered a substantial portion of the endings one is most likely to face over the board.

I definitely see value in studying more esoteric stuff (even knight tours have their place), but I definitely am not going to get religious about it.

Do what's fun, go with what works!

Originally posted by Paul Leggett
Oh I agree (see my original post above), but I think that ending study in general does this. You see it in it's purest form king and pawn vs king endings, and it becomes more elaborate as other material is added.

If you study king and pawn, rook and pawn, and rook and minor piece endings, you have covered a substantial portion of the endings one is ...[text shortened]... but I definitely am not going to get religious about it.

Do what's fun, go with what works!

Do what's fun

In that case lets not study any endgames at all, and follow the philosophy that if you reach an endgame, you're doing something wrong. 🙂

Originally posted by clandarkfire
Do what's fun

In that case lets not study any endgames at all, and follow the philosophy that if you reach an endgame, you're doing something wrong. 🙂

Some people see the fun in endgames! (Especially when you have a dead win you know how to exploit to the final cut.)

(Pick up the Van Perlo book - if that doesn't help even your opening game then you are already a lost cause.)

As for the point I was really trying to make:

I never understood the knight until I realized that the reason why it needs a bishop (any bishop!) to force mate is because it cannot lose a tempo.

I never understood one bishop's power until I saw how it could cooperate with a knight by shedding tempos to deliver mate.

I never understood the rook until I realized that pawn structure affects the rook more than any other piece because it has the same movement power everywhere and pawns also move straight.

Originally posted by TerrierJack
Some people see the fun in endgames! (Especially when you have a dead win you know how to exploit to the final cut.)

(Pick up the Van Perlo book - if that doesn't help even your opening game then you are already a lost cause.)

As for the point I was really trying to make:

I never understood the knight until I realized that the reason why it ne ...[text shortened]... ny other piece because it has the same movement power everywhere and pawns also move straight.

Well put and rec'd! Pieces in a nutshell, so to speak.

Originally posted by TerrierJack


(Pick up the Van Perlo book - if that doesn't help even your opening game then you are already a lost cause.)

http://tinyurl.com/25getwg ?

http://tinyurl.com/23vsfy2

Slightly off the topic of the blog, but in keeping with the thread heading......this may be a good example of why you shouldn't resign:



When I played this I thought 13b. Be6d5 was pretty much game over (and my opponent resigned), and I would have gladly claimed it as my trap {assuming the move sequence is unique - which I seriously doubt!}.

On reviewing this game White shouldn't have resigned given their next move to get out of the trap.

Agree? Disagree?

P.S. It's my first pgn post so hopefully it works ok - the header seems a bit funny in the preview.......

Cheers, Andrew

P.P.S. By the way nice blogs. Please keep them up!

Originally posted by andrew93
Slightly off the topic of the blog, but in keeping with the thread heading......this may be a good example of why you shouldn't resign:

[pgn][Event "Open invite"] [Site "http://www.redhotpawn.com"] [Date "2010.06.20"] [EndDate "2010.07.03"] [Round "?"] [White "s4eti"] [Black "andrew93"] [WhiteRating "1288"] [BlackRating "1529"] [WhiteELO "1288"] [BlackEL ...[text shortened]... ers, Andrew

P.P.S. By the way nice blogs. Please keep them up!

Yeah, White just missed the counter-attacking possibilities. You should think twice (or three times) before you resign in tactical situations. You might be missing a tactic.

Hi Andrew.

Does appear the guy resigned in a healthy position. (see below).

Watch yourself playing that 5...Nxd5 variation, it can subject you
to a violent and often winning attack.

Go Here (copy link and paste into top address bar)

http://www.timeforchess.com/gamesexplorer/

enter the moves of your game till 5...Nxd5 and you will see 800+ examples
of white saccing on f7 6.Nxf7 winning the vast majority.

Here is a plausible continuation in your game.
I'm playing so Black keeps alive as long as possible his mate threat on g2.

Whoops! It looks like I got out of jail with that game!! 🙂 Thanks for the pointers.

Thanks also for the link greenpawn - that looks like a great tool that I am going to look into in more detail. I see what you mean about the Knight sacrifice - I'm pretty green when it comes to opening theory / book lines.

That looks like the same underlying website but is that database not available on RHP?

Cheers
Andrew

It is the games from the 1400-1900 RHP database.

Well ½ of them. There are approx 1,100,000 games on the 1400 RHP datsbase
a lot of the unseen games are mates under 10 but also a lot of timeouts.

Things to be learned from this DB but Don't forget these game are played
by weaker players so you MUST look at every move before blindly
following a game.

This is why is one of the thee reasons I send players here rather than
the over 1900 DB.

First it forces you to look and examine every move. (see Below).
You must do this, it is important for your development.

Second. You will trust the stronger player (blinded by the grade) and get sloppy.

Also they will sneak in a heavy theorectical analysed move which you
might not understand but play it anyway.

(again totally blinded by a 4 digit number - bad chess).

Finally, in the 1900+ DB there is a severe danger you may end up following
some engine and your game will show a high match up attracting attention
from the powers that be and the cheater hunters.

From the 1400 databse.

This exact postion has been reach over 100 times though different moves orders.



21 times White has played the faulty combination 5.Bxf7+

What is wrong with it?

(the refutation has been played 9 times).

The bad news is I have found over 200 examples of this sac being played from
slightly different postions with the same simple refutation hiding within it.
Sometimes Black plays the ref. Often he does not.

Here is White's 'main-line' spot the flaw.

Linked to above.

So now one game with White's faulty combination working (mate in 8).

And one where Black plays the refuation and.....resigns on move 13.

This is the 1400 database for you. Check everything you see . (twice)😉

Another reason I send player here is to see the types of errors their
fellows players make.

Full game information in the headers.

Game 1 the Unsound Cobination (that mates in 8)



Game 2 The Refutation (that still losses)

Originally posted by greenpawn34
It is the games from the 1400-1900 RHP database.

Hi greenpawn,

As far as I can tell, you can't search the RHP database by fen (position). You have to step through all the moves. Or am I just not seeing how you can do it?

Originally posted by Mad Rook
Hi greenpawn,

As far as I can tell, you can't search the RHP database by fen (position). You have to step through all the moves. Or am I just not seeing how you can do it?

"Or am I just not seeing how you can do it?"

You copy every finished -1900 game on RHP and paste them into a datsbase.
(don't forget to do a remove double games scan).

It takes a while - two years, but you are now seeing the fruits of my labours.

Originally posted by greenpawn34
"Or am I just not seeing how you can do it?"

You copy every finished -1900 game on RHP and paste them into a datsbase.
(don't forget to do a remove double games scan).

It takes a while - two years, but you are now seeing the fruits of my labours.

I am (almost) speechless...

You copied every game, one by one, into a database? Over 500,000 games?

You are indeed the mad one. I tip my hat to you.


P.S. What database program do you use? Scid, or something else?