I've always been mystified at the game in the last week I've taught myself the rules by doing a little reading and keeping at it on my pc or iphone, i've had two draws and only won once out of probably 100 games against a computer. I'm sure the computer always makes the perfect moves unlike playing against a person but this is tough.

How do you get good, i know strategy and thinking ahead are key but I'm kinda looking for that magic bullet i'm sure there are only so many combinations in the game so it can boil down to a science after years of practice... any imput? No i don't take my time, since the AI response is just a few seconds i keep at it fast instead of taking my time. I figure its a sure way to out think a person

The first step is to become familiar with the openings and pick the few that you like most. Use these exclusively when you play other people and you'll essentially react instinctively for the first 6-10 moves. What you are describing is something like speed-chess, which is interesting sometimes but doesn't really allow you to examine enough moves in your head before you act. I find that the game really shines when each player has 30-plus minutes on the clock. For example, I can't remember most of the five-minute games I've played recently, but I remember the longer games even months later.

Go to a chess club sometime. The masters there can look at a board and tell almost instantly who is going to win. For a real treat, watch a chess master playing multiple players! They generally don't NEED to remember every game (although they do remember and keep track of each board); the nature of the game is such that each game piece will "control" a portion of a board; the proper combination of pieces will dominate the board.

For example: a pawn will control (i.e., threaten) the squares in front/ left and front/ right of it. These are the squares on which it can capture an enemy piece. Now imagine two pawns, side by side. Between them they control FIVE spaces.

Imagine a pawn, controlling its two spaces. Now imagine a rook directly behind that pawn. The pawn is protected by the rook; anything capturing the pawn is now being threatened by the rook.

The permutations are endless. But you can see that by correctly reading the placement of pieces on a chessboard, a good player can determine which side is winning, and what the next move should be.




Like the taxi driver said to Jack Benny: "Practice, practice, practice." Getting spanked by good players is kind of humiliating but it serves to drive the poor players to either improve or take up stamp collecting. (This observation is from a stamp collector.)

patience.  Don't be so quick to "get it on" that you fail to see the trap laid before you.

This guy beat me to it.

This x 1000. The lack of patience has cost me more games than I can count. Early on, when I first started playing computer chess, I lost a lot of games because I simply didn't know any of the rules. I played the game by the seat of my pants and I fired a lot of proverbial "shots in the dark" and I got whipped constantly because of it. Then I eventually learned the rules and I started doing a bit better. To this day I still lose more than I win but my biggest enemy is my lack of patience as opposed to my original lack of knowledge. IMO, understanding the basic rules of the game is half the battle while the other half is remaining patient enough to look closely and intently at the board before you make any additional moves.

I can't play on the clock. I am only good at it when I have a lot of time to ponder reactions based on the aggressiveness and strategy of my opponent.  

A sore loser tick and a good set of nunchuks.

I'll start with a disclaimer.  I only play untimed games.  Speed chess annoys me.

Playing against a computer requires a different strategy than does playing against a human.

A computer will construct a decision tree and use that to guide its moves.  That means the computer will play a flawless game, so unless you can maneuver it into a no win situation, which isn't likely, it will capitalize on every inevitable mistake you make.  However, a chess game has so many potential states that the computer can only construct a decision tree to a certain depth.  This means that if you play a careful, patient game and aim for a draw for a long enough time, the computer will reach the terminal depth of its tree and then start playing using a short sighted points based algorithm.  Once it gets to that point, you can fool it by setting up simple traps and easily back it into a corner.

If you're playing against a person, it all depends on how many moves ahead each player can visualize.  I've never been able to think far enough ahead to beat the really good players.  If I'm faced with someone who outclasses me, I'll tie up the board with mutually supporting pawns, play a conservative game, and look for mistakes that allow me to whittle down my opponents pieces.  It doesn't always work but it will usually drag the game out.

I don't know how you develop that ability to visualize how the game will unfold.  A lot of people study classic matches and I suppose they develop a feel for the game space and how moves will modify it.  It might also be that your mind has to be wired in a certain way to do that.  Chess is one of the most difficult games, if not the most difficult game, humanity has ever devised.  It is one of those things aliens will view as a credit to our species.

I like Nf3 followed by 1.b3. Modified Réti.

I played pretty seriously from elementary through jr high then stopped playing for years once I could regularly beat my dad.

When I am focused, I try to anticipate two moves in advance. If you are surprised by any sensible move by your opponent, you have most likely already lost.

Don't move until you know why you're moving, and how the enemy will respond to it.

There are some good beginners books in your local bookstore.  Some are broad and explanatory, others are just packed with tactical exercises.

Those will both help you with basic concepts like forking, discovered attacks, etc.

I'm an A player (two steps below master).

If someone came to me and said, "I want to get better at chess", I'd focus on two areas:

1.  Learn your endings.  By learning to win in situations where there are fewer pieces on the board, you will learn what endings to be shooting for during the middlegame.  Once you do that, you're no longer focused on "How do I checkmate my opponent", and instead on "how do i get to a position that I know I can ultimately win even if I don't know the details right now".  Endings are hard.  it's amazing how complex a game can be that only has 5 pieces left on the board.

2.  Develop an opening repertoire.  You can't learn every opening at once, but you should pick a basic opening as white, learn the common possible counters to that opening, then pick opening defenses that you'll play as black.  Make sure you learn the ideas behind the opening, rather than simply a string of moves.  Some openings are focused on battling for the center directly, whereas others rely on striking hard to one side or the other (while generally being attacked by your opponent on the other side of the board).  Not knowing opening theory puts you at a huge disadvantage to people who do.

3.  Play, play, play.  There are several free chess servers for which you can download free clients and play people all over the world.  These games get tracked and rated, so you can monitor your progress and go over your interesting games.

thanks, lots of good input i see myself practicing my three game stages, then I'll try against a person I've learned some of the basic tactics but i can't help but make one or two wrong moves a game that unnecessarily sacrifice an important piece i think some people would miss the moves faster than the computer.

http://www.letsplaychess.com/



Good place to learn against live opponents.

Like shooting chess is a skill that requires a proficiency; I played at least 10 games a day in college and I was much better then than now although I am sill good.
Like shooting a poor marksman hasn't a clue what they are doing wrong. As you become a better player you will clearly see what it is you do well and what you don't. Then you can chase you weaknesses.

I'm taking the long way round the barn to say what other have said, play.... a lot. Studying openings is great...but it's useless to you until you know what you don't know.

No idea, but I love watching the Paul Morphy ones on the computer.




 

play someone better than you.. its how I got better.. its how you learn the moves and the strategies..

The computer programs don't make mistakes, but they WILL exploit your mistakes.




Obama is an Idiot and I wish that he would quit proving it.

The first blunder loses.
don't make the first mistake.
Watch the masters.
They will spend 40 moves just fucking around basically and then the next 3 decide the game.
If you don't know what to do, strengthen your position and reinforce your threats to center board spaces.

Oh, and catch ausbergers (sp?)

damn I haven't played chess in a loooong time.  I used to hold my own, but I doubt I could play very well at this point.

There are entire books dedicated to chess strategy. Some are very interesting for helping you focus each part of the game.

tag

There is no "magic bullet" that will make you better in a short time.  The masters of the game study opening theory, middle game theory, and endgame theory.  It's not just making a series of moves, it is "why" you make these moves.

I would suggest you start with this book. Very good for beginners.

First off, when you look at a board you are reading it in a sense. Some fonts are easier to read than others and it’s hard to read something in a font that’s new to you. The point is that you should use standard well shaped pieces. The pieces should be big enough for the board, but not so big that the board is crowded. Civil War chess sets and similar novelty chess sets can be very difficult to play on.

Second is to learn the moves so that you don’t have to think about them. That’s part of reading the board. You see the queen and know that it threatens certain pieces without even thinking about it.

Then learn some standard attacks like the pin and the fork. Learn the relative value of the pieces. And, learn about the importance of position. I would suggest getting a good book on chess for that.

And finally, play the game, play it a lot. Try to play human opponents on a regular basis and try to play a lot of different people. Play against the computer too. But you will find that computers don’t make the same mistakes that people do, and vice versa.

When you start to go to sleep one night and realize that you are visualizing chess moves in your head, you will know that you are playing enough chess.

Like any art.

10,000 hours of (well directed) practice to master.

Talent helps, mostly by making it fun to put in those 10,000 hours.

Doesn't matter what art you're looking at, music, chess, sculpture, it all plays out the same way.

like others said, learn the openings and study/practice endgame

Winning?

Chess players can have lots of different strengths that can make them better than others. A player might be really good at opening the game to their advantage, figuring out good end game moves or setting up evil traps during the game (my favorite)





My favorite chess book http://www.amazon.com/Chess-Traps-Pitfalls-Swindles-Fireside/dp/0671210416

Playing with a chess clock is really fun too and i think lots of people get intimidated by it.

I used to have a wind up one, but get a GametimeIII its digital and you can do crazy game modes with it

its really fun to play 10 second blitz: you only get 10 seconds every move.

When you use a clock, you dont have time to analyze every single possible move, and you learn to think a lot more during your opponents move.

You'll learn to recognize things quicker and you'll get more games in.

IQ, practice, and patience.  

Couple things I will add that you might not have learned yet.  DO NOT EVER open with your King Bishop pawn and King Knight Pawn up 2.  The result is a 2 move game if someone is paying attention.



Additionally, watch out so this doesn't happen (4 move mate).  Its easy to defend against.

grace under fire...

thats funny.

Outstanding memory and a willingness to study and memorize parts of games (openings, mid-games, gambits, endgames).  Ability to see a board configuration and resultant configurations several moves ahead.  There are lots of great books out there as well (for beginners/novices I always recommend Bruce Pandolfini's books... easy to read and great for fundamentals).  Chess for Tigers is also a great book.

Sadly, since I made the realization that chess is a finite state game (like tic-tac-toe, but more complex and with more permutations), and that all finite state games have a nonlosing solution (if played correctly) my interest has waned significantly.

I play here http://www.redhotpawn.com/. When you start you can set your games against players at your level. You can also set time allowed for moves.

Learn to play and dominate the center of the board.

The easiest way to get good at chess is to study chess tactics.  Get a book of chess puzzles or a chess program that does the same, or a chess tactics website like http://chess.emrald.net.

And the big question is, what do you mean by good?  Average club player is around 1600 Elo.  That's a respectable rating.  Most players at this level have a decent grasp of openings, middle games, and end games.  

Back when I had a little more time I would play local (Dallas) tournaments a couple of times a month.  Dallas is full of little asian kids who are very, very good.  Like a 9 year old that is rated 2200.  Another 9 year old that is rated 1950.  So, one word of caution...if your ego can't take getting beat by a little kid, don't go.

Oh, another thing about chess...it's full of socially awkward misfits.  Especially the adults.  And convicts.  That being said, I enjoy the game.

This is only significant for computers.

If you're like me, you know to play against teenagers and kids who you can own consistently.

this is extremely good advice. new players hate learning endings, and i think it's because of the way the late 19th/early 20th century strategy books were written. learning to mate with K, N, and B helps you learn how the pieces work together and all, but learning philidor [edit:  the R and p ending, not the opening for black] is going to help a new player to WIN GAMES. learning another subvariation of the sicilian is great, but overall is less important that learning how to break through with a pawn majority on a wing. learning opposition and distant opposition helps players win.



here's an example that you'll know immediately, but that new players usually won't bother learning for a couple of years. to the OP, set up a board like this:



white K on e5, white pawn on e4



black K on e7



so what do you do? the experienced player looks at this and knows (without calculating) that if black is to move, black loses. if white is to move, black draws. why? because the Ks are in a relationship known as "the opposition". but if the pawn is on e3 instead of e4, white wins regardless of who has the move. the point of this is that, as white looks at a position a few moves earlier and with more pieces on the board, he can say to himself "oh, i can force a position with the Ks there and the pawn on e3", and he instantly knows what to do.



another poster mentioned learning openings first. the problem with learning like that is that everything is terribly complicated, and in the absence of obvious continuations, you get to the point where you just don't know what to do. a player that had learned endings first then has a tremendous advantage, as we saw with the opposition example above. and the really great part about learning endings is that they are simpler, because there are so few pieces on the board.



to answer the OP directly, what makes a good chess player is ordered thinking and good visualization skills. see, the object of chess is to eliminate options for the opponent––checkmate is the absolute end of all options. but this also applies to other situations. for example, if i attack your Q with a pawn, i am forcing you to deal with that problem––if you ignore it, you'll probably lose (but not always––you might sacrifice deliberately). so my goal, whenever possible, is to make forcing moves, which means that you have fewer options that i have to calculate, since i have a really good idea of how you'll respond (not that i'm a great player by any means).



here's where the visualization comes in––you're looking at the position right now, and you need to imagine what the position is going to be in a few moves. since you're making forcing moves, the opponent has only a few options available to him. what you need to be able to do is to visualize what the board is going to look like in each of those continuations. this sounds tough, but it becomes much easier as you continue to play. my opponenets usually know when i'm calculating, because i either close my eyes or turn away from the board––it's hard for me to picture future positions with the current position "in the way".



so if you're interested in really learning the game, i strongly second pliftkl's advice––endings first, then basic openings. i'll also add basic tactics, which will win more games for you than anything else. learning tactics is really fun, and you can mix it in with your other areas of study. on all three of these topics, IMO the best beginner books out there are seirawan's. they're completely accessible for beginners, yet still have a lot to offer for more advanced players.



[edit:  clarification]

I'm am definitely below average, but I enjoy the game.  What helped me out tremendously was someone telling me not to favor any pieces, and to be ready to sacrifice any of them to gain an advantage.

play without pieces. seriously. we used to play on road trips with just a little travel board. the passenger would write the moves down, and if we got lost (in the game) we'd go back through from the beginning. if we didn't have a board, we'd do things like calling out the first 10-12 moves or so of an opening, then quiz each other:



"what piece is pinned?"



"what center square can black occupy?"



"is the p on b2 poisoned?"



it gets easier once you force yourself to actually picture it. IIRC, soltis had a great book on the mental approach to the game.

Agreed, but the thought kind of kills it for me.

Incidentally, if you want to see an extraordinary movie, hunt down this one:

Searching for Bobby Fischer

(Note that although it is ostensibly about chess, it doesn't go into any particular specifics on the game itself.  It's just a very good movie about human beings.)

(Also, in my opinion that is Ebert's greatest review, and well worth a read even if you're not interested in the movie, which by the way has a 100% rating on rottentomatoes.)

The ability to think moves ahead. I'm good at picking up on "Oh, lookit that!" moves, but I'm poor at thinking more than 3 moves ahead. I'd recommend picking up ChessMaster 10th edition, It's a damn good program.



I'm rated like 650 on it right now

If you calculate the number of finite states in a chess game, you'll find that there are more states than there are atoms in the entire universe.  There may be a nonlosing solution, but it's nothing that can be computed.

Not true.  Not even close (unless the world is only 13^64 atoms big including illegal moves).

You're wrong.  Review your combinatorics.

If you're interested, you might want to read about how long it took to compute the perfect checkers game,.