by scribe | Oct 9, 2011 | games, openings, people, positions
Yesterday I got together with Cole Ryan (see my post from last week) and Gjon Feinstein for some game analysis and speed chess. We played 8-minute games with lots of analysis between, so we only had time for five games, which went more or less as you would predict....
by scribe | Oct 7, 2011 | Chess Life, current news, literature
Earlier this week I reviewed the SmartChess app, which went up for sale on iTunes last week. There’s also a review of it in Chess Life this month, if you want another opinion (a generally positive one). I pointed out in my review that the value of SmartChess...
by scribe | Oct 5, 2011 | chess clubs, games
When I give chess lessons at the Aptos Public Library, it’s always a challenge to make them concise enough. For this age group (roughly 6 to 12) I have found that 15 minutes is about the limit of their attention span, or 20 minutes if the lesson is going well....
by scribe | Oct 2, 2011 | games, people, positions
As I said in my last post, I’m determined to post more often here in October than I did in September. Even if it means writing about blitz games! Yesterday I met with Cole Ryan, whom I had not played with in two or three years. I’ve known him since he was...
by scribe | Oct 1, 2011 | current news, games, literature
After writing only two blog posts in September (one of them not even about chess), I promise to pay a little bit more attention to my blog this month. First, let me start with a small announcement: Andres Hortillosa’s SmartChess app for the iPhone/iPad is now on...
by scribe | Sep 21, 2011 | Chess Lecture, off-topic, positions
I’m sorry that this has been such a slow month for blog posts. Too much traveling! Too much fun! My only chess news is that I am working on my next top secret chess project. For those of you who remember my previous secret project, you might be able to guess...
by scribe | Sep 10, 2011 | current news, off-topic
I’m sure that not too many people were wondering, “I wonder why Dana hasn’t posted to his blog for a long time? I wonder where he’s gone?” But just in case anybody was wondering, the answer is that I was on a week-and-a-half trip that was...
by scribe | Aug 29, 2011 | current news, people, tournaments
The FIDE World Chess Cup got started a couple days ago in Khanty-Mansiysk, the little-known Siberian city that has become the de facto world capital of chess in recent years. As usual, it is being held in knockout format. Each round is a mini-match of two games of...
by scribe | Aug 28, 2011 | Chess Lecture, off-topic
If any of you were wondering how I come up with ideas for my ChessLectures, this photo might clarify how the process works. I tell you really good move. You play on computer. It really is true that I was preparing a ChessLecture when my wife took this picture! This...
by scribe | Aug 24, 2011 | games, openings, positions, tournaments
I want to show you a game today that is a mystery in more ways than one. Here is Mystery Number One. This game was played about a month ago. One player is a grandmaster who is very active in American chess. The other player is 17 years old, has a provisional USCF...
