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1500 questions
19
votes
5 answers

How do you checkmate with a rook?

How do you checkmate with a Rook and King versus King? Is there a good and fast method? Can you explain it in a good way? Thanks!
user2001
19
votes
13 answers

Tools for automated notation: webcam movie to PGN

Sometimes during blitz games over the board, or when in zeitnot, it gets very difficult to annotate them. I've seen several software / hardware to help in writing the notation, even one that's FIDE approved; these require that you repeat the moves…
Riccardo Zorn
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19
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6 answers

When is a queen stronger than two rooks?

Two rooks are stronger than one queen. Let's assume that the material is equal, except that one player has a pair of rooks while the other player has a queen. In what situations is the queen stronger than the pair of rooks?
user2001
19
votes
4 answers

Is it possible to lose to "Worstfish"?

I just found out about Stockfish's stupid little brother, Worstfish. Worstfish calculates the worst move in every position and plays it. Because of this, is it possible to lose against it? If you give it a mate in one, it obviously won't play it…
CadenCDC
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19
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5 answers

What openings are recommendable for beginners to study?

I am a beginner. With reference to opening theory, which opening should I start learning? My friends are suggesting the Ruy Lopez.
Smith A B
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19
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5 answers

Was AlphaZero taught castling?

Since castling involves one player moving two pieces in one move, was AlphaZero just given this move, in the same way it was told that players take turns and a win is better than a loss? In other words, it didn't learn it on its own. (I guess it…
Thomas
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19
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1 answer

Can White avoid a loss in this endgame study by Lazar?

This is the position with White to move. This was created by Lazar in 1935 according to Susan Polgar in a Chess Daily News article from 5/27/2008. [FEN "8/3P4/3b4/8/8/1p2k2p/1Pp4P/2K5 w - - 0 1"] Can White draw this? The obvious starting move is…
Sid
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19
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6 answers

How difficult is it to win a winning endgame against an engine?

Consider an endgame like the one shown below (white to move): [fen "5k2/5p2/r7/8/6R1/4b1PP/8/5R1K w - - 0 50"] Stockfish gives white a solid +3 advantage here and that seems appropriate given that white is up the exchange with an extra pawn. I…
mowwwalker
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19
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3 answers

Why is Jovanka Houska introduced as a WGM when she holds the more prestigious IM title?

I've been watching the Champions Chess Tour and find it strange that Jovanka Houska is always (at least whenever I am watching) introduced as a woman grandmaster. Now I have absolutely no problem with her holding that title, but she also holds the…
firtydank
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19
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1 answer

What if both players always play the worst engine move?

There are questions for the worst opening in chess and the worst opening in Chess960, but these only consider the very first move. I'm curious what a game would look like where white plays the worst opening, black plays the worst possible response,…
Jacob Hoffman
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19
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2 answers

Is this a draw despite the Stockfish evaluation of −5?

I reached this position as Black: [Title "Black to move"] [FEN "8/8/8/3q4/6kp/7R/6P1/6K1 b - - 3 46"] And I felt that I cannot make any progress and so it feels like a draw. However, Stockfish evaluates it as −5.1, though it also seems to be unable…
user21820
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19
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2 answers

Do grandmasters think on every move?

While watching Hikaru's Streams/YouTube (GM Chess Twitch Streamer), he's no doubt extremely impressive when it comes to recognizing patterns that win him material and forced mates in like 7+ moves. Things like this require extensive knowledge of…
Timothy Oh
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19
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3 answers

Balancing chess and work

I started chess 2 years ago at 500 ELO and have climbed up to 1900 ELO (chess.co) recently. I have fallen deeply in love with the game and have made it a life goal to achieve eventually a mastery title. Unfortunately, I started chess very late (20…
hexaquark
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7 answers

Is it too late for me to get into competitive chess?

I am 24 years old, and only recently got my interest in chess back. I used to play it on and off as a child, but never took it seriously. Is it too late for me to start playing competitively? I'm not aiming to be GM or anything, and neither am I…
Francesca
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19
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7 answers

Memorizing the board

I'm always experiencing difficulties while trying to visualize what moves a tutorial (or an answer here for that matter) is talking about unless I have a chessboard with coordinates nearby. Is this something I should fix, or is it fine to be using…
Soufiane Hassou
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