Most Popular
1500 questions
16
votes
1 answer
What is Syzygy tablebases?
I just want to know in simple language exactly, What the Syzygy tablebases are, Why they are used, What are their advantages, disadvantages?
R K
- 655
- 1
- 5
- 10
16
votes
3 answers
How can I know the Elo rating of my chess engine?
I built an uci compatible chess engine, and I would like to know its Elo rating. What is the easiest way to get it?
I would like something that works both on Linux and Windows.
Romain
- 667
- 8
- 15
16
votes
5 answers
Effectiveness of a spaced repetition system (SRS) for memorizing tactical patterns for long-term skill gain?
After reading Micheal de Maza's article 400 Points in 400 Days and the paper Training in Chess: A Scientific Approach by Gobet and Jansen,
I have come to the conclusion that effective gains in chess skill for players below the A-class rating…
Dider
- 841
- 9
- 14
16
votes
3 answers
Who is/was the lowest ranked World Chess Champion?
Boris Gelfand has just won the 7th of 12 games (all previous drawn) in the FIDE World Championship match against the current holder of the title Viswanathan Anand. This puts him in a good position to take the title. Gelfand is currently ranked 20th…
b1_
- 1,697
- 10
- 15
16
votes
13 answers
Is there a single best move in every position?
If it were possible to analyse every possible outcome of a position, would there ever be a single move that could be considered "best"?
I know that this is how computers evaluate positions, but they can only calculate the decision tree down to a set…
SilverlightFox
- 273
- 2
- 10
16
votes
3 answers
Is Elo conserved?
Does the average elo of a group that plays only amongst themselves stay constant?
For example, say 100 players start with 2000 rating and they play only amongst themselves many times. Will their total Elo remain at 2000*100, decay, or increase over…
Indigo1729
- 271
- 1
- 5
16
votes
2 answers
Why are players required to record the moves in World Championship Classical games?
I understand that in some lower-level games, if the players do not record the moves, nobody else will do it for them. But what is the point of requiring the players at World Championship classical games to record the moves? After all, they can…
Zuriel
- 9,063
- 6
- 40
- 98
16
votes
1 answer
Why did white sacrifice knight in this Nimzowitsch's 1905 game?
Saw this image in a WhatsApp group. Initially it looks attractive with a possibility of a "smothered mate", but I am unable to find out if white can really survive for several variations.
[FEN "6rk/1p4np/1n2p1RQ/3p2P1/rPpNq1P1/P3B2P/2P2P2/7K w - -…
iammilind
- 714
- 4
- 16
16
votes
4 answers
How to play as adult attacking Chess player against young chess prodigies
I'm an expert-level chess player, who enjoys playing dynamic chess, but I am struggling against young chess players (ages between 8-16), who have lower ratings. How can I improve my score against this type of player? Playing positional chess?…
Tolga Ulusoy
- 339
- 2
- 4
16
votes
3 answers
What are the main changes in the latest (January 2023) version of the FIDE Laws of Chess?
FIDE has released its latest version of the Laws of Chess - FIDE Laws of Chess taking effect from 1 January 2023.
What are the main differences from the previous version(Laws of Chess: For competitions starting from 1 January 2018 till 31 December…
Brian Towers
- 96,800
- 11
- 239
- 397
16
votes
1 answer
Chess etiquette: Carlsen withdrawing from the tournament
Ben Finegold made this point during his streams, that even if Magnus Carlsen suspects either cheating on Hans Niemann's part or sabotage on the part of a member of his team, he should not have withdrawn.
According to Finegold, it is improper to…
Chris Sanders
- 837
- 4
- 12
16
votes
4 answers
Why are capturing key moves "frowned upon"?
Wikipedia's article on Babson tasks says:
However, Yarosh's problem has a small flaw: the key is a capture, something which is generally frowned upon in problems.
(The "key" of a chess problem is the first move in the solution.)
Why is it frowned…
Steve Bennett
- 3,304
- 16
- 32
16
votes
2 answers
Why is FIDE investigating Karjakin and Shipov, but not Karpov?
Recently FIDE decided to refer GMs Karjakin and Shipov to the ethics and disciplinary commission for supporting the Russian invasion of Ukraine. They have not, however, decided to refer GM Anatoly Karpov, even though Karpov is a member of the…
Allure
- 26,534
- 1
- 68
- 146
16
votes
2 answers
Is this endgame position a theoretical win or draw?
The following tactics problem comes from ChessTempo, and was taken from a game between Anatoly Karpov and Alexey Kuzmin. It's white's move.
The idea of the problem is to find white's best move from the shown position.
But my question is slightly…
Mark Byers
- 1,649
- 16
- 22
16
votes
5 answers
How can I improve after 10+ years of chess?
I've played chess for almost 13 years now (I'm 23), and I don't know how to improve my game level. I'm rated ~1400 FIDE, and have never been higher. I'm also ~1300 on chess.com after 700 games, and between 1700 and 1900 on their tactics problems.…
LittleBig
- 403
- 3
- 8