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karim_essam

hello friends 

im beginner player and i need advise to improve myself in chess , i dont know where to begin my steps 

i ask myself do i have to stick with playing chess and analyze my games although  i have big problem with puzzles i cant solve puzzles easily and i do a lot of mistakes  . 

and i have another problem some guys share moves for example moves for carlsen and i read comments like what a wonderful move,  and when i see it i cant understand why this move is wonderful it is silly so i am disappointed i love this game but i want to improve very quickly . 

finally i want to ask about the premium membership  what is good for me  gold , platinum or diamond membership 

so please help me and give me tips or a plan to stick with it to improve myself and thank you

GM_chess_player

OK, first of all, what do you play?

Try not to focus on bullet or blitz games. Rapid and daily may help.

That's okay, if you make a lot of mistakes. Keep analyzing and watch videos on chess.com. Then, use those themes to play some tactics. Your rating will grow gradually.

When you see some boards on chess.com, analyze it to see what is a blunder and what's brilliant.

OK, for chess.com memberships:

If you want something that is cheap, go for gold.

For platinum, it gives you a little bit more for a little more expensive price.

And for the most popular, diamond, gives you ALL the features, but is expensive. 

For me, I chose diamond. It's great! You get all the features.

The BEST would be platinum, most of the features for a more expensive price.

If you want to improve, read chess books by famous authors, for example, Jermey Silman, Susan Polar, and more.

Thanks, and hope this helps! wink.png

GM_chess_player

karim_essam
Thank you for your help i am already play rapid chess only now for the books I will try to find it in Kuwait because I live in Kuwait I hope I can find it in any bookstore
burhanqerimi

Hello Karim, first you need to do is to make it fun (not put a tension to your games). Try to learn from mistakes of course. I will suggest you do these things; puzzles and study endgames.

 

dont be afraid to make mistakes and lose; also get familiar with the chess board and pieces again being relaxed helps to apply knowledge. 

This is the best advice you will ever get.

 

good luck!

RussBell

The following article suggest many instructive books that are appropriate for your level, and which might be of help to you....especially those that are listed at the beginning of the article.  At this stage of your development, focus on learning fundamentals and principles.....don't try to study books that are too advanced for you....(learn to walk before trying to run)......

Good Chess Books for Beginners and Beyond...

https://www.chess.com/blog/RussBell/good-chess-books-for-beginners-and-beyond

To begin with, focus on basic tactics and endgame technique, and opening principles - get comfortable with these fundamentals before attempting to progress to more advanced topics such as positional chess and strategy.  For your first book on opening principles I highly recommend "Discovering Chess Openings" by John Emms.  An instructive game collection to begin with is "Logical Chess Move By Move" by Irving Chernev, where the reasoning behind virtually every move is explained.

You might also find this interesting...

Maximize the Usefulness of Your Moves....

https://www.mark-weeks.com/aboutcom/aa06b18.htm

Finally, play mostly longer time controls, including "daily" chess, so you have time to think about what you should be doing - blitz and bullet chess may be fun, but at this stage of your development they will do little to promote your rapid improvement or your understanding of how to play correctly.....

https://www.chess.com/article/view/longer-time-controls-are-more-instructive

https://www.chess.com/forum/view/general/how-blitz-and-bullet-rotted-my-brain-don-t-let-it-rot-yours

karim_essam
PawnstormPossie wrote:

1st step to improve in anything...do the right things.

What are you doing now?

1. Play fast time controls

2. Play Sicilian Defence vs 1.e4

Why are you doing these things?

These are the wrong things to do at this time, if you seriously want to improve.

If you just want to play for fun and have nothing better to do for a few minutes, keep doing the same things. It's just a fun game.

The right things to do (to improve):

1. Play slowest time controls (give yourself time to think and take notes on what you think) You need all the time you can get at this point.

2. Play opening moves you understand (Reason for your moves should follow the basic opening principles). If your move does not follow opening principles, you need to have very good reasons (understanding) for why this is a good move. I suggest you not try this at this point.

You should understand move 1 for white. Your move or not, you need to understand what the move does, what it accomplishes, or what it tries to do. This move gives you information.

Once you understand move 1, you can go to move 1 for black. What should black do based on what you learned from White's move?

You don't need to pay to learn these things.

If you decide to get even more serious (or later after learning the basics), you can pay to use some very good learning resources.

thank you for your precious advises and i will follow it 

karim_essam
RussBell wrote:

The following article suggest many instructive books that are appropriate for your level, and which might be of help to you....especially those that are listed at the beginning of the article.  At this stage of your development, focus on learning fundamentals and principles.....don't try to study books that are too advanced for you....(learn to walk before trying to run)......

Good Chess Books for Beginners and Beyond...

https://www.chess.com/blog/RussBell/good-chess-books-for-beginners-and-beyond

To begin with, focus on basic tactics and endgame technique, and opening principles - get comfortable with these fundamentals before attempting to progress to more advanced topics such as positional chess and strategy.  For your first book on opening principles I highly recommend "Discovering Chess Openings" by John Emms.  An instructive game collection to begin with is "Logical Chess Move By Move" by Irving Chernev, where the reasoning behind virtually every move is explained.

You might also find this interesting...

Maximize the Usefulness of Your Moves....

https://www.mark-weeks.com/aboutcom/aa06b18.htm

Finally, play mostly longer time controls, including "daily" chess, so you have time to think about what you should be doing - blitz and bullet chess may be fun, but at this stage of your development they will do little to promote your rapid improvement or your understanding of how to play correctly.....

https://www.chess.com/article/view/longer-time-controls-are-more-instructive

https://www.chess.com/forum/view/general/how-blitz-and-bullet-rotted-my-brain-don-t-let-it-rot-yours

ok thank you i will try to find these book in kuwait or in egypt i hope so 

karim_essam
burhanqerimi wrote:

Hello Karim, first you need to do is to make it fun (not put a tension to your games). Try to learn from mistakes of course. I will suggest you do these things; puzzles and study endgames.

 

dont be afraid to make mistakes and lose; also get familiar with the chess board and pieces again being relaxed helps to apply knowledge. 

This is the best advice you will ever get.

 

good luck!

yes you are right thank you for your advise 

kindaspongey

"... for those that want to be as good as they can be, they'll have to work hard.

Play opponents who are better than you … . Learn basic endgames. Create a simple opening repertoire (understanding the moves are far more important than memorizing them). Study tactics. And pick up tons of patterns. That’s the drumbeat of success. ..." - IM Jeremy Silman (December 27, 2018)

https://www.chess.com/article/view/little-things-that-help-your-game

https://www.chess.com/article/view/how-to-start-out-in-chess

https://www.chess.com/news/view/a-new-years-resolution-improve-your-chess-with-new-lessons
"... In order to maximize the benefits of [theory and practice], these two should be approached in a balanced manner. ... Play as many slow games (60 5 or preferably slower) as possible, ... The other side of improvement is theory. ... This can be reading books, taking lessons, watching videos, doing problems on software, etc. ..." - NM Dan Heisman (2002)
https://web.archive.org/web/20140627084053/http://www.chesscafe.com/text/heisman19.pdf
"... If it’s instruction, you look for an author that addresses players at your level (buying something that’s too advanced won’t help you at all). This means that a classic book that is revered by many people might not be useful for you. ..." - IM Jeremy Silman (2015)
https://www.chess.com/article/view/the-best-chess-books-ever
Here are some reading possibilities that I often mention:
Simple Attacking Plans by Fred Wilson (2012)
https://web.archive.org/web/20140708090402/http://www.chesscafe.com/text/review874.pdf
http://dev.jeremysilman.com/shop/pc/Simple-Attacking-Plans-77p3731.htm
Logical Chess: Move by Move by Irving Chernev (1957)
https://web.archive.org/web/20140708104437/http://www.chesscafe.com/text/logichess.pdf
The Most Instructive Games of Chess Ever Played by Irving Chernev (1965)
https://chessbookreviews.wordpress.com/tag/most-instructive-games-of-chess-ever-played/
Winning Chess by Irving Chernev and Fred Reinfeld (1948)
https://web.archive.org/web/20140708093415/http://www.chesscafe.com/text/review919.pdf
Back to Basics: Tactics by Dan Heisman (2007)
https://web.archive.org/web/20140708233537/http://www.chesscafe.com/text/review585.pdf
https://www.chess.com/article/view/book-review-back-to-basics-tactics

https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5856bd64ff7c50433c3803db/t/5895fc0ca5790af7895297e4/1486224396755/btbtactics2excerpt.pdf
Discovering Chess Openings by GM John Emms (2006)
https://web.archive.org/web/20140627114655/http://www.chesscafe.com/text/hansen91.pdf
Openings for Amateurs by Pete Tamburro (2014)
http://kenilworthian.blogspot.com/2014/05/review-of-pete-tamburros-openings-for.html
https://chessbookreviews.wordpress.com/tag/openings-for-amateurs/
https://www.mongoosepress.com/catalog/excerpts/openings_amateurs.pdf
Chess Endgames for Kids by Karsten Müller (2015)
https://chessbookreviews.wordpress.com/tag/chess-endgames-for-kids/
http://www.gambitbooks.com/pdfs/Chess_Endgames_for_Kids.pdf
A Guide to Chess Improvement by Dan Heisman (2010)
https://web.archive.org/web/20140708105628/http://www.chesscafe.com/text/review781.pdf
Studying Chess Made Easy by Andrew Soltis (2009)
https://web.archive.org/web/20140708090448/http://www.chesscafe.com/text/review750.pdf
Seirawan stuff:
http://seagaard.dk/review/eng/bo_beginner/ev_winning_chess.asp?KATID=BO&ID=BO-Beginner
http://www.nystar.com/tamarkin/review1.htm
https://web.archive.org/web/20140627132508/http://www.chesscafe.com/text/hansen173.pdf
https://www.chess.com/article/view/book-review-winning-chess-endings
https://web.archive.org/web/20140708092617/http://www.chesscafe.com/text/review560.pdf