The Secret of Chess

[Lyudmil Tsvetkov]

One more review has appeared, by IM Gerard Welling from the Netherlands:
https://www.chess.com/blog/Swordfish55/ ... t-of-chess

Maybe it is time to buy the book.

[Henk]

In the meantime you can work on a second edition that makes the content of your book more digestible. (It is his opinion. I haven't read it) Maybe this reviewer can give some advice. Would also be fine if some very good chess players writes the ideas written down are correct.

[Lyudmil Tsvetkov]

In the meantime you can work on a second edition that makes the content of your book more digestible. (It is his opinion. I haven't read it) Maybe this reviewer can give some advice. Would also be fine if some very good chess players writes the ideas written down are correct.

Well, he basically confirmed he liked the book, so this is also a confirmation he agrees with many of the new concepts.
Main problem is even top GMs will have difficulty with some of my patterns, they are so deep.
I imagine the true worth of the book will become clear only much later, maybe in 20 years' time or so.
Such books are not written each and every day.
Everyone requests of me more clarity.
But why don't readers make a bit of an effort to read the book?
Each and every positional concept is logically/philosophically explained and diagrammed. What else does one actually need?

Concerning more down-to-Earth explanations(although I am not certain what that actually means), I am currently working on a second volume, which should include example games.
For this purpose, I need to browse some 30 000 games, and then pick maybe 1000 to fully comment?
How long do you think this will take?

[Henk]

Just start with 100 games or 50 and probably do no more.

Average reader probably don't like to count centi-pawns. And if you are using mathematics you can be sure many readers won't finish reading your book.

Best to make it readable like an article in a news paper or chess magazine.

[Lyudmil Tsvetkov]

Just start with 100 games or 50 and probably do no more.

Average reader probably don't like to count centi-pawns. And if you are using mathematics you can be sure many readers won't finish reading your book.

Best to make it readable like an article in a news paper or chess magazine.

But we want to change the world, don't we?

[Andres Valverde]

BTW, I'm building an e-book for schoolboys/girls here, for free. No secrets, only basics.
I'm trying to make it interactive with excercises. It could be interesting if it works like a GUI for helping with some practice.

I have developed a JavaScript program for implementing a GUI for Chess. (Actually for almost arbitrary chess variants.) It allows you to drag pieces over the board, highlighting their pseudo-legal moves, and can collect them in a game. (e.g. http://hgm.numati.net/variants/elven )

I would also want to use it for hosting solutions to (mate) problems, but I haven't thought of a good way to do that. The solution to a problem is really a tree, not a game. If there is no engine in there that punishes all mistakes that get you mated very quickly, it would be tedious to provide the entire solution tree. I was thinking of a system where, once you asked for the solution, the diagram shows you the key move, and then allows you to play a defensive move before showing the next one, etc. Basically it is like a tree in an opening book.

Error accessing this website

DNS_PROBE_FINISHED_NXDOMAIN

[Guenther]

BTW, I'm building an e-book for schoolboys/girls here, for free. No secrets, only basics. :)
I'm trying to make it interactive with excercises. It could be interesting if it works like a GUI for helping with some practice.

I have developed a JavaScript program for implementing a GUI for Chess. (Actually for almost arbitrary chess variants.) It allows you to drag pieces over the board, highlighting their pseudo-legal moves, and can collect them in a game. (e.g. http://hgm.numati.net/variants/elven )

I would also want to use it for hosting solutions to (mate) problems, but I haven't thought of a good way to do that. The solution to a problem is really a tree, not a game. If there is no engine in there that punishes all mistakes that get you mated very quickly, it would be tedious to provide the entire solution tree. I was thinking of a system where, once you asked for the solution, the diagram shows you the key move, and then allows you to play a defensive move before showing the next one, etc. Basically it is like a tree in an opening book.

Error accessing this website

DNS_PROBE_FINISHED_NXDOMAIN

It seems that link was typed by hand?
The usual domain for HGM starts with nubati instead of numati...

Guenther

[Lyudmil Tsvetkov]

One more review is available, by IM Herman Grooten of the Netherlands:
http://www.secretofchess.com/files/1777 ... 0Chess.pdf

So far, we have 4, and, although not all are ecstatic, all are largely positive.
Maybe the bigger number of reviews can help you make up your mind better.

[Lyudmil Tsvetkov]

Btw., I would be glad for anyone considering the book, when it is in a slump:

[Lyudmil Tsvetkov]

Well, when even Henk is gone, things should not be going well, really.
But then, he is to busy with Skipper.
Maybe I should not have written this book, after all.