WHAT'S THE BEST MOVE?
POSITIONAL ANALYSIS
Chess engines aren't supposed to be divine oracles that always have
the “perfect” answer. Let's imagine you have some chess position that's
really bugging you, and you could show that position to any two world
champions (living or dead) and get their personal advice on what to play
in that position. Mikhail Tal, who was legendary for his scary attacking
chess and sacrificial play would likely give you one answer, while Tigran
Petrosian, who is renowned for his fine defensive play and patient moves
(the guy was like a panther lying hidden on a jungle tree limb – he'd just
quietly bide his time and then strike!) would most likely tell you something
completely different. They'd both give you strong moves, each of which
would fit that player's particular style. Which one you'd pick would depend
on your own preferences, but the cool part is that both moves would likely
be better than what you'd have come up with on your own.
The ability to get advice from a stronger player is another reason why you
bought a chess playing program (and why many of us own more than
one – it's that “one move from Tal, one move from Petrosian” thing). You
can just ask a program for an opinion, you can have the chess engine
play against itself from that position, or (best of all) you can even play
against the engine using that position as the start, which is especially
cool because it lets you try out your own ideas.
SET 'EM UP, JOE!
I don't remember ever seeing a chess program which didn't let me set
up a chess position from scratch. Most programs won't let you set up
an illegal position (mainly to keep “junk” games out of your database –
and everyone else's, too, if you share your games online), but all chess
programs will let you set up legal ones. It's a crucial tool which is very
underused by most chess software owners. A couple of decades ago, I
wrote an electronic book as an “add-on” for a popular playing program in
which the entire book consisted of positions the reader was encouraged
to play out against the program. And do you know what I heard all the
time from my readers? “I didn't know you could do that!”
Yes. Yes, you can.
Take a look at the help files or manual for your chess playing software
to learn the procedure for setting up a position in that specific program.
The usual procedure is that you click a button to clear the chess board,
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