Maggie's Farm

We are a commune of inquiring, skeptical, politically centrist, capitalist, anglophile, traditionalist New England Yankee humans, humanoids, and animals with many interests beyond and above politics. Each of us has had a high-school education (or GED), but all had ADD so didn't pay attention very well, especially the dogs. Each one of us does "try my best to be just like I am," and none of us enjoys working for others, including for Maggie, from whom we receive neither a nickel nor a dime. Freedom from nags, cranks, government, do-gooders, control-freaks and idiots is all that we ask for.

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Tuesday, March 1. 2011

Got game? Fritz 12 for Chess

It's the cat's meow: Fritz 12.


If there is any better mental training, or any better test of training and intellect than Chess, I don't know what it is.


(Other than real life, of course. Mastering the vicissitudes, raw deals, unfairnesses, subtleties, luck, and challenges of real life is the real test. Of course, dealing one's own personal limitations is a big part of that game.)


A friend of mine with three young kids recently banned all electronic and computer games from the house. "Enough stupid crap in this house." He announced that they would henceforth play Checkers, Chess, Backgammon, Poker, Mille Bournes, Euchre, or Hearts in the house - and that he would give each kid one game every night.


He's been working on Fritz though, to make sure he can stay ahead of them, and his eldest (9 years old) requested a Chess tutor. But even Fritz is banned for the kids. "I want them to play a real human, to learn to read them and their game."


Maybe America isn't hopeless.

Posted by Bird Dog in Our Essays, The Culture, "Culture," Pop Culture and Recreation at 12:35 | Comments (8) | Trackbacks (0)

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Eight months without tv--soooo good! Got Netflix, can get PBS, or any of the others except Fox. Got NCIS, NCISLAX, Blue Bloods, etc.

What else is there?
#1 apple pie on 2011-03-01 15:33 (Reply)
"I want them to play a real human, to learn to read them and their game."

When it comes to computer Chess games, this complaint is well founded. Give me a few hours with ol' Fritzy and I'll be able to beat him every time. Unlike humans, computer Chess games can be tricked and buffaloed every which way from Sunday.

"Here, nice computer, want to trade my 5-point rook for your 3-point bishop? No problem! Hey, about about trading my queen for your knight and two pawns? Such a deal! And oh, by the way, nice computer -- checkmate, suckah!

They get so wrapped up in point values that they simply can't see themselves being blindsided.

So, good on the dad. The kids'll be far better off.
#2 Dr. Mercury (Link) on 2011-03-01 15:48 (Reply)
What! No canasta? That's just sad.
#3 Knucklehead (Link) on 2011-03-01 16:20 (Reply)
I find the toughest available crosswords are better relaxation. But it is bound to be a matter of taste.

The problem is supply, eventually you exhaust the books of really fiendish puzzles.

In chess your opponent can err. That doesn't happen with crosswords but occasionally a clue will be slightly wrong. It happens.
#4 KTWO on 2011-03-01 16:50 (Reply)
If there is any better mental training, or any better test of training and intellect than Chess, I don't know what it is.

Cryptograms.

Well, probably not as good for strategic thinking -- chess is, after all, warfare in miniature. But for practice in raw algorithmic problem-solving, cryptograms be the bee's knees.
#5 wolfwalker on 2011-03-01 21:13 (Reply)
There has been a renaissance of board games, with lots of very engaging - and challenging options.

The latest trend is so-called "eurostyle" games - which are themed around historical events or locales, and require bidding/trading as well as straight strategy.

But there are a lot of "pure abstract strategy games" out there.

In addition, there is a culture of "print-and-play" games - with a PC, printer, and some sheets of label paper you can construct homemade versions of many games before you buy them.

Start here:

http://boardgamegeek.com/

- the "geeklists" are lists of recommended games by age group, type of game, etc. Highly useful to browse this universe.
#6 Ben David on 2011-03-02 03:29 (Reply)
... and from that site, here is a great game to prepare kids for for chess:

Jungle Chess - introduces the child to pieces that move in different ways, and capturing rules:

http://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/4031/dou-shou-qi

That page has everything you need - printable boards and stickers, links to rules on Wiki and other sites.

Many, many games can be played using a simple chess and checkers set. Here's another site full of chess variants:

http://www.chessvariants.org/

...and here's a list of games that can be played using just a checkers set:

http://boardgamegeek.com/geeklist/11169/checkers-set-as-a-game-system
#7 Ben David on 2011-03-02 03:45 (Reply)
Poker. I'm quite certain I knew a full house before I could ride a bike. You've got the math, strategy, reading folks, and especially the camraderie. Make it real: We played for pennies at the start, and when we had our paper routes, dimes and quarters. And play for keeps. It's not Candyland out there.
#8 Alear on 2011-03-05 19:13 (Reply)

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