@the_puzzles said in #3:
> Just be prepared for snarky comments, rude posters, and of course the nice ones!
Yes, most of all beware the nice ones!
For some moves you need to understand the fundamentals of Chess or a certain position to know why, otherwise it becomes an abstract thing of just looking at the engine.
My recommendation is a series called "Chess Fundamentals" by IM John Bartholomew, it's really good for any levels, it personally helped me to go from 1900 to 2000 although it's just for beginners.
In chess it's more important to have the right mindset than to guess the best move, because a move is just for a certain position but the understanding can be applied in many games.
@beginnerdev said in #1:
> How should I start to understand my game? What are the ideas to analyse game?
You can start by looking at mistakes marked by the engine. Some are obvious, so nothing to add here.
Most of the times it is not the case (like in the game you posted, especially when the mistake prevents you from getting some advantage) so follow the suggested line provided by the engine. That Bxf6 would allow you to reach a 2-pawn advantage.
Sometimes even after that you don't get it, or there is no way you will notice it in actual games, don't worry too much. The aim is avoiding mistakes you can understand.
Finally, you can analyze the endgame, where previously hidden weaknesses usually rise. If that's the case, try to find the root of the problem, sometimes is just a player had to double pawns or ended with three isolated pawns against three connected pawns, a King too passive, etc...
As a general practice: in any position you feel uncomfortable, try to find why and when/how it could have been prevented.
@beginnerdev : I remembered this post yesterday. There is a misconception that a huge mistake has to be accordingly noticeable.
In this recent game -Firouzja vs Carlsen- there are two blunders (first Black loses a decisive advantage, later White goes from equal to forced checkmate). If it was my game, I guess I could spend years scratching my head without understanding why, thinking it should be obvious. As they come from the absolute top, I assume they are beyond my understanding.
https://lichess.org/broadcast/champions-chess-tour-finals-2023/rr7-game-2/sLPzmOcd/Eo9kU4YR
In short, if you don't understand the engine suggestions most of the time, don't use that as your improvement method.
Instead just do regular exercises.
If you want to evaluate games, you could still look at positions where you were unhappy or surprised and try to find better plans.
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