Should I Use Chessbase?

Openings are slightly overhyped for the beginning, but if you want to get good, you need to learn them. I started to learn them when I was around 1600-1700 USCF I think. But yeah, in the beginning, learn to play chess, once you are at the level that you are losing most of your games because of openings, learn them

Learning openings is extremely important based on what level you are.

I have no idea how to get seriously good. I have taken to reading through endgame textbooks systematically, tackling endless tactics problems on my phone, and watching YouTube chess videos (Agadmaster is my current favourite). That said, I do own Chessbase and Fritz., with Megabase. I use Fritz and Megabase mostly; Chessbase almost never. What I most appreciate is the ability to pull down sample games for any opening or position when it matters. So I get to an interesting position that I do not understand, I use the analysis tool and it hands me a list of games all having the identical position [ some with colours reversed]; I can then see how various other players have proceeded from that position. By and large, it seems to me that serious players only reach a given position by design because they fancy their chances with either colour, they can usually play ether side, and it is useful to get past the delusion that there is anything really significant about having a plus sign or a minus one until you know how to play the position for both sides. For many major openings, there will be hundreds of examples to sample from, and for unusual openings or sidelines there is usually something to work with. I have hundreds of my own OTB games in my own database and again I routinely search Megabase for examples of how other players have handled the positions reached in my own games. It's pointless to learn opening lines as such - the thing is to see how it transforms into a middlegame. All in all, it's a brilliant tool for learning with.

By the way, since I'm waxing lyrical, one benefit of Chessbase (or Megabase) is to explore moves made by actual people in real games, because the moves recommended by computer engines are often only useful if you are also a computer
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