lichess.org
Donate

Is using the opening database detrimental to chess improvement?

When playing correspondence is it better to use it or not if your goal is to improve at the game?

I dont think its allowed to use open sources while playing.
Yes you can use opening books in correspondence. I am asking if it is helpful to do so or not. As you are not really playing the openings yourself.
In top correspondence like ICCF the players use all available ressources: databases, books, engines. Of course that is helpful. Correspondence chess is like science: search for truth and questioning of sometimes contradictory information.
Of course it is good to use them. Openings have developed over centuries, it is ineffective to try to find out their secrets on your own. Also, ideas by other players can be a source of inspiration.
@NeverBeenTimid
It is not usefull to play random moves for example on move 5, you have 5-6 good options according to the database, how to chose the one fits your style? Very difficult.
I am finding yet usefull using opening repertoire books from different author...(s)(... ities in chess ) I chose one aggressive line and 1 solid line in every opening ( defence ) I play and then play the repertoire and see how it feels.
The middle game and the endgame you play on your own. Openings are only a matter of preferences what kind of positions you would like to see later on.
I have been using it extensively however it has also resulted in me having an inflated rating. I am not a 1800 rated player. A lot of the database leads you through middlegames and even endgames as well. I'm not even 1500 in blitz yet.
Blitz is the opposite of correspondence.
In blitz you risk losing on time, you need strong nerves, you can play impulsively on intuition. Your moves do not have to be correct, you only have to pose problems that your opponent cannot solve in short time.
In correspondence you are at ease, you can look into all possibilities and consult whatever ressources you like, but in the end you have to decide on your move and live with the consequences for some months.
I don't think it is necessarily detrimental, but it doesn't seem good either, almost as if you were going to an exam and you already had the answers,... yeah, you pass but you're kinda tricking yourself.

If you play openings without understanding the logic behind the moves, the moment a person goes out of theory in a game where nobody is helping you, things start to crumble apart.

The other day I was playing against a 1600 player, I was playing some random moves in a Najdorf with the white pieces, he told me that in the move 16 or something we were into theory (I didn't know that, but he knows the theory of the Najdorf by heart), so I made the move which seemed the less likely to be theoretical (innacurate tho), I knew he was going to blunder. He did, inmediately. Theory is not that important, the fundamental part is the thought behind it.

Play without help my fellow, otherwise it is like Weightlifting without weight. I know you are smarter than that. Then ask for help after your games finished and correct your mistakes.

Greetings, Paul.
It is true that using resources without thinking deep about them is useless but thinking deep gives better results when you use additional resources.

Edit: and, yes, playing blitz is therfore irrelevant and you wont learn much from it.

This topic has been archived and can no longer be replied to.