Learn chess from YouTube videos or books?

@DerReelle said ^

... In theory you could stop the video at important points, ...

I, at least, do not instantly realize when a stop is appropriate. The video proceeds, and it becomes necessary to back up. The process is cumbersome, and it becomes very cumbersome if there is a lot that one wants to think about as one goes through the material.

People are not the same. For some, books are the best, for others it's video tutorials, for some it's a session with a live coach... And even when it comes to only one type, a book that's extremely valuable for one can be useless for another and vice versa. The same can be said about video authors

In other words, noone can tell you what will work best for you, you have to find out yourself.

youtube

I would recommend books, since it's very easy to get distracted when watching a video.

I find it easier to watch pieces move in a video than to read the moves in a book. The chess boards in books tend to be small, and you must look away from them while reading. You might even find yourself reading while the board is on the previous page. The videos let you look at a big comfortable board while you hear what's being said. Thus, you can keep your eyes on the board while you process the message. That doesn't mean that videos are better than books all in all of course. Some books go more in depth in a topic.

@Rogue_Berserker said ^

The videos let you look at a big comfortable board while you hear what's being said.

The board I put next to the book when studying is big enough and way more comfortable than some diagram on a screen or display.

@mkubecek said ^

The board I put next to the book when studying is big enough and way more comfortable than some diagram on a screen or display.

Yeah, this is another thing I would like to ask about. How many of you use to have a chess board on the table when you read a book? Everyone can only speak for themselves of course, but there are three options: a real board, analyzing board on screen or no board at all (just trying to visualize everything in your head). Anyway, it will take some time to set up the position, something you don't need to do while watching a video. I honestly think that reading a book without a board can be good for visualization training.

I personally found I got better way faster when I made the switch from watching youtube videos to reading books. But of course everyone's different and learns differently.

I will say, though, the average book tends to be better than the average youtube video. The reason is pretty simple. It's easier for someone to make a 5 minute youtube video than to write hundreds of pages of analysis and publish a book. So those that write books are often far more dedicated and less prone to suggesting gimmicks to get clicks and views. Not that all videos are worse than books, just know not all videos are created equal.

@Rogue_Berserker said ^

How many of you use to have a chess board on the table when you read a book? Everyone can only speak for themselves of course, but there are three options: a real board, analyzing board on screen or no board at all (just trying to visualize everything in your head).
I honestly think that reading a book without a board can be good for visualization training.

I visualize the moves instead of making them on a chess board, and that really does help with visualization.

@DerReelle said ^

I would put it this way, but that is not 100% absolute in all cases ofc: if you learn from a book, you study the game. If you watch a video, you are consuming content. In theory you could stop the video at important points, but most people don't.

Just to build on that slightly, in my case stopping the videos at important points isn't possible without handwritten notes on a whiteboard to go with the lesson. Now, if this was bridge, I'd have a legitimate beef because that game has gotten too complicated for its own good (and I know because I briefly dabbled in before giving up for lack of a viable teacher...bridge really can be accused of having an ageist environment where anyone under the age of 70 isn't welcome). But for chess, I will be forthright: That kind of coaching/teaching would be ridiculous beyond words and beyond the realm of practical coaching.

One of my big weaknesses, and why I figure it will be a significant period of time before I play any better than a greenhorn (beginner) is that as an admitted neurodivergent (autistic), material really does have to be set up a particular way to hold my attention, and some of the Studies here do a decent enough job of that to convince me that I can be brought down to Earth and revisit what didn't click the first time. Places like Chessable, which don't hogtie you to video content on a course if that style doesn't work for you, could also be an option.

But with videos, the presenter has to actually tell me to pause the video and think about the position before continuing. Since most chess channels on YouTube are designed for neurotypicals to my knowledge (and that's just stating what is), with a signficant amount of clickbait to cut through for the most popular channels, throwing it in after about three minutes is more or less automatic.

TL;DR: Most of us are too stupid to know when to pause a video, and if you're like me and not neurotypical finding that point to pause is an exercise in futility and a waste of time.

books have the unbeatable advantage that they don't hurry you through their tempo and they don't hide to you what's up next minutes and where to skip and you don't lose the timestamp where you last stopped

you can learn move by move, diagram by diagram, reread or go on when YOU are ready to. you can turn pages and have an overview how long a chapter goes, turn back when you want to repeat a chapter

one big disadvantage is to have to skip looking to and fro book to board and back and always have your finger on the current move

books get beaten maybe by...
interactive lessons where you click yourself through the material and you can go back if needed - it needs be exactly the topic that you want to or need to learn, though, soas to be efficient for your distinct level on an issue

https://lichess.org/practice
is pretty good for its choice of elementary topics; but a bit awkward to click 'hint', 'see best move' and it doesn't tell you when you're already losing