Question, how can you read the side lines better in chess books, without losing the position you started from?
@Juroen said in #11:
> Question, how can you read the side lines better in chess books, without losing the position you started from?
Well, you can finish the main variation and then do the sideline
@nolucaak said in #3:
> Book by a margin. Videos about quick traps are kind of good, but books really make me feel like I'm actually learning something. By the way, does anybody know any aggressive openings against d4 that is NOT super complicated, like Benko Gambit?
You can try the Grunfeld Defense
Videos and Courses are good to catch up quickly in the intermediate stage, where you also don't need to overthink. This type of content rarely existed around 20-30 years ago, there was a gap.
This gap is now filled by the easily accessible courses and videos which will keep many people playing and improving.
But if you feel you're kind of through with that, books seem to get you to more thorough realms.
I actually think video courses are way better than books. The quality of the content should be disregarded if you can find the same quality in both formats, physical books have the great advantage of having very good books, but also there are some very good video courses and also some very good books now have their video course "update".
Some of the reasons for books being superior to courses are a matter of personal preference, for example, "you focus more", maybe some people focus more when reading a book, but also some people could find difficulties using a book and could find it easier to focus while whatching a video course.
For me the biggest advantage video courses could have is that you are actually more active, not less active as the author stated. If you try your best to learn using any of the resources you could have, video courses are many times more active, as you have some puzzles, quizzes, chessable move trainer for openings, etc. Video courses are not only their videos, actually the interactive part is better.
And the best players of the past learned with what they could, but also, modern players train, study and practice chess using modern methods.
books
I also think that books are better to learn
> 5. Great players used books
> Bobby Fischer, Kasparov, Carlsen—they learned from books and real boards. Not videos.
Anand used ChessBase, but that's not a video...
"#12
@Juroen said in #11:
>Question, how can you read the side lines better in chess books, without losing the position you started from?
Well, you can finish the main variation and then do the sideline"
At the page of lots of variations there are often diagrams, at key variation points.
But more importantly, the ability to go to an earlier position, or reverse a sequence of moves is part of the chess learning, which when you study with books, you do this, and it increases your chess skill.
....Or you can play out the moves in a database program, or other chess interface, where reversing the moves is often just an arrow key back.