Chess Software
In old time, before personal computers are widely used, reading books, classroom training, personal coaching are no doubt the best ways to learn how to play chess. But computers have changed our life in many aspects including the royal game - chess. Chess software has made learning and improving chess for kids easier and at the same time with more fun. Today's chess software not only can be used to play chess but also can be used to learn chess. It is more interactive and sometimes entertaining to learn chess by using chess software. It is much more efficient to use chess software to improve you kids' chess strength rapidly.
There are many kinds of chess software on the market. They can be categorized as followings:
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Chess Playing |
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Chess Training |
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Database Management |
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Databases |
If your kids know nothing or just a little about playing chess, the best way to get them start is through Learn to Play Chess with Fritz and Chesster I & II. This software is not just used for teaching chess. It is entertaining for kids to learn and play. They are got hooked instantly. Kids, even as young as 3 or 4 years old, can be benefited from this program.
If your kids know how to play chess and have attended school chess club or chess program regularly for at least six months or so and they want to improve their chess skills to be able to compete at their chess club/program, Majestic Chess is probably one of the best chess software programs for kids and adult beginners to improve chess strength quickly at this stage.
If your kids are scholastic tournament players and have an USCF rating above 600, the most efficient way to improve is tactics training. The best software for beginners is Chess Tactics for Beginners.
If your kids are scholastic tournament players and have an USCF rating above 1000, ChessMater 9000 can help them improve chess strength quickly. Although these software programs belong to Chess Playing category, since they are targeting beginner and intermediate level players, the training feature built in these programs are very strong.
If your kids are scholastic tournament players and have an USCF rating above 1200, tactics training is still the best way to improve chess strength quickly. The best software for this stage is Chess Tactics for Intermediate Players.
With above mentioned software programs and some books, your kids' chess strength should get quick improvement. If their USCF rating is 1600 or above, they are in advanced intermediate level or above. There are many excellent software programs for playing and training. The training software can be categorized as follows:
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Opening |
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Endgame |
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Tactics |
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Strategy |
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General |
The best chess playing software for this level of players is from ChessBase family, they are listed here base on chess playing styles:
* Junior: The most tactically-oriented of the four. Junior will sometimes even make speculative sacrifices (and this can be intensified a bit with one of the tweaks available under "Engine options").
* Fritz: Of the four choices, this is the "middle-ground" program. While still being positionally sound, Fritz' strong suit is still tactics. The latest version Fritz 10 contains some advanced positional qualities as well.
* Hiarcs: Until the introduction of Shredder, Hiarcs was the most positional chess engine on the market. The programmer (Mark Uniacke) has been building positional knowledge into Hiarcs since the program's introduction more than a decade ago.
* Shredder: Easily the most positional chess playing program on the market. Shredder plays in a "solid" style and it's difficult for the average player to induce Shredder to make major positional errors.
