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| Nov-28-07 |
| priapus56: Interesting comments on this page. Several childish remarks about the man's name and then a short biography showing that the average kibitzer on this page is probably not fit to have wiped Znosko-Borovsky's boots. |
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Nov-28-07
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| whiskeyrebel: I'll do my share of setting the record straight. Znosko-Borovsky's endgame manual is one of the best I've read. Unlike the dry encyclopedias or recycled newspaper column collections his writing style makes it a lively read. I felt like I knew the man as well at least as many solid contemporary authors when I was done reading it. He explains how to work with a position. Combine it with Silman's endgame tome and you'll thrive chess wise on most desert islands. |
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Jan-04-08
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| dx9293: <whiskeyrebel> "How to Play the Chess Endings" has left a lasting impact upon my play, and having read it very early in my chess development it gave me an appreciation of the importance of endgame technique. Some previous posters asked about "The Art of Chess Combination." This is an excellent work, and I prefer it to Vukovic's more famous and universally overrated "Art of Attack in Chess." |
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Jan-04-08
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| brankat: I have not had a chance to read the book on Endings, but I've had "The Art of Chess Combination" for some forty years. One of my favourite Chess books. Well structured, fine writing style, appropriate samples of games/positions.
Z.Borovsky is an excellent teacher.
Above all Mr.Z.Borovsky proves his starting point that it is possible to learn and even master the Art of Combinations. I can attest to it first hand. |
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Jan-04-08
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| whiskeyrebel: thanks for the tip guys..I'll track down a copy of "The Art of Chess Combination" at one of the used book stores I make the rounds of. Isn't it strange how such a great chess writer can go nearly unrecognized? |
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Jan-04-08
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| brankat: <whiskeyrebel> <Isn't it strange how such a great chess writer can go nearly unrecognized?> Unfortunately, the same has been happening to writers, artists, scientists etc, in all fields, and throughout History. I have a feeling, the same will happen even to <RFile> :-) |
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Jan-04-08
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| chancho: Another booklet of his that is not bad at all is: How Not To Play Chess.
Incidentally, Jeremy Silman said that after reading The Art Of Chess Combination, his rating jumped up 400 points! |
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| Jan-15-08 |
| rusich: He was a literary and music critic.And also he was Russian. |
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| Mar-19-08 |
| James Demery: Nice quote of the day. Couldn`t agree with you more Eugenio old bean. But what are the steps to FIND this realizable plan? |
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May-10-08
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| whiteshark: Quote of the Day
<Chess is a game of understanding and not of memory.> -- Znosko-Borovsky
Where did he get that and what after all does it amount to? |
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Dec-19-08
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| blacksburg: <Chess is a game of understanding and not of memory.> "It is better to understand a combination, the principles underlying it, than to memorize it. Analogous combinations may be possible in other positions, after other opening moves. Provided you have an understanding of the combination, you can take advantage of the position, or avoid the danger, even if you have forgotten the game. If you have only learnt it by heart, nothing can help you, if you forget it." - Znosko-Borovsky, How Not To Play Chess |
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Dec-19-08
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| blacksburg: i found this interesting, from the section entitled "Do not make the opening moves automatically and without reflection" after 1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Bg5 Nbd7 -
"I would wager that 99 out of every 100 players in making the move 4...Nbd7 do not realize they are offering to sacrifice their Q, and they would be greatly astonished if anyone told them that this was the case." - How Not To Play Chess this is a really good little book. best $7 i've ever spent :) |
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Dec-28-08
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| Karpova: Edward Winter: <Although Divinsky is so manifestly out of his depth on even elementary factual matters, he is seldom shy about dispensing his opinions and prejudices. Page 239 pontificates that the books of Znosko-Borovsky ‘have not stood the test of time’, ignoring the fact that several of them were/are still in print decades after Znosko-Borovsky’s death. (The test of time? There are few pages in Divinsky’s encyclopedia that have stood the test of two minutes’ scrutiny.)> From Edward Winter's "A Catastrophic Encyclopedia", 1992: http://www.chesshistory.com/winter/... |
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| Jan-26-09 |
| Edwin M: <chancho> <Another booklet of his that is not bad at all is: How Not To Play Chess. Incidentally, Jeremy Silman said that after reading The Art Of Chess Combination, his rating jumped up 400 points!> Aren't you confusing Silman with de la Maza? I just read in a chess forum Silman claimed his rating went up a 100 points after reading The Art Of Chess Combination. |
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Jan-26-09
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| chancho: <Edwin M> The 400 point jump is mentioned on the recommended reading list on page 397 of Silman's expanded third edition book: How to Reassess Your Chess. |
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| Jan-26-09 |
| Edwin M: <chancho> Well, i can't argue with that, now can i? It's about time i get the book myself. |
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| Jul-09-09 |
| myschkin: . . .
"The death of Znosko-Borovsky deprives the chess world of one of the few survivors of an intellectually rich generation, the Russian Masters of the old regime ... My own memories of Znosko go back to 1923-24. I found him then, and at all times later, a stimulating friend and a delightful conversationalist in many subjects. His reputation as a dramatic and literary critic was, at one time considerable in Europe, though England knew little of this. Those who have read his chess works, however, must be aware that their writer was a <kultur mensch in the best sense>. Withal, he was stoical in adversity (adversity was always his lot) and possessed of great humour and resilience ... As a player he suffered from the demands of a professionalism that is incompatible with great performance: but he leaves records of many games which reveal, if not genius, then a great talent ... those who knew him will all agree that his life enriched, and in a degree inspired, the chess world." (by Gerald Abrahams, BCM, 1955) Bio: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eugene... |
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| Jul-12-09 |
| visayanbraindoctor: Was Znosko-Borovsky ever awarded the FIDE GM title? (Of course we know he was of GM caliber but did FIDE acknowledge it when they started passing around the GM title in the 1950s?) Here is his Chessmetrics Player Profile (by Jeff Sonas): Eugene Znosko-Borovsky
Born: 1884-Aug
Died: 1954-Dec
Best World Rank: #17 (3 different months between the May 1916 rating list and the July 1916 rating list )
Highest Rating: 2613 on the December 1914 rating list, #18 in world, age 30y4m
Best Individual Performance: 2608 in Ostend, 1907, scoring 10/20 (50%) vs 2598-rated opposition |
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Jul-12-09
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| Karpova: <visayanbraindoctor: Was Znosko-Borovsky ever awarded the FIDE GM title? (Of course we know he was of GM caliber but did FIDE acknowledge it when they started passing around the GM title in the 1950s?)> According to Jeremy Gaige ("Chess Personalia: A Biobibliography") he wasn't. |
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| Jul-12-09 |
| visayanbraindoctor: <Karpova> Thanks for the info. I could say <it's a pity that Znosko-Borovsky did not get the GM title> but no one cares; every one knows anyway that he played like a GM. This topic may be related or not, but it's probably the perception that the GM title has been devalued in the past two or three decades that is causing talk that FIDE titles should simply be abolished. |
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Aug-16-09
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| ketchuplover: Happy birthday Eugene. Anyone else think he was two people? |
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| Aug-16-09 |
| WhiteRook48: <1. d4 d5 2 c4 e6 3 Nc3 Nf6 4 Bg5 Nbd7 I wager that 99 out of every 100 players who play 4...Nbd7 do not realize they are offering to sacrifice their queen.>
do you mean 5 cxd5 exd5 6 Nxd5?? Nxd5 7 Bxd8 ? |
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| Aug-16-09 |
| felixd: What a name... Poor him... I just try to imagine how it was when he was in school :D |
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Sep-12-09
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| karnak64: Heh -- about 40 years ago I bought a copy of his "How Not to Play Chess," and I remember that its first chapter had the following useful advice: "avoid mistakes." Thanks, Eugene. Really helpful ... |
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| Sep-25-09 |
| e4forme: Reading "How to play the Chess Openings" raised my Chess rating by a Hundred Points or better. He had a gift for writing, very lucid. He could take a complex Idea and present it simply. |
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