offramp Member since Aug-16-03 · Last seen Jan-10-26 Some chess books that I think are outstanding: 1. <Fundamental Chess Endgames>, by Müller & Lamprecht, reprinted 2020. 400pp+, £25. 2. <Secrets of Practical Chess>, by Dr Nunn. 256pp (the USUAL 256pp!, i.e. the usual 2^8). £20. 3. <Capablanca's Best Chess Endings>, Irving Chernev's best work. 300pp. £15. 4. <107 Great Chess Battles 1939-1945>, written by Alexander Alekhine, but edited by Edward Winter. 256pp, £15. 5 (a) <Petrosian Year by Year Volume 1 (1942-1962)>, and - Karolyi & Gyozalyan, 484pp. (b) <Petrosian Year by Year Volume 2 (1963-1984)> - Karolyi & Gyozalyan, 516pp. They are £34 each. I bought one, then a few months later, the other volume. They are available in Kindle format! 6. <The Queen's Gambit Accepted: A Sharp and Sound Response to 1. d4> by Chris Ward. Ward wrote a superb book about the QGD, many years ago. I think this is useful for a book about the QGA. A total antidote to 1. d4, 2. c4. And now some total clinkers. NOT those well-known garbage chess books. The following are really bad chess books. 1. <Capablanca: A Compendium of Games, Notes, Articles, Correspondence, Illustrations and Other Rare Archival Materials on the Cuban Chess Genius Jose Raul Capablanca, 1888-1942> by Edward Winter. 360pp. c. £35. The title is the best thing. 2. <Larsen: Move by Move> - Cyrus Lakdawala Paperback, 488pp. 3. <Emanuel Lasker Volumes 1, 2 & 3 - Forster, Negele & Tischbierek>. £55 each. This book is unbelievably boring and tedious. Just look through it, then forget about it. AT THIS SAME TIME a totally superb book has just come out: <Emanuel Lasker All Games Volume 1 & 2: 1889-1940 (2 books)>, £55 for two books: Volume 1 covers the time Lasker became World Champion and played matches against Steinitz (twice for the World Championship), Bird and Blackburne amongst others. He also took part several famous tournaments including Hastings 1895, St Petersburg 1895-96 and Nuremberg 1896. Volume 2 covers the time Lasker played matches against Marshall, Tarrasch, Janowski, Schlechter and Capablanca for the World Championship. He also took part several famous tournaments including St Petersburg 1914, New York 1924, Moscow 1935 & 1936 and Nottingham 1936. Hardbacks, 388 and 342 pages, Russian Chess House. A real bargain. 4. <Pal Benko : My Life, Games and Compositions>, £140. Who is the most famous chess player out of Benko and Fischer? Who published the most plush, most opulent book? Benko. ..... Here are another 7 books: <He received a letter from his bookseller, informing him that only seven copies had been sold, and concluding with a polite request for the balance. Scythrop <[SKI-throp]> did not despair. <Seven copies,> he thought, <have been sold. Seven is a mystical number, and the omen is good. Let me find the seven purchasers of my seven copies, and they shall be the seven golden candlesticks with which I will illuminate the world.>.>

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Jan-10-26 J Hu vs S Badacsonyi, 2025   offramp: 14...Nb7. [DIAGRAM] White does not want to castle. It looks risky. White wasn't sure what to do. Instead, he played a2-a4, then a5 and a6, creating an important outpost for his knight at b7. 20. Nb7. [DIAGRAM] 20...e3 21. f3. Mate in 3.      Jan-10-26 Firouzja vs D Lazavik, 2025   offramp: I was drawn to this game from the home page. Some other people were discussing Two Knights (C58) . In a blitz game GM Firouija played the 2♘ opening. I was interested to see the modern ideas in this very ancient opening. Here is a new one: White had played 4. Ng5, that is      Jan-09-26 Tata Steel Masters (2026)    offramp: It's wonderful to see this ancient tournament. This year this will be the 87th top-class Dutch tournament. The town has no actual name: <Wijk aan Zee> means, "town on the sea". <Time to getta proppa name dudezz👾!!> Giri has real chances of winning this one because he ...      Jan-09-26 Kasparov vs Nunn, 1989    offramp: It's a really good game, mainly because Kasparov is White against the King's Indian, which he normally played as Black. White had a big shock but managed to defend.      Jan-09-26 Mackenzie - Reichhelm US Championship (1867)    offramp: I have played through these games and I have found them interesting, but not setting the world on fire. I think that MacKenzie was <professional>, but not exciting. He did not really give his opponent a chance, he outclassed him.      Jan-09-26 Mackenzie vs G Reichhelm, 1867   offramp: The French Defense (C15). MacKenzie kept the position in control. Mainly, he did everything he could do to keep that dratted black QB in a prison. 34...Bxd7. [DIAGRAM] Black was in real trouble.      Jan-08-26 P Wells vs K Hanache, 2025   offramp: I've been pondering about this game. <Are you pondering what I am pondering?> (Brain & Pinky.) The whole game is interesting, right from the start. E.g., Black was 13. Wells was 60. Wells played in the traditional English weekend circuit style. That style includes Kim ...      Jan-08-26 Tata Steel India Rapid (2026)   offramp: Good old Niemann. He is a globe-trotter. I have seen his suitcase. It is pretty small, and it is covered in stickers: <London>, <Tashkent>, <Beijing> and many others. Now he is in <Kolktata>. My Indian friend told me that Niemann was a bit <funky>. And ...      Jan-08-26 G Reichhelm vs Mackenzie, 1867   offramp: The powerful Evans Gambit might resurface in the 2030s. Many players might get fed up with the Joko Piano. I don't know the Evans. I don't know how far the theory goes down. In that era they played 1000s of the Evans. Oh blimey! 19. Nfd5. [DIAGRAM] There was available to Black a      Jan-08-26 G Reichhelm vs Mackenzie, 1867   offramp: This was similar to the first game: both players were happy to accept every exchange. 16. Rxc3. [DIAGRAM] Now plays very well. It's interesting to see that Black did <not> give a <luft> square for the black king until he <had> to do it. 22...g6. [DIAGRAM] ...

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Ye Olde Offrampe Predicktions

< Earlier Kibitzing  · PAGE 5 OF 86 ·  Later Kibitzing> Jun-28-06    offramp: I don't know if James Joyce liked cricket. His friend and assistant Samuel Beckett did, and perhaps it was he who helped Joyce with this passage from Finnegans Wake. See how many cricket-related terms you can find: Kickakick. She had to kick a laugh. At her old stick-in-theblock. The way he was slogging his paunch about, elbiduubled, meet oft mate on, like hale King Willow, the robberer. Cainmaker's mace and waxened capapee. But the tarrant's brand on his hottoweyt brow. At half past quick in the morning. And her lamp was all askew and a trumbly wick-in-her, ringeysingey. She had to spofforth, she had to kicker, too thick of the wick of her pixy's loomph, wide lickering jessup the smooky shiminey. And her duffed coverpoint of a wickedy batter, whenever she druv behind her stumps for a tyddlesly wink through his tunnilclefft bagslops after the rising bounder's yorkers, as he studd and stoddard and trutted and trumpered, to see had lordherry's blackham's red bobby abbels, it tickled her innings to consort pitch at kicksolock in the morm. Tipatonguing him on in her pigeony linguish, with a flick at the bails for lubrication, to scorch her faster, faster. Ye hek, ye hok, ye hucky hiremonger ! Magrath he's my pegger, he is, for bricking up all my old kent road. He'll win your toss, flog your old tom's bowling and I darr ye, barrackybuller, to break his duck! He's posh. I lob him. We're parring all Oogster till the empsyseas run googlie. Declare to ashes and teste his metch! Three for two will do for me and he for thee and she for you. Goeasyosey, for the grace of the fields, or hooley pooley, cuppy, we'll both be bye and by caught in the slips for fear he'd tyre and burst his dunlops and waken her bornybarnies making his boobybabies. The game old merrimynn, square to leg, with his lolleywide towelhat and his hobbsy socks and his wisden's bosse and his norsery pinafore and his gentleman's grip and his playaboy's plunge and his flannelly feelyfooling, treading her hump and hambledown like a maiden wellheld, ovalled over, with her crease where the pads of her punishments ought to be by womanish rights when, keek, the hen in the doran's shantyqueer began in a kikkery key to laugh it off, yeigh, yeigh, neigh, neigh, the way she was wuck to doodledoo by her gallows bird (how's that? Noball, he carries his bat!) nine hundred and dirty too not out, at all times long past conquering cock of the morgans. How blame us? Cocorico! Jun-28-06    JoeWms: <Offramp> If I knew the cricket language when I played with Finnegan's puns eons ago, I would yet more appreciate the value of that Joyce joy. Jun-29-06    offramp: ♫You walrus hurt the one you love...!♫ Jun-29-06    JoeWms: <offramp: You walrus hurt the one you love...!> Delicious! Thank you, friend. I remember it well. It was sung by The Walrus and the Carpenters. Harlan Ellison in his “Repent, Harlequin” must have had you in mind, Offramp, when he referred to an “irresponsible japer of jabberwocky and jive.” Jun-29-06    offramp: <JoeWms> Thank you for the kind thoughts! Jul-03-06    offramp: What beer do you like? I like Heineken. Jul-04-06    offramp: Do you know that song by Carly Simon, You're So Vain? I know this sounds weird but - I think that song is about me. Jul-07-06    offramp: When you try to recite the list of World Champions, the one you can't remember says a lot about your personality. Jul-07-06    offramp: The name of which English seaside resort can be made from a word meaning 'farthest from the top' and a word meaning 'frequently'? Jul-10-06    offramp: I just got a job as a cootie-catcher maker. The pay isn't very good but the Contract of Employment is fantastic. Jul-10-06    JoeWms: Lousy work. What's the seaside answer? Jul-11-06    offramp: Lowestoft. Jul-11-06    offramp: Why were they called Pink Floyd? What is the meaning? Jul-11-06    Benzol: Named after two bluesmen, Pink Anderson and Floyd Council. Syd Barrett had an album by them apparently. RIP Syd and keep shining on you crazy diamond. Jul-12-06    JoeWms: <offramp> C'mon, guy, give with the seaside resort answer. I put in some Google time on that one. Jul-12-06    offramp: <JoeWms: <offramp> C'mon, guy, give with the seaside resort answer. I put in some Google time on that one.> It's Lowestoft for the fifty yottillionth time!! Jul-12-06    offramp: <JoeWms> I have told quite a funny true story about a puzzle at Josef Rejfir. Jul-12-06    offramp: Romeo & Juliet got married in India. On their honeymoon they danced a Tango - but what film did they watch on the Bravo channel? Jul-12-06    WannaBe: <offramp> I asked this in the cafe a few days ago, possibly early last week. Do ladies from Chorlton-cum-Hardy get a lot of grief from/because of that name? And what is the history of Chorlton-cum-Hardy? Jul-12-06    JoeWms: <offramp: It's Lowestoft for the fifty yottillionth time!!> If I've told you once, I've told you a yottillion times: Don't exaggerate. I bit of patience, please, word man. My skill in navigating in and out of forum pages has not caught up to me. Lowestoft a fair answer. Jul-13-06    offramp: <WannaBe: <offramp> I asked this in the cafe a few days ago, possibly early last week. Do ladies from Chorlton-cum-Hardy get a lot of grief from/because of that name? And what is the history of Chorlton-cum-Hardy?> I had never even thought about the possible double-entendre - nor have I ever heard anyone mention it. I think Chorlton is most famous as the home town of the Bee Gees. I haven't been there. Jul-13-06    Stevens: <offramp: Romeo & Juliet got married in India. On their honeymoon they danced a Tango - but what film did they watch on the Bravo channel?> why, Zulu of course! Jul-13-06    offramp: <Stevens> That's right! Zulu. Good one. Jul-13-06    JoeWms: <offramp> Your sophisticated work on the <rejfir> puzzle was impressive. I felt I was being home-towned on the Lowestoft thing. Now I know for sure I am getting the treatment. On Romeo and Juliet, my wife insisted it was the DeNiro tango in Scent of a Woman. Not near enough points for the problem. I think she went to bed sobbing. I tried West Side Story. Not enough points. (I went to bed sobbing.) All of a sudden your British buddy <Stevens> jumps out of the bush with Zulu. Be fair to your colonists. We might revolt. Zulu? Imdb and similar, no great help. India and Bravo are the only points I can account for. I do enjoy this site -- but I feel I'm on a scavenger hunt. Jul-14-06    Stevens: <JoeWms> hi Joe. You've never heard of Zulu?! One of the biggest movies ever! With Michael Cane? http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0058777/ To be fair, i cheated and looked up the phonetics alphabet since that was the key. Zulu was the only film title there! They also stayed in a Hotel, and played Golf with Mike from Quebec who drove a Sierra. In November... And drank Whiskey... And had a cat called Charlie... am i taking this too far?! <offramp> did you have a go at the puzzle in the cafe? Jump to page #   (enter # from 1 to 86) search thread:    < Earlier Kibitzing  · PAGE 5 OF 86 ·  Later Kibitzing>

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