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Chess notes

fizzypish

Any tips on how to be more disciplined taking notes? I start to lose focus on the notes after 30 or so moves. Still kinda new to note taking. Older guy in my club got a tad uppity with me last night over it and want to avoid it in future.

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Tim Harding

fizzypish wrote: »

Any tips on how to be more disciplined taking notes? I start to lose focus on the notes after 30 or so moves. Still kinda new to note taking. Older guy in my club got a tad uppity with me last night over it and want to avoid it in future.

Let's be clear on this. I think you are asking about writing down the moves as they are played, usually on the numbered scoresheet provided: keeping score is the correct term.
You just have to get in the habit of writing down the moves as soon as they are played. You are allowed to make your reply move immediately and then write down the pair of moves together but you are not supposed to get further behind than that.
Making NOTES of any other kind during a game is forbidden in international chess rules which are observed for all kinds of rated games here. A top player in the 2014 US Championship had to forfeit a game for making notes.

fizzypish

Yes I mean keeping score. I assume its just a matter of getting into a disciplined habit. Mid to late game I find I start forgetting to keep score. Only been playing in a club a few weeks. Might start keeping score when playing with friends to get into the habit.

must have a jest

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]It's usually referred to as recording the moves. You'll get used to it. It's not surprising to lose track or forget a move if you are new to club chess, as all of your focus is on the game itself. If you need extra motivation, writing down each move as soon as it's played will also help cement that move in your mind as a change to the game position. That will help to reduce blunders.[/FONT]

cdeb

It can often be associated with time trouble. You get a bit low on time, maybe your opponent is lower and starts moving quicker. It can be surprisingly easy to match your speed to your opponent. In particular, if they stop writing their moves, often you might find yourself doing the same.

Part of it is finding the end of a game tense, and writing your moves down can feel like a distraction when you're under pressure.

I think it is just a matter of discipline and practice. It's good to take the few seconds to write the move down to encourage you not to lash out the first move you see in reply too; to sit on your hands a bit!

fizzypish

That makes sense. Didn't think there would be an easy fix.
I was a bit annoyed myself over my opponent getting irate. I was happy to forfeit the game because of it as I played well (well for my level anyway). My ****ty note taking didn't cause him to loose. Dammit.... I'm bitching aren't I.....

Tim Harding

The current rule in official contests *i.e. rated games) is that:

a) if the players get an extra 30 seconds for each move played (called 30-second increment) then both players must record all the moves to the end of the game.
b) with no increment or lesser increment, you can stop recording once your time goes below 5 minutes. (This is an Irish rather than international rule, I think, but otehrs may correct me.)
c) Without a score, though, you won't be able to claim 50-move draw rules or repetition draws should those situations arise.
d) If you are supposed to be recording but get behind, a player is supposed to get his core up to date in his own time. He can usually borrow the opponent's score sheet to assist.

Yes, it would be a good idea to record friendly games to get the habit.

cdeb

fizzypish wrote: »

That makes sense. Didn't think there would be an easy fix.
I was a bit annoyed myself over my opponent getting irate. I was happy to forfeit the game because of it as I played well (well for my level anyway). My ****ty note taking didn't cause him to loose. Dammit.... I'm bitching aren't I.....

There's no need to forfeit the game. As Tim notes, your opponent should help you catch up on recording moves - on your own time of course.

The frustration for players whose opponents aren't writing down moves is that this usually happens towards the end of the game, when players are getting into time trouble. So if your opponent is in his last five minutes and has stopped writing the moves down, and you've maybe ten minutes left but are also not writing your moves down, then you've an unfair advantage by saving time not recording your moves. And towards the end of the game, this can be a big difference.

But as I say, not enough to forfeit a game. But all this is experience really.

fizzypish

O right. It was a two hour game (We were done with roughly an hour on each clock) so time wasn't an issue but I understand the points. Its a pity I couldn't get the notes off of him as I managed to extract myself from a losing position. Would have liked to analyze how I did it. 50 move draw rule? Just googled it. No pawn moves and no captures for 50 consecutive moves and your can force a draw? Or propose a draw? I presume force. I'm playing in The Netherlands and the no writing for last 5 min was mentioned to me so it might be international. Lots of great info lad! If my chess could improve at the rate my knowledge of competitive chess rules is then I'd be laughing.