I'm someone who basically never does puzzles, and I think doing them more would improve my game but I'm not sure how to approach them.
What's the best choice for puzzle difficulty level, -600, -300, normal, +300 or +600?
Should I be trying to do puzzles quick or spend a lot of time calculating?
I don't do puzzles specifically to get better at chess - puzzles are actually playing chess. Because what is a chess game, after all? It's a series of connected "puzzles", where you look at a position and try to find the best move.
Do them at normal and try to spend a lot of time calculating. Sadly, I often do puzzles when I am sleep deprived and it is a disaster.
ive found that just doing a bunch at normal and then going to your puzzle stats(I think that's what its called) and doing whatever you're the worst at and practicing that works best
I would suggest to play normal mode and calculate all variations until the end. Then when you have done a great numbers of puzzles. Let's say 60 or 100. It can takes weaks. Go on your dashboard on lichess with the spider diagram. Here you will see your weak areas in puzzle. I like then to play puzzle themes on my weak areas with-600 then -300. Until you feel you have understood the motifs or paterns. Then you can go back into normal mode or train another area
Well, I don't think real games are all that much like puzzles. You don't look at a position from some game as though you've just had it set in front of you out of the blue.
@MrPushwood I understand your POV, however your POV is an illusion, just like a movie.
What is a movie, after all but a series of photographs where each image contains a "move" which makes it differ slightly from the previous image.
A chess game is the same. Each position differs incrementally from the next by one move. And in each position you must analyze it and select the best move. That's what you do in the chess puzzle.
If you're looking at getting better at chess, puzzles won't help. What you really need is talent. If you've got it, then good for you. If not, you're kinda screwed.
@)ambrooks rightly said that 'a chess game is a series of connected puzzles'
And you should focus on playing games instead of solving puzzles. Merely puzzle solving won't make you a strong player.
@ambrooks said in #6:
>
@MrPushwood I understand your POV, however your POV is an illusion, just like a movie.
>
> What is a movie, after all but a series of photographs where each image contains a "move" which makes it differ slightly from the previous image.
>
> A chess game is the same. Each position differs incrementally from the next by one move. And in each position you must analyze it and select the best move. That's what you do in the chess puzzle.
No, not at all. You carry along with you many an idea from the previous moves (at least, you do so unless you're a complete beginner). So I'd say that your notion is more the illusion. ;)
@MrPushwood Your observation in no way refutes my analysis. It is a true observation, but irrelevant.