The Games of Honinbo Shuei, Volume 3

[oren]

The problem with smart go books is that it's only available on one platform. It seems more work than Kindle that anyone can use.

[gogameguru]

There's a Kindle app for iOS, so I pretty much favour the Amazon approach (app for almost every device and OS) compared to something as closed as iOS.

Even if I agree with you (because having to choose between 1 format or 2, as a writer I'd try to get it done with 1), reading a commented game book in SmartGo books is unbeatable. This is probably the reason I'm not advancing with TGoHS Vol2: I don't have enough time to sit with my goban, and trying to follow the flow of the game with just diagrams is too hard for me.

It's difficult when you don't have much time, but don't underestimate the value of studying a game on a real board.

Placing stones, as if you were one of the players, reading ahead, considering where you would play, finding the next move on the kifu and trying to understand 'why there?' is all part of the fun and challenge that leads to real improvement. In time, you'll find the next move in the diagram more and more quickly because you'll improve your feeling for the flow of the stones and become stronger. A strong player can usually find the next move in a few seconds, so playing through a game doesn't have to take that long. If you don't have time to study the game deeply, just replaying it from the game record will still help you (the speed with which someone can replay an unknown game from a kifu is actually a pretty good indicator of their skill at go).

Things that are a little bit challenging at first are the things that help you to improve the most. You have to push yourself a bit more. Computers are incredible tools for all kinds of go related things, but at times I feel they spoon feed people by making some things too easy. If you're going to set aside time to seriously study go in the first place, you don't want to be doing so in the kind of shallow way that lets the mind wander. You want something that helps you focus. Sitting at a real board, without any messages popping up or other distractions and the tactile experience of playing through a game can't be beaten in my opinion.

The sound, smell and feeling of real equipment is one good way to help yourself (and in fact train your mind) to focus.

So dust off your board and get cracking on John's book .

[ez4u]

There's a Kindle app for iOS, so I pretty much favour the Amazon approach (app for almost every device and OS) compared to something as closed as iOS.

Even if I agree with you (because having to choose between 1 format or 2, as a writer I'd try to get it done with 1), reading a commented game book in SmartGo books is unbeatable. This is probably the reason I'm not advancing with TGoHS Vol2: I don't have enough time to sit with my goban, and trying to follow the flow of the game with just diagrams is too hard for me.

It's difficult when you don't have much time, but don't underestimate the value of studying a game on a real board.

Placing stones, as if you were one of the players, reading ahead, considering where you would play, finding the next move on the kifu and trying to understand 'why there?' is all part of the fun and challenge that leads to real improvement. In time, you'll find the next move in the diagram more and more quickly because you'll improve your feeling for the flow of the stones and become stronger. A strong player can usually find the next move in a few seconds, so playing through a game doesn't have to take that long. If you don't have time to study the game deeply, just replaying it from the game record will still help you (the speed with which someone can replay an unknown game from a kifu is actually a pretty good indicator of their skill at go).

Things that are a little bit challenging at first are the things that help you to improve the most. You have to push yourself a bit more. Computers are incredible tools for all kinds of go related things, but at times I feel they spoon feed people by making some things too easy. If you're going to set aside time to seriously study go in the first place, you don't want to be doing so in the kind of shallow way that lets the mind wander. You want something that helps you focus. Sitting at a real board, without any messages popping up or other distractions and the tactile experience of playing through a game can't be beaten in my opinion.

The sound, smell and feeling of real equipment is one good way to help yourself (and in fact train your mind) to focus.

So dust off your board and get cracking on John's book .

While I agree with the pleasure to be had from studying with a real board, the issue remains that it is not relevant to most of the time that I have available for study. The question is, how do I study for the couple of hours a day that I am on the train, or eating lunch in a coffee shop, or otherwise away from home? In this regard give me Smartgo books or the Nihon Ki'in's smart boards in Monthly Go World or Shukan Go over the kindle or paper. They are simply better, IMHO. At the same time, kindle is in theory the larger market (though it is very disappointing to hear from JF how slow sales are). I have heard that Amazon will use HTML5 in its future kindle format. Will that allow dynamic diagrams in kindle books? Does anyone know?

[gogameguru]

I agree with you too Dave, though I tend to prefer a smallish problem book on public transport. Doesn't get me mugged and survives a little accidental mistreatment .

I'm also disappointed to hear Shuei isn't selling better. I, apparently being some kind of old person trapped in a younger person's body, was really looking forward to owning all three volumes in dead tree format.

Hopefully things will pick up with a bit more promotion. Would you expect to sell more or fewer copies if this were in print John?

[oren]

With only 5-10 moves in most diagrams, the Kindle books don't seem that hard to follow to me.

I'd like to see a smart go book sometime. I looked at a demo a while ago on an ipad.