3 ms·

That's not an ideal comparison. Chess is 90% tactics, whereas development job isn't 90% competitive programming.

by cupofcoffee 6y ago

permo-w 6y ago
"Chess is 90% tactics" is a pretty subjective statement
- deleted 6y ago
  [deleted]
- cupofcoffee 6y ago
  I didn't come up with the quote appears in Chess circles a lot. I think a chess master said it.
- jmchuster 6y ago
  Hikaru Nakamura's take on the statement https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IrN16c3DTzE&feature=youtu.be&t=4m50s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IrN16c3DTzE&feature=youtu.be...
  - colmvp 6y ago
    That seems to ring true. At lower levels like where I'm at, players are prone to mistakes and blunders, so having a good eye for tactics allows you to take advantage of those moments in the game as well as prevent yourself from getting into a bad situation. But at elite levels, tactics have less importance (as he says in the video he estimates it drops to 50%) as every player at that level is extremely solid.
Barrin92 6y ago
It's actually more subtle. Yes, chess is very tactical but the way you approach tactics in a puzzle is very different from how you mentally approach tactics in a game of chess. If you already know that there is a tactic in the position your entire frame of reference changes. Which is actually why puzzle composition is treated very differently from actually playing, and a lot of famous composers are not particularly strong players. This is why I feel it compares well to coding competitions. It looks so similar, but the mindset is very different. And only looking at tactics, just like only looking at coding as a game problem is I think why it may damage your performance at work.
- georgiecasey 6y ago
  Chess puzzles just never have realistic positions that you'd encounter in a real game so I can see why it wouldn't help you in games.
  - cupofcoffee 6y ago
    Lichess puzzles are taken from real games and tactics come up literally in every single chess game.
    - georgiecasey 6y ago
      Ah cool, I'm playing some now, pretty nifty! The puzzles I knew back in the 90s were very contrived.
  - llimllib 6y ago
    chesstempo's puzzles all come from grandmaster games, I believe, as well as the lichess puzzles being from lichess games
  - dfan 6y ago
    The terminology associated with chess challenges [to use a neutral term] is unfortunate. "Chess problem" is a term of art that refers to an artificial composed position with a unique solution that is constructed to both be a challenge to the solver and have aesthetic value. They often have constraints on the solution such as that White must deliver checkmate in two moves (three ply). This is what I assume you're referring to. A position from an actual game (or that easily could have been) that demonstrates a tactic (or combination of them) is generally known as a "chess puzzle", largely because the term "chess problem" was already squatted on. Somewhere in between the two is the "study", which is a constructed position, less artificial than a chess problem but still very carefully made to have a unique solution that walks a tightrope and generally requires absolutely exact calculation rather than working by general tactical principles.
cambalache 6y ago
> Chess is 90% tactics From where people assert so confidently such nonsense? Chess is 90% tactics at the under 1800 Elo level or so. At the 2700+ level? No way.

That's not an ideal comparison. Chess is 90% tactics, whereas development job isn't 90% competitive programming.

permo-w 6y ago

"Chess is 90% tactics" is a pretty subjective statement

deleted 6y ago
[deleted]
cupofcoffee 6y ago
I didn't come up with the quote appears in Chess circles a lot. I think a chess master said it.
jmchuster 6y ago
Hikaru Nakamura's take on the statement https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IrN16c3DTzE&feature=youtu.be&t=4m50s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IrN16c3DTzE&feature=youtu.be...
- colmvp 6y ago
  That seems to ring true. At lower levels like where I'm at, players are prone to mistakes and blunders, so having a good eye for tactics allows you to take advantage of those moments in the game as well as prevent yourself from getting into a bad situation. But at elite levels, tactics have less importance (as he says in the video he estimates it drops to 50%) as every player at that level is extremely solid.

Barrin92 6y ago

It's actually more subtle. Yes, chess is very tactical but the way you approach tactics in a puzzle is very different from how you mentally approach tactics in a game of chess. If you already know that there is a tactic in the position your entire frame of reference changes. Which is actually why puzzle composition is treated very differently from actually playing, and a lot of famous composers are not particularly strong players. This is why I feel it compares well to coding competitions. It looks so similar, but the mindset is very different. And only looking at tactics, just like only looking at coding as a game problem is I think why it may damage your performance at work.

georgiecasey 6y ago
Chess puzzles just never have realistic positions that you'd encounter in a real game so I can see why it wouldn't help you in games.
- cupofcoffee 6y ago
  Lichess puzzles are taken from real games and tactics come up literally in every single chess game.
  - georgiecasey 6y ago
    Ah cool, I'm playing some now, pretty nifty! The puzzles I knew back in the 90s were very contrived.
- llimllib 6y ago
  chesstempo's puzzles all come from grandmaster games, I believe, as well as the lichess puzzles being from lichess games
- dfan 6y ago
  The terminology associated with chess challenges [to use a neutral term] is unfortunate. "Chess problem" is a term of art that refers to an artificial composed position with a unique solution that is constructed to both be a challenge to the solver and have aesthetic value. They often have constraints on the solution such as that White must deliver checkmate in two moves (three ply). This is what I assume you're referring to. A position from an actual game (or that easily could have been) that demonstrates a tactic (or combination of them) is generally known as a "chess puzzle", largely because the term "chess problem" was already squatted on. Somewhere in between the two is the "study", which is a constructed position, less artificial than a chess problem but still very carefully made to have a unique solution that walks a tightrope and generally requires absolutely exact calculation rather than working by general tactical principles.

cambalache 6y ago

> Chess is 90% tactics From where people assert so confidently such nonsense? Chess is 90% tactics at the under 1800 Elo level or so. At the 2700+ level? No way.