igowin
1 month ago
I just managed to download igowin – not straightforward, in my case! It seems good, I’m on 13 Kyu now. Somehow I can never motivate myself to improve at anything unless something is grading me on it!
How to learn to play go
It made me
a newbie go player 
"learn about complexity in simplicity"
How I did it: I love maths and physics. In these areas people speak and think about very simple systems that become complex. I always heard go has very simple rules, but it is very difficult to play well. The great chess player Edward Lasker said once "While the Baroque rules of Chess could only have been created by humans, the rules of Go are so elegant, organic, and rigorously logical that if intelligent life forms exist elsewhere in the universe, they almost certainly play Go."
You have probably heard about this game in films like "A Beautiful Mind" and "Pi". Those triggered my interest.
I also read an article saying that go is so complex, that algorithms are still not good enough to beat humans, as a computer does not "think" deeply enough to visualise strategies between millions and millions.
These ideas strongly attracted me, and I was very interested in learning go.
I didn't have friends interested in learning go, and didn't know anybody in my area interested in it. Don't even speak about finding experienced players.
So to reach my goal I used mainly two tools: yahoo games (where it is possible finding people to play go in real time) and a program called Igowin (which I found through telgo.com thanks to this comment by malweth).
Igowin is good, because you learn using a 9x9 board. This way, the game is not too complex, so the software is powerful enough to beat you every time when you set higher levels, and at the same time you learn from your own mistakes.
It motivated me seeing in YouTube how much do Japanese people love this game, and how serious can it be for them.
I think I have played around one thousand games in two months (games in 9x9 boards are short enough), so even if I am not very good yet, I can say I learned something more than just the rules. It is very tricky at higher levels! But completely worthy.
For the moment I think I have completed this goal. Maybe one day I will do an extension of it (like "becoming 8th kyu", or whatever).
Lessons & tips:
- Learn the basic rules at telgo.com
- Download Igowin
- Learn the basic strategies by playing (and losing) lots of times
- When you feel confident enough, go to Yahoo Games and play with real people on 19x19 boards
Resources:
- Igowin
- Yahoo Games
- Many other websites
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Entries
drywhitewhine meh.
Untitled
3 months ago
I’ve got a ton of ebooks on Go, but I never seem to have the time to sit down to study and play for practice. I’m a pretty good chess player, but I’d gotten bored with the game years ago. Not that there’s anything wrong with chess, but it’s just not for me. I’m hoping finally to master an understanding of the basic rules and concepts of the game so I can play regularly.
arcticeisbaer is getting her homework done..
Untitled
9 months ago
yeeeaaahh! last weekend I stayed with a couchsurfer who taught me the basics.
zakurai is re-organizing her life.
Go!
12 months ago
I want to learn to play this. It seems so technical and rewarding. After reading the Hikaru no go manga, it tempted me so much to learn myself.
Eynar Oxartum slɐoƃ sıɥ ɥɔɐǝɹ oʇ ʇsnɾ uʍop ǝpısdn sı
Kyu 9! (according to a computer program...)
12 months ago
Following the advise of another 43ter, I have downloaded Igowin 1.0, by David Fotland. I have been playing a lot, and after some days I have been learning “on the battleground”. I know a computer is not the best option to learn go, but with a 9×9 board it is fine if our scope is just learning the basics.
I am happy that today I have reached a kyu 9 level! I am a single-digit kyu (in the program’s opinion). It was hard, even though ironically the last game was easier than the previous ones (see picture).
Eynar Oxartum slɐoƃ sıɥ ɥɔɐǝɹ oʇ ʇsnɾ uʍop ǝpısdn sı
First time
12 months ago
Well, I don’t like to spend much time reading about the rules and such things, I prefer to learn on the ground. So today I have decided to go to Yahoo Games and play with somebody. Obviously it has been quite a nice defeat, but even so I enjoyed it, and I have got a good advise about telgo.com, a website to learn more.
The image is a screenshot of the end of the second game. My opponent won by a narrow 71-13!
Everyone should learn to play!
13 months ago
I learned at www.gokgs.com. It helps one learn how to think deeply, exercise patience, look at things from another perceptive, to be humble, to let go, to hone one’s intuition, and a bunch of other skills that are helpful in life. This game works both sides of the brain. Interestingly, I find that when I am in the habit of playing Go regularly, my conversation and descriptive skills go up. To people just learning (and do no know other people who play) I recommend playing against live opponents on a Go server, such as KGS. Playing a computer opponent will teach you bad habits and give you false confidence. Go is as much about reading your opponent as it is reading the board. Computers lack the ability to read you, and they are not very creative, generally speaking.
On KGS (kiseido go server) I’m known as ‘Whiteaker.’ See you there!
Learn to play go...well!
14 months ago
I would like to be able to play and understand the complexities of the game Go.
Easy to learn
14 months ago
But intensely difficult to play. Well, it’s easy to play but it’s crazy strategy. Got my ass handed to me by the easiest computer setting. I imagine I’ll get better as I go along but right now I’m pretty much as bad as they come
in case you're interested
16 months ago
i downloaded “goban” on my mac and it’s pretty cool. you can play the computer, play online, or watch other people play online. i really like that feature for learning to play
