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Thread: My suggested list of thread topic ideas for this Forum (English Chat)

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    Default My suggested list of thread topic ideas for this Forum (English Chat)

    Below is my suggested list of topic ideas for threads (or posts/polls) in this Forum (English Chat). It's by no means comprehensive, but it's meant as possible inspiration for potential posters (including, perhaps most notably, those CFC Discussion Board members who are outsiders to the CFC organization), who might not otherwise think of something to ask/tell or debate about on this Forum:

    Topics I think that may be especially promising to at the least promote debate among any who might reply to an initial post:

    1. Chess openings (includes specific ones, defining names &/or moves, traps, 'dangerous weapons', preparation, repertoire ideas);
    2. Specific chess players & styles;
    3. World chess champions and matches;
    4. Chess psychology (includes practical decision-making);
    5. How to beat _ (e.g. chess opening, stronger opponents, juniors);
    6. Junior chess;
    7. Women's chess;
    8. Seniors chess (includes advice);
    9. Canadian chess (includes politics, events, clubs, players);
    10. International chess;
    11. Ideas to promote chess (includes minimizing possibly perceived 'geek' factor);
    12. Speed chess;
    13. Active chess;
    14. Avoiding or managing time pressure;
    15. Chess ratings [system];
    16. Chess [tournament] rules question[s] (including alleged cheating + sandbagging);
    17. 'Why play chess'?;
    18. Possibly perceived problems with [modern] chess (includes high draw rate among elite players);
    19. 'What is the future of chess'? (includes what sort of chess variant might ever be the 'Next Chess', if any);
    20. Non-chess topics?! (to be posted rarely at best?, e.g. Bob G's old 'I really hate banks' thread).

    Topics that I think may at least prompt some to ask/answer question(s) or give comment(s) in reply to an initial post:

    21. Game(s) entered for PGN viewer viewing [possibly includes game of the week or month, if anyone produces such];
    22. Position(s) entered for FEN diagram viewing (includes combinations, tactics, problems, endgame studies);
    23. Endgames (includes strategic [i.e. proper result unknown] and technical ones);
    24. Middlegame strategy and tactics (includes attacking & defending, bishop vs. knight, 2 bishops for only one side, pawn structures, piece co-ordination, sustaining the initiative, potential [or elasticity] vs. initiative, maneuvering, dynamic vs. static factors, [material] imbalances, compensation, [weak] squares, restraining & blockading);
    25. Chess improvement advice (includes practical 'secrets' such as calculating advice, training advice);
    26. [Recommended] chess equipment (includes books, software);
    27. Computers (includes engines, databases, internet chess servers & message board[s]);
    28. Team chess (includes on internet);
    29. Chess short stories/anecdotes/poems;
    30. Chess variants (bughouse and crazyhouse especially popular, the latter on the internet).
    Last edited by Kevin Pacey; 07-22-2018 at 05:48 PM. Reason: Grammar
    There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy.
    Hamlet (1.5.167-8), Hamlet to Horatio.

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    I'd note that I recall that in the past I've posted to some extent on topics 1,8,9,11,15,21 and 26 in this Forum (English Chat) alone. Right now I feel my thoughts brewing re: possible thread-initiating posts for this Forum, about the examples I gave for topic 5, and for advice to Seniors (i.e. topic 8).

    In the past, just within my blog entries, I recall I've written about topics 1,2,11,17-20,22,25 and at least alluded to topics 27-30.

    Thus, as far as my own writings on this CFC Discussion Board goes, the above topic list I gave might have proven quite useful, if I were just starting to write on this Board.
    Last edited by Kevin Pacey; 07-20-2018 at 01:12 AM. Reason: Adding content
    There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy.
    Hamlet (1.5.167-8), Hamlet to Horatio.

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    Kevin, I like your approach and optimism.

    Many of your suggested themes require a lot of writing and probably more suitable for blogs. Many of them are quite general and probably the information is available elsewhere. At this moment asking quite specific chess questions would be waste of time - not enough who bother to respond.
    .*-1

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    Quote Originally Posted by Egidijus Zeromskis View Post
    Kevin, I like your approach and optimism.

    Many of your suggested themes require a lot of writing and probably more suitable for blogs. Many of them are quite general and probably the information is available elsewhere. At this moment asking quite specific chess questions would be waste of time - not enough who bother to respond.
    Hi Egidijus

    I've seen the odd person ask about chess openings etc. on chesstalk and this CFC Discussion Board Forum (English Chat) over the years, so it may be worth listing such topics, even though advice can be found elsewhere. I think at least some people ask such questions because they hope an interaction on the internet can give them more insight/depth than if they just read books, blogs (though comments to these are allowed on this site) or dry internet chess info sites (i.e. with no one available for Q&A).

    At the moment only about 10 members of this CFC Discussion Board visit today, and I'd suppose 20% at best typically might post something then too. To get to what Chris called the 'critical mass' (of 10 members posting stuff of interest regularly) in another thread, I'd thus guess about 50 members would have to visit per day at the 20% posting rate, which seems a tall order. Perhaps there is only room for one regularly active Canadian chess message Board, and that happens to be chesstalk right now (as it has been for a long time). At any rate it sure could help if more CFC insiders (VMs etc.) visited & posted more regularly in this English Chat Forum.
    Last edited by Kevin Pacey; 07-20-2018 at 10:36 AM.
    There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy.
    Hamlet (1.5.167-8), Hamlet to Horatio.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Kevin Pacey View Post
    At the moment only about 10 members of this CFC Discussion Board visit today, and I'd suppose 20% at best typically might post something then too. To get to what Chris called the 'critical mass' (of 10 members posting stuff of interest regularly) in another thread, I'd thus guess about 50 members would have to visit per day at the 20% posting rate, which seems a tall order. Perhaps there is only room for one regularly active Canadian chess message Board, and that happens to be chesstalk right now (as it has been for a long time). At any rate it sure could help if more CFC insiders (VMs etc.) visited & posted more regularly in this English Chat Forum.
    Hard to say about that. imho, most people moved from forums and blogs to simpler facebooks, instagrams, tweaters or more complicated like youtubes.
    .*-1

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    Quote Originally Posted by Kevin Pacey View Post
    I've seen the odd person ask about chess openings etc. on chesstalk and this CFC Discussion Board Forum (English Chat) over the years, so it may be worth listing such topics, even though advice can be found elsewhere. I think at least some people ask such questions because they hope an interaction on the internet can give them more insight/depth than if they just read books, blogs (though comments to these are allowed on this site) or dry internet chess info sites (i.e. with no one available for Q&A)..
    My point was that such questions exist but to get an answer you'll need more members. You'll get more answers let's say at chess.com forum to a specific opening question, and maybe even some GM, IM will share his opinion. There was time when Nakamura, Sambuev, Hansen, many IMs participated at chesstalks though mostly on political side. Seems those gold ages are gone for one or another reason.

    While more local (Canadian) question, like about the club or the tournament in the specific area, you'll get here
    .*-1

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    Quote Originally Posted by Egidijus Zeromskis View Post
    Hard to say about that. imho, most people moved from forums and blogs to simpler facebooks, instagrams, tweaters or more complicated like youtubes.
    The only time I went to facebook was to look up a controversial Ottawa radio host (Lowell Green) who complained Wikipedia (which seems left-biased, like much of the internet), didn't nearly properly cover his accomplishments (IMHO nowadays the wiki entry for him looks considerably more comprehensive). At which point, my computer froze. In any event, due in part to recent reversals, it looks like facebook just possibly might go down like the Titanic one of these days.

    I've never tried to Tweet, though with a 140 character limit per Tweet, the idea strikes me as making a conversation of any depth difficult to carry on, and also as rather gimmicky too - though it may give famous people especially an excuse for making only short, shallow statements on a given day.

    Judging by the number of guests I've recently seen at times on this CFC Discussion Board, plenty of people still at least visit here to look. Maybe a lot more would register (and some of these post at least now and then) if this Board's forums were a tad more active, as far as postings go. If VMs want to make a fairly tangible contribution to the chess community of Canada that doesn't take too much trouble, perhaps more might post in this forum much more regularly these days and in future, and not just about CFC politics.
    Last edited by Kevin Pacey; 08-04-2018 at 08:50 AM. Reason: Grammar
    There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy.
    Hamlet (1.5.167-8), Hamlet to Horatio.

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