Chess guides
Explanations written to be read once and used afterwards: notation and file formats, how to read what an engine tells you, and the ideas that decide real games. Every guide links to the tool it applies to, so you can try the idea rather than just read it. 16 guides, about 14100 words.
Notation and formats
How chess positions and games are written down, and how to read an analysis board.
Chess board coordinates explained
Files, ranks and how every square gets its name, with the orientation rules, a diagram of the board, and the notation conventions around them.
3 min read
FEN fields explained, with examples
A field-by-field walkthrough of a FEN string: piece placement, side to move, castling rights, en passant, and the halfmove and fullmove clocks.
4 min read
How to read standard algebraic notation
A complete guide to SAN: piece letters, captures, checks, castling, promotion, disambiguation, and how to read a move list without guessing.
4 min read
What is FEN? Chess positions as text
FEN is a single line of text that describes a complete chess position. Learn what each field means and how to build or read a FEN string.
5 min read
What is PGN? How chess games are recorded
PGN is the standard text format for recording chess games. Learn its headers, movetext, comments, variations and results, with examples.
5 min read
Engine analysis
Reading evaluations, depth, principal variations and the grades a review applies to your moves.
Chess Engine Depth Explained
Depth is how many plies ahead the engine searched. Learn what it does and does not tell you, and how to choose a depth that fits your purpose.
4 min read
Chess Evaluation Explained: +1.2 and M3
What the engine's evaluation number means, how it is measured, what mate scores look like, and how much confidence a given number deserves.
4 min read
Chess Move Classifications Explained
What inaccuracy, mistake, blunder, best and brilliant actually mean, how they are derived from engine scores, and why the label depends on the analysis.
4 min read
What Is a Centipawn in Chess?
A centipawn is one hundredth of a pawn, the unit chess engines use to report evaluations. Here is what it means and what it cannot tell you.
3 min read
Principal Variation (PV) Explained
The principal variation is the sequence of moves an engine expects to be played. Learn how to read it, what multiple lines show, and how to use it.
3 min read
Openings
The principles that govern the first ten moves and why they outlast memorised lines.
Tactics
The recurring patterns that decide games and how to spot them reliably.
Endgames
The positions worth knowing first, and the technique that converts an advantage.
Improvement
Reviewing your own games and turning mistakes into practice.
How to Analyze a Chess Game
A step-by-step method for reviewing your own games: import, find the turning points, understand the mistakes, and turn each one into something to practise.
4 min read
How to Export and Analyze Chess Games
Where to find the download and export options on the major chess sites, what PGN file to expect, and how to get it into an analysis board.
4 min read
How to Find Your Chess Blunders
A practical routine for locating your worst moves, working out the cause, and building a personal puzzle set from your own games instead of generic tactics.
4 min read
Start with the tools
Reading about evaluation is useful. Watching it change as you move is better.
Looking for a definition rather than a guide? Read the chess glossary.