Entertainment

Metal may meddle

The art of working with a chess computer, as Garry Kasparov once put it, is knowing when to turn it on — and when to turn it off.

Kasparov’s former countryman Vladimir Tukmakov takes a refreshing look at what he calls the“MF” or “Metal Friend” in “Modern Chess Preparation” ($26.95, New In Chess).

Contrary to the popular view, computers are poor helpers when trying to find the best moves in some openings, such the endgame line of the Berlin Defense to the Ruy Lopez, he says.

Tukmakov gives examples of excellent, new openiong moves that weren’t among the first 10 lines recommended by an MF.

When computers do produce promising innovations, they may suggest moves that seem inconsistent with previous moves.

As a result, Tukmakov says, strategy “has disappeared” to some degree in chess, general principles play less of a role — and tactics are more important.

Today’s strongest players are forced to play all sorts of moves and lose their personal “style.” The distinction between the practical player and the researcher “has all but disappeared,” Tukmakov contends.

And preparing for a particular game often comes down to hours of memorizing and “rote learning” of MF analysis.