Computer chess mental block, anyone?

In person, I’m a pretty good chess player. I’ve been playing since I was six and my rating’s probably about 1800 or so, nothing spectacular but I could beat a lot of people.

On a computer, I absolutely cannot play chess. I can’t beat anyone; I can’t beat any computer chess program except at the lowest levels. I miss moves, miss threatened pieces, blow everything I do. No matter how hard I try I just cannot play chess on a computer.

  1. Anyone have the same problem?

  2. Anyone know why I have this problem?

Part of it might be that you have some edge in person that makes you better against a live opponent. People who make quick, lightning-fast moves tend to intimidate me, as I like to have the extra time to think, and also those who stretch or walk away from the table constantly. Have you played on the ICC? If so, any difference?

I seem to be roughly the same computer or human. I don’t play regularly anymore but when I did I constantly hovered around 1250-1300.

I have noticed the same thing in my own game. The excuse I keep telling myself is that it is more difficult to visualize a 2D game when you are used to playing in a 3D environment. Basically, since things look different, your mind interprets it differently. But, I haven’t been able to prove anything yet, so it’s still just my theory.

I haven’t played Chess against a computer in years. I think it was something like 20. I owned one of those old Fidelity (?) chess computers.

I noticed no difference in my level of play playing against a computer or human.

Back in those days, I could beat the easiest levels (1-3 out of 9)–basically any level where the computer moved faster than I did.

I also found that it was pretty easy to beat the computer by trading pieces and heading straight for the endgame. For whatever reason, the computer programs for endgames were awful. Really, really bad.