From: SalvaAC AOL COM Date: 6 dec 1998 Subject: Re: Shogi Openings... In a message dated 12/6/98 1:04:11 PM Central Standard Time, nono AOL COM BR writes: Hi Ricardo, << When I was studying in Japan I became member of the University`s Shogi Club. I wanted to learn Shogi and they were interested in chess... well it was easy to me to explain some chess basics and they quickly got some profeciency on that, but when I wanted to learn shogi the answer I heard was: "Come over here, watch the way we play, play a lots of game and you`ll get better..." Looks like they have an intuitive feeling for the game, i.e. if he do this you do that..., but they could not give me an explanation/generalization on the basics of the game... and I prefer to read/listen the opinion of westerner players than Japanese ones... >> Interesting observations. I've never been to Japan, unfortunately. My experience with Japanese players have been those that have been here in the states, and generally if they are interested enough to search out a shogi club, they are quite strong to begin with - they enjoy it enough to make a three-hour car trip to come play, for example. I would suspect that for anyone who plays a game that is particular to their own culture, there is much more of an intuitive feeling than if it's a non-native game. It's what you grow up with, and so it's familiar. Both my dad and grandfather are avid crossword puzzle workers (especially odd since my dad is a terrible speller), and so I tend to have a good knack for word games like Scrabble or Boggle. But then again, if you were to have me play good Scrabble players, I'd get hammered, because I haven't studied it or memorized all my two and three letter words. And as far as Japanese shogi players here, they seem to be eager for a challenging game, and are willing to help explain just how they beat you and what mistakes you made, to help you learn, to become a stronger opponent. Of course this is all speculation and I would enjoy hearing what others, particularly Japanese players and westerners who have been to Japan. If the .BR extension means you're in the UK, I'd try and get in touch with Tony Hoskings directly concerning getting a copy of his book if I were you. That would undoubtedly be the easiest. See if you can't find a way to squeeze a visit to your nearest shogi club into your schedule. I've visited a few throughout the US, and have had nothing but the greatest of experiences. Tony