Teaching, especially Hex

I wish to learn how to become better at Hex. I'm also happy to teach others what little I know.

Does anyone know of any realtime servers or boards I coudl use to play against someone or go over a game from Little Golem?

Also, anyone willing to teach me or tell me where I can find out more than the basic tactics?

Thanks :-)

Hi,

There is a very good book by Cameron Browne--

Hex Strategy -- Making the Right Connection

A K Peters 2000

ISBN 1-56881-117-9 (pbk)

The Hex forum here has a few good high level problems.

Vadim Anshelevich created Hexy a very beginner friendly free hex playing program for windows which can be enjoyed by three year olds, including some of my young friends. Hexy was, and perhaps still is, computer Hex champion of Earth. Vadim's AI papers on Hexy Won a top prize at an AI meeting in 2000. He also wrote a new one in 2002. I consider his papers a worthy sequal to Browne's Book.

I have played very strong players since 1960 but could not reach their level myself. On 19x19, I sometimes need 2 or 3 handicap stones. The top players here at Little Golem seem as strong to me. But on small boards there just isnt room for most of the fireworks.

I am willing to try answering questions. But I hope stronger players will correct my missunderstandings. Be warned that I am a slow and clumsy correspondant.I am copying this note to the Hex forum.

-- Herb

Live RealTime hex can be played in at least a couple of places. The first and most active these days is www.KURNIK.PL. This is a Polish site. Click the British flag for english.

The flagship site for hex would be Playsite. Most of the good players here honed their skilss at Playsite.

The live realtime game has many things going for it. It is a social game. Here it is more of an ego game. Also here at golem, many of the players (myself included) use analysis aids, such as jhex. I would prefer the purer form of the game where no aids are used. If a player uses jhex , why can't he use a good friend ?

if you stop by playsite sometime, i'm TrayD there, i'd be happy to teach you what i can

Thanks a lot for all your help folks, I hope to try all of those suggestions (bar the ones that involve money :-)) very soon, All I have to worry about for the next few weeks is finals.

After that Tray, you will regret ever offering to help :-)

There's a difference between jhex and using a human as an assistant. jhex provides bookkeeping* help only. It' makes it easier to keep track of what you've already analyzed, but it doesn't actually analyze anything for you.

*"bookkeeping" is the only word in the English language I know of that has three consecutive double letters.

> "bookkeeping" is the only word in the English language I know of that has three consecutive double letters.

A quick search ("\(.\)\1\(.\)\2\(.\)\3") on http://www.puzzlers.org/wordlists/grepdict.php returns:

bookkeeper (and variations), ellssee, hoottoot, keessee, maassee, and sweettooth (among other 'stupid' things); but "bookkeeper" is the only word in the Enable word list :-)

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