Playing … we could write reams of 'how to" pages on many of the popular programs, but, for now, let me make one suggestion for beginners: Maurice Ashley Plays Chess — this wonderful CD is, unfortunately, out-of-print, but it can still be found on the internet and at discounted book/computer/game stores. It has lots of great features for those starting out … and some that will keep it relevant and valuable for some time after a player improve!

My favorite features are the "Coaching" exercises — a variety of multi-level tasks, given 'sporting' titles, appeal broadly to kids. Each of these exercises has a discrete purpose. For example, "Seek and Destroy" gives the student one White piece (R, N, B, Q) to play with, and provides a set of 'fixed' Black pawns that act as targets … by a series of captures, White strives to take each in turn, without missing any … this instills a rudimentary form of foresight and planning in the student's mind! With several levels of increasing complexity for each of the five or six 'titles', it takes a while to master them all, but, in the meantime, the novice has progressed to really understanding how each piece moves. Excellent for the very young! — EK

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