Nothing wrong with opening with a fiancetto. (Its original spelling is without the "h", but pronounced, like "cello.") What's great about playing lower level games is that your opponents usually forget that the bishop is there, and they open up their rook to get taken. That works less and less as you move up, of course. The key is not to forget yourself!
I fiancetto as black or white, and often do it with both bishops. It is part of many major openings, and you'll play against it a lot here.
If you allow a fianchettoed bishop kingside or queenside to go unchallenged and it obtains full control of that diagonal bad things are going to happen to you ! that is why players go out of their way to neutralize or exchange them because they will wreck havoc through the center and deep into your position during the middlegame! They should be part of your arsenal , pawn chains set-up to limit their scope can be UNDERMINED in many games that bishop can become the decisive Factor ! 
If you allow a fianchettoed bishop kingside or queenside to go unchallenged and it obtains full control of that diagonal bad things are going to happen to you ! that is why players go out of their way to neutralize or exchange them because they will wreck havoc through the center and deep into your position during the middlegame! They should be part of your arsenal , pawn chains set-up to limit their scope can be UNDERMINED in many games that bishop can become the decisive Factor !
Well my middle game I have been told is weak so that would not be helpful . Its turned into an interesting conversation for me. Tell me do you use it a lot and is it successful for you.?
The fianchetto is a big trademark of hypermodern openings. In hypermodern openings, the player tries to control the center from a distance with pieces, instead of up close with pawns. The fianchetto illustrates this well--instead of the "proper" placement of the bishop on squares like b5, c4, d3, or even e2, (this is from white's perspective) the bishop gets a nice little setup on g2 where it can hit central squares. Hypermodernism is all the rage these days, and tons of the biggest openings for white and black that the masters are currently playing feature it (I'm not just talking about the fairly significant openings like the Pirc, Reti, Dragon, and KIA, but also the BIG openings like the KID, Gruenfeld, Catalan, etc.)
Is it good? Speaking impartially, it is neither particularly good nor particularly bad. If you don't know how to handle it, you can get into trouble. For instance, you don't really want to exchange the bishop or you will get some nasty holes in your position. Some players have mentioned the "formula" for attacking fianchettoed positions. (Exchange the bishop, ram the h pawn through, etc.) Can this formula work? Heck yeah. I've done it to others and fallen victim to it before. Does it always work? Of course not.
Is it something to hold in contempt? By no means. Is it something to be afraid of? No. Just develop sensibly, and you'll get a fine game.
@ Hankm
Oh please dont misunderstand me :) I do not hold contempt...LOL Just curiosity and the need to understand. I appreciate all the fine ideas and comments about it. I appreciate my opponent for giving me a challenge...well it would be a challenge for me anyway :) Ms.Jean
Sometimes, I fianchetto just because "fianchetto" sounds cool!
yes now we all fianchetto, and you should too!
After contemplating the George Bush presidency, he really is an insult to every living organism in the Universe...
If you allow a fianchettoed bishop kingside or queenside to go unchallenged and it obtains full control of that diagonal bad things are going to happen to you ! that is why players go out of their way to neutralize or exchange them because they will wreck havoc through the center and deep into your position during the middlegame! They should be part of your arsenal , pawn chains set-up to limit their scope can be UNDERMINED in many games that bishop can become the decisive Factor !
Well my middle game I have been told is weak so that would not be helpful . Its turned into an interesting conversation for me. Tell me do you use it a lot and is it successful for you.?
I never play an opening that starts with a fianchetto, how things start to shape up in the center tells me which bishop should be deployed (if any) to fight for control of the center and how it compliments my other pieces in that key sector. the strength of that piece is the Dynamic Potential that lays within the bishop controlling that critical diagonal in conjuction with the other pieces that make for some awesome combinations as seen in the games of many Masters . I LOVE the fianchetto and play it with success 
Sometimes, I fianchetto just because "fianchetto" sounds cool!
yes now we all fianchetto, and you should too!
After contemplating the George Bush presidency, he really is an insult to every living organism in the Universe...
Yeah... why doesn't he just like die already...
Sometimes, I fianchetto just because "fianchetto" sounds cool!
yes now we all fianchetto, and you should too!
After contemplating the George Bush presidency, he really is an insult to every living organism in the Universe...
Yeah... why doesn't he just like die already...
They should freeze him! They did it it with small pox...
If my opponent opens with a fianchetto. I either,feel insulted;or laugh. To open with a fianchetto robs you of the ability to develop properly. It is a very big mistake. If my opponent plays a double fianchetto i offer him a draw. It should be played only as part of the lines to which it belongs. Oh, defend against it by playing the queens pawn to the fourth square.
I'm sorry, but that is bollocks. I always play 1. g6 as black and continue playing the modern defence, leaving the center for white to have a go at whilst I develop around him. I've beaten far better players than yourself with it, so I wouldn't be so cocky.
The very last game I played used this opening for example
Fettachini?
...That's a Symmetrical English, and is quite boring in my opinion. Hardly a good example of the Modern defense.
I didn't mean that game was an example of the Modern, just that its often the opening I go for, the last game was just an example of where I fianchettod my bishop, and showed that it is possible to still develop and gain an advantage over white.
HEY Class you are getting noisy and Im trying to learn here!!!
No more speaking out before you raise your hand, making jokes, killing Bush, Fellatio, Fellation,Fellatrix or Fettucini !
Lastly conquistador must eat in the lunch room as your your munching noise is loud and distracting ! 
Every class needs a joker.
If my opponent opens with a fianchetto. I either,feel insulted;or laugh. To open with a fianchetto robs you of the ability to develop properly. It is a very big mistake. If my opponent plays a double fianchetto i offer him a draw. It should be played only as part of the lines to which it belongs. Oh, defend against it by playing the queens pawn to the fourth square.
I'm sorry, but that is bollocks. I always play 1. g6 as black and continue playing the modern defence, leaving the center for white to have a go at whilst I develop around him. I've beaten far better players than yourself with it, so I wouldn't be so cocky.
The very last game I played used this opening for example
Edit: there is only one way to find out... submit your challenges. I'll be waiting.
I don't recommend opening with the fiachetto. It is better to wait till the situation calls for it's pawn structure. But do what you want.
MsJean, here's an example of what can happen if one doesn't pay attention to the bishop. (My opponent is quite a bit stronger than this game shows and made an uncharacteristic blunder). Of course, you can't rely on your opponent overlooking this.
Wait, can't black try 6...Ba5+? Then he can at least defend g7. It seems a lot better than 6...Bxc5; in fact black can still fight now. If 7 Nc3, black has time to recapture; if 7 Nbd2, black can play 7...Nf6, threatening e4 (If the knight ever moves Bxg7 is not such a huge deal anymore because black can gain time and an open file with ...Rg8) and seems to only be down one pawn.
@ ponnupazoozu...No I need to be told frequently