Improving my game.

Welcome to another (I bet you've seen thousands of these) post about how I'm not great at chess.

I can't seem to understand my issue. I've lost majority of my games and when I analyse them I always see that I just mess up my middlegame. Even while realizing this, I blunder the next game the same way. View a few of my games and you'll know it (and cringe too). 

I try to do a few tactical puzzles daily and I'm OK with them. I play with Shredder Chess too, and honestly speaking, battle with more competently on higher ELO ratings than a 700 ELO rated person here. 

I'm ready to study or do what it takes. But if someone could guide me, it would be much appreciated.  

I think you should study some books on chess strategy. I had the same problem, and it helped me a lot. It should work for you too.

OK, I looked at your most recent game, and though I don't know how to post the game with a bunch of analysis, I have a few comments. First, you started with d3 instead of d4, allowing your opponent to take immediate control of the center with d5. Then you moved your bishop to e3, blocking the king pawn and locking down your kingside bishop. He countered with e5, taking the whole of the center.

Then, unbelievably, you moved Nc3, allowing d4 and a classic pawn fork. So by move 3 you had already lost a piece. For the rest of the game you played somewhat aimlessly, reacting to his moves instead of forming a plan of your own, and several times you just hung a piece and lost it.

For his part, he played pretty poorly, bringing his queen out way too early and totally neglecting his queenside development.

So here are a couple of recommendations:

1) Get a good introductory book such as "Logical Chess, Move by Move" by Chernev or "The Complete Idiot's Guide to Chess" by Wolff. Study it thoroughly and repeatedly.

2) Go to game explorer here or to chessgames.com and play over the score of as many master games as you can stand. I would recommend using a filter to limit the games to under 20 or 25 moves. The reason for that is that such short games are usually decided poor development or by a blunder somewhere. Longer games of 40+ moves tend to be much more strategic, and it's almost impossible for the amateur to find out where the loser went wrong.

 3) Continue with Tactics Trainer, but limit yourself for now. 10 problems a day is more than enough. To be honest (and I'm not trying to be cruel at all) your blunders right now are big enough that TT won't help a lot. You have to get to the point of just not hanging pieces. (Update: I see you're a free member, so you are limited as to the number of TT puzzles you can do every day, but you've been a member since the middle of April and have only done SIX, five of which you've lost. You have to do more than that. Resolve to sign on and do your limit every day before you start to play. Then every couple of days, pull up your stats and try to solve the puzzles you failed. That's VERY important).

 4) Continue to play and really analyze ever game. You say you mess up in the middle game, but in the one I looked at you basically lost with Nc3.

Good luck!

Ha, the last game (maybe the last few I played), were played aimlessly, though I say this in no means to shadow my incompetence.

I don't use the TT here, but I generally use iChess on android, among other apps I regularly play on. 

I've been thinking about a book for some time now, I think it's time I get one.  Anyway, thanks for the generous and polite feedback. Appreciated.

Right so, like every one else I agonize, philosophize and generally hate my blunders.  I think there is alot more to avoiding them then just telling yourself "don't do blunders" three times and clicking your ruby shoes.

I could (and do) go into this some depth in my blog.  but here is the short of it.  do MORE tactics.  do them till you can't stand them- then go into your games and find all the tactics you missed!  go over them over and over again- until you solve problems at an instance.  and Lo'

you will blunder less!

why? I think its because you must see these the pivotal moves of a chess game with ease without strain.  and then, perhaps, even when you are struggling to understand what to do with your bishops and defend a weak pawn- Suprise.  your opponent mysteriously gives you a substitute and fork tactic!

the position now becomes MUCH easier.

BTW, this isn't just my lowly advice. either.  one of the best coaches in the world (Mr Heisman) compares tactics to knowing your times table; and as he sees it- you should now your tactics very, very well- not just awkwardly using your hands and feet. 

-- now about all the tactics puzzles you have done.  I've easily done 5000+ this year.   I am seeing improvement (espacially in standard) and I credit most of it to tactics puzzles.

next thought (and this will be brief)

consider a good coach.  I Love my coach!  there aren't all $80/hr.  contact me if you want a referrel.  Good luck.

I looked at your games and I saw right off you had only one game of daily (or slow chess, with at least 24 hours a move). Faster chess should come later after you have some grasp of slower games and have enough time to analyze your moves and your opponents possible moves in advance. I like to play ten minute games now and then too, but like people have said you need a book and a real board even (or get a chess engine like Fritz and learn how to enter positions from books) and figure it out step by step. It takes a long time. And stay away from d4 games and play basically e4 and Knf3 for a long time. Avoid trying to learn thins like the Sicilian as black. For a long time just e5 I would say. Know why that works or does not work and why before learning long complicated lines of play. I am not too good. At my level when people play the Sicilian they are out of the book lines in 6 or 8 moves it seems. So if you can Sort out an opening for six moves you will be doing pretty good for someone learning. Tactics and puzzles are I,portent, but you must try to see the similar patterns in games. The only way to do that is play lots and lots of games, but you must also be playing games that allow you some analysis. Often when my opponent is moving slow I play around with the game from the beginning. I suddenly start seeing big blunders on my part and theirs, to the tune of missing checkmates even. When playing one fast game after another you cannot do that. But fast games have a place in a chess players life, to be sure. But I do not think you will be learning much there other than how to goof up over and over and not know why. Set a goal to get to 1100 and stay there for now. Play guys that are a 100 points above you and below you. Inch up. If you want to play much higher players than you, find some one willing to tutor and help. Unrated games for example. It is not easy. I had some improvement in my games, I feel, after I began watching YouTube chess videos with commentaries. Makes a difference to hear that guy tell you why this was good and that was bad. Good luck!