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BGonline.org Forums
Re: Magriel vs Gnubg
Posted By: Stick In Response To: Magriel vs Gnubg (JossBeaumont)
Date: Saturday, 2 December 2006, at 9:48 p.m.
If you're just starting off in backgammon Magriel's book is essential. If you've never read it but have played, it's still essential. Hardy gave you a good answer to your question (he posts here too occassionally) but to reiterate the reason it's considered the "bible" is because of the key concepts introduced by Magriel.
This book was written over 30 years ago and the ideas within still hold true. The strategies and tactics are laid out for you, guidelines that you will follow over your backgammon career. It's true, a lot of the 'problems' in the book may have the wrong answer, but the thinking behind them is what makes the book so valuable. It's hard to imagine a time before GNU/Snowie etc... Back then there was no 'right' answer, no way to prove one play was better than another, and Magriel produced this great work of bg literature. Don't concern yourself with right v. wrong while reading this book, try to sponge all the concepts in it. It is good that you notice and even check with GNU if you have a different opinion of a play, this means you're thinking about the position and are on your way to improving your backgammon game. The book should not be critiqued 'so many problems are wrong'. It should be appreciated for all the ideas that were well ahead of their time.
Another good 'beginning' backgammon book is Backgammon Boot Camp by Walter Trice. I have some books reviewed here on my site and I have read a slew more since then. [I'll also admit I didn't put a lot of heart into the reviews, just jotted down whatever I was thinking at the moment] I believe New Ideas in Backgammon is an excellent book, but you should maybe wait to get it until you have some backgammon experience under your belt. Another I liked was Kit Woolsey's The Backgammon Encyclopedia, it got me thinking about how changing positions ever so slightly could greatly affect play/cube decisions.
If you stumble upon any other books feel free to ask, I've most likely read them and if I haven't I'm sure someone else here has. For the opening moves if you go to the home page of my web site you can find all the opening moves and their replies rolled out extensively with very strong settings so you can be sure you're making the 'correct' move.
Stick
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