2nd Edition of Complete Checkers

[chipschap]

The second edition of Richard Pask's landmark "Complete Checkers" will be available on the Checker Maven website (www.checkermaven.com) on Saturday, March 10. As always, the electronic edition can be downloaded completely free of charge.

This new edition contains about 100 changes and corrections, most of them small, a few of them more substantial.

The print edition has also been reissued and can be had from Amazon's sites in the US, Great Britain, and Europe. The price remains the same. That said, there is no pressing need to rebuy the book if you already have the first edition, as the electronic 2nd edition should serve more than well enough.

But this isn't all ... stand by. By the end of March 2018 latest, there will be another significant Richard Pask announcement.

As usual, my thanks to Richard for the immense privilege and pleasure of editing and publishing his work.

[George Hay]

Hi Bob, it is good to see the 2nd edition is out, and I am so glad that Richard Pask decided to keep writing on checkers. (I read somewhere that he planed to quit writing on checkers several years ago.) I see there was a small correction on Bell's Win that was referenced in the 1st edition announcement from The Checker Maven 2/04/17. The sixth ply (white's third move) was corrected to 17-22 from the original typo of 17-2. That was a rather harmless typo as it is easy to read ahead to see that the checker on 17 must have moved to square 22. This week's edition of The Checker Maven 03/10/18 referenced a Willie Ryan variation of 24-19! drawing move in the 2nd edition (sic) as an alternative to the loosing 31-26? that forms this week's diagram. But the 24-19! draw was in the 1st edition (not the 2nd edition). The 29-25 draw also by Willie Ryan is featured in the 2nd edition, replacing the 24-19! draw from the 1st edition. I hope the 3rd edition contains both Willie Ryan draws!

--George Hay

[chipschap]

George: V32(17) on page 482 gives the play on 24-19! play in the 4th printed line. Are we perhaps looking at different things?

I had a moment of panic, thinking I somehow mistakenly republished the old edition, but fortunately all seems to be well.

[George Hay]

Hi Bob, I hope I have not confused the issue, I can appreciate the painstaking attention to detail it takes to write about checkers, with the emphasis on painstaking! I did download the 2nd edition this morning, and did some checking on just a few items with the 1st edition.

V32(17) Game #1748 on page 482 has different variations from Willie Ryan from the 1st and 2nd editions. This is cut and past from the 1st edition:

Original publication February, 2017

V32(17): 9-13(33)22-18;15-2225-18;3-826-22;5-930-26;1-5 32-28; 9-14 18-9; 5-14 22-17; 13-22 26-17; 11-16 [6-9 17-13; 10-15 13-6; 2-9 24-19; 15-24 28-19; 7-10 20-16; 11-20 31-26; 9-13 29-25 is an interesting alternative] 20-11; 8-15 29-25; 4-8 25-22; 8-11 24-19; 15-24 27-20; 11-15 23-19; 15-24 28-19; 7-11 20-16; 11-20 19-15; 10-19 17-1. Drawn. Analysis by W. Ryan. #1748.

This is cut and past from the 2nd Edition:

2nd Revised Edition February, 2018

V32(17): 9-13(33)22-18;15-2225-18;3-826-22;5-930-26;1-5 32-28; 9-14 18-9; 5-14 22-17; 13-22 26-17; 11-16 [6-9 17-13; 10-15 13-6; 2-9 24-19; 15-24 28-19; 7-10 20-16; 11-20 31-26; 9-13 29-25 is an interesting alternative] 20-11; 8-15 24-19!; 15-24 28-19; 7-11 29-25; 4-8 25-22; 6-9 22-18!; 11-16 17-13; 8-11 13-6; 2-9 27-24; 16-20 31-27. Drawn. Analysis by W. Ryan. #1748.

The main point I was trying to make is both Willie Ryan variations are worthy of publication!

--George Hay

[George Hay]

I see I was looking on the wrong line, I did not even notice this until just now! Bob,you are right, and this week's issue of The Checker Mavin is correct!

--George Hay

[George Hay]

Just for the record the moves preceding V32(17) are: 11-15 24-20; 8-11 28-24.
Of course it is best to download Complete Checkers from The Checker Maven website.

--George Hay

[George Hay]

I just had to follow up with the publication of the 3rd Edition of Complete Checkers available from The Checker Mavin Website: The Richard Pask Page. The above Willie Ryan variation in the 3rd Edition is the same as in the 2nd Edition, leaving out the above 1st Edition line of play from the 4th line of text.

http://www.bobnewell.net/checkers/paskpdf.html

Also to follow up, in my above comments I stated, ",,,, and I am so glad that Richard Pask decided to keep writing on checkers. (I read somewhere that he planed to quit writing on checkers several years ago.) " That "somewhere" was the first issue of Draughts Razoo, that is available from The Checker Mavin Column of 05/12/07.

http://www.bobnewell.net/nucleus/checke ... itemid=404

Thank you author Richard Pask and publisher Bob Newell for Complete Checkers.

--George Hay

[George Hay]

ICUMI (In case you miss it) this is a link to the ACF Forum topic of the 3rd Edition from the Checkers Books and Equipment section:

viewtopic.php?f=14&t=4184

[chipschap]

I too am delighted that Richard continues to write (and permits me to publish his work). We're all looking forward to the 3rd volume of Logical Checkers!

The first volume, Checkers for the Novice, has really seemed to fill a need, and the print version continues to sell--- in small numbers, to be sure, but nonetheless there is steady demand. This despite the fact that the electronic version is available for free.