American Go E-Journal

EYES OF WOOD, HANDS OF STONE, HEART OF PAPER

Sunday August 29, 2010

To play go,” writes programmer Reg Braithwaite, “one needs a huge amount of humility and patience. At first I thought I lacked these qualities, but then a funny thing happened: I purchased my first-ever mountain bike. In cycling, I receive regular positive feedback. I can measure my improvement with little things like occasionally feeling myself hit the balance point when working on a ‘1/2-1/4 to manual wheelie drop.’ Or popping the front wheel up onto a bench and driving the rear wheel up and under me. In go, I received no such affirmation. I play, I lose, and games are too long to be able to identify the specific mistakes without extensive personal coaching. I simply don’t know whether I am succeeding or failing when I make a move unless it’s a spectacular blunder.” Click here for the rest of Braithwaite’s thoughts on go, bikes and learning in Eyes of Wood, Hands of Stone, Heart of Paper, including Wood & Stones, his program to turn your iPad into a go board for playing face to face.
– thanks to Steve Colburn for passing this along