AMERICAN GO E-JOURNAL: News from the American Go Association October 1, 2001 In This Edition: - CALENDAR OF EVENTS: Latest listings - GO NEWS: Palm Joseki Dictionary 1.16 Released; Go on Screen, Big and Little; Redmond Cup Tournament Registration - YOUR MOVE: READERS WRITE: First Kyu Full of Heart - ONLINE GO: Sensei's Library - GO REVIEW: First Kyu - AGA OFFICER CONTACT LIST CALENDAR OF EVENTS (U.S.) October 6: Chicago, IL Chicago Tournament Bob Barber (773) 467-0423 igo@uic.edu October 6-7: Portland, OR Portland Open Go Tournament Robert O'Malley (541) 738-1690 omalley@oce.orst.edu October 7: Boston, MA MGA Fall Handicap Tournament Don Wiener (617) 734-6316 donwiener@earthlink.net October 14: Hoboken, NJ Hoboken Fall Tournament Larry Russ (201) 216-5379 lruss@stevens-tech.edu October 27: Arlington, VA Pumpkin Classic Allan Abramson (703) 684-7676 mediate8@worldnet.att.net October 27-28: Houston, TX 2001 Texas Open and AGTC Tournament Mike Peng (281) 228-4233 pmpeng@swbell.net November 3: Broomfield, CO Colorado Open and AGTC Tournament U. Tamm (303) 466-2865 utamm@worldnet.att.net November 4th: Broomfield, CO Workshop with Yuki - CANCELLED NOTE: this listing is not all-inclusive, featuring only upcoming tournaments in the next month or events which require early registration. For a complete U.S. listings, go to http://www.usgo.org/usa/tournaments.html For the European Go Calendar see http://www.win.tue.nl/cs/fm/engels/go/tourn.html GO NEWS Palm Joseki Dictionary 1.16 Released The Many Faces of Go Joseki Dictionary, Palm OS Edition, Version 1.16 has just been released, fixing some of the bugs in V1.04, adding a new feature and modifying a few existing features. "The new feature for this release is a status display," reports Bob Felice. "The status display shows whose turn it is, the move number, if there are moves in the library when the next move is a pass and if the end of the joseki has been reached." Other changes include changing the default joseki in the un-registered version from the 5-5 to the 3-3, and reducing the sound and duration of the beep. "We currently have two winners in our 'Find the Longest Joseki' competition," says David. "They are Tobias Klaus, who found a 50 move sequence, and Bruce Bozovich, who found a 53 move sequence." Their names have been added to the FAQ, and yours will, too, if you can find a joseki sequence in the library that is longer than 35 moves Download a trial version at http://www.smart-games.com; registration is $20. Go on Screen, Big and Little "I was pleasantly surprised when I sat in front of the tube to chill a little the other night and got involved in a movie, 'Thank Heaven for Mr. Allison,' writes Hal Small in Washington, DC. "It's about a Marine who gets stranded with a nun on a Japanese-controlled island during WWII." "During one scene two Japanese played several games of go, quite credibly shown, and in a later scene the nun says she's figured it out. Not a great flick for sure (I cannot, Scout's honor, reveal the end), but fun for us go crazies." "When did Go first appear on American TV?" wonders Robert Barber in Chicago. "I've been told an earlier date for an American movie, but I have seen a video of go on mainstream TV from a surprisingly (to me) early date." "Dangerous Moves," a 1984 French film about a chess championship features a Russian grandmaster playing go while planning chess strategy. Please report other go sightings in film or on TV to us at journal@usgo.org Redmond Cup Tournament Registration Michael Redmond 9-Dan and his family, the American Go Association, the Ing Wei-Ch'i Foundation and IGS invite young North American Go players to join the ninth Redmond Cup Tournament and the fifth Redmond Handicap Tournament. Send the following registration form for either tournament to None Redmond at chinski@inreach.com before December 1st 2001: name, address, phone #, date of birth, e-mail address, AGA rating, citizenship, go club. Your Move: Readers Write First Kyu Full of Heart "I was quite saddened to learn of Dr. Hong's untimely death," writes Jim Linday. "I purchased First Kyu at the SF Go Congress, and devoured it. It is very well written, and full of tremendous heart. I strongly recommend that any go player that hasn't read it pick it up -- you won't regret it." "The book reads so truly that I suspected it was autobiographical. I corresponded briefly with Dr. Hong, and he allowed as how that was largely correct. Quite a story. I wish I'd known him better, but in a way I did, through his story." EDITOR'S NOTE: see below for a review of First Kyu. Also note that the "Games of Wu" the novel's protagonist studies to make first kyu are a collection of the games of legendary master Go Seigen. Janice Kim, who published First Kyu, says that Samarkand can take orders for any of the Go Seigen collections: www.samarkand.net ONLINE GO: Sensei's Library by Terri Schurter An unusual source of information about go worth taking a look at is Sensei's Library at http://senseis.xmp.net Sensei's Library (SL) is a place where go players can meet to find or contribute information and discuss any items related to go. It is a WikiWikisite, meaning that anyone can collaborate on the creation of the information. You do not need to register or have a password to make additions to pages, so be aware that what you are looking at is a collective work and freely created by many individuals, almost all of whom are amateur go players. You are invited to try your hand at editing in what is called the "sandbox". There you can type information directly onto the page, as you may with any other page on the site. When I visited the sandbox I added an invitation to visit the Wings Go Club page and provided a link to the site. If you decide to add significant content to the site outside of the sandbox please read the rules of WikiEtiquette before you begin to edit pages. Because Sensei's Library has so much information it is worth clicking on "Starting Points" on the left of any page to orient yourself to the site. Sensei's Library contains a "Reference Section" where you can look up information. At the "Library Lobby" you will find many topics of discussion including a "MetaDiscussion" where you can discuss what you like and don't like about Sensei's Library itself. The concept of WikiWiki sites was entirely new to me, so aside from the go content available, Sensei's Library is worth visiting just to take a look at this unique type of interactive site. Sensei's Library, which hopes some day to be the repository of all go knowledge, is a unique collection of information which has this to say about itself, "Quite unlike any library on the corner, we are not quite sure what SL will end up looking like or being used as. It is up to the users to define what they want and how - and SL will take shape as we go along." Terri Schurter -- onlinego@usgo.org -- has been playing go online since 1995. Her club, Wings Across Calm Waters [http://www.wingsgoclub.org], is a "virtual" chapter of the AGA. Wings meets week-nights on the Zone from 8:00 pm to 10:00 pm Eastern Time, and on Wednesday nights at 8P on KGS. Terri plays under the name goddess_of_go. Past columns are archived at http://www.britgo.org/gopcres/agaart/index.html The views expressed in this column are not necessarily those of the American Go Association. GO REVIEW: First Kyu By Dr. Sung-Hwa Hong Good Move Press/Samarkand Reviewed by Chris Garlock One of the best go books has a scant handful of diagrams and very little on tactics or strategy. "First Kyu," the novel by the late Dr. Sung-Hwa Hong, is the story of Young-Wook Kwon, a young Korean student who abandons his career and family in pursuit of the life of a professional go player. Anyone who's been even lightly bitten by the go bug will be entranced by this slim yet substantial novel, packed with fascinating details of the rocky road to professional. Dr. Hong's premature death recently at just 51 robs us of not only a charming man and strong go player, but of a great teacher, as well, for "First Kyu" is much more than just the tale of one go player's trials and tribulations. The novel, which clearly has a strong autobiographical flavor, explores the conflicts between duty and dreams, and the difference between desire and determination. Of most interest to go players, of course, is the window "First Kyu" provides into the game as a way of life that does not yet exist in this country. In Korea, in addition to the select group of players who earn a living as professional players, it is also possible to eke out a life as a club pro or as a gambler in go games called "bagneki" where players and spectators wager large sums based on the margin of victory. The lure of the easier way, then, is another theme in "First Kyu," as Wook must choose between gambling and the purity and rigor of studying the masters in the quest to become a professional. Of course, it is in this study that we, along with Wook, learn the real lessons of go and life. Give up a little to gain big. Slow down, beware of speed. Greed for a win takes the win away. "Every book will reveal its truth if read one hundred times." This Confucius quote refers to Wook's review of collections of master games, but it applies to "First Kyu" as well. Just 98 more times and I can write a better review. (Chris receives a $25 gift certificate at Samarkand for this review, which he's donating to the NoVa Go Club in honor of Dr. Hong's contributions to go in North America. Send us a 150-word review of a go book or go software and - upon acceptance -- we'll give you a $25 gift certificate to the go vendor of your choice, too!. Tell us what you liked - or didn't like - and how it helped (or didn't help) your game. Include the book's title, publisher, cost, your name and email address. Choose any book you like, from brand-new publications to old stand-bys that you keep going back to. Also, be sure to indicate what level player is best served by the material.) GET LISTED & BOOST TURN-OUT! Got an upcoming event? Reach over 2,500 readers coast-to-coast every week! List your Go event/news In the E-Journal: email details to us at journal@usgo.org Ratings are on the web! Check the website (www.usgo.org) for the full list. 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To make name or address corrections - notify us at the email address below. Story suggestions, event announcements, Letters to the Editor and other material are welcome - subject to editing for clarity and space -- and should be directed to: Editor: Chris Garlock email: journal@usgo.org Voice: 202-857-3410 Fax: 202-857-3420