The Internet chess playground beckons

On Chess: Flexible identity part of online fun
Saturday May 19, 2012 10:39 AM

Anonymity is not a state that most of us welcome.

But in the vast, impersonal cyberspace of the Internet, anonymity offers the possibility of freedom. No one but ourselves need know the results of our games.

We can celebrate our wins and, with equal pleasure, bury our losses.

It’s like walking without clothes down Broadway and remaining unnoticed.

The first exercise of that freedom is our choice of an online identity. We can choose and change as we wish.

At any time, we can start a new Internet persona or simply rename an old one. “Bob” or “Bartholomew” aren’t very sexy. “Wimpy” and “Tiger” are better, if not cool. “Catherine the Great”definitely tops “Suzy.”

Believe it or not, Internet players appear and reappear in such guises.

Internet play is an escape from our chess past. Our ratings online are a secret that only we know. They’re disposable and replaceable if we open a new account or change our Internet venue.

Because of the sheer number of games we can play in a short period, our ratings aren’t the self-fulfilling prophecy they often become in chess played in brick-and-mortar venues.

Online, we can experiment endlessly, try or invent new opening schemes, attack and defend fiercely, or flourish and perish if we dare.

And, now, please give leave to this writer. The Internet chess playground beckons.

Source: http://www.dispatch.com