The whole ko issue, essential to the understanding of the game, is poorly structured at SL. We have a couple of good pages, which are basically the central pages ko and ko-threat but they unfold into several paths which promise to be more exhaustive and thorough, for either beginners or experienced players. Those promises are rarely kept and instead many of the pages repeat what is said in a less understandable way.
That's my opinion of course. Dieter
Ben Axelrod: I agree, as a beginner with no local Go club it took me a long time to understand ko threats and ko fighting even with SL as a guide. I think a simple, step by step example on a 9x9 board should be put onto the BasicsOnKos page. There should only be a few, very distinct ko threats. This would only benifit beginners because more advanced players would be able to read ahead... but beginners lack this ability, and i think it helps to se it played out. For the more advanced players, perhaps some consolodation on the many pages related to Ko.
term100?: The following is a ko. Why was it removed then?
Bill: I do not know anything about removal, but this is not a good example of a ko. If captures
, then
prevents Black from winning the ko by oiotoshi.
term100?: This page and the diagrams on them are only meant to be an introduction to ko and should involve a minimal amount of stones. Adding any more stones just to avoid specific tactical situations can only cause confusion to beginners.
Bill: The What ko? diagram does not contain even the minimal number of stones. Adding more stones helps to clarify things and to reduce the possibility for confusion. If a beginner wondered about , what would we say? Just kidding? To show beginners incorrect diagrams because they are not good enough to know the difference does them a disservice.
term100?: In my defense, I would like to point out that the ko in the corner diagram was also minimal before you started applying your principle there too. So, Rakshasa wasn't consistent.
Bill: There are many errors in SL. We try to correct them, but sometimes new errors creep in. We are all amateurs, doing the best we can.