BasicJapaneseForReadingGoBooks/discussion

SnotNose: Much appreciated if someone could add the character(s) for "seki" (a.k.a., "dual life").

kokiri: If my memory isn't lying, it's pretty much always rendered in kana:

セキ

Whether there's a kanji used in older texts (as with ko) I don't know.

John F. Yes, there is. Same one as in motsu.

RafaelCaetano: Note that the notion of "live group" includes "alive in seki". So if the problem says "Black to live", a move which leads to a seki might be the correct answer. I'm pointing this out because I've noticed that many people assume that "seki" is somehow "not really alive" or otherwise a very undesirable result.

kokiri indeed, there's a quasi proverb to the tune of, 'seki is alive'. The japanese problem sets I have seen often include sekis in 'black to play and live' problems, but the description of the problem often makes a fairly heavy handed hint to the tune of 'don't forget that seki is also life'.

Extra Kanji that one may encounter in books:

正 解 図 Solution diagram
参 考 図 Reference diagram
変 化 図 Variation diagram
点 Spot, point (example: at : (1 の 点))
右 Right (example to the right of : (1 の 右))
左 Left (example to the left of : (1 の 左))
上 Above (example above : (1 の 上))
下 Below (example below : (1 の 下 ))
互角 Even or equal result

Often books will use the Iroha (いろは) to indicate additional moves. The first seven additional moves in order based upon the Iroha are: イ, ロ, ハ, ニ, ホ, ヘ, ト

Bruce? I found this fascinating page from an old book:

http://www10.plala.or.jp/koten/hon/T/gennkonmeika.htm

The diagram uses katakana in iroha order for the top coordinates. Hiragana in iroha order are used, as mentioned in the comment above, to indicate additional moves.

The move numbers are in kanji, but use a positional notation instead of the usual Sino-Japanese method: instead of 2,10,2 for twenty-two, just 2,2 is used.

Does anyone know if this continues for numbers over 99? Would move 154 be 1,5,4?

unkx80: I do not know whether this continues for numbers over 99 (it is hard to squeeze three characters in the limited space), but 154 would be 1,5,4.

Disclaimer: I do not read Japanese. However, the kanji characters are exactly the same as Chinese characters, so I can read the moves. By the way, the really old Chinese Go literature use the same format too, except for the characters used for the coordinates.

Bill: Old Japanese game diagrams use a rectangle for 100 and a triangle for 200.