Hi, I read the rules and basics principles on the learning section on this site (+ watch some videos) but I am completely lost when playing a game (with IA for the moment) ; I have no idea where to play (just know the principles to play on the 3rd or 4th lines at the beginning). I would greatly appreciate to have a teaching game to help me learning the basics 
Thanks for your help !
Laurent
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Hi Laurent
Your current predicament reminds me a lot of when I started playing Go.
I’ve been writing a series of 19X19 FOR BEGINNERS articles with readers like you in mind - trying to break down the various concepts, tactics, and general strategies of the game into something a beginner can understand.
I know it’s a lot of reading, but take your time. There are days/weeks of reading here, so please digest these articles at your own pace - and hopefully these will help you progress through you first 100 games faster:
Introduction: Making Sense of Go
Part 3: Playing a Balanced Opening
Part 5: The Stages of the Game
Good luck!
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Thanks very much ! I’m looking forward to reading it
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Happy to play a correspondence game and answer questions as we go any time, just send me a challenge if correspondence is ok. Live might be doable too, but not easy to find a suitable time for me.
I feel you!
When I started, I didn’t have either.
My personal experience is that a simple app could help a lot.
On my android smartphone I installed an app called “Go free” by developer “AI Factory Limited”.
Now they changed the app name to simply “Go”.
I bet you can find some other similar app, if you don’t have android.
That app allows you to play against a wide range of “weak” AI, from level 1 (too silly to be true ) to 10. I just managed to beat level 6 once, so they can be strong enough for a normal player.
The other feature that was specifically useful for me as a beginner is the “undo” option: if you find yourself trapped in a dead-end sequence, you can roll back the game and try to figure out when and where you could’ve played a different move to a better outcome.
That was an unvaluable help for me: by trial and error I was able to get a grasp on go’s main principles and simplest mechanics.
That was just the beginning of a life long journey though!
Asking here for a teaching game is a great idea too. I hope you find a match that suits to you.
But I still encourage you to try the app option: at first Go can seem too hard and weird, there’s a big step to climb for a total beginner. Being able to move back and forth in a game, trying different moves and seeing what the AI answers, is a great way of learning.
Just don’t pick strong AIs like Leela o Katago: they are way stronger than any human and their style is far too complicated for a beginner. I also don’t recommend playing weak bots on OGS since they usually play unreasonable moves, so they can be misleading.
My advice is: try some teaching game, try some “do/undo” games against the app and then just play against humans, again and again.
If you want comments on your past games, you can ask here too. Many users are happy to review your games and give advice to improve.
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Feel free to challenge me to a game.
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Thanks very much for these advices !
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Thanks it is very kind
I have experience teaching total beginners, and willing to teach via OGS with comments or OGS with Zoom. For free, of course.
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Just see your message ; very kind of you, It will be with pleasure !
LaurentV, please send me a contact message at www.springtimesoftware.com and we will talk in private.