09 February 2010

Predecessors Cross-Referenced

Kasparov's Predecessors series is a great set of books for browsing, whether reading or playing through the games, but as a reference it is nearly useless. In each volume, the 'Table of Contents' offers a bare minimum and there is no index of the contents of the volume (except for the games). The same event, like a World Championship match, is often covered under several players who can be in different volumes.

To execute a specific project I had in mind, I cross-referenced volumes II and III by event. A sample of the results is shown in the following graphic.


For each of the 13 players covered in a chapter (like Euwe) or a chapter section (like Keres), the table lists year and event with a page reference by player (BOT = Botvinnik, BRO = Bronstein, etc). My table covers only World Championship events, gives only the first reference for an event / player even though there might be several, and undoubtedly contains errors. After I get some confidence in the data, I'll create a usable copy on a web page.

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