As we all know tsumego is a major part of studying go. There are many books chock full of problems out there and there is a good chance you have gone through one or several. My question is how does one use a tsumego book? I have gone through several of them now just by going through each problem looking at the answer and seeing why I was right or wrong and moved to the next problem. When I finish the book I move onto the next problem book, but is that the right way to do it?

Should you go over a problem book more than once? After you finish it should you start to go through it again immediately or wait awhile? Should you only redo the problems you got wrong or also the ones you got right the first time through? How many times should you go through the book?

I am interested in what everyone thinks as I believe this is an important topic that isn't discussed.

If I come across a problem that seems doable but I got it wrong, or I take too long, I add (edit) it as a new problem to my EasyGo app collection. This has Spaced Repetition Study so I get the problem back after a while, and it is nice and easy doing problems on an iPad.

I read that doing problems on a real board is better. I do that sometimes and do them together with others, and it is fun, but slow.

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Still officially AGA 5d but I play so irregularly these days that I am probably only 3d or 4d over the board (but hopefully still 5d in terms of knowledge, theory and the ability to contribute).

Basically the way I do it is that I get the book and then start to add the problems to a .sgf editor. I usually go chapter by chapter so I will code in all the problems in one section including programing in the solutions. Usually by the time I get to the end of the chapter there is no way I remember the solutions to the first ones that I added so I give it a whirl and see if I can get it right. I then read the commentary and work out the logic of the solution. I then add it to my rotation of problems I do on my phone.

A more traditional form of doing it would be along the same lines in that you go through and give it a try and see if you are right. Set up a physical Go board and stones and recreate the problem so you can test out variations. The important part is that you understand the concepts of why the solution is right or wrong.

If you have an iPhone or iPad I also recommend EasyGo. It's kind of pricey for an app, but it includes a little over 2000 problems. It has a neat feature that has been scientifically studied called spaced repetition study where it asks you if a problem was hard for you or easy and will re-present it to you in a day or a few days later so that it is more likely to stick in your long term memory. I bought it for the problems and didn't even know it included a .sgf editor. In edit mode you can add the starting stones and program the solutions as well as any variations. You can zoom in on certain sections of the board just like the real deal including all the normal stone markers ie triangle and square, ABC markers, all the normal stuff you see in problems. You can have comments pop up as to why something is wrong or right depending on your choice. You can also import .sgf files and replay games or test out variations. It's way cool. I wish it had a Android version so I could put it on my Kindle.

Do a problem book at a level that you can solve completely and quickly. Keep on increasing the difficulty until you get to problems that you can solve but not completely. Once there, go back to the lower level problems and try to do them faster; repeat endlessly!