Y'all might remember me posting a series of questions awhile back as a way to see how other players thought and promote conversation based on the questions asked. It was a lot of fun reading through those questions, so I figured I'd ask another round of questions.

Here are the next set:

1. Do you eat or drink while you play Go? If so, what are your favorites?
2. Do you have any nervous habits when you play Go?
3. Do you think there needs to be another Hikaru no Go to spur more interest in the game? Why or why not?
4. How much time do you allocate to Go?
5. What is your opinion on low level amateurs wanting declaring their desire to become a Pro?
6. Have you ever managed to convince one of your friends to play Go?
7. When is your favorite time to play Go? Morning, noon, or evening?
8. Would you play a video game that simulated the life of a Go player from amateur to pro?
9. If you had a million dollars, how would you use that money to benefit the Go world? (Assuming it has to be Go related)
10. How would you react if you were the one that discovered Sai? (Hikaru no Go related)
11. If you have one, who is your favorite reoccurring opponent?
12. Assuming that the US adopted the title system that Asian systems have, what would you like the titles to be called? (For the professional players. I admit I might be a bit behind here and I don't really know if something exists. So, I apologize if that is the case.)

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Slava Ukraini!

1. Wine
2. Wine
3. No!!! For pete's sake - not another one!!!
4. None. It happens I tinker with it about half hour to one hour a day, but its never allocated.
5. I nod my head, try to be supportive, but inside I have a slight patronizing smile of 'kid, you have no clue, but go ahead, get educated!'
6. Yes.
7. Not sure. Depends on the game. I like video games, and this sounds like an interesting idea. But I cannot imagine the mechanics. Also, I would worry that it would do more bad than good, if successful.
8. Evening. Although, as it happens, I usually have most time for Go in the morning.
9. I would probably open a coffee shop housing a Go club. And sponsor some stuff on the web, donate to KGS possibly.
10. I would start playing chess, just to mess with him. I hate ghosts. All the ones I met were jerks. And they always try to scare people.
11. Myself.
12. Kyu and Dan are cool. Other than this, I like the Master/Grandmaster titles from chess. Although this is probably not what you are after. So ok. Name them after main sponsors of the tourneys for all I care... not very important to me, I think. The important thing is the sponsors and the tourneys, not the titles. Its like backward priorities.

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- Bantari
______________________________________________
WARNING: This post might contain Opinions!!

Chewing gum and water.

Not that I'm aware of.

As long as it is produced with care and entertaining to watch, sure, let's have it.

Hard to pinpoint. Guess half an hour to three hours a day on average.

Sure, set sail! I like to dream big myself, so if you never start your path you will never arrive anywhere.

They play with me, but they don't pursue it on their own, so I guess. No.

Playing... after noon.

As long as it is produced with care and entertaining to play, sure, let's have it.

1 Million dollar. Hm, that's not really much. I'm quite interested in the eductaional system, so one of my dreams was always to open up a private school. I also like to open a Go school but with today's player base there is no way to make it work.

Hm, I guess it would have its moments and my Go skill would most likely increase faster but then again I also like my private activities and don't want a ghost watching over my shoulder every time.

I don't have one.

Something american, so looking where the money is... either something privately sponsored by some Church or something privately sponsored by the NRA (how about the From My Cold Dead Hands aka The Heston?).

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My "guide" to become stronger in Go

Coffee

Drinking coffee
Nah. New generations can still discover Hikaru, or they can just skip to the chase.
More than I care to admit.
*sigh*
Yes.
Mornings - I feel sharper.
No way.
Good question! Sponsor a program for western teenagers who can demonstrate a competence in an Asian language to study in an Asian go school for a year. Offer significant prize money for major Western tournaments.
I would become Hikaru.
I don't have one.
The most important title should be "the daal" named after me for having invented it.

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Patience, grasshopper.

1. Do you eat or drink while you play Go? If so, what are your favorites?[/quote]

Coffee (caffe late usually.) Rarely mate tea with a sprinkle of lemon. In rare summer occasions, cold fresh lemonade

I guess I'd tap on the table if I didn't prevent it.
Don't think so
More lately, but I have long spells (6 months+) where I don't play and my KGS account expires)
Aiming for the moon is good as long as you land among the stars at least
Yes, he went on to become far stronger than myself (2-3d KGS before the last rank shift, I think now that would be 3-4). I think he no longer plays regularly, though.
Mornings - I feel sharper, same as Daal.
Eeeh... no.
I'd probably send a few promising Western amateurs to Korea or China to get them buffed up.
Heh, probably pissed up I could no longer play my own mistakes.
Nope.
I think the Japanese names have their own appeal.

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Geek of all trades, master of none: the motto for my blog mostlymaths.net

12. Big Kahuna, Terminator, Dragon, Jaws

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The Adkins Principle:
At some point, doesn't thinking have to go on?
— Winona Adkins

Visualize whirled peas.

Everything with love. Stay safe.

+10086

Though I have to admit I hate that guy's guts sometimes.

1 - Eat: no. Drink: Yes. At the pub it's beer, at home no favourite.
2 - Not that I know of.
3 - If it's well made sure, if badly done it could do more harm than good.
4 - I don't really allocate time per se, but I probably spend about two hours per day on it on average.
5 - Ambition's good, but prepare to be dissapointed!
6 - Yes, but it was an utter failure to keep either of them playing though.
7 - Noon's probably my favourite, but given work I only get to play evening's most days.
8 - Not unless it got a lot of good reviews.
9 - Find someone who has better ideas than me!
10 - Finding a real 'live' ghost? Probably panic and pass out.
11 - Two possible people at the club. One is the first I ever played on a real board and I've recently overtaken him in rank, the other both of us are improving still, I've managed to remain one stone better than him for a bit now, but he's got to that strength quicker than I did so I'm expecting to be overtaken at some point.
12 - Pass.

PeterN

I never eat. I drink Coke or water. I shouldn't drink the Coke.



No. I'm only nervous before the first stones are played, once the game starts I tend to lose myself in it.



No. I don't think Hikaru helped that much long term.



Varies according to mood.



If you're 20 odd and Irish I'd raise an eyebrow. If you're under 10 and living in Asia...



Sure. None of them kept it up though, mainly because they realised how much time and effort it would take to "catch up." They were usually chess players or similar.



No preference.



No.



I'd pay John Fairbairn and others of similar calibre to translate works that are not commercially viable to translate (mainly high dan level material I imagine) and then distribute them at cost.



Eh?



Tom. His play forces me out of my comfort zone.



I wouldn't care.

1. Do you eat or drink while you play Go? If so, what are your favorites?
I only play in DGS, and make moves at any time of the day when it is convenient. So early morning it will be coffee, middle of the day it will be tea, evening wine. As for food, I sometimes play moves during my lunch break if I am at my desk.

2. Do you have any nervous habits when you play Go?
I don't have any nervous badly, period. I do have lots of habits, but they are mostly bad.

3. Do you think there needs to be another Hikaru no Go to spur more interest in the game? Why or why not?
One is enough.

4. How much time do you allocate to Go?
None. See question 1.

5. What is your opinion on low level amateurs wanting declaring their desire to become a Pro?
About the same as a kid saying he is going to be a pro footballer after making a catch in his first game as a 5 year old. Well, actually the kid probably has a better chance.

6. Have you ever managed to convince one of your friends to play Go?
Don't think so but my memory does go back that far.

7. When is your favorite time to play Go? Morning, noon, or evening?
See question 1.

8. Would you play a video game that simulated the life of a Go player from amateur to pro?
I have never played a video game in my life. No reason to start now.

9. If you had a million dollars, how would you use that money to benefit the Go world? (Assuming it has to be Go related)
It doesn't take a mmillion dollars to do something beneficial for go. Anyway, a million dollars is not even enough to live comfortably for the rest of most people's lifes so it would take probably $10M to wax philanthropic.

10. How would you react if you were the one that discovered Sai? (Hikaru no Go related)
Be tempted to commit suicide? (Glad I don't live in NZ.)

11. If you have one, who is your favorite reoccurring opponent?
I don't have any reoccuring opponent. All those who have disappearred have never reoccurred. I do have a few recurring opponents I enjoy playing on DGS.

12. Assuming that the US adopted the title system that Asian systems have, what would you like the titles to be called? (For the professional players. I admit I might be a bit behind here and I don't really know if something exists. So, I apologize if that is the case.)
How about "The World Series"? After all, the US seems to think it is the best in the world at everything. Or perhaps "The Super Cherrywood Bowl"

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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).

1. Do you eat or drink while you play Go? If so, what are your favorites?
at home, no. at the club i drink whatever random stuff the supermarket sells

2. Do you have any nervous habits when you play Go?
used to be fiddling with stones. online thats not possible

3. Do you think there needs to be another Hikaru no Go to spur more interest in the game? Why or why not?
no. i once talked to a former insei about how Slam Dunk seemed to inspire a lot of basketball and still does, and Hikaru no Go sorta did but not really. his response "that's because basketball is cool"

4. How much time do you allocate to Go?
lately none, but it used to be one game each day outside of my go lesson

5. What is your opinion on low level amateurs wanting declaring their desire to become a Pro?
they clearly have no idea how hard go is

6. Have you ever managed to convince one of your friends to play Go?
early on, yes. now i don't bother

7. When is your favorite time to play Go? Morning, noon, or evening?
wheneever i can

8. Would you play a video game that simulated the life of a Go player from amateur to pro?
no

9. If you had a million dollars, how would you use that money to benefit the Go world? (Assuming it has to be Go related)
i'd pay for teachers to give free lessons

10. How would you react if you were the one that discovered Sai? (Hikaru no Go related)
quite annoyed. as much as i like go i'd hate to be around someone who is 24/7 about it

11. If you have one, who is your favorite reoccurring opponent?
don't have one

12. Assuming that the US adopted the title system that Asian systems have, what would you like the titles to be called? (For the professional players. I admit I might be a bit behind here and I don't really know if something exists. So, I apologize if that is the case.)
assuming there will probably be a sponsor, it would probably either be "Red Bull" or "Axe". considering honinbo was some dude's last name, it'd also amusing if it was "Johnson". i.e.That guy is the current Johnson.

No.



Yes. I bite the joints in my thumbs. The skin on my thumbs around the joints is dry and hard because of this. The harder I am thinking, the more I bite my thumbs.



Sure, it'd be entertaining.



No comment.



We should encourage these players. However, sometimes people do this as a way of reassuring themselves, as a substitute for working hard to achieve their goals. Probably in many cases, those that do not make such declarations are more likely to achieve real results.



Yes, but not for the long-term.



When babies aren't crying.



Probably not for the long-term, but I might try it out since I like anything that is related to go.



I'd open more go centers like the Seattle Go Center.



I guess I'd dye my hair yellow and sign up to be an insei.



Sadly, I have nobody. I wish I had a rival who would play me often.



Mr. Awesome
King of the Pebbles
Chuck Norris
CEO (for my LinkedIn profile)

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be immersed

1. Do you eat or drink while you play Go? If so, what are your favorites?
Neither eat nor drink. That distracts me too much

2. Do you have any nervous habits when you play Go?
Not during play, but usually before a tournament game I have to go to the toilet 3-5 times.

3. Do you think there needs to be another Hikaru no Go to spur more interest in the game? Why or why not?
No, manga/anime like Hikaru no Go used to be fashionable in the past. To spur interest in the game of go we need something new.

4. How much time do you allocate to Go?
About 10-60 seconds a day for playing a move in a game on the new OGS with one of my japanese FB friends. If time on L19 is counted, then maybe one hour a day (filling time gaps at work)

5. What is your opinion on low level amateurs wanting declaring their desire to become a Pro?
I am not that type of guy who wants to destroy their dreams. These dreams will be destroyed early enough anyway.

6. Have you ever managed to convince one of your friends to play Go?
If my own kids count, then yes, however since I have gone on hiatus, they have gone, too.

7. When is your favorite time to play Go? Morning, noon, or evening?
In the morning. In the evening I am usually 2-3 stones weaker.

8. Would you play a video game that simulated the life of a Go player from amateur to pro?
No, because generall I don't play video games

9. If you had a million dollars, how would you use that money to benefit the Go world? (Assuming it has to be Go related)
a few ideas:
- hire a pro for regular teaching at tournament events
- hire a pro for a go school for promising kids and teens
- produce go related commercials and broadcast them in mainstream TV
- produce cheap go sets (including a basic booklet with rules and basic strategy) for schools

10. How would you react if you were the one that discovered Sai? (Hikaru no Go related)
I would ask him to teach my kids

11. If you have one, who is your favorite reoccurring opponent?
In the past I had a few reoccuring opponents at tournament events that I liked to play with

12. Assuming that the US adopted the title system that Asian systems have, what would you like the titles to be called? (For the professional players. I admit I might be a bit behind here and I don't really know if something exists. So, I apologize if that is the case.)
I would leave that to US players

Water



In face-to-face games I sometimes stop breathing. Does that count?



Yes, assuming you mean something like HnG to bring in the kids. We seriously need to grow the base in the West. HnG truly helped, but that wave has passed.



0.5-1 hours daily doing miscellaneous crap, plus 3-4 games a week, plus a one hour lesson most weeks.



Whatever floats your boat.



I guess I don't proselytize enough.



No preference.



No.



I like several of the ideas already listed. Maybe sponsor somebody motivated and creative to create the next Hikaru. Maybe pay a PR firm to get go product placements in popular tv shows and movies.



I'd get petulant and refuse to let him play, unless I happened to be playing the Meijin. Oh wait, that's what Hikaru did.



None.


I miss these, so would choose them:
Adams, Norris, Patrick, Smythe. (Betcha <10% of you understand this without the help of Google.)

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- Brady
Want to see videos of low-dan mistakes and what to learn from them? Brady's Blunders

Chocolate milk or beer.



Not that I am aware of?



Wouldn't hurt, but wouldn't help a huge amount.



Varies drastically. Usually at least a few hours a week.



I understand that this goal is unattainable for most/all but that this declaration will happen anyway. That's fine. If the declaration is accompanied by a study plan or obvious hard work, I will encourage it. If not, I mostly ignore them until I see a reason not to.



Not past ddk.



After dark or at Club.



Sure. I imported one of the GBA Hikaru games despite not knowing the language.



As someone mentioned, I would pay for translation and digitization of go books for distribution via ebook formats.



I'd beat often at go club.



A guy named Jimmy at go club, though he seems to have stagnated. Beyond him, I love playing the guy who taught me the game, but he rarely plays anymore.



Red Bull Grand master, etc. Sponsors would be a huge boon to the success of the game as an American institution.

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Someday I want to be strong enough to earn KGS[-].

Bring it. haha

By the way - is there any purpose to these questions?
Or just idle curiosity and the pressing need to start a thread?

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- Bantari
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WARNING: This post might contain Opinions!!

The most interesting part of this thread is to see just how little people understand about the value of $1,000,000. If you live in New York City then that amount of money would be needed to just live there for ten years. No one would be able to afford the money to spare to do many of the things which have been suggested. It would take at least ten times that amount to be able to sponsor many of them.

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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).

I agree with the idea that a million dollars is not sufficient to make much impact in some contexts, but I ignored this detail in answering the question.

In general, when someone asks, "What would you do if you had a million dollars to spend on <something>?", I simply presume that they really intend to ask, "What would you do if you had a significant amount of money to spend on <something>?". As time goes on, a million dollars becomes less and less significant, but to dwell on this seems to miss the intention of the question. YMMV.

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be immersed

1. Do you eat or drink while you play Go? If so, what are your favorites?

If I'm particularly hungry or thirsty, I'll eat or drink something, but I don't have a habit of it one way or the other.

2. Do you have any nervous habits when you play Go?

Behind a computer? Not really. In person, I tend to tap my leg at faster rate than usual.

3. Do you think there needs to be another Hikaru no Go to spur more interest in the game? Why or why not?

Not really, Hikaru no Go didn't really have a lasting impact in Japan, so I can't imagine that a sequel or another version of it would have long-term impact either. Go is still viewed as something that old people do and is difficult to get into, so unless an anime/manga can affect that perception I don't think it'll do much good.

As far as outside of Japan, I suppose it the manga gets some Westerners interested in Go, but I think there are probably better ways to try and spread go.

4. How much time do you allocate to Go?

None, I play Go when I feel like it. Could be 3 or 4 games in a day or a week between playing.

5. What is your opinion on low level amateurs wanting declaring their desire to become a Pro?

If it was actually followed with hard-work and studying, I'd say more power to them. But if they are expecting to magically gifted with innate Go skills then I kind of ignore. They probably won't keep up with go anyways unless they are able to change their attitude.

6. Have you ever managed to convince one of your friends to play Go?

I've managed to get a few people I know to play a handicapped game with me, but they generally aren't interested in learning any more.

7. When is your favorite time to play Go? Morning, noon, or evening?

Night > Afternoon > Morning

8. Would you play a video game that simulated the life of a Go player from amateur to pro?

That would be entirely dependent on the quality of that video game. But probably not.

9. If you had a million dollars, how would you use that money to benefit the Go world? (Assuming it has to be Go related)

Open up a small bar/cafe/restaurant that also doubled as (or at least reserved space for) a go club. It probably wouldn't benefit the Go world all that much but at least I'd be involved in a business that I am interested in and could help potentially develop a local go community where ever I was.


10. How would you react if you were the one that discovered Sai? (Hikaru no Go related)

Seek professional therapy?

11. If you have one, who is your favorite reoccurring opponent?

Don't have one

12. Assuming that the US adopted the title system that Asian systems have, what would you like the titles to be called? (For the professional players. I admit I might be a bit behind here and I don't really know if something exists. So, I apologize if that is the case.)

I don't really care, but preferable something in English