It is not difficult to understand why The London System is such a popular chess opening with club players all over the world. Against virtually every Black defence after 1.d4 it offers White an easy-to-learn and reliable set of lines with interesting choices between strategic or more aggressive approaches, while avoiding tons of opening theory. Lately an increasing number of Grandmasters such as Alexander Grischuk, Gata Kamsky, Baadur Jobava, Richard Rapport and even World Champion Magnus Carlsen have played The London System. In this light it is surprising that so little has been published about this fascinating universal weapon. GM Alfonso Romero and FM Oscar de Prado have now filled this gap. In The Agile London System they present both historical material and recent top-level examples to provide a comprehensive overview. The authors explain the typical plans and tactics using illustrative games with clear verbal explanations, and provide lots of tactical and strategic exercises. They reveal the secrets behind sharp ideas such as the Barry Attack and the Jobava Attack and have added an exciting chapter on the especially aggressive Pereyra Attack, developed by the Argentinean master Manuel Pereyra Puebla.

Set in the fictitious world of Westeros, the hit television series Game of Thrones chronicles the bitter and violent struggle between the realm’s noble dynasties for control of the Seven Kingdoms. But this beloved fantasy drama has just as much to say about the successful strategies and real-life warfare waged in our own time and place. Winning Westeros brings together more than thirty of today’s top military and strategic experts, including generals and admirals, policy advisors, counterinsurgency tacticians, science fiction and fantasy writers, and ground?level military officers, to explain the strategy and art of war by way of the Game of Thrones saga. Each chapter of Winning Westeros provides a relatable, outside?the?box way to simplify and clarify the complexities of modern military conflict. A chapter on the doomed butcher’s boy whom Arya Stark befriends by World War Z author Max Brooks poignantly reminds us of the cruel fate that civilians face during times of war. Another chapter on Jaqen H’ghar and the faceless men of Bravos explores the pivotal roles that stealth and intelligence play in battle. Whether considering the diplomatic prowess of Tyrion Lannister, the defiant leadership style of Daenerys Targaryen, the Battle of the Bastards and the importance of reserves, Brienne of Tarth and the increased role of women in combat, or dragons as weapons of mass destruction, Winning Westeros gives fans of Game of Thrones and aspiring military minds alike an inspiring and entertaining means of understanding the many facets of modern warfare. It is a book as captivating and enthralling as Game of Thrones itself.

Discusses America's involvement in Iraq, including the risks, triumphs, and repercussions, and offers alternatives to future dealings with Iraq and the War on Terrorism.

The Modern defence is one of the most controversial ways for the Black to play the opening. This book provides all the information that the practical player needs to play the Modern. The book covers each of the White's main responses, with complete illustrative games used to explain the key ideas from both sides of the chess board.

How and when do military innovations take place? Do they proceed differently during times of peace and times of war? In Winning the Next War, Stephen Peter Rosen argues that armies and navies are not forever doomed to "fight the last war." Rather, they are able to respond to shifts in the international strategic situation. He also discusses the changing relationship between the civilian innovator and the military bureaucrat. In peacetime, Rosen finds, innovation has been the product of analysis and the politics of military promotion, in a process that has slowly but successfully built military capabilities critical to American military success. In wartime, by contrast, innovation has been constrained by the fog of war and the urgency of combat needs. Rosen draws his principal evidence from U.S. military policy between 1905 and 1960, though he also discusses the British army's experience with the battle tank during World War I.

Many organizations are facing the uphill battle of modernizing their legacy IT infrastructure. Most have evolved over the years by taking lessons from traditional or legacy manufacturing: creating a production process that puts the emphasis on the process instead of the people performing the tasks, allowing the organization to treat people like resources to try to achieve high-quality outcomes. But those practices and ideas are failing modern IT, where collaboration and creativeness are required to achieve high-performing, high-quality success. Mirco Hering, a thought leader in managing IT within legacy organizations, lays out a roadmap to success for IT managers, showing them how to create the right ecosystem, how to empower people to bring their best to work every day, and how to put the right technology in the driver's seat to propel their organization to success. But just having the right methods and tools will not magically transform an organization; the cultural change that is the hardest is also the most impactful. Using principles from Agile, Lean, and DevOps as well as first-hand examples from the enterprise world, Hering addresses the different challenges that legacy organizations face as they transform into modern IT departments.

'This romantic opening is a real rarity at top-level chess. Probably the greatest expert on this line right now is England's Grandmaster Joe Gallagher.' - Nigel Short in The Daily Telegraph The King's Gambit has always been a great favourite of tactical players. However, since its heyday in the nineteenth century, it appeared only sporadically in Grandmaster chess. Recently, this has begun to change, and the King's Gambit has once again become a force to be reckoned with. A whole host of new ideas have appeared, many of them introduced into international competition by the author himself and explained in this book.

Start every game with confidence! The two greatest challenges for beginning chess players are not only to survive the openings phase, but also to choose appropriate attack and defense formations in the process. Winning Chess Openings shows you how to do both. In Yasser Seirawan's entertaining, easy-to-follow style, you're shown formations that can be used with other White or Black pieces. Winning Chess Openings will help you develop a solid understanding of opening principles that you can apply to every game you play without having to memorise a dizzying array of tedious and lengthy opening lines. * Build a safe house for a King * Estimate losses of ten moves or fewer * Utilise the elements: time, force, space and pawn structure * Plan strategy based on time-tested opening principles * Employ a defense for Black against any White Opening * Apply an opening for White used by World Champions Winning Chess Openings will help readers develop a solid understanding of opening principles that can be applied to every game they play--without having to memorize a dizzying array of tedious and lengthy opening lines.

The London System is a perennial favourite of club players, as it is a very sound and solid system with a real practical sting. The authors of this new book seek to maximize this sting in two principal ways. Firstly, by explaining in detail the typical plans for White, they help readers to make the most of their chances, whether they are based on a kingside attack, queenside penetration, central play, or transition to a favourable endgame. Secondly, they advocate some subtle move-orders that limit Black's options, and give White possibilities to change the nature of the game and go straight for the kill if Black responds casually or inappropriately. These move-orders have been tested successfully by co-author Kovacevic at grandmaster level, and much of the analysis presented here is of totally new variations, and is previously unpublished. Covers all responses to 1 d4 against which White can use the London System.