Beginner's self-review

Game #1 has already revealed some points to improve on, things I can see that I did wrong. For the most part this felt like an orientation into playing on a 19x19 board, playing with time pressure, and playing via the KGS system. What were my impressions?

Time pressure - no real big revelations here. I guess it is part of the game a player has to get used to.

KGS - this is an online GO server where you can play against other GO players from around the world. Just like any other software it takes time to become a strong user. I was surprised by the pop up windows at the end of the game, and I didn't expect to have to count dead stones. Ultimately it is a pretty straight forward application. KGS has some nice features you can access from the web like a saved list of all the games you have played and a graph of your current strength. There are other GO servers out there - IGS, CyberORO, and others I have never visited (MSN Zone and Yahoo both have realtime play and the Dragon Go server has a turn based "play by email" system). If you want a place to play against other people, and you don't have a go school next door, getting comfortable with an online GO server is a must.
One little hint - when I decided I wanted to pursue GO fairly seriously, I picked a screenname and registered at every GO website I could to sort of "reserve" that name across the many sites in the online GO world. Not required, but I think it may make things easier.

The 19x19 board - this definitely plays differently than a small board. On a 9x9 board you use the first few moves to stake out territory, then you jump into a completely tactical situation. Life on the big board feels like it happens at 3 levels, and they are all relevant throughout most of the game.

1. The "10,000 foot" view - This is looking at the whole board like an airplane fly over. It is easy to get caught up in the close up "level 3" view of the game and worry about a fight for a corner or some tactical issues, but the goal of the game is to win more than half the board. Forgetting to step back and look at all 361 points as a whole could leave you "winning the battles but losing the war". I almost completely ignored this view in Game #1. I did just what I had done in 9x9 games - play a few moves around star points and then dive into tactical battles.
   
2. The middle view - (this view belongs between 1 & 3 but if you are new to GO, read this after reading 3). This is a little harder to explain, but it is about watching how the groups are interacting on the board. What are the local "weather patterns" that are happening in the game? Is your opponent getting a strong presence in the center as he surrounds the group you are building? Is that group you made on the side with only one eye going to be able to connect with other groups so it can live? Is your opponent using your moves against you? Are you being out maneuvered such that you may lose the game? Paying attention to this was almost a completely new need that I didn't come prepared to look at. I would battle, battle, battle and then suddenly see I was surrounded with no eyes. Here seems to be where the heart of GO may be. The winner will use the strength and force of both their own moves and the opponent's moves to adjust strategy and tactics so that they outmaneuver the opponent and win.
   
3. The tactical close up - This is watching for atari, counting liberties, doing life or death studies of groups (tsumego), trying to create eyes, and fighting against your opponent. This is what I did 99% of the time in Game #1. It is what is needed on a 9x9 board, but will not be enough to win the war on the big board.

A player seems to need to cycle between all these views every turn to make sure they keep the big picture in mind, know the specific details of the area they plan to play in and then make the move that best tilts the overall game in their favor.

One other thing - the 19x19 game feels like a marathon in comparison to a 9x9. If you have gotten used to the pace and length of a 9x9 game, you will likely run out of steam in the middle of the game. There are over 4 times as many points to play on in a 19x19! In my Game #1 I think I tried a few local skirmishes, got outplayed on them and had the wind knocked out of me. (All in under 81 moves a 9x9 would allow!) Then I turtled up and secured a corner (while giving the rest of the board away) and dabbled in a few other experiments before allowing my (probably very bored) opponent to escape. I can and will do better.

Last point today - don't play "hope GO". That is playing and hoping that your opponent doesn't see what you are trying to do. Unless you are doing something super tricky you have to assume your opponent sees and understands every move you make. You can't hope that they will be focused on the bottom while you are quietly surrounding a group at the top. None of my "hope he doesn't see that" strategies worked. I don't think you can become a good GO player relying on hopeful trickery. You have to win by honestly outplaying your opponent. Why does that sound scary? :)