I've been playing Chess a little over a year now, with enough intensity to seriously aggravate my wife. I'm at a very nice stage of learning, where I'm beginning to be able to 'see' the board in a strategic way, rather than simply hoping to find a lucky tactical combination. Currently playing a lot of blitz to improve my openings and rapid pattern recognition - I find blitz a great way for beginners to learn by trial and error, particularly coupled with post-game analysis.