I agree wholeheartedly, but I would add a caution. The engine assumes perfect play by your opponent, so a clever tactic might be weak, as judged by the engine. But if you are playing a lowly rated player of your same level, that clever tactic might have been the appropriate move against the human you are facing, who won’t refute perfectly your every move. Blunder-checking is perhaps the best use of the engine for a novice player. Comparing your okay move, if not a blunder, with the top engine move, might be misleading.
I always analyze with the engine as a shortcut. Is like having an assistant while analyzing. My process when arrive home, the first thing I always do is get the scoresheet and annotate. My thoughts are fresh since I just was playing 1 hour ago. Then I look for crucial moments and compare my thoughts with the SF outcome. I have enough knowledge to understand the difference of the playable lines outcome from the engine and what are just silicon lines unplayable at my level. But for a 1000 USCF or FIDE player my best advice is to do tactics and stop dropping pieces. And yes, why not, go to the engine to spot quickly where you blundered and which moves were playable instead. A more serious analysis will come when you improve and stop gifting material or getting checkmated in the back rank.
I agree wholeheartedly, but I would add a caution. The engine assumes perfect play by your opponent, so a clever tactic might be weak, as judged by the engine. But if you are playing a lowly rated player of your same level, that clever tactic might have been the appropriate move against the human you are facing, who won’t refute perfectly your every move. Blunder-checking is perhaps the best use of the engine for a novice player. Comparing your okay move, if not a blunder, with the top engine move, might be misleading.
I always analyze with the engine as a shortcut. Is like having an assistant while analyzing. My process when arrive home, the first thing I always do is get the scoresheet and annotate. My thoughts are fresh since I just was playing 1 hour ago. Then I look for crucial moments and compare my thoughts with the SF outcome. I have enough knowledge to understand the difference of the playable lines outcome from the engine and what are just silicon lines unplayable at my level. But for a 1000 USCF or FIDE player my best advice is to do tactics and stop dropping pieces. And yes, why not, go to the engine to spot quickly where you blundered and which moves were playable instead. A more serious analysis will come when you improve and stop gifting material or getting checkmated in the back rank.