Pips are for players who prefer athleticism and/or deception over technique and skill. You aren't skilled at TT if you're using pips because they do most of the work. For the inverted rubbers technique must be mastered meaning a required skill level must be in place to win matches.
Pips are for players who prefer athleticism, deception, technique and skill. Inverted are for players who prefer athleticism (e.g. just watch a match between two loopers - they also have to run and go through their knees), deception (e.g. on the serve), technique and skill (do I need to give examples of these?). Pips don't do most of the work for you: If I don't have a touch for the ball and I don't know what to do with the incoming ball, then the ball goes out.
I've personally played players that are 400-500 rated points above my skill level and won against them when I've switched to any type of pips. It's a clear advantage and in my opinion only stagnates the growth of the sport. Deceptive players and pips players tend to really lower the level of play in an area because they rarely allow players to learn technique properly. Typically a player will learn from experience rather than coaching and therefore strike up some fairly ugly techniques. Their elbows are out of place wrist takes up more action rather than the arm and shoulder and footwork becomes terrible as they would rather reach than position for the strongest stroke.
I don't know which level you are, but at my level, if an inverted player switches to pips and even plays just one level above him or against his own level, he'll lose more matches than if he was using inverted.
As for learning a proper technique: as a pip player you can also twiddle and use your inverted against newbies, but once they learn how to loop, they can learn how to play against your pips and their attacking abilities will go way up. They'll need to learn how to brush loop, driveloop and smash.
I practice on a regular basis against a good attacking player and his forehand isn't deformed in any way. In contrary, it has improved quite a bit during the past year.
I suggest that instead of complaining about the pips a player may use, help to start up leagues or events at tournaments where Pips are not allowed. Equality for all meaning if you want to learn how to beat pips you can take the time to do so, but if you want to just play inverted players there is also the option for that as well. If we were able to gain more players in events, I'm sure organizations would strike up more events across the globe.
So here's to some more TT Growth.
Ok, start a league where only inverted rubbers are allowed to be used, but don't complain when pips and anti users also organize their own leagues where inverted rubbers aren't welcome or are only welcome on one side. And be aware you'll hurt a lot of inverted players because they'll not learn how to beat a non-inverted player (because they don't encounter one), be aware you'll fuell the hatred towards non-inverted players that is already present in a part of inverted group and be aware you may bring the ITTF on ideas and as a consequence a lot of players may leave the sport just because of the ban of non-inverted material (e.g. older people, more defensive types,...).
@ Yosua - It does stagnate the sport. The number one complaint in the sport of table tennis from any type of player is that they wish people didn't rely on pips so much. The difference is that some have learned how to learn to beat pips and others just complain about them. I'm not saying that you shouldn't have the right to play with them. I simply am tired of hearing people who are too lazy to learn how to beat them complain about it at every club/tournament I attend. It shouldn't be banned entirely, there should just be an inverted only event that players can enter and worry more about skill rather than equipment. Then the majority of players have nothing to complain about other than some smaller items that you hear at tournys.
Well, non-inverted players are also tired of the complaints about the rubbers they use, as well as the abusive language, the gossip and the underestimation they are forced to experience. You can then go two ways: you can seperate these players even more apart, something an only inverted league will only encourage. Or you can bring those two groups together by making them understand each other.
@ Carl - Not reading spin has nothing to do with technique. It's just lack of experience. The problem with pips players is that they typically will use the pips for two reasons. They already have poor technique that they would rather not develop and they need the deception of twiddling or just the LP to help them win the points. When using Long Pips you have 3 options that come from a variety of different type of strokes. You can reverse, cancel, or even corkscrew the spin that your opponent gives you. And when you aren't able to read those spins or are unable to reach the ball because of the lack of spin/speed on the ball it's rather annoying.
Reading spin comes with experience, but those who complain about the non-inverted users don't read spin: that's for sure. Otherwise they would enjoy playing against a non-inverted user because of the variation and the longer rallies... Maybe they should gain more experience?
The group you mention exists: there are players who use pips as a shortcut, but this shortcut leads to nowhere. There is, however, another group of pip users who use pips to learn a defensive game (I'm not talking about pip blockers, because I don't have experience using this style) and need to learn how to play with the pips, what ball can be hit on which incoming ball, which ball you can expect from the return you just hit, what effect you send back,... You can do three things with long pips: add spin, cancel spin or reverse spin. The pip you're using doesn't do this at random, but you need touch, technique and skill to do this. It depends on what stroke you're using and how you touch the ball.
What I was pointing out here was that pips and anti allow an otherwise less skilled player to play others that are at a clear higher level. The sport becomes about winning rather than improving. I live in PA and we have one of the largest areas where LP and Anti are the common thing around here, but I have had so many players come in to learn about table tennis, but because they don't have the income to learn from a coach end up quitting because the pips and anti players refuse to play them so that they can learn how to play them. It's rather disturbing, but common place in the U.S.
At the lower levels this is unequivocally true, but at the medium and higher levels your first sentence doesn't hold. I agree you need to do something if non-inverted players refuse to train just because they just don't want to be defeated. I find that outrageous. I am always ready to train against other players and explain if they don't understand something: off course they also need to be willing to learn. Creating a just inverted league, however, is just the wrong answer to this for the reasons mentioned above.
Let me explain what I mean by skill. There's natural talent and there's skill (something learned through training). You can use the pips over and over again, but you will rarely ever raise your level considerably each time you practice. Because the LP reverses the spin or the SP produce dead balls you rely on deception and hope the other player will make a mistake. LP players rarely ever attack topspin or heavy underspin balls. They prefer to attack dead or weak topspin balls making it easier for them to come in and smash (i.e. Chen or Joo). That's all athleticism. Anyone can train to get to that level and if you want technique Joo has the best form as he's the best Defender in the World. But skill has nothing to do with it because he hasn't learned how to reverse the spin the Pips do that automatically for him. If you wanted to reverse the spin with inverted that would take skill because it requires a physical effort to produce the result. Samsonov very often does this from far back where he'll corkscrew the ball so that it produces a "reversed" spin. The Chinese did this in the past where they would loop the ball with side and top spin to corkscrew the ball so that when the opponent blocked or countered the ball it would "feel" like it was underspin.
Well, it is in this explanation I see you never used one pip before or not to the extend you need to really do something with it. You don't understand what pips do: you only repeat what other inverted or non-experienced non-inverted players say.
When you use pips for the first time, they drive you crazy. You don't understand what's going on. But with further training you understand what's going on and you'll learn how to hit the ball to create a certain effect. In comparison with inverted you also need to take the other guy's spin more in account because you cannot create as much spin as with inverted.
LP doesn't reverse automatically, especially with the current grippy pips.
What do you do with SP choppers if they only could create dead balls? They wouldn't last long. What does a SP player do when he's forced to return a ball below net height? Not returning a dead ball I assure you.
Did you ever see a match of Joo or Weixing? They attacks a lot of balls to their forehand with a forehand topspin. The reason why they don't attack a heavy underspin ball often with their inverted is because the return they are giving is easy for an attacker to attack and if attacked to their pips, the ball will fly out. The reason why they don't attack heavy underspin balls with their pips is because the returned ball is easy to attack for an attacker and they are again out of position. They occasionally attack heavy underspin balls, however, as an element of surprise. They attack heavy topspin balls: why wouldn't they?
They don't smash the ball, but loopdrive them. Only if the balls is smashable at a decent percentage, they'll smash the ball (but so will attackers).
All in all, I'm not bashing on pips or any deceptive rubbers I just simply want to end the constant complaining coming from players who prefer not to use them. Create more clubs and leagues where inverted only events exist and then we reduce the complaints of playing pips players.
I'm glad you don't want to bash non-inverted players, but you are perceived that way.
Not at all. I don't believe he's a bad player at all. He also played in the 38 mm ball era with speed glue. It is far different now than it was then. Remember I'm just going over the definition of skill. Liu Guo Liang is an amazing player. He's won many titles and done so with short pips with a traditional Chinese Penhold Grip. Do I think his technique compared to todays technique is the same? No. Do I think today's Chinese technique is faster and better than his technique? Yes. But let me ask do you know who developed these principles into today's coaching system in China? Liu Guo Liang. I'm sure if you asked him whether or not in his prime if he could beat his players he would be happy to say. Of course not, I've taught them everything I know and they're better because of it.
Pips help you hit balls you would otherwise need to learn how to hit through training. That's what I'm trying to say. Do you really think that Liu in his day would have won all of his majors with anything besides the pips? I personally don't think he would have won as many as he did without them. Do I think he's a terrible player with or without them no. I believe he's perfected his technique to the best that he could with his equipment, but I think it requires less skill than having perfect the same technique that Waldner used with inverted.
I'd just like to point out that just because you use pips you aren't a worse player. I just believe that you have less skill in the area that you use your pips. It's completely logical that if you use pips on your backhand you most likely have a poor backhand compared to your forehand. If you use short pips on both sides then you most certainly are not practicing how to loop heavy underspin you are practicing how to smash the different side and top spins because they are the best to attack with in a point.
Basically pips allow a player to minimize the amount of training required to attack certain shots. Rather than learn all of the different attacks for each kind of spin the shorten the training period to just learning which ones are attackable and which ones the pips will likely return for you. In a match I have to look for spin, length of shot, height of bounce, and speed. That requires me to move both forward and back as well as side to side. The pips will allow me to cut down on what I have to look for and also where I have to move because I will most likely control where the ball is going.
IMO this again illustrates to me how this whole pip debate can be reduced to a different world view. I think you view, among many others, that table tennis can only be played in one way: pure attacking. What you don't realize is that viewing table tennis as such depends on how you view the world. I can imagine you view your way of live, the one of the society you live in, as the only correct one because they always told you it was the correct way of life (I don't want to offend you, so correct me if I'm wrong). Compare the view you have on table tennis: they always told you that table tennis must be played in a certain way (i.e. attacking way), so you see that as the only good way of playing table tennis. But you see other ways of life and you allow them, but you see the way of life they've told you as superior to them. You see other ways of playing table tennis, you allow them, but you see the way the've told you how to play table tennis as superior to the other ways of playing table tennis.
Now, there are people who don't believe what they were told during their upbringing. They experience all the ways of life as equal, with all having advantages and disadvantages. They also believe these ways of life can learn from each other. They also tolerate other ways of life and estimate them as equal to their own. Compare this to the following table tennis players: there are people who don't believe the story of table tennis being a pure attacking sport because e.g. they feel more attracted to a defensive playing style. They experience all styles as equal, all having advantages and disadvantages. They also believe all these ways of playing table tennis can learn from each other. They also tolerate other ways of playing table tennis and estimate them as equal to their own.
I've been in both camps during my life: now guess what gave me the most logical explanation of the world and of table tennis?
I'm just 25 years old, but I've learned enough to know where discrimination leads to: nothing but misery. Just check your history books if you don't believe me.
When I read your posts I see a good chap who wants to do something about the things he sees going wrong, but he doesn't understand what he's going to do will make it worse.
Technique is how you how you hit the ball. A flat hit is a different technique than a loop. Skill is something that can be worked on and improved. To get better with any kind of rubber you need to keep developing your technique so that you have skill in using it. 
