Which is better, going for checkmate, or forcing immediate resignation? Let's say you have a position where you can win the opponent's queen in one move and you know he will resign; or you play a combination that is technically stronger since it forces mate, but it takes 8 moves, some of which are hard to see, so you do not think your opponent will resign on the spot.

Which is really better?
you play a combination that is technically stronger since it forces mate, but it takes 8 moves, some of which are hard to see


If they're hard to see, chances are that you've missed something as well. Therefore, take the queen. You might miss the opportunity to finish the game in a beautiful way, but you can always save that for the post-mortem analysis.

The only reason not to take it would be if you're low on time and are not sure you can finish off the game, even being a queen ahead. But I wonder how you would see the mate in 8 then :)