Here are a few types of clues you should know. They are often interpreted as a finesse, while they do have another more basic purpose.

The best way to practice and get familiar with these basics is to play many games where finesses are forbidden. After this, you will be shielded for finesses.

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Finesse is an awesome thing. When I heard about finesse, I thought it was genious. The logical reasoning behind it is brilliant. However, I have never seen a trick cause so many strikes (wrongly played card).

This, in my opinion, is due to a vast majority of players having been taught finesse too soon, before they even mastered the game basics. Finesse is a very advanced move. I could never get tired of repeating it. My vision of finesse is that it should be assumed only if there is no other possible meaning for the clue and this requires to master all the possible meanings for clues, i.e. knowing all the less advanced types of clues (see "Tricky clue types you should know").

How many times have I seen a basic move being wrongly interpreted as finesse? This is what I call over-assuming.

Example: B3 and R4 are in play. Player C has two clued 5s in hand (B5 and R5). Since player B has a safe discard, player A clues Blue to player C on only B5, thus telling him to play his other, playable 5. In that game, player B assumed a finesse and played his newest card, thinking it was B4. Strike.

In many other games I have watched on BGA, finesses were used with basic moves the players may not have known were basics.

When I learnt about finesse, I was told why it is logical: A clues C so that C thinks he has to play the card. He will play it on his turn. Player B sees this and, with much sweat and stress, sees C can't play the card and eventually smartly figures out he has to play a card to fill the gap if he doesn't want a disaster to occur. And the most likely, logical slot for this gap filler is newest.

In most games I watch, this gap-filling disaster-preventing pressure is gone. Finesse is now just a move like any other, used in situations where the clued player knows the card can't be played (e.g. a 3 when no 2s are in play). The problem is that playing this way, you have to go without so many helpful moves and strategies. The saddest case is when reverse finesse takes priority over the most basic clue, the direct play clue.

Here is what I mean when I say...

Convention: a non-logical trick that is used by Hanabi players to achieve better scores. Therefore, it is supposed that players have agreed upon such a trick, making it a convention, instead of just letting it happen.

Example 1: if you clue a 5 as colour to someone, it means someone else has to play their chop card.
Example 2: if you receive a clue that includes more than one card, play the newest one.

Example 2 may shock you, because this would be a trick you use a lot. This trick, which I call "leftism", does have a logical origin. However, it turns out to be logical only in some situations, while you may be using them in most such situations. The situations where playing the newest is logical is when a card has been awaited for some time and shows up in a player's hand and that player is clued about this card and other non-chop cards. Then he can reflect - "hmmm... they had opportunities to clue me earlier, but they didn't, they chose to do it now. Eureka! They didn't clue because I didn't have the right card, now I do! I'll play my newest then".
Does this thinking process really apply to all the cases where you play newest?

Logic: any trick that is not a convention and could be figured out by a (smart) beginner when you 'inflict' it to them is logical. Logic does take a lot more effort to think and analyse than conventions, but I find it a lot more rewarding.

Example: early game, only R1 is in play; you already know these two cards are red; now I tell you one of the two reds is a 5. You figure out it means the other red card is playable, otherwise I wouldn't be wasting a clue so stupidly (you weren't going to play any reds blindly).

Basics: a set of many, many tricks that are required to master before playing with finesse. Although many players are forced to learn finesse from their very first games on BGA, finesse is a very advanced move. The best way to discover the basics is by forbidding finesse during your games.

Hard as it may hurt their pride, few 'experts' and 'masters' know the basics.

Right / left: on Boardgamearena, cards you draw are placed far left and you should discard to your right. Therefore, left means "towards the newest slot" and right means "towards the chop".