[sahilsharma94]

I am a student of class XI studying in delhi , india. I have been introduced to chemical bonding this year itself. the problem i face is that i dont know how , where, in what order to apply the  factors when judging things like(type of questions) :
1) stability of bond
2) stability of compound
3) bond strength
4) bond angle
5) possibility of formation of compound
5) boiling point of compounds
6) formation of dimers


the factors which we , here in india consider in tackling the aforesaid problems are :
1) judging the hybridization of the compound
2) seeing the steric factor near the central atom
3) resonance
4) pi back-bonding
5) 3c 2e bonding
6) dimerization
7) presence of vacant orbitals
electronegativity of elements

the problems i face are :
1) hybridization the theory , where is it applicable?.. every time i practice this theory , a new compound springs up which is better explained by considering other theories , not hybridization
2) when considering problems relating to bond angles  , whether to consider steric factor , resonance , pi back-bonding leading to delocalization of electrons , VSEPR(lone pair lone pair repulsion etc) , repulsion of lone pairs of other atoms( like fluorine) , while solving the problem?. If all factors are be considered , which are to given more weightage while taking out final answer ?   
3) today in a test , a question came asking us to tell which out of H2O and HF has a higher boiling point ? i though that as the fluorine in HF does very affective hydrogen bonding with other HF , answer shud be HF as it we be difficult to boil( break the hydrogen bonds) in HF. the actual answer used trival facts like HF exists as (HF)_6 in gaseous state . my question is , does chemistry reduce , hence to a finite number of mug up's ? do i need to have knowledge more than logic to solve chemistry questions> is so , can someone please  suggest a book which , systematically explains chemical bonding and atomic structure ?


an example of the question in which i had to predict bond angles :
question: arrange the bond angles in decreasing order:
a) HF_3
b) HCl_3
c) HOCl_2
d) H_2

I would like to thank , in advance people who come forward to help me

[uvcyclotron]

the factors which we , here in india consider in tackling the aforesaid problems are :

hey
first things first, you don't need to mention such things as where you are from in your posts, as the science and theories involved in chemistry are the same the world over.

next, the problems you are having is common for a novice in such field, you have just started and in time with practice, you will learn. There are no fixed rules or priority order for determining the solution the the doubts you have, keep a keen eye out on as many such examples and questions you can grab, and you will make out the pattern slowly.

I'll give out a few pointers tho:
for stability of bond/ bond strength, scan through the factors you have already mentioned, mostly electro negativity difference, back bonding and resonance do the trick.
for stability of compound/ possibility of formation, try observing the hybridization of central atom, steric factors etc. Molecular orbital theory is of use too, but I don't think you have covered that yet.
for boiling pt, observe strength and scope (the number of H-bonds possible) of H-bonds..

bond angle is a bit tricky, as it involves a lot of factors but mostly start with hybridization then proceed to check back bonding, resonance and steric factors.

an example of the question in which i had to predict bond angles :
question: arrange the bond angles in decreasing order:
a) HF_3
b) HCl_3
c) HOCl_2
d) H_2

I could be of more help, if you would explain what HF_3, HOCL_2 means? does H_2 mean H₂?

[Borek]

I could be of more help, if you would explain what HF_3, HOCL_2 means? does H_2 mean H₂?

SO_4^{2-} = SO₄^2-, see any LaTeX tutorial.

Just remember use of this notation often is not intended to produce correctly formatted result, as for that you need to tell rendering agent (in this case forum software) that the string has to be interpreted as LaTeX. That requires additional tags, but can be done:

$$ SO_4^{2-} /$$

(see this thread).