Here's what I've learned over the years that I've fished:
First off, there's an old rhyme that goes like this.
Wind from the east, fish bite the least;
Wind from the west, the fish bite the best;
Wind from the north, few sailors set forth;
Wind from the south blows bait in their mouth.
Wind direction doesn't always predict fishing success, however fronts and weather systems associated with it are usually consistent with conditions that people have noticed catching fish vs. not catching fish. That said, I think the barometer is an important indicator. I was once told by someone who knew more about these things than me to get a goldfish and observe it. If it's active, go fishing. If it's sulking on the bottom, go golfing.
As for chop on the water, I think in a lot of cases it helps for certain species like walleye. If my feet are getting wet at the back of the boat, I'm most of the time catching fish.
The windy side of the lake is a better place to fish - or at least from my own experience. Wind and waves tend to stir up the bottom and food, and this brings out the bigger fish to feed. I remember once fishing in about three feet of very choppy water on a clear sunny afternoon and we had so many double headers it was nuts - three pounders and up. The smallies were feeding voraciously on these little worms being stirred up fro the bottom. We have other similar experiences. Fish are basically lazy creatures. They usually don't spend more energy on food than what they get from it. If it zips by in front of their nose, that sometimes works.
So much more to say on this....hahahaha
