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Bridge Software Testing

Please contact the club secretary if you would like your software reviewed. Contact details on home page.

Bridge Software

Please note that bridge playing software is generally very useful to learn new conventions and to practise declarer play. It is less useful in practising defensive skills as although the software is always excellent in knowing which cards have been played, it is usually inadequate in deciding the strategy of play. If possible, and you are an experienced player, do try to test any software you plan to purchase by setting up a long suit in dummy to which there are no outside entries. This will test whether the software can make an elementary ducking play to establish a long suit. Many programs will leave winners high and dry by failing to duck. The reports are of software that has been tried over the past few years and prospective purchasers should try several programs to see which suit them.

Bridge Baron 17. This program has been updated with conventions such as Namyats, Puppet Stayman and Lead-Directing Doubles. Of interest to UK bridge players is the inclusion of what is claimed to be Basic, Intermediate and Advanced Standard English Acol. You can make your own convention card with so many different alternatives that it could make your head spin. The program is very user-friendly and is especially useful when practising new conventions.

Bridge Baron 18. This program has been updated with the ability of the user to curtail the computer's thinking time by selecting "Play Now" and "Bid Now". Twelve new bidding conventions have been added since Bridge Baron 17. The new program is still as user-friendly as the previous versions.

Bridge Masterclass II with Omar Sharif (Version 1:10). This program does not appear to give a full screen display like the other programs. It plays rubber bridge only and the cards are on the small side for those of us whose vision is not perfect.

Blue Chip Bridge has a demo version available free. The full version has the advantage of having the Standard English version of Acol. The demo version is rubber bridge only.

Q Plus Bridge version 5 is the Acol specialist program and gives you the option of allowing the computer to cheat in order to get a good game. You can very nearly set up the bidding system to meet your requirements exactly. The play could be a lot more user-friendly and it has the annoying requirement of asking you to enter a word from the manual in order to start playing every few weeks or so. You can put your own deals into the program and print them out. Reports of version 7 have been good.

Ginsberg Intelligent Bridge version 3.4.2 has been praised by many members of the Taverners club. It gives a wide choice of of bidding systems and uses artificial intelligence software to enable it to play reasonably well. It does not easily enable you to compare your play to that of the computer as in other games. One particularly interesting feature is the ability to compare your results with those of internationally famous bridge players in some major competitions. For those with poor eyesight it has the facility to specify high visibility card fronts.

Convention Cards

Whether it is Basic Acol, Benjamin, Reverse Benjamin or Precision club with a 2-diamond multi, there is a convention card for you to modify to suit your needs. Shopping Mall

Focus article - Mississippi Heart Hand

To see the full "Mississippi Heart Hand" Click on. Mississippi

Focus article - Kansas Murder Hand

To see the full "Kansas Murder Hand" Click on. Kansas

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