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6/10/00 edition of this review
© Copyright 2000, Jim Loy -
Copy & distribute this all you want
Note: These are programs that you can play against. The ACBL (http://www.acbl.org) lists services on the Internet which allow you to play other human beings over the Internet. Some of the programs here allow network/modem play. I have not tested these features. If you are interested in this, contact the developers for details.
PROGRAM FEATURES
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Definitions
Auction:
* hints Suggests a bid. yes/no.
* takeback Undo bid. yes/no.
conventions Significant optional conventions.
rebid Restart bidding. yes/no.
explain bids yes/no.
systems A list of bidding systems.
Abbreviations: SA = Standard American,
5CM = 5-card majors, 2/1 = 2/1 forcing,
K-S = Kaplan - Sheinwold.
aggressiveness yes/no. A program which is set on
aggressive bidding may open lighter
and maybe overbid. In programs with
many conventions, and no aggressiveness
setting, you can often set the
lightness of opening bids, overcalls,
etc.
talks Bids out loud. yes/no.
Note to blind players: No program will call out your cards verbally or call out the card
plays. Some bid out loud. Some of these do not call out your own bids. Some Windows programs
do not support 640x480 resolution, which is needed to make the cards look as large as possible.
Play:
* hints Suggest a play. yes/no.
* takeback Undo play. yes/no.
* see deal at end Show all four hands. yes/no
* play review Display the card play. yes/no
* rebid after play Rebid & replay the hand. yes/no
replay Replay the hand. yes/no
claim/concede yes/no. If a program has an autoplay (AP)
feature, I mention it, as that is a
useful alternative to claim/concede.
A claim is verified by the program,
unless described otherwise.
peeks (cheats) Peeks at the other three hands to help
determine a card play. yes/no.
signals Defensive signals. yes/no.
skill levels The number of skill levels.
General:
* hand-entered deal The user can enter a deal. yes/no.
* save/retrieve Save and retrieve a hand. yes/no.
* print deal yes/no
deal types No/some/vast. Several programs allow you
to specify the types of hands you
want to be dealt. This is a handy
teaching and practice tool.
DOS/Windows DOS/Win/CD. Almost all DOS programs
will run under Windows.
disk space (MB) Number of megabytes (roughly) on user's
hard disk.
human W/N/E? The user is allowed to play hands other
than South. yes/no.
closed room yes/no. Several programs rebid and replay
the hand, so that you can compare
your score. Some programs set up an
entire tournament, with several
opponents for you to compare your
score.
scoring methods rub.(rubber)/dup.(duplicate)/others.
modem/network yes/no. The program allows you to play,
over a modem or a local network,
with other people using the same
program. Contact the software
companies for details.
user manual yes/no.
help yes/no/minimal.
Mac version yes/no. I have acquired Bridge Baron,
Perfect Partner, Bridge Deluxe With Omar
Sharif, and Bridge 8.0.
price A few of the prices are estimates. Many
charge additional shipping and
handling (some do not). UKP =
United Kingdom Pounds. sw =
shareware, and the price is how
much it costs to register.
upgrades Some program have discount or free
upgrades to a more recent version.
"Free" download through their WWW pages.
Contact distributors about prices by mail.
demo "Yes" get free demo (often with very
limited features) from WWW pages. "sw" =
shareware (also under price) is
essentially a demo until registered.
Scores:
ease of use Nearly all programs bid and play fairly
easily. I criticize when other
features are difficult to use.
Good/OK/Difficult.
speed Slow/good.
graphics "Good" or some footnote.
* basic features #/10. Here I count how many of the ten
most important features (marked with
*, above), the program has.
skills For bidding and card play skills, see the
Skill Rankings of the individual programs.
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