Suggestion to avoid wrong bids/cards played
#1
Posted 2025-September-09, 23:28
#2
Posted 2025-September-10, 02:00
I think the best method was the original choice of Realbridge (although ironically enough they gave in and changed it after complaints that it was not like BBO): click to select the card or call and then confirm by dragging it to the board and dropping (or simply clicking on the board).
#3
Posted 2025-September-10, 03:51
#4
Posted 2025-September-10, 03:54
pescetom, on 2025-September-10, 02:00, said:
Hmm, I played on RealBridge during the later Covid days and never saw a drag or drop option. I guess they had already changed??? I actually wrote to RealBridge asking them to add a drag and drop option, which should have just been a configuration option, but I don't recall a response. Options are good. No choice is limiting.
#5
Posted 2025-September-10, 06:40
johnu, on 2025-September-10, 03:54, said:
It was the choice in the very first version, but like some other rational innovations they had to backtrack under massive fire of "we want it more like BBO".
Another option I have suggested to BBO in the past is that (in pictures of cards mode) one clicks on a card to select it and the card is raised a little. Then one can click on the board to play the selected card, or click on the same card to deselect, or click on another card to select that instead, or click to left or right of the hand to select the adjacent card instead. I prefer hand diagrams, but for those who do not this would help with selecting the right card on a small screen.
#6
Posted 2025-September-10, 12:04
#7
Posted 2025-September-10, 19:11
pescetom, on 2025-September-10, 06:40, said:
There's nothing I like about the UI of the browser version of BBO. The downloadable windows version displayed dummy according to the laws of bridge (Suits displayed in 4 columns), you could rotate hands so that declarer was always at the bottom of the screen, and there were dozens of other user selectable options to control the look and feel. How or why BBO went back 20 years in their design remains a mystery. Maybe they didn't have the time or resources to do things properly when they first came out with a browser version, but in the almost 20 years since then they have devoted little time to making improvements and adding user options.
#8
Posted 2025-September-11, 08:45
johnu, on 2025-September-10, 19:11, said:
I (almost, see below) fully agree. My own list of defects would be very long indeed, but the ones that continue to irk me most are the confusion that ensues when a human is forced to play the contract declared by his robot partner, the fact that cards played by my partner are not centered when in hand diagram mode and the confusing way the tricks and points are reported at end of play. One small consolation is the list of things I did manage to get them to fix, such as being thrown out by a click on ones own profile and the freeze after an accepted claim.
There is one feature that I really like: the ability to write comments on the fly within the profile of other players. This is genial and also original as far as I know. Make that two with hand diagrams, although that is hardly unique.
#9
Posted 2025-September-12, 04:23
The only thing BBO should do is NOT to rearrange cards in between the bidding and the lead. I frequently already have my mouse hovering over the card I'm going to lead and have clicks on the mouse position after the site rearranged my cards.
#10
Posted 2025-September-12, 15:30
Huibertus, on 2025-September-12, 04:23, said:
Yes that really is gross.
I prefer hand diagrams which have no such problem (I guess they could have replicated it vertically, but they did not, perhaps because barmar uses hand diagrams).
The fact that in all these years and after all those complaints they have never addressed this simple issue speaks volumes... at the same level (although less damaging) as the yellow "Explain" bubble with it's devastating defects explained patiently by thread and thread again

#11
Posted 2025-September-12, 15:43
I don't resort my hand at the table and don't want BBO doing it for me.
"100% certain that many excellent players would disagree. This is far more about style/judgment than right vs. wrong." Fred
#12
Posted 2025-September-12, 21:27
I do like "trumps on the left, even in my hand", but I can absolutely understand "don't touch my cards" and would Nth the suggestion to have it as an option (or the default, frankly).