[fred]

If you don't know what the Handviewer program is, I suggest you either read the other recent posts in this Forum or read the instructions:

Link to Handviewer documentation

The documentation will soon be updated to include instructions for how to create Handviewer presentations of "bridge movies" using the graphical editor that is part of the BBO web-client.

The latest version of Handviewer contains a double dummy solver (courtesy of GIB). The way this works should be more or less self-explanatory, especially for those of you who have used this feature in the BBO Windows client, but here are the details:

To invoke the double dummy solver, click the GIB button at the right of Handviewer's button bar. Depending on the complexity of the position in question, you may have to wait several seconds for the results to appear. While you are waiting the GIB button will remain disabled.

Once the results are available, the GIB button will become enabled again (clicking it while the double dummy results are displayed will cause the results to disappear). At the lower right of each card for the player whose turn it is to play, you will see a colored square with a symbol in it. Here is what these squares and symbols mean:

- If a given card has a green square, it means that the play of that card will result in the contract being made (on a double dummy basis). An equals sign in a green square means the contract will be made exactly. A number in a green square indicates the number of overtricks that will be made.

- If a given card has a red square, it means that the play of that card will result in the contract being defeated (on a double dummy basis). The number that appears within a red square indicates the number of undertricks that will result from the play of the card in question.

Note that the information conveyed by the squares and symbols is always from the point of view of the declarer (even if it is a defender's turn to play).

Perhaps the easiest way to give this a try is through myhands (where you can access all deals that were played recently on BBO):

Link to myhands

Once you get a list of results for a given BBO member (it doesn't have to be you), click one of the "Movie" links in the list to invoke Handviewer to view the deal in question.

Have fun! If you have any questions or comments, please let me know either by e-mail (fred@bridgebase.com) or by making a Forums post. Sorry in advance if you make such a post and I miss it.

Fred Gitelman
Bridge Base Inc.
www.bridgebase.com