[papsonline]

Hello all,
under the heading of general discussion about playing live bridge, I 'd like to share a few thoughts and ask for your feedback. Bridge used to be a hobby of mine and as I'd like to get back into it again I thought BBO might be be the place to do it.

I began by spending some time watching games in the Relaxed Room, where I guess I should start, and I was impressed at the standard of play. I consider myself well below average and I expected to find only novices and beginners playing, but I found most players seemed to have a good grasp of the game.
Why would intermediate players, for example, be in the relaxed room. What is it about the main room that they feel they need to escape from? :-)

What I found strange, and the reason for this topic, is that at the end of each game, when I expected at least a little post-mortem banter, I found the next game already under way even before I could absorb the score. No chat - just play, play, play. I'm all for more play and less chat, but there seemed to be almost no communication at all - I missed the meeting of minds.

So is that due to the multilingual nature of BBO - the only common language is the game itself? I find it difficult to believe that no-one wants to comment, if only for a minute, on the successes and failures of the game just played. It all seemed a little clinical. So is what I've experienced typical, and if it is, why?

Geoff

[helene_t]

Some of the clubs are more social. If you play Acol, you'll probably like the Acol club.

[Robert]

Hi everyone

I played a fair amount of bridge on another site and my partner and I did go over the hands afterwards. We closed the table and 'picked' apart the hands. I sometimes generated a few dozen or a couple of hundred example hands 'if' some idea seemed interesting.

We normally spent about the same amount of time going over the hands and exchanging ideas about bidding as the time involved in play.

Regards,
Robert

[pclayton]

Quote

Hello all, under the heading of general discussion about playing live bridge, I 'd like to share a few thoughts and ask for your feedback. Bridge used to be a hobby of mine and as I'd like to get back into it again I thought BBO might be be the place to do it.

Welcome back to the game and its great you came across BBO. Would you mind mentioning how you discovered it? I'm always curious how people discover BBO.

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I began by spending some time watching games in the Relaxed Room, where I guess I should start, and I was impressed at the standard of play. I consider myself well below average and I expected to find only novices and beginners playing, but I found most players seemed to have a good grasp of the game.

Look at the rule of the site, but I think you'll find that the Relaxed Club is focused on a less competitive environment. I'm not sure if the level of play varies. There are clubs specifically for newer players of course too.

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What I found strange, and the reason for this topic, is that at the end of each game, when I expected at least a little post-mortem banter, I found the next game already under way even before I could absorb the score. No chat - just play, play, play. I'm all for more play and less chat, but there seemed to be almost no communication at all - I missed the meeting of minds.

Most people just play, and don't ruminate about the hands afterward. If there is an interesting point, we'll talk about it, but typically not. Sometimes with a serious partner I will open up a chat room, (sometimes make it invisible) and go over the hands in depth. I believe Shep will have Q and A sessions, and I've seen Richie Reisig open up a room after the BBO Junior tourney (open to everyone) and discuss the boards played.

Look for some of the Forums regulars on line. Most of us are pretty approachable, and if you ever want to discuss hands while we play them, we are happy to talk.

[Mike_P]

Geoff,

Interesting observations, I'm a little surprised I haven't seen more comments along these lines from other online newcomers.

I think it's the nature of the beast. I think an unfortunate characteristic of all the online sites is that, since the automation (an infernal kind of deus ex machina) takes care of all the collecting of cards and shuffling and dealing, etc., there is no downtime, no time to relax or chat. It's like drinking out of a fire hydrant -- the instant the last card is played, the new hand comes down and, if it's your bid, you can almost hear the fingers drumming in the background to get on with it. And yes, it's terribly efficient, but it can be terribly sterile. I find it pretty off-putting, but don't know a good solution.

-- Mike

[boris3161]

I think whether or not comments are made after a hand is played depends on the nature of the partnerships involved. With a regular partner, a comment can be given and taken in the right spirit. With a pick-up partner, there is no chance to assess how any negative comment will be taken if you want the game to continue.

Also, I have found many experts are very good at giving hints to me, a mere intermediate. Advanced or other Intermediate players sometimes find it hard to make constructive suggestions and any comments come over as overly critical.

On the whole, it is probably safer to get on with the next hand.....

[inquiry]

Another reason you see little chat after the hands is one of the rules of the bbo gaming site includes the caution that..

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The following are examples of bad manners. You will have trouble making friends if you:

   - Give unsolicited bridge lessons or criticize the bidding/play of other players
....
   - Chat excessively at a bridge table where people are trying to play seriously
   - Gloat when you get a good result or complain when you get a bad result

None of these warning/rules stop people from chatting about the "last hand" while playing, but it does curtail the discussions. I often see mistakes I and others make in bidding and play (or what I think was a mistake) and wonder if my partner/opponent noticed it too? However, I say nothing, unless I was specifically invited to comment -- that happens when someone ask me to act like a teacher or mentor... and even then, I tend to save the comments until after we finish playing.

In the relaxed room, table discussion is suppose to be me free. In the MAster Room, it should be less common.

[Tola18]

For comments, it is necessary not only you and your partner want to, but also opps want and allow.
Very often they arent fond in more than short remarks with partner.

Next point, if we play with people of different languages, it is seen as rude to talk with partner in our language. And not all partners can good english...

Third. It is not uncommon comments are either more or less rude, or ironic. So even friendly comments may sometimes be mistaken for ironic.
Thus, it is often better not to say anything.

But yes, the observation is correct. There are relatively few discussions on bridge.