Bug in Dealer

[pjack]

Hi,

 

Thanks BBO provides the website to help people do analysis.

 

https://www.bridgebase.com/tools/dealer/dealer.php

 

When I try to use "frequency" syntax in dealer, it will always return "Can't open temporary file".

 

Anyone know how to solve it?

 

Another url have the same dealer function but not available now.

http://dealergib1.bridgebase.com/tools/dealer/dealer.php

 

 

Thanks!

 

#

# Sample

#

produce 5

condition shape(north, any 4333 + any 4423) and hcp(north)>=13

action frequency (tricks(north,notrump),6,9)

 

 

[Cascade]

Hi,

 

Thanks BBO provides the website to help people do analysis.

 

https://www.bridgebase.com/tools/dealer/dealer.php

 

When I try to use "frequency" syntax in dealer, it will always return "Can't open temporary file".

 

Anyone know how to solve it?

 

Another url have the same dealer function but not available now.

http://dealergib1.bridgebase.com/tools/dealer/dealer.php

 

 

Thanks!

 

I think "frequency" works but "tricks" is not working. Possibly tricks is limited because it will use much more CPU time to calculate.

[nige1]

I think "frequency" works but "tricks" is not working. Possibly tricks is limited because it will use much more CPU time to calculate.

On his website, Thomas Andrews provides instructions on how to download and install Deal

 

It seems quite difficult so, please would BBO allow us to download the "GIB" installation of dealer; then we would be using our own CPU time.

 

 

 

 

[pescetom]

I think what is going on is that the real "working" dealer url listed below is only erratically available in the last few days.

 

Another url have the same dealer function but not available now.

http://dealergib1.bridgebase.com/tools/dealer/dealer.php

 

Please BBO give this some attention (and also make the working version the default, if possible).

[nige1]

I think what is going on is that the real "working" dealer url listed below is only erratically available in the last few days.Please BBO give this some attention (and also make the working version the default, if possible).

 

There are 2 versions:

• Dealer without Gib. This works OK but lacks the tricks function.
• Dealer with Gib. As Cascade, says, BBO seem to have blocked access to this, because it hogs CPU time.

[hrothgar]

Just google Hans Van Stavern Dealer and you can find a standalone executable

[sfi]

There are 2 versions:

• Dealer without GIB: this works OK but lacks the tricks function.[

Working URL.

[pescetom]

Working URL.

 

You provided the working URL, but of course this is for the non-working version of Dealer :(

 

Please BBO, re-enable the working version which is an important resource to the BBO community (lower the max number of hands generated or disable in peak hours, if this is really necessary).

[pescetom]

Just google Hans Van Stavern Dealer and you can find a standalone executable

 

I found this page by following the 2016 Bridgewinners discussion, but the Windows 10 exe of 20161012 does not work for me (it opens up a black screen and accepts pasted text, but nothing happens except that it closes if I give a nonsense command or 'deal').

 

I also found this other version: http://www.kolumbus.fi/sackab/kgb/all_data/dealerPC.zip

Oct. 12, 2016 ·which someone said "correctly invokes GIB", but it behaves the same way.

 

Anyone have any ideas? Maybe I just haven't understood the interface (used to the BBO 'deal' button).

[pilowsky]

Playbridge provides a GUI that generates hands.

This link from BBO seems to be working now - it's the same place that pescetom (and I) used in a recent post. 'www.bridgebase.com/tools/dealer/dealer.php

n AKJ.AQ9.AK63.AK6 e T53.J65.QJ87.QT5 s Q987.K874.T9.J82 w 642.T32.542.9743 n A5.AK6.AKQJ.AK76 e Q84.9732.943.Q94 s KT97.J85.65.T853 w J632.QT4.T872.J2 n AQ.KQJ7.AKT4.AKQ e KT65432.A3.J7.63 s 987.962.Q32.J975 w J.T854.9865.T842 n AK8.AQ65.AKJ5.AK e J42.KJ93..QJT984 s QT965.T87.Q4.765 w 73.42.T987632.32 n KQJT.AKQ.A5.AKQ9 e A86.T52.T96.T875 s 9743.763.K42.643 w 52.J984.QJ873.J2 

But there is a separate site http://www.playbridg...ating-software. - there is a picture of the dealer selecting the cards randomly on the home page - which explains why you have to hold your breath waiting for the deal.

 

That allows you to download an Exe called dealer4 when you click on the image at the bottom of the page.

The files are on Jane Marsden's Google Drive.

Here is the link to the library file

and to the .exe file

I haven't tried it.

 

To generate (up to 64) hands for practice, the GUI at playbridge.com is fine.

Here is the link to Henk's page

He provides a 'tutorial' here

And downloads here

 

Random.org provides a free RNG based on 'atmospheric noise'.

 

For a bit of fun, I made a dealer that works in Google sheets - it works but only generates a few random hands. - I don't know how random =randarray on google is.

[smerriman]

I found this page by following the 2016 Bridgewinners discussion, but the Windows 10 exe of 20161012 does not work for me (it opens up a black screen and accepts pasted text, but nothing happens except that it closes if I give a nonsense command or 'deal').

If you run it from a command prompt, type in your input, and then press Ctrl-Z and hit enter, it will work in terms of generating deals.

 

But the actual double dummy analysis requires you have to have a bridge.exe executable working on your computer (which is the GIB software).

 

An alternative to waiting to see if BBO will restore the working version (I would guess unlikely) is http://bcalc.w8.pl/ - this has a free command line double dummy solver. To run sims I normally generate deals with BBO's dealer, then pass the resulting hands to this to run locally. (Though this does mean I use a little script of my own to tally the results depending on what I'm looking for).

[pilowsky]

I just ran your code in the link I gave above.

It produced the following:

n AJ9.T94.AK6.KQT7 e T3.A8652.Q753.A2 s KQ875.J73.J942.4 w 642.KQ.T8.J98653 
n AKT2.QT7.A987.95 e 7.KJ8543.KJ4.KQ6 s Q53.A9.63.A87432 w J9864.62.QT52.JT 
n AK.KJ4.8764.KQ72 e Q963.A963.T5.963 s JT852.875.K93.54 w 74.QT2.AQJ2.AJT8 
n K654.A75.AK9.A95 e 732.2.QT62.J7632 s A8.QJT8643.74.T8 w QJT9.K9.J853.KQ4 
n K76.65.AKT3.AQ73 e 932.AK87432.4.54 s AT8.QJ.J9762.JT6 w QJ54.T9.Q85.K982 
Generated 139 hands
Produced 5 hands
Initial random seed 1621218079
Time needed    0.001 sec

[pescetom]

If you run it from a command prompt, type in your input, and then press Ctrl-Z and hit enter, it will work in terms of generating deals.

 

But the actual double dummy analysis requires you have to have a bridge.exe executable working on your computer (which is the GIB software).

 

An alternative to waiting to see if BBO will restore the working version (I would guess unlikely) is http://bcalc.w8.pl/ - this has a free command line double dummy solver. To run sims I normally generate deals with BBO's dealer, then pass the resulting hands to this to run locally. (Though this does mean I use a little script of my own to tally the results depending on what I'm looking for).

 

Thanks.

 

Your alternative sounds like more work than I would like, at least under Windows (could be time to install Linux and dig out old skills).

 

The dealergib1 URL is still not available, the last time it worked for me was 14th May. About the same time (but maybe earlier?) BBO re-enabled photos, which may be what prompted somebody to turn off "inessential" functions. Or maybe some new user exaggerated a bit (not many of us use this and my own CPU usage is trivial).

 

I think for now I will see if BBO reply here, and if not start a thread with a more meaningful title.

[diana_eva]

We're checking.

[sfi]

You provided the working URL, but of course this is for the non-working version of Dealer :(

I thought that might have been clear. However, this version does work well for many purposes so providing the correct link seems valuable.

[pescetom]

We're checking.

Thanks :)

[diana_eva]

This is the official dealer link: https://www.bridgeba...aler/dealer.php

 

We had a small server for this other, non-official link: https://dealergib1.b...aler/dealer.php

 

That machine was taken down while doing some recent cleanup and upgrades to our servers. Sorry, we'll consider making another URL at some point.

[pilowsky]

Thanks for that.

It is the same link that I provided above: "This link from BBO seems to be working now - it's the same place that pescetom (and I) used in a recent post. 'www.bridgebase.com/tools/dealer/dealer.php"

Unfortunately, the documentation associated with it is a little sparse.

When I ran the (very useful) code that pescetom provided, it worked fine, but I could not find the details about his instructions in the help file.

Is it possible to provide a more detailed list of possible (or a complete list, even better) functions?

Also, is it possible to generate a list of hands and then provide a list of makeable contracts from the DDE?

[pescetom]

This is the official dealer link: https://www.bridgeba...aler/dealer.php

 

We had a small server for this other, non-official link: https://dealergib1.b...aler/dealer.php

 

That machine was taken down while doing some recent cleanup and upgrades to our servers. Sorry, we'll consider making another URL at some point.

Maybe it would be possible to substitute the current official version with the non-official version, if it does everything the official version does as well as invoking GIB.

Anyway, thanks for any solution when you can.

[nige1]

This is the official dealer link: https://www.bridgeba...er/dealer.phpWe had a small server for this other, non-official link: https://dealergib1.b.../dealer.php That machine was taken down while doing some recent cleanup and upgrades to our servers. Sorry, we'll consider making another URL at some point.

A typical "upgrade"

Maybe it would be possible to substitute the current official version with the non-official version, if it does everything the official version does as well as invoking GIB. Anyway, thanks for any solution when you can.

PesceTom's suggeston makes obvious sense.

[ktk]

After almost two months, is it possible to re-enable the version which invoking GIB?

The "tricks" function is really helpful and hope it could be on-line again.

[nige1]

After almost two months, is it possible to re-enable the version which invoking GIB?The "tricks" function is really helpful and hope it could be on-line again.

The tricks function is a wonderful asset for simulations.

Unfortunately, dropping it made commercial sense because it hogs processor time.

The official reason for dropping it was amusing -- an accident in the course of a system upgrade :)

A typical "improvement" :)

 

 

[tonywuhk]

Look like thing is not going to change yet.

 

Tony

[pescetom]

The tricks function is a wonderful asset for simulations.

Unfortunately, dropping it made commercial sense because it hogs processor time.

The official reason for dropping it was amusing -- an accident in the course of a system upgrade :)

A typical "improvement" :)

I doubt it really cost much, the maximum length of run was already limited and could easily have been limited further if that was the problem.

Just a superficial decision and the usual inability/unwillingness to address "minor" problems, I suspect.

Still hoping they will fix this valuable part of the BBO customer ecosystem.

[smerriman]

Still hoping they will fix this valuable part of the BBO customer ecosystem.

In case you missed it from another thread.. given the better alternative there's really no need:

 

You really should learn to use Thomas Andrews' Deal. It's basically the same idea, but once you're used to it, you can do everything dealer can and much more. If the syntax is too complex, and you post a few examples of dealer scripts you use, I'm sure I or someone else can convert it to the TCL format, after which you just can copy and paste and adjust bits as you need.