Vugraph (or Viewgraph) is a method of displaying the bidding and play of bridge hands on a screen for viewing by an audience.[1] The basis of the current computer-generated display was originally developed by Fred Gitelman for the American Contract Bridge League in 1991 under a grant from the estate of Peter Pender, a champion player. Then known as PenderGraph, the software program was first used at the 1991 Summer North American Bridge Championships at Las Vegas. The program was substantially revised in 1993 to work under the Microsoft Windows operating system.[1] Archived Vugraph data can be found from various databases and the most complete collection of bridge data is the Vugraph Project.
History
The term and practice date back at least to 1959, when its use was reported in The New York Times:
The final match of the masters' team contest in the national bridge here was played for an audience, which saw the hands projected on the screen by a device called the Vu-Graph and heard the bids and saw the plays as they were made.[2]
— Albert Morehead, The New York Times, August 6, 1959, p. 24
See also
- Bridge-O-Rama
References
- ^ a b Francis, Henry G.; Truscott, Alan F.; Francis, eds. (2001). The Official Encyclopedia of Bridge (6th ed.). Memphis, TN: American Contract Bridge League. p. 567. ISBN 0-943855-44-6. OCLC 49606900.
- ^ Morehead, Albert H. (August 6, 1959). "Contract Bridge; Decision to Sacrifice or Not Calls for Careful Thinking in Tournaments". The New York Times. p. 24.