[nekthen]

I use the Chrome browser and the new v3 software, but I cannot see the VOICE button on teaching tables or vugraph. I tried using Edge and I could see the button but I could not hear the speaker. Is there a set of trouble-shooting tips available or any ideas why I have this problem

[nekthen]

Interesting. I went to the vugraph from the link on Bridgebase.com site and got a working VOICE on England match. I do not get the button when I go to Bridgebase.com/v3 login and go to vugraph

[pescetom]

I'll try nekthen's tip. So far never seen a Voice button in vugraph using latest chrome and Win 10.

[nekthen]

This does not help for teaching tables and you cannot chat with commentator
but better than nothing

[msjennifer]

My computer is MacBook Pro 2018 and the voice button does exist in BBO and I do listen to the running comments.May be Windows 10 and/or android version miss the button.Thanx.

[dsLawsd]

Use Mozilla or Safari? Chrome no.

[pescetom]

Is (or rather should be) the voice button always present when a game is being shown, or only if voice commentary is actually available?

[barmar]

The Voice button is present when voice commentary is available (so you can listen), or if you are authorized to be a voice commentator (so you can speak).

In the early rounds of the World Championship there have been too many tables on Vugraph for them to offer commentary at most of the tables, and even fewer have voice commentary. I think commentary has mainly just been available at the Bermuda Bowl tables.

[EddyHaskel]

Voice commentary on BBO V3 has been working nearly perfectly here all week (USA rural midwest on a substandard DSL internet connection) using Firefox Quantum on Windows 7. I have not tried other browsers, operating systems or mobile devices yet.

As others have said, you can see the voice button at the bottom right of the display only when there are active voice commentators. Moreover, I have had no problems setting it up on teaching tables. Compared to the old Flash version, the audio is crystal clear -- almost too clear, as we can hear every Bic flick when Pelu lights up a cigarette and every puff on Walddk2's pipe, not to mention the occasional stomach gurgle or tea kettle whistling in the background from another room! Most of these sounds are not at all annoying, just amusing. One night I honestly thought I had left the tea kettle on the stove in my kitchen when what I actually heard came from somebody's kitchen in Scotland! Also, one night we started a little parlor game, trying to estimate how many times Peter lit up a smoke...click -- that's one.... click again -- that's two, etc. Hey, it was late at night during a string of predictable part-score boards and yes, sometimes I am too easily amused.

The audio breaks up badly whenever two commentators try to speak at once, but by day 2 of the round robins most commentators had figured that out and did not try to talk over each other. Rarely, there will be funky audio -- actual feedback or echoes, or the weird swooshing sound that audio pros call "flanging," This is almost always cured by turning off the voice feature, waiting a few moments, then turning it on again. This seems to solve problems both for listeners as well as commentators. It is imperative that the commentators use headsets with a decent microphone, or a standalone microphone plus earphones. It sounds pretty bad if using a built-in laptop microphone and laptop speakers.

There are improvements that can be made and I'm sure Roland and others have already suggested them. One oddity is that the little volume slider next to each commentator's name does nothing. I.e., there is no way for a listener to adjust the volume of one commentator as compared to the other(s). So, if one commentator's audio is quite loud and another's is quite soft, there is nothing the listener can do to even out their levels. I've also noticed times when I wished one or more commentators would use their mute buttons when their ambient environments get a little noisy. Unlike the previous BBO versions there is no longer a push to talk button; i.e., the commentator microphones are "always hot" unless they mute themselves. I haven't heard anything cringe worthy or embarrassing yet, but that is bound to happen eventually.

The most important needed feature change has nothing to do with voice but BBO V3's visual display as it does not allow us to see the bid sequence of a contract once the bidding ends, without covering up the center part of the table. That is, we can see either the cards being played OR the bidding that occurred, but not both at the same time like we could with both older versions. It seems like there is plenty of visual real estate to show the bidding sequence somewhere on or around the table, without covering up the center portion where we see the cards being played.

I hope all users will give the new voice system a try. In most ways, it is a vast improvement over the BBO-V2 (Flash) version. Plus, there is no need for the Flash player at all, which is in itself a huge improvement. Kudos to the software programmers! I also have a lot of admiration and respect for the commentators on the Bermuda Bowl sessions so far. They faced a steep learning curve as the setup and mechanics of using V3 voice are quite different from what they had become accustomed to with V2 and most of them are not audio or computer professionals, yet by day two or three everyone I heard sounded just great.

Yes, there are still improvements to be made, but we should be patient Remember, Uday is in Wuhan concentrating on playing high level bridge right now, not here addressing all our little complaints! Good luck to Uday and all the players, and big thanks to the commenators -- both voice and typed chat -- for all you do to help make our vugraph experiences come to life.

PS: Al Holland is da man.

[pio_magic]

I had all sorts of different outcomes, all using V3:

- Firefox: no button for voice
- Chrome with standard login: button for voice but "can't connect to voice server"
- Chrome with "Vugraph=y" - button for voice, turning voice on works but I still can't hear anyone speaking. Peter and Roland are not that quiet usually...

So still waiting for success...

Peter

[nekthen]

Today I got the VOICE button but now connection to VOICE server fails
I hope that it is supposed to be rated for more than 1000 connections!

[barmar]

"Can't connect to voice server" seems to be due to a capacity limit in the v3 voice server software. It looks like it can't handle >1000 connections.

[kladenak]

I have the same issue as Ken, there is no "Voice" button visible. This was during the Bermuda Bowl when I knew that there was a voice commentary and also recently on a teaching table.

BBO guys: any suggestion on troubleshooting?

Win10 on a desktop, tested Firefox, Chrome and Vivaldi browsers, did not work in either.

Thanks.

[barmar]

 kladenak, on 2019-October-02, 08:52, said:

I have the same issue as Ken, there is no "Voice" button visible.

You're using the old Flash version. Voice is only available in the new HTML5 version.

[kladenak]

 barmar, on 2019-October-02, 08:57, said:

You're using the old Flash version. Voice is only available in the new HTML5 version.

I truly admire people with a crystal ball who know what I was using at the time of the problem. I did use the HTML5 version.

If somebody with the same problem comes across this, I got today the following tip from the helpdesk:

"Please use the https:// connection, voice does not work over http.

https://www.bridgebase.com/v3/ "

The BBO site apparently does not redirect automatically to https. I have not had opportunity to test this, have to wait for some teaching lesson or Vugraph.

[pescetom]

I'm using the https connection right now and their are two tournaments live on vugraph, Danmark 1 Division and Polish Premier League. Neither gives me a voice button. Not sure if this is because there is no voice commentary or because the button doesn't work (it would be helpful to add some indication that there is no voice commentary, at least to help debug this apparent problem).

[barmar]

 pescetom, on 2019-October-05, 05:38, said:

I'm using the https connection right now and their are two tournaments live on vugraph, Danmark 1 Division and Polish Premier League. Neither gives me a voice button. Not sure if this is because there is no voice commentary or because the button doesn't work (it would be helpful to add some indication that there is no voice commentary, at least to help debug this apparent problem).

It's most likely because there were no voice commentators. Most vugraphs don't have voice commentators.

If you check the Vugraph Schedule, there will be a speaker icon next to the commentators who planned to use voice.

[barmar]

 kladenak, on 2019-October-05, 03:56, said:

I truly admire people with a crystal ball who know what I was using at the time of the problem. I did use the HTML5 version.

I checked our log to see which version you'd logged in with most recently when I posted, and assumed that was what you used in general. I'm sorry if I made a wrong assumption.

[skiborder]

I've used the teaching table with voice for years and successfully used the new version.

Two weeks ago it stopped working for me . The other two people on our table were fine. I can' t hear or have them hear me. I've tried safari and chrome and even tried it from another family members MacBook.

I've checked every setting a zillion times. the sound preference are all set correctly and i have updated Catalina as OS

The ONLY thing i notice is I am NOT getting the little window that came up asking me if BBO can use my microphone... But i don't know how to get that to come back .

Anyone have any clues?

Thanks,
John (skiborder)

[jbanks234]

I've just started to use the Teaching Table on BBO which is absolutely perfect for Supervised Play but yesterday I was unable to access the speakers, message appears Voice Server Failed to Connect. I've been trying all day as I have a session planned for this evening, but up to now no success. Does anyone have any tips or is it just maybe that there is a problem with the BBO server> Would appreciate any suggestions. Thank you