WorldPlay Games Community Manager ~ Dan Ross

I have been an avid computer user for more than 15 years now, and have been managing people and groups for more than 10.  The best years of managing folks began after I had the opportunity to join The Sierra Network and get involved with computer gaming in an Interactive environment.  

Gamers are unique individuals – they are folks who make PLAY an important part of their lives.  It's well documented that adults who still make time to play are generally considered higher than average in intelligence and have more fulfilling, successful, enjoyable lives.  

Bridge players are unique among gamers.  They not only enjoy game play, they are an exceptionally passionate, avid, lively, and community oriented group of people.  What may start as a casual interest in a well-known card game quickly grows to a powerful, sometimes fanatical devotion to an intense, competitive game that has a worldwide following of hobbyists and professionals alike.  

The WorldPlay Bridge community is one of the most loyal, noble, and friendly communities of game players I have ever had the pleasure to work with.  Along with WPLAYJacki, we all take great pride in the kinship, camaraderie, team spirit and friendliness the Bridge players who frequent WorldPlay extend to all members, including the new players who are just finding out about the exciting game.  They may come to play, but they stay, because of the people they meet here!  

Congratulations to you all for making the WorldPlay community what it is today – the BEST place online to play Bridge!!  

Daniel A. Ross  
 Community Manager, WorldPlay Games  
American Online, Games Channel  
 

The WPLAYMaida Round Robin Event is in honor of one of World Play  Bridge's best Round Robin Hosts.

"Maida was born to AOL and WorldPlay on November 22, 1998.  This was long before the tournament sign-up tool was invented but fortunately for the hosts, there were not as many players then as now.  At that time, the only tournaments were the 9pm nightly tourneys.  Newly-born hosts started by subbing at these tourneys gradually working into full responsibility for running them.  A big crowd for these tourneys was 12 tables!  We sure have come a long way since then. 

Until the wonderful sign-up tool was invented, we had to take all sign-ups by hand, sitting in front of the computer with a pad of paper and pencil.  It was really easy to miss a sign-up with the chat screen so busy and moving so fast.  Many players would be a little "unkind" if they were missed! 

Soon after, more tourneys were added on the weekends and then during the week.  I cannot remember the order now except that the 6pm was the last one added. 

I suggested the Saturday and Sunday morning tourneys because I love playing bridge in the morning……now see what I did?  I never get a chance to play, LOL!!  At first we had a very slow time getting even one table, that is why they usually were Round Robin events.  We have now grown to an average of 6-8 tables and it is nice to offer a Round Robin as contrast to all the other Knockout formats. 

I have really enjoyed working and playing with the WorldPlay Bridge Community.  It doesn't seem possible that I don't really know everyone personally.  On the whole, politeness, graciousness and respect epitomize our community.  They are a really superb group of hosts and players that I am proud to be a small part of." 

WPLAYMAIDA  
 

The WPLAYJacki Trophy will be awarded at this very special KNOCKOUT Tourney.

JACKI'S MESSAGE TO DC BRIDGE ATTENDEES

"HELLO MY FRIENDS

My passion for bridge and computers happened to have coincided.  When we moved to this area in 1981, I had just started to play Tournament Bridge, and was a raw novice and often came away from club games bloodied but unbowed. 

After a game one afternoon, I went to my partner's home for coffee to talk about the hands and she told me to have a look at her new computer, a Commodore 64 where she had Zork loaded. 

I was entranced!  So much so that I went out that very afternoon and bought one myself.  When I talked to my brother later that night and excitedly told him about my new toy, he told me about this wonderful place called CompuServe where you could interact THROUGH THE COMPUTER with others if you had this thing called a modem for the reasonable price of $6.00 per hour.  So the next day a modem was added to my equipment and I was able to connect with the world at the lightening speed of 300 baud.  And thereby started my secondary career. 

After a couple of maxed credit cards, I decided that something had to be done about that so I started my Sysop travels.  I had a short stint on what was then Qlink (now AOL), worked at a couple of now defunct online services running text based trivia and word games, and ended up on Genie first working in their chat area running games and finally having my own real estate based area there. 

Toward the beginning of 1993, one of my online friends told me about this great game based service called Sierra Online where we could play (gasp) BRIDGE!  So off I went, still running my real estate forum on Genie and playing bridge on Sierra. 

I was hired by Sierra as a bridge host in the summer of 1993 by the bridge sysop, and eventually took it over after she left to take another job on the service.  At this time we became the ImagiNation network, eventually moved to AOL and here we've been ever since. 

While all this was going on I became a Bridge Life Master in 1987 and took the ACBL Director's Course so I could direct real life games too and continued to play a lot of bridge, traveling to sectionals, regionals, and national bridge tournaments and in between those, playing in club games. 

Although my participation in club games has been curtailed because of my duties here on AOL, I still make every nearby regional, several sectionals and at least one national bridge tournament a year. 

To say that I love what I do would be a massive understatement.  How many can combine what they really love to do (play bridge!) with their work?  And being a tournament player myself, I "understand"  bridge players and their many idiosyncrasies (having a couple of those myself). 

So, simply put, the person behind the pixels on the screen is just like you.  Someone who loves computers and is passionate about bridge.  And I consider myself blessed to have so many new bridge playing friends who are just a keystroke away" 

WPLAYJACKI