If you start reading seriously, you must be practical and use the oportunity to download a copy of the complete website to enable yourself to run the site (high speed) "off line". It might be advisable also to remove the applets from the window with the button provided for this purpose. They are distracting and when you see to much of it, they get boring too. You may get around the applets on the cover page already. You should click then the small 'no nonosense ' button, instead of the big 'GO ON ' button.
If you prefer the full screen image, you must apply your browser's gadgets as explained elsewhere.
On this page we'll tell you about the best way to read this web site, in order to learn the MAF system. The time schedule you choose depends totaly on the time you've availalable for bridge, and from the processing ability of your brains. So you choose, in consultation with your partner, your own schedule. It is'nt necessary to establish this schedule beforehand. This may be done any time, so if you prefer, it can be done later on.
Establish at first that the 1NT opening brings very few new things.
The major suit opening bids only have have a few new features, which you should try to apply right from the start:
You'll experience soon that a lot of hands cannot be opened in a major any more. The minor suit opening conventions must take care of these. As these openings are rather complicated, you cannot learn and play them at once.
I think you will understand the problem better if you the minor suit chapters first. After that, you know roughly what it is about. Now you read these chapters again, and try to to see the core.
While reading, you should'nt be tempted to to link to everywhere, each time you encounter a link. Most links are to side issues, which now are not important.
Only two are important when you start playing MAF. These are the links pointing to the Joker en de MaD+ conventions, which which serve the purpose of quick examining for possible major suit fits.
When you've arrived here you also know how to apply the main principles of the minor opening bids. Now hands, containing 4-cards in a major suit, can be handled again.
You're going to open all hands, with a 4-card major, in clubs and hands, with a major suit not longer than a 3-card, with diamonds (unless the hand contains a 5+card clubs and some other exceptions, which are not very important in the beginning). If you draw adifferent conclusion from the minor suit chapters, you do'nt yet grasp the functions of the minor suit opening bids.
When you know what is in the minimum starter's package, you must start practicing with it. This goes until your system feel a need for more MAF. The practicing may take a very long time, anyway when you only play once in a week.
You may speed this up by training through bidding games of which the deals are published in bridge magazines or given by computer programs. You could also link to Richard Podkowik's Bridge Hand Generator and take your deals from his Java engine.
This kind of training has two big advantages, compared to match experience. Firstly you're allowed to talk, and secondly you're allowed to copy and to make notes.
The learning process is more effective and more efficient, if you do it this way. More it makes fun and do'nt lose time, by playing the games, changing the boards and waiting for the results.
When this is done you should, still following the order of the main menu, start to understand the concept of the minor suit openings, without studying the details of the accompanying conventions.
After having mastered all this, you should start gradually to apply the conventions completely. It is recommended to begin with the three most useful ones, which were encountered before already:
Joker, MAD Club-Sohl and Diamond-Sohl. You probably need considerable time to practice with these three. Especially the Minor Suit Sohl conventions is are rather extensive en not simple.
When this is all under control, it is time to have a look at the actions, to be taken after the opponent's interventions. The Main Defense Page may guide you in this respect.
Probably this doesn't differ much from what you are used to. Most of the conventions will be familiar. There might be some funny ideas that appeal to you too. Altogether the defensive system is less extensive than the 1-level opening bids and their conventions are.
If you've done all this, you master the main part of the system. It time then to add the MeRDe-complex ("MeRDe "= "Mean Repulsive Devices ", merde appears to be also the french word for shit; this word is often used by angry Frenchmen), consisting of: SHiD+, de SHiD+++, the splinter, the CUE, the MaD+++ and the SHiCe convention, which, among other things, all serve the purpose of showing a void or singleton, has to be added to the system.
The 2- and 3-level opening bids were also left alone until now. Only the WHIMS en de MadaM conventions are new. The other high level opening bids are not really new. Some of them have been more or less extended. The bulk is well known stuff.
All these conventions may be added in an arbitrary order to your MAF system.
The first step clearly is the most difficult one, because it is impossible to introduce the 1-level opening bids one by one. All you can do do to facilitate the start, is simplifying the opening bid as much as possible, and start training yourself and your partner with an incomplete system.
This was also the way, my partner and I began. We did'nt even knew at that time, that the system was'nt complete. It was something we realized, while playing. The bringing to perfection has a prcess of many years.
The final stage will probably never been reached. I even hope to receive much response to this site, which ends up in many further improvements of MAF.
| go home: |  |
return to FAQ's: |  |