How "Pretty" Is The B/Assistant

[GaryRussell]

The "quick pick" below betting options is certainly not pretty but extremely useful, so don’t really know what to suggest. Perhaps adopt the same background colour, and round the edges to match the rounded outline

Did you know there is an option in preferences under the quick pick options to show it above the market tree? Or are you saying it's not pretty when shown above the grid?

[pugs]

Yes I know about that option. I don’t use it because I would then have to have the market tree open, which takes up valuable space. Anyway I think it’s perfect where it is.

It’s not that its really ugly, it’s just the styling is different and makes it stand out like a sore thumb, a bit like the rest of the square white boxes.

Gary, you know the more I look at my BA (with a critical eye) I would say the problem is mostly the mix of styling AND the untidy bits, like the “override odds” area, and could be a fairly simple fix.

I much prefer your styling, colours, your preset amount boxes, back/lay field buttons, and betting grid (without the boxes highlighted), to the rest of the square white boxes like the quick pick, that I believe you have just used a windows template for.

The Gruss software is different, always has been, but that is something that I really like about it. But you shouldn’t mix your and window style, I know that is probably down to speed and convenience, and you are but two men.

If I was Gruss’s advisor I would firstly take “spike’s” advice regarding your homepage onboard. Without the flow of new customers, well.

Then “just” (hehe) tidy up and create a consistant style throughout. But of course, if and when you can.

[pugs]

We are never going to all like the same Style, that is why it is important that many people give Gary and Mark ideas.

Our Captain has stated he likes the clean Windows style, and that would NEVER put me off using the software (I would like a background colour option please lol) But I think a consistant style is important. And “tidy” a must.

[GaryRussell]

I've taken on board some of things mentioned so far. Download the latest build from the link below and let me know what you think. I've got rid of the unpopular mustard colour (set colours to default to see the replacement). Just to set the record straight the colour is known to Microsoft as Khaki, not that it makes it any more appealing!

http://www.gruss-software.co.uk/Betting ... _Beta1.msi

[pugs]

Gary, did you get Mark to do that for you lol.

That looks so much better, it looks really clean and tidy.

I couldn’t fathom out exactly what you had done at first, obviously the colour flowing through the tab/body looks great, but it looked a lot more than that, so I had to compare it with a screenshot of an older version, and realised the tabs are now “Gruss style” rather than the holes cut in plywood. They look great.
I think the new colour goes really well with the background colour, it’s totally inoffensive, and certainly better than anything I ever put in there.

I’ll give the tabs/tab area a 9.8, you can have the full 10 if you ever find time to centre the “stake/odds” boxes and background colour them lol.

The quick pick looks better, it doesn’t jump out at you anymore. The styling obviously still looks a little odd, but short of building a new one in “Gruss style” I don’t know what else you can do really.

I tried looking at the 3d price grid boxes again, and played with the colour on our new scheme to see if I could make them blend a bit, but, well...
... It’s not that I don’t like the 3d, it’s just that there are too many boxes. They look ok on a match odds market, but when you switch to the correct score market it just looks too busy in there, for my tastes anyway.

All in all I think the work you have done is bang on

[Ian]

Could we have the option to change the colour of the background of the qucik pick list and market tree please ? I found these very hard to read in the sunlight at Worcester last night being basically black on grey.

[GaryRussell]

Sunlight's hardly ever an issue in this country

I will add an option.

[Ian]

Thanks. I only go racing when the sun's out !!

[Spike]

Much better! There are still a few things that I think you could tweak (a pixel here, a pixel there) but that's already a great improvement. Like I said when I have a bit more time to spend on it I'll send in another round of suggestions- but for the time being the new version makes a real difference.

I also noticed that you centred the website- another good move. The only thing is that the scolling bar is a bit funny. For some reason on the Gruss page my scrolling bar appears at the edge of the green Gruss page when I would normally expect it to be at the edge of my browser window. Hope this makes sense.

[Spike]

Another easy one (I think)- the selection names should be vertically centred instead of at the top (so that they are in line with the selection numbers). They should still be left justified, just centred in the blue box from top to bottom (if you see what I mean).

[pugs]

Gary, this is just a thought, and in no way is it meant to undermine Ian’s concern, useability should always precede style.

Anyway, when i said the white boxes make your background colour look dirty, that is not true of the “cancel all bets” and “refresh” buttons, which are a lighter shade of your background colour. Perhaps all “box” backgrounds should adopt a lighter shade of your background colour.

[pugs]

Spike, the “what if” figures are below the selection names, so centring the names may not be possible or particle.

The vertical scroll bar on the website is also about 20mm in from the edge on my monitor, is that how it’s meant to be? It does look odd.
Is the website not “auto” sizing to width? I do think it would look much better if the pale green background was full width.

[Ian]

I expect the majority use "one-click" so they never see the what-if figures.
The names would look better vertically centred though.

[pugs]

Possible or particle lol. practical

[pugs]

I use the “what if’s” to prepare multiple bets for in running, so being able to clearly see the selection name and the what if, is important to me.

I think this is where Gary and Mark do need to be careful and not inconvenience anyone by prettying up, or worse still turn it into a major rebuild, especially when “tweaking” has just proven remarkable results.