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MVP Bridge version 3.02 by Steve Estvanik An MVP Software Production MVP Bridge is shareware. This means that you have an evaluation version. You are free to evaluate this software to determine whether you wish to "register," or purchase the software. If you wish to continue using this software, you must register with MVP Software. Registering MVP Bridge supports the author and brings you several advantages. You will receive the latest version with many significant enhancements, a printed manual, ongoing notification of updates and technical support. Registration is $29.95 plus shipping. Thank you for evaluating MVP Bridge and for supporting shareware. To register and receive MVP Bridge Deluxe, call 800-968-9684 toll-free 24 hours a day. This is an order line ONLY. Operators at this number do not use this program and cannot answer any questions about it. Please have your Master Card or Visa ready when you call. Or fill out the order form at the end of this manual and fax it to: 616-245-3204. Make sure your credit card number and expiration date are legible. Or if you prefer mail the order form and your check to: MVP Software, 1035 Dallas SE, Grand Rapids, MI 49507-1407. For overseas ordering or technical support, or if you have questions, call: (616) 245-8376. How to Register Online and Receive MVP Bridge Deluxe Immediately! MVP is pleased that all MVP shareware products can now be registered online, with immediate download of the registered version. This service is available to anyone in the world who has a Master Card or Visa and can call from a modem. To register MVP Bridge Deluxe or any other MVP shareware game online, call InterComm at 1-310-858-6200. Once you are connected, go to the MVP section. There you may download any MVP shareware program free of charge, or you may order and immediately download any MVP non-shareware title or registered title. It's easy and it's fun, so call today. _______ ____|__ | (R) --| | |------------------- | ____|__ | Association of | | |_| Shareware |__| o | Professionals -----| | |--------------------- |___|___| MEMBER Steve Estvanik is a member of the Association of Shareware Professionals (ASP). ASP wants to make sure that the shareware principle works for you. If you are unable to resolve a shareware-related problem with an ASP member by contacting the member directly, ASP may be able to help. The ASP Ombudsman can help you resolve a dispute or problem with an ASP member, but does not provide technical support for members' products. Please write to the ASP Ombudsman at 545 Grover Road, Muskegon, MI 49442-9427 or send a CompuServe message via CompuServe Mail to ASP Ombudsman at 70007,3536. BEFORE YOU BEGIN ================ MVP Bridge version 3.02 includes several improvements over earlier versions. The bidding and card play, the documentation, handling of conventions, music and many other areas have been enhanced. Also, an important new feature -- the ability to save and load hands -- has been added. Another important improvement is that MVP Bridge now works flawlessly if you launch it from Windows. While it is still a DOS app (technically, it runs in what is known as a "DOS box" from Windows), you can set it up on your Windows Program Manager and run it from there as you would any Windows program. Note, however, that your DOS mouse driver MUST be installed even if you run MVP Bridge from Windows. INSTALLATION ============ If you have downloaded this program from a BBS there is no need to install it if you want to run it from DOS and not from Windows. Simply unzip the files into a directory and begin the game. If you have obtained MVP Bridge from a shareware vendor you may need to install the software to your hard drive. To install MVP Bridge, place the diskette into the A drive and type A:, or into the B drive and type B:. When the A> or B> prompt appears on the screen, type INSTALL. Follow the directions to install the software. To begin the game type BR1. Note to Windows users --------------------- Here's how to install MVP Bridge from Windows. First, all of the MVP Bridge files must be in their own directory on your hard drive or on a floppy disk. If you downloaded this file from a BBS or online service, use Pkunzip 2.04 to do this. If you received MVP Bridge on a disk, you probably don't have to do this. From the Windows Program Manager, click on Run, then click on File. Type in A:SETUP if the MVP Bridge files are on a disk in your A drive. If they are in a directory in your hard drive, or on a disk in another drive, enter that path information, followed by SETUP. The MVP Bridge Setup program will now install MVP Bridge on your system and create a MVP Program Group (if one doesn't already exist on your system). All you have to do is follow the prompts. In most cases the default prompts are the best ones to choose, but you may enter other information if you choose to do so. INTRODUCTION ============ This game is not a tutorial on Bridge, but can be used by beginners For overseas ordering or technical support, or if you have questions, call: (616) 245-8376. to learn the game. The following sections give a good general introduction to the rules of the game, and the basic techniques of bidding and play. There are many excellent books available in stores and libraries, covering all phases of the game. If you're an intermediate or advanced player, you can go right to PLAYING THE GAME (or skip this entirely, and jump right into the game.) BRIDGE BASICS ============= Brief summary of the rules -------------------------- Bridge is played by 4 players. All cards are dealt so each player has 13 cards that are kept hidden from other players. In MVP Bridge, you are always considered to be SOUTH. Your partner plays NORTH, and your opponents are EAST and WEST. A hand of bridge is divided into 2 parts: bidding and play. During bidding you try to describe your hand to your partner and make a claim to the number of tricks you can take. During play you try to make the contract that you bid. Evaluation of the hand ----------------------- To decide how strong your hand is, we assign points to certain cards. These are called high card points or 'hcp'. We rate an Ace (A) at 4 points, a King (K) at 3, a Queen (Q) at 2, and a Jack (J) at 1. To count towards hcp, though, a King must be accompanied by at least one other card in the same suit. We show this as 'Kx', and describe it as a King doubleton. Similarly, to count for hcp, the Queen must have 2 other cards, and the Jack needs 3 other cards. Some examples: Kx 3 pts AK 7 pts AQ 4 points (Q doesnt count) AQx 6 points KJXX 4 points KJx 3 points (J doesnt count) In addition, we can add points for distribution (length). 1 pt for 5th card in a suit 1 pt for 6th in a suit 2 pts for 7th, 8th, etc When raising partner's suit with 4 card support, add: 5 pts for void 3 pts for singleton 1 pt for doubleton With 3 card trump support, add: 3 points for a void 2 points for a singleton 1 point for a doubleton Your total hand value is figured as follows: Hand value = high card points + distribution points When opening the bid add HCP and length points. For deciding whether your partnership has enough points for game, you can use total points as follows: Points required for game: 3NT or major suit 26 minor suit 29 small slam 33 grand slam 37 Bidding Primer --------------- Bidding starts with the dealer and proceeds clockwise around the table . The suits are arranged in the following order: CLUBS, DIAMONDS, HEARTS, SPADES. Thus 1S can be bid over 1H, but over 1S, you must bid 2H. Bidding a suit usually says that you wish to use that suit as trump. Bidding normally starts at the lowest level possible, but there are also times when the bidder jumps the bidding (For example, an opening bid of 2H or 3H shows a very different hand from 1H.) Playing in a suit contract makes that suit the 'trump' suit. During play, you must follow the suit played. But if you lack any cards in the suit played (this is called a 'void'), you may play a trump, and win the trick. You want to play in trump if you and your partner have at least 8 of the cards in a suit. You may also play without trump (NOTRUMP or NT). Bidding continues until everyone has had a chance to bid and there are 3 passes in a row. The person who firrst bid the suit of the final bid becomes 'declarer'. The person to the left of declarer is the leader for the first trick. The declarer's partner is dummy -- their cards are turned over for everyone to see, after the opening lead. Your goal in Rubber Bridge is to bid and make 2 game contracts . A game is 100 points. This can be the result of bidding and making one or more contracts. Scores vary by suit. CLUBS & DIAMONDS are the minor suits and are worth only 20 points each. HEARTS & SPADES are the major suits and are worth 30 points each. Thus a contract of 4H would give you 120 points, enough for a game, but a contract of 4D gives you only 80 points, leaving you 20 points short of a game. No trump is a special case. One NT is worth 40 points, and each successive level is worth 30 points. Thus 2NT is worth 70 points, and 3NT is 100, a game. If your contract does not give you a game, it remains as a partial score until one side makes game. If a contract is set, the defenders gain points. The following sections offer some simple advice for bidding. For more details, you should consult a Bridge bidding book. Opening Bids ------------ You have HCP Distribution of hand Bid --------- ---------------------------- ------------------- 13-20 5+ card suit 1 of the suit 16-18 flat (no singleton or void) 1 NT 21-22 flat (no singleton or void) 2 NT 13+ flat, but good 4 card major 1 of a major 13+ no previous bid possible 1 of better minor 4-10 no voids, 7 card suit 3 of the long suit In actual practice, the tendency is not to bid 4 card majors, unless the suit is strong (e.g., AKJx) and there is no alternative. This allows partner to assume that the opener has 5 in the major and to support with only 3. If the suit is good, a 4-3 fit is acceptable. Responses to partner's opening bid ---------------------------------- Partner bid one of a suit -------------------------- You have HCP Distribution of hand Bid --------- ---------------------------------- ----------------- < 6 Pass 6-9 support for partner's suit* 2 of partner's suit 10-12 support for partner's suit* jump in partner's suit 13-15 strong trump support in a major 4 level 13-15 no major suit at 1 level 2 NT 16-18 no major suit at 1 level 3 NT 6-18 4 card suit suit at 1 level 18+ 5 card suit Jump shift ** 10+ 5 card suit suit at 1 or 2 level 6-9 flat hand, no 1 level bid 1 NT * Support is 3 cards of a major or 4 of a minor ** Jump shift: a bid that skips a level of bidding. E.g., 1H -- 2S is a jump shift because you could have bid 1S. Partner bid 1NT --------------- You have HCP Distribution of hand Bid --------- -------------------------------- ----------------- 8-9 Balanced 2 NT 10-14 Balanced 3 NT < 8 5 or 6 card suit 2 of the suit < 8 Pass 10+ 5 of a major, 5 or 6 of a minor 3 of the suit (forcing) 7+ 6 card major 4 of the major 10+ no 5 card major 3 NT Note: Most players use the Stayman convention which allows the partnership to find a 4-4 major suit fit. Opener's rebids --------------- This next bid lets opener more completely describe her hand. Opener started with 1NT ----------------------- Partner Bid Opener's hand Bid ----------- ---------------------- ----------- 2 NT 17-18 3 NT 3 of major 3+ cards in partner's suit 4 of partner's suit 3 of major 2 cards in partner's suit 3 NT Opener started with a suit bid ------------------------------ Partner Bid Opener's hand Bid ----------- ---------------------- ----------- New suit: 1 level 12-15, no support for partner 1 NT 6 cards in original suit rebid original suit second suit of at least 4 show new suit 12-15, 4 card support raise of partner 15-17, 6+ card suit jump in original suit 16-18, 3+ support jump raise of partner 19-20, 4 card support 4 of partner's major 19-20 2 NT New suit: 2 level 15-18 2 NT (forcing) 12-15, usually 6 card suit rebid original < 16 show second suit < 16, support for parter single raise 17+ reverse* 17+ jump rebid of opener's 17+ 6 card suit jump to game in opener's 17+ 3+ support for partner jump raise in responder's 18+, second suit jump shift (forcing) 19-20 3 NT * A reverse is the bidding of 2 suits in opposite order from that expected. I.e., usually you would bid Spades, then Hearts, to keep the bidding at a low level. If you bid Hearts first, then show Spades, this is a 'reverse' and shows a stronger hand. (Since partner must bid hearts at the next level to show a preference). Bidding continues, with opener and responder describing their hands. If there is no competition, you should look for a game contract with about 25+ points between the 2 hands. This completes the overview of bidding. Once someone opens, the opponents can still compete, usually by bidding a new suit or making a takeout double. For more information on defensive bidding consult any of the many books available in stores and libraries. CONVENTIONS =========== A convention is a bid that carries additional information, and does not promise anything in the suit actually bid. For example, when responding to 1NT, a response of 2C, Stayman, asks partner for a four card major and is a completely artificial bid. Responder may have a singleton club! Conventions are decided upon between the partners before play begins. All such agreements must be announced to the oppononents. No secrets. The following are brief descriptions of the conventions available in MVP Bridge. The TAKEOUT Double ------------------ The most common usage of this bid is by second hand after the bidding has been opened. The bid "double" announces opening bid values, with support for the unbid suits. The range in HCP for a takeout double is 11+. STAYMAN ------- This convention is a 2C response to an opening bid of 1NT or a 3C response to an opening bid of 2NT asking opener for a four card major. BLACKWOOD --------- After the partner has agreed upon a suit, a bid of 4NT by either player asks the other for the number of aces she has. The responses to Blackwood are the following: 5C 0 or 4 aces 5D 1 ace 5H 2 aces 5S 3 aces After aces have been shown, a rebid of 5NT by the bidder asks for kings. Responses are the same only one level higher. Note: As a practical matter the responder to Blackwood is not going to have 4 aces because the stronger hand usually does the asking. GERBER ------ A jump to 4C after partner has bid 1NT or 2NT asks partner for aces. Responses to a Gerber 4C leap are the following: 4D 0 or 4 aces 4H 1 ace 4S 2 aces 4NT 3 aces After aces have been shown, a rebid of 5C by the 4C bidder asks for kings. Responses to a 5C king ask are the following: 5D 0 or 4 kings 5H 1 king 5S 2 kings 5NT 3 kings WEAK2 ----- An opening bid of 2D, 2H or 2S which describes a hand with a reasonable six card suit and 7-3 HCP. It is a preemptive or weak opening bid meant to obstruct opponents. When playing Weak 2 bids, an opening bid of 2C is reserved for very strong hands. A 2NT response asks partner to describe her hand. 3 of original suit shows minimum weak 2 3NT shows suit headed by AKQ or AKJ 3 of new suit shows a feature (A, K or Q) STRONG2 ------- An opening bid of 2C, 2D, 2H or 2S describes a hand with 21+ points and is forcing to game. PLAY ==== The person who first bids the suit that becomes the final bid is known as the declarer. To make your contract, add 6 to the number you have bid. Thus a 3H contract requires you to take 9 of the 13 tricks. The person to the declarer's left is the opening leader. The leader selects a card and places it so that everyone can see it. At this point, the partner of the declarer lays down his cards for everyone to see. Partner of the declarer is known as the 'dummy' and his cards are played by the declarer. In MVP Bridge, when North is declarer, you get to play as declarer, and your original hand, South, becomes the dummy. Play proceeds in a clockwise fashion. You must follow suit. If you are void (have none of that suit), you can play any card. In a trump contract, the highest trump played on the trick wins. The winner of the trick leads to the following trick. SCORING ======= Rubber scoring -------------- A rubber is played until one side has scored 2 games. Each game requires 100 pts below the line. If a side has won a game, they are then 'vulnerable'. (This increases the penalties if they are later set in a contract). If a slam is bid and made, additional bonuses are awarded as follows. Not Vulnerable Vulnerable Small slam (12 tricks) 500 750 Grand slam (13 tricks) 1000 1500 You must win 2 games to end rubber. Additional bonus points are then scored: 700 additional points if your opponents won no games, otherwise 500. Undertrick Penalties -------------------- For each trick by which the declarer fails to make the contract, opponents score the following points (above the line): Not Vulnerable Undoubled Doubled Redoubled First undertrick 50 100 200 For each additional 50 200 400 Vulnerable Undoubled Doubled Redoubled First undertrick 100 200 400 For each additional 100 300 600 If declarer makes a doubled contract, he receives an extra 50 points, "for the insult". Honors ------ In Rubber and Chicago Bridge, additioal points are added for honors as follows: Either declarer or dummy holds: 4 of 5 top trump honor cards: +100 5 of top trump honor cards: +150 all 4 aces, in No Trump: +150 PLAYING THE GAME ================ Main menu --------- ABOUT: Program credits OPTIONS: Select conventions Toggle verbose mode Select card back KIBITZ: Show hands of other players PLAY: Play the game QUIT Press F1 at any point for help. OPTIONS ======= Systems -------- Bidding system is GOREN: Goren: 16 to 18 HCP for opening NT Usually opens 5 card majors, but occasionally opens 4 card majors. Bids longer minor suit with balanced hand, and poor 4 card major. Standard conventions: TAKEOUT, STAYMAN, BLACKWOOD, and STRONG2. Set Conventions --------------- For each side, toggle the conventions you wish them to play. Right click on a convention title to get a short description. Verbose ------- Toggles on and off. This adds additional messages to describe conventions being used. It is a good way to learn unfamiliar conventions, but it does slow down the game a little. CardBacks --------- Choose which card back to show. Kibitz ------ Choose which hands to reveal. Note that this destroys basic elements of the game, so it should only be used for tutorial or practise. When kibitz mode is on, you have an option to ask why a particular bid is made. A status screen pops up to show what that player knows about the hand thus far, based on the bidding. Usually this includes their estimates of the number of points held by each other player, and their estimates of those players' distributions. A minimum and maximum value is given in each case. As the bidding progresses, these numbers may change. (E.g., if North preempts in Hearts, and East holds 2 hearts, he knows that West and South can each hold a maximum of 4 hearts.) Play ---- To play a hand, you first bid by clicking on the appropriate bid box when it's your turn. After 3 passes, the bid is final, and the person to the left of the declarer leads. (You must finish the bidding before you can return to the main menu. Just click on PASS each time, then press the SKIP button after the first play.) Each round, or trick, is started by the hand that won the last trick. (The first leader is the left hand opponent of the declarer.) You must follow suit if you can. If you're void, you can play a trump or discard any other suit. Click on the card you want to play, when prompted by the program. The current tricks taken by each side are displayed on the top 2 lines of the play area. Press 'R' to review the status of the hand. To receive a hint during either bidding or card play, press H. Escaping early from a hand -------------------------- If you make a mistake, or otherwise make a bad bid, press ESC when it's your turn to bid. If you then ask to replay, the bidding will start from the beginning. If at the start of a hand you click on the QUIT button, the session ends and you return to the main menu. During play, you can click on SKIP at any time, and the remainder of the hand will not be counted. You can then choose to play the next hand in the series, or quit back to the main menu. Toggling Music On/Off --------------------- From the main menu, press M to toggle the music on or off. Glossary & Abbreviations ======================== Trick - one complete play of 4 cards. Trump - the suit of the contract. highest trump played on a trick always wins. NT - No trump. HCP - high card points (A = 4, K = 3, Q= 2, J = 1). TCP - total card points (HCP plus distribution). Void - no cards in a suit. Singleton - one card in a suit. Stiff - a singleton. Honor - ten, Jack, Queen, King or Ace. Doubleton - 2 cards in a suit. Tripleton - 3 cards in a suit. Major suit - hearts or spades. Minor suit - clubs or diamonds. Declarer - the person who first bids the suit of the final contract. Dummy - declarer's partner. After the opening lead, dummy's cards are revealed, and played by declarer. Download All the Latest MVP Shareware Games FREE If your favorite BBS doesn't have an MVP file section, then you may be missing some great shareware. To get all the latest and greatest MVP shareware releases, call one of the leading boards listed below, and check out the FREE MVP file area. In Grand Rapids, Michigan -- Ryan's Bar (616) 456-1845 or (616) 456-5342 In Milwaukee, Wisconsin -- Exec-PC (414) 789-4360 In New York, New York -- The Invention Factory (212) 274-8110 In Boston, Massachusetts -- Channel 1 (617) 354-3230 In Kansas City, Missouri -- Sound Advice (816) 436-8029 In Palo Alto, California -- Space BBS (415) 323-4193 In Reston, Virginia -- World Data Network (703) 620-8900 Or call Intercomm Online at (310) 858-6200, the new source for all of MVP's shareware and registered software. Even better, tell your favorite sysop about the MVP Distribution Network and how he can be assured of getting all of the latest MVP shareware hits as soon as they are released. See the SYSOP.DOC file for details. MVP is Now on CompuServe! You can get all of the latest MVP shareware releases, and discuss MVP titles directly with the authors on MVP's new section on the world's largest online information network, CompuServe. Just type GO MVPSOFT to get to our section! If you are not a CompuServe member you are eligible to receive a FREE trial membership, including software and online time worth almost $55! That's right, you get the CompuServe Information Manager software for DOS or Windows, which normally costs $29.95. Plus you get a free first month of online access, worth $9.95. And to top it off, you get a usage credit of $15 of additional online time. To take advantage of this free trial membership to the largest online service in the world, call 800-848-8199. Ask for rep 671. And then GO MVPSOFT and talk to the MVP team on CompuServe. MVP is Now on the Internet and the World Wide Web! You can get all of the latest MVP shareware releases, find out news of future activities, and give feedback to MVP on the Internet. To visit our new home page, just set your WWW browser to this URL: http://www.mvpsoft.com While there, you can see descriptions of all our releases, download the shareware versions with a click of your mouse button, and check out full color screen shots for all of our games. Be sure to leave feedback telling us how you like our page! If you prefer using direct ftp to get our files, you can find them at the following sites: ftp.mvpsoft.com/pub/mvpsoft ftp.uwp.edu/pub/msdos/games/mvp archive.uwp.edu/pub/msdos/games/mvp ftp.he.net/pub/mvpsoft Users accessing either of the last two sites on this list must include a dash in front of their email addresses for the password. Without that dash the software won't give you access. These sites also have many mirrors, so just look for a game site with an MVP directory, and you'll be assured of getting the best games around! Ordering Information MVP Bridge Deluxe is available from the following authorized distributors: United States ------------- MVP Software 1035 Dallas SE Grand Rapids, MI 49507-1407 phone: 800-968-9684 24-hour order line only (616) 245-8376 information, technical support, or orders. fax: (616) 245-3204 order price: $29.95 plus $4.00 shipping in the US, $5.00 shipping to Canada, $6.00 shipping everywhere else. Michigan residents please add appropriate sales tax. Australia --------- Budgetware 9 Albermarle St Newtown NSW 2042 phone: (02) 519-4233 fax: (02) 516-4236 order price: $A45.00 (includes shipping) United Kingdom -------------- Atlantic Coast Plc. Station Rd. Colyton, Devon, EX13 6HA phone: 1297 552222 Fax: 1297 553366 order price: L29 (includes shipping and taxes) Dealers please enquire. Denmark and all of Scandanavia ------------------------------ Pro-Soft Benloese Skel 4 G DK 4100 Ringsted phone: 53 61 90 42 fax: 53 61 93 91 order price: 210,00 kr. + VAT 25% + s/h 25,00 Japan ----- P. & A. Company Ltd 302 Bellwins, 1367-23 Nakagami, Akishima Tokyo 196 phone: 425-46-9141 fax: 425-46-9142 BBS: 425-46-9143 4500 yen includes shipping and taxes Germany, Austria, and Switzerland --------------------------------- Topware PD-Service GmbH Quadrat 0 3, 2 68161 Mannheim phone: (0621) 1 26 73 30 Fax: (0621) 1 26 73 33 price: 49 DM (includes taxes) plus 6 DM shipping The Netherlands and Belgium --------------------------- CSD -- Computer Solutions Dorth Postbus 59 NL-7213 ZH Gorssel THE NETHERLANDS phone: (+31)0575.494.545 Fax: (+31)0575.491.222 order price: fl. 75,00 (includes VAT and shipping) Italy ----- Systems Comunicazioni srl via Olanda, 6 20083 Gaggiano phone: (02) 9084 1814 fax: (02) 9084 1682 BBS: (02) 9084 1811 price: Lire 62.000 IVA inclusa Spain ----- Friendware S.L. Rafael Calvo, 40 28010 Madrid phone: (91) 308 34 46 fax: (91) 308 52 97 CIS: 100413,1667 price: 4.000 Pts MVP Bridge Deluxe ver 3.02 Order Form Name ______________________________________________________________ Address ___________________________________________________________ City _______________________________ State ______ ZIP _____________ Country (if outside USA) __________________________________________ Price of MVP Bridge Deluxe $29.95 Shipping and Handling (US) 4.00 Shipping and Handling (Canada) 5.00 Shipping and Handling (all other countries) 6.00 Michigan residents add sales tax 2.04 ----- Make check payable to "MVP Software" Total enclosed: $ Master Card/Visa information (credit card orders only) Card number __________________________________________ Expiration date ______________________________________ ------------------------------------------------------------------- VOLUNTARY QUESTIONS: Please help us determine what features you ==================== would like in future products. Circle what type of equipment you have: 386 486SX 486DX Pentium Circle the speed of your computer(Mhz): 25 33 40 50 66 90 ___ Circle any that apply: Joystick Mouse Modem_______ SVGA card (speed) Sound Capability: Adlib Sound Blaster SB Pro SB AWE32 PC speaker only Other ____________________________________ Where did you get MVP Bridge? Friend CompuServe AOL Prodigy Channel 1 Invention Factory World Data Network Ryan's Bar Exec-PC Space BBS Sound Advice BBS (name): _______________________ phone # _______________________ address ________________________________________________________ Shareware Distributor (name): ______________________________________ -------------------------------------------------------------------- Send this order form and your check to: MVP Software, 1035 Dallas S.E., Grand Rapids, MI 49507-1407 Checks must be in US funds and drawn on a US or Canadian bank. US or Canada 24-hour order line: 800-968-9684. Fax: 616-245-3204. Tech support, information, or overseas order line: 616-245-8376.