Tracking AP/UB Software Updates

Despite a somewhat tumultuous relationship with the online poker community, CEREUS Network partners Absolute Poker and UB.com are still relevant sites, which is a true testament to their staying power. Scandals and customer support issues aside, over the course of the last year, Absolute Poker and UB.com have made strides to redeem their brands and ascend into the upper echelon of online poker rooms.

It all started back in July 2009 when an account named “APJohn” surfaced on the PocketFives.com forums and began taking suggestions as to how Absolute Poker and UB.com could potentially improve their software clients. An eleven-page thread ensued where everything from higher buy-in daily tournaments, synchronized breaks, and a more efficient lobby were requested.

Fast forward a couple of months when APJohn reappeared with a thread announcing an update that included new filters for ring games and tournaments and a plethora of icons for the lobby. While the changes went over well for the most part, a few users took issue with the removal of the classic UB.com table and some minor errors with certain filters.

Less than a week later, he returned to declare that the black retro UB tables were back and all of the filters had been fixed, prompting PocketFives member “SusieQue” to proclaim, “John, you made my day! I even love the little (old UB) next to the classic. Now if you could get the client to stop freezing when I open lobbies, I might fly down there and kiss you!”

In early October 2009, UB.com sponsored pro Adam “Roothlus” Levy hit the forums with the following announcement: “Synchronized breaks should be in by at the latest, the end of the month. In addition, a revamped tourney schedule that will be sure to appease the high-stakes regs. But wait, there's more! The Saturday $300 tournament will be moving up to an earlier time to, once again, help the Saturday grinders out.” By November 1st, UB.com had implemented synchronized breaks.

On March 11th, 2010, APJohn resurfaced in Poker Discussion, this time toting a four-part major software update. First on the list of improvements was a tweak to the previously released hand-for-hand logic that would ensure that hand-for-hand would only occur on the money and final table bubbles of tournaments. Next, he introduced Spotlight, a feature that brings a spotlight to the player whose turn it is to act. Third was a default buy-in/auto top-off function for ring game features, which also included an auto-rebuy option. Lastly, APJohn revealed that the previously buggy filters had been substantially overhauled.

More recently, APJohn presented AP/UB’s latest efforts in a post in April 27th. In it, he outlined new features such as a seating limit for heads-up tables, a sit-in/sit-out option for tournaments, and synchronized breaks for tournaments even when they’re still in late registration. He signed the post in tantalizing fashion: “Please let me know if you see any issues with these updates or errors. We also have some great new features coming up in the very near future.”

Say what you want about the faults of Absolute Poker and UB.com, but at least give them credit for trying to give their users what they want. An open line of communication with the online forums is a great place to start and the improvements to the AP/UB software over the last eight months should be noticed.