World of Card Games: 2023

Sunday, December 31, 2023

A fresh new look: The exciting redesign of World of Card Games

I'm thrilled to announce the release of the new design for World of Card Games. I've been working feverishly for the last 6 months on the new design for the website, which should drastically improve the user experience for people, enable people to play the games on their iPhones and Androids, and generally make the playing experience more fun.

Below, you'll see a comparison of the old and new design when playing a game of Hearts:

All the elements and buttons are still there, though they might have been moved around a bit, so playing the games in the new design shouldn't pose too big a challenge.

The cards and avatars have been redesigned for a simpler and more cheerful look, and a few new avatars have even been added, which you can find under Settings, where you'll also be able to change the deck of cards you're playing with and pick your favorite wallpaper.

All of the games have gotten a facelift. Below, you'll see how Gin Rummy used to look and how it looks now:

The redesign has also greatly improved the mobile experience. World of Card Games wasn't working particularly well on mobile, but the new design has greatly improved on that:

I hope you like this new design, though I'm sure it'll take a bit of getting used to for some people. If you find a bug or have any feedback, please reach out to me at holger@worldofcardgames.com and let me know what's on your mind.

Happy gaming,

Holger

Monday, September 25, 2023

How Switching to Email Support Skyrocketed Our Customer Retention By 37%

Customer support remains the cornerstone of any successful business.

When running a solo venture, there’s one person to do it all and with limited resources. There is also the pressure of decision-making, proper work-life balance, and constant upskilling to stay abreast of trends.

But things changed a lot in the last six months.

I started using email to assist my customers. More people stuck around — well, 37% more. This was a significant moment for World of Card Games since it showed me that using email for support resulted in customer satisfaction, community connection, and retention.

So, today, I’m sharing how this strategic approach brought about a dynamic shift in my business.

The Crucial Connection Between Customer Support and Revenue

The way you treat your customers has a direct link to your earnings. But why? You’re basically planting the seeds of loyalty. If your customers feel heard and valued, they will stay longer.

Also, with loyal customers comes a higher lifetime value. Since they are not one-off buyers, they boost the value of your business and keep bringing in a steady stream of revenue.

So, to compound the value of these transactions, you must repeatedly provide stellar customer support.

The Struggles of Wearing Multiple Hats

As a solopreneur, I’m a team of one.

Apart from designing and developing, I also had to work on marketing, managing finances, and tackling customer queries. It gets a tad overwhelming since I’m stretching myself so thin. Sometimes, I’ve even dropped the ball and had to act fast to ensure I don’t lose the customer.

While I could pick up “tips and tricks” for marketing and finances, customer support pushed me to my limits. I believe it’s mostly because, with other areas, I was working solo. But, with customer support, you must dive deep into the problems. In this stage, you need to ask yourself the right questions —

Was it a one-off issue?
Is there a larger underlying problem I need to tackle?
Have I satisfactorily addressed the customer’s concern?
What can I do to ensure a consistently superior experience?

Still, I wouldn’t trade this experience for anything since it helped me grow faster and truly understand what my user expects from me.

The Old Ways: Why Live Chat Wasn’t Cutting It

Adding the Live Chat feature felt like the perfect ally for real-time customer support earlier. However, with time, I ran into a few problems with it. Out of those, these challenges were of the utmost significance-

Limited Engagement Depth

In 2022, while my users were doubling rapidly, the retention rates remained stagnant at roughly 41%.

Why weren’t more users sticking around? I pinned it down to the shallow interactions on Live Chat. While it provided super quick assistance, it lacked depth. Customers look for more substantial engagements and resolutions that go above the superficial.

The Chaos of Multitasking

Multitasking can be quite exhilarating. You’re managing multiple responsibilities like programming, game updates, server maintenance, live chat, and marketing. Sadly, it brings with it an unintended consequence: a spike in customer support-related errors. In my case, a significant 31%.

Tackling Live Chat optimally while managing other duties felt like juggling on a tightrope. I wasn’t always fully present, leading to less than satisfactory customer conversations.

Time-Suck and Burnout

Consider the hours dedicated to Live Chat support. Late nights and extensive screen time became the norm. Plus, wearing multiple hats meant I was bound to drop the ball at some point.

This led to fatigue that bordered on professional burnout. It not only affected my well-being but also had a ripple effect on other crucial aspects of my business, like bringing new games, user experience, decreased ROI and a decline in customer retention rates.

The Email Epiphany: A Strategic Pivot

One day, it hit me — email could be a better way to help our customers.

Efficiency and Depth

With email, I could be more thoughtful while helping customers.

Instead of a quick chat, I could take my time to really understand and fix underlying problems. Emails didn't rush me; they let me dig deep. Plus, it made my customers feel heard and happy. And because email is not like a live chat, I could think and craft better solutions.

Streamlining Support: The Organizational Perks of Email

But it wasn't just about my customers. Email made my work easier, too.

I could sort, tag, and schedule emails to stay organized. That meant I could deal with important stuff first. No more multitasking chaos. I had a system, and it worked.

I now use email to solve problems and help the customers better. And you know what? It works like a charm. The customers are happier, and they stick around longer.

And that’s why I call it the “Email epiphany.”

The Six-Month Experiment: A Review

Email support was a pivotal shift. Here’s what happened after 6 months of implementing it:

A Remarkable Spike in Customer Retention

The numbers don’t lie. Customer satisfaction rates took a huge leap — from 41% to a whopping 56% during these six months.

People were happier with the assistance, and that’s a big deal. But it’s not just about numbers; it’s about people’s voices. I got loads of messages from the users telling me how much they liked the change.

Sam, a long-time user, shared, “Ever since World of Card Games switched to email support, my issues are resolved so much faster. Plus, they actually read my concerns and gave detailed solutions. It feels personalized, making all the difference.”

While the initial focus was to increase the numbers, I became more focused on hearing my customers and letting them know I value their opinions. This approach started paying off big time.

The Revenue Revolution

My revenue saw an extraordinary shift of 23% in 2023 since my customers were now happy with the product and service.

With this newfound revenue, I decided not to slow down. Instead, I decided to reinvest it for further business growth. Here’s what I did:

Worked on enhancing my games
Improve customer support
Expand my reach via organic marketing
Upskill

Lessons Learned and Advice for Fellow Entrepreneurs

During this transformative stage for the business, I learned a few key lessons. Here they are:

Being customer-centric matters: Always prioritize your customer’s experience. Listen, adapt, and engage. They are the key to your success.
Efficiency is key: Streamline your processes. Efficiency not only saves time but also boosts customer satisfaction.
Embrace change: Don’t fear change; embrace it. Sometimes, the most unexpected shifts bring the best results.
Data is gold: Analyze data rigorously. It acts as your compass while navigating new territories.
Invest wisely: When revenue grows, reinvest thoughtfully. It is the basis for continuous growth.

In entrepreneurship, adaptability is the bottom line. So, to navigate the journey with finesse, you must be ready to adapt and pivot.

Conclusion

The switch to email support was nothing short of life-changing.

My customer retention rates rose from 41% to 56%, and revenue surged by 23% in 2023.

But it wasn’t just about the numbers. It was about the profound impact on the users. The real triumph was making them feel heard, valued, and satisfied.

It taught me that being customer-centric lays the foundation for success. As I move forward, I’ll embrace change, invest wisely, and uphold my commitment to delivering exceptional experiences.

Ultimately, it’s not just about revenue and retention; it’s about the community I’m trying to build and the exciting future.

Friday, May 5, 2023

Dimensioning a capstan gear for a Peg Solitaire-playing delta-robot

This is a somewhat different blog post from what you usually see on World of Card Games. It's part of a hobby project I've been working on for a while. I'm very interested in card games and programming, which is why I created the solitaire site Online Solitaire and now run World of Card Games. Besides programming and card games, I'm very interested in robotics, so I thought, why not try to create a robot and get it to play Peg Solitaire?

It proved to be somewhat of a challenge for a novice like me, but in the end, I managed to design, create, and program a delta-robot from scratch. So without further ado, let me introduce Peggy, the Peg-solitaire playing delta-robot:

A lot of creativity, calculations, dimensioning, prototyping and programming has gone into creating this robot. This blog post is part of a series of blog posts where we'll dive into different aspects of the robot. I've previously gone through how to do the kinematic calculations for a delta-robot, and in this post, we'll go through how to do the dimensioning, along with the calculations, for the capstan gear that is used in the robot.

When to use a capstan gear

There are many different types of gears, each with their own advantages and disadvantages. A well-known gear within the world of robotics is the pulley and belt system. This type of system works very well and is used in many different types of robotic design. The drawback of this type of system is that it usually has a certain amount of backlash. In a delta robot, where speed and precision are important factors, it is important that there is as little backlash as possible. That's why I decided to use a capstan gear. This type of gear is currently not very popular in the world of robotics but is finding its way into various projects like this robot dog.

As seen in image 1 below, the capstan gear works by having a motor move the capstan, which in turn moves the wheel it's connected to via a wire. The ratio between the capstan and the wheel determines the gear ratio.

Figure 1: An example of a capstan gearing

Dimensioning the capstan gear

In image 2 below, an illustration of a capstan gear with its associated dimensions is shown. The upper part is the capstan, in which the input shaft is mounted, the lower part is called the wheel, in which the output shaft is mounted, and both are connected by a wire that transfers the rotational forces from one wheel to the other.

To make the gear work correctly, the capstan and the wheel have to be dimensioned correctly. The calculations for the capstan gear used in this project have been deduced from a lecture from Stanford University and a graduation project from DTU (Technological University of Denmark). Below we'll go through these calculations to give you an idea of what's required if you want to create a capstan gear for your own project.

Figure 2: Illustration of the capstan gearing seen from the front and the side.

We have the following definitions:

\(\lambda =\) Angle of the wire. Also called the helix angle.
\(S =\) Pitch of the wire.
\(D_{C} =\) Diameter of the capstan.
\(D_{O} =\) Diameter of the wheel.
\(L_{G} =\) Distance between capstan and wheel.
\(S_{O} =\) Pitch of the steel wire on the output shaft.
\(D_{W} =\) Diameter of the wire.

Doing these calculations, we're really looking to deduce three main numbers: how thick the wire should be to withstand the motor's torque, how many times it should be wound around the capstan so that there is enough friction to prevent slippage, and how large the pitch of the wire should be to prevent too much pressure on the capstan or wheel when the wire travels. Based on these numbers, the minimum width of the capstan and wheel is found.

An important factor in these calculations is the helix angle, \(\lambda\), as it must be kept constant across the capstan and wheel to prevent stresses in the gear. Thus, the following relationship is given:

\begin{align}\dfrac{S_{O}}{S} &= \dfrac{D_{O} + D_{W}}{D_{C} + D_{W}}\end{align}

Distance between capstan and wheel

The distance \(L_{G}\) should be as small as possible to avoid unnecessary tensile forces on the capstan and wheel. In an ideal world, the distance would be no greater than the wire diameter, i.e., \(L_{G}=D_{W}\), but to ensure that the wire doesn't get squeezed between the capstan and the wheel, the distance is set to \(L_{G}=1.5 \cdot D_{W}\). This would result in very few tensile forces in the vertical plane on the capstan and wheel.

Diameter of the wire, the capstan, and the wheel

The wire's main job is to transfer the torque from the capstan to the wheel. This is done exclusively using a tensile force. The torque can be found using the definition for torque:

\begin{align}torque &= force \cdot arm \\M &= F_{W} \cdot \left(\dfrac {D_{C}}{2} + \dfrac {D_{W}}{2}\right)\end{align}

Where \(M\) is the torque from the motor and \(F_{W}\) is the tensile force. By re-structuring the definitions, the tensile force can be determined as:

\begin{align}F_{W} &= \dfrac {M}{\dfrac {D_{C}}{2} + \dfrac {D_{W}}{2}}\end{align}

Now that the tensile force is known, a safety factor can be found by dividing the force by the breaking force of the selected wire:

\begin{align}SF &= \dfrac {F_{break}}{F_{W}}\end{align}

Before the tensile force can be found, the diameter of the capstan and wheel must first be determined. There are some practical considerations to take into account when dimensioning the gear. A capstan gear physically takes up a relatively large amount of space. The larger the gearing, the larger the robot will have to be. I've decided to have a gear ratio of 1:8, as this seems large enough to achieve the desired precision while the robot can maintain the desired speed.

The second thing you should consider is that the capstan's diameter contributes to how much tension is in the steel wire. For a standard 7x7 wire, it is recommended that the capstan's diameter should be at least 16 times larger than the diameter of the wire. With a gearing of 1:8, the wheel should be 8 times larger than the capstan.

We'll try with a 1mm wire to see what safety factor we'll get:

\begin{align}D_{W} &= 1mm \\D_{C} &= 20mm \\D_{O} &= 160mm \\M &= 1.5Nm \\F_{W} &= \dfrac {M}{\dfrac {D_{C}}{2} + \dfrac {D_{W}}{2}} = 143N \\F_{break} &= 57 \cdot 9.81N = 560N \\SF &= \dfrac {F_{break}}{F_{W}} = 3.9\end{align}

Using the above dimensions, the wire will have a safety factor of almost 4, which is fully acceptable for a robot like this.

Number of wraps around the capstan

For the torque to be transferred from the capstan to the wheel, the wire should be wrapped around the capstan enough times so that it does not slip. The number of times needed is found using the capstan formula which is:

\begin{align}F_{W} &= F_{hold} \cdot e^{\mu_{static} \cdot \phi}\end{align}

Where we have the following definitions:

\(F_{hold} =\) The force in Newton required for the wire to be tight enough not to slip.
\(\mu_{static} =\) The static friction coefficient between the wire and the capstan.
\(\phi =\) Number of wraps around the capstan in radians.

Since the holding force is the interesting variable here, we're going to isolate it:

\begin{align}F_{hold} &= \dfrac {F_{W}}{e^{\mu_{static} \cdot \phi}} \end{align}

The wire force is found to be \(F_{W} = 143N\), and the static friction coefficient is estimated to be \(\mu_{static} = 0.2\)\cite{frictionCoefficient}. The holding force is now found for different number of wraps:

\begin{align}F_{hold} &= \dfrac {F_{W}}{e^{\mu_{static} \cdot 4\pi rad}} = 11.8N \\F_{hold} &= \dfrac {F_{W}}{e^{\mu_{static} \cdot 6\pi rad}} = 3.3N \\F_{hold} &= \dfrac {F_{W}}{e^{\mu_{static} \cdot 8\pi rad}} = 0.9N\end{align}

It's clear that there is a significant difference in how big the holding force should be in relation to the number of wraps around the capstan. To have as large a safety factor as possible regarding whether the wire slips, the last calculation is chosen, i.e., the wire is wrapped around the capstan four times.

The width of the capstan and the wheel

The only thing left to determine is the capstan and wheel width. The previous calculations form the basis for this width. As shown in image 3 below, we're looking to find \(B_{min}\), which is the minimum width for the wheel. It should be noted that, in practice, a little extra width should be added.

Figure 3: Width of the capstan gearing.

The minimum width is a function of the minimum distance for the wire on the capstan, \(B_{C}\), and the width of the wire that wraps around the wheel, \(B_{O}\). The minimum width for the capstan can thus be found by:

\begin{align}B_{C} &= N \cdot S\end{align}

The width \(B_{O}\) depends on the anchor point placement on the wheel (the x's in image 3), \(\beta\), which depends on the desired rotation of the wire on the wheel, \(\alpha\):

\begin{align}B_{O} &= \dfrac{S_{O}}{2\pi} \cdot \left(\dfrac{\alpha}{2} + \beta\right)\end{align}

The distance \(L_{G}\), i.e., the distance between the capstan and the wheel, has been determined to be so small that it can be ignored in this calculation. The minimum width for the gearing can thus be found to be

\begin{align}B_{min} &= B_{C} + 2 \cdot B_{O}\end{align}

If we set the distance between the wires to be \(S = 2mm\), and the number of wraps to be \(N = 4\), \(\alpha = 1.2\pi\), and \(\beta = 0.1\pi\), we get:

\begin{align}B_{C} &= N \cdot S = 8mm \\S_{O} &= \dfrac{D_{O} + D_{W}}{D_{C} + D_{W}} \cdot S = 15.3mm \\B_{O} &= \dfrac{S_{O}}{2\pi} \cdot \left(\dfrac{\alpha}{2} + \beta\right) = 5.4mm \\B_{min} &= B_{C} + 2 \cdot B_{O} = 18.8mm\end{align}

The minimum distance for the wheel can therefore be determined to be 18.8mm. In practice, it will be wider, but now we know that this is the minimum distance.

The prototype

Dimensioning something is not much fun if you don't get to create a prototype of it, which is exactly what I've done! 🙂

There are many different ways to design a capstan gear and even more production techniques one can use to create it. I've chosen 3D-printing and laser-cutting as my production techniques. In image 4 below, the prototype of the capstan gear is shown. It has been produced in clear plastic so that all details can be seen. The upper arm is held in place by a shaft that is connected to 2 608RS ball bearings, ensuring as little friction as possible. A spacer has been placed in the middle of where the upper arm sits. This has created more stability between the suspension and the upper arm.

Figure 4: The prototype of the capstan gear.

In image 5, the capstan gear and upper arm are shown. This shaft is clamped to the motor through a flexible coupling. This couple has been chosen because we cannot guarantee that the shaft and motor shaft are perfectly aligned. In addition, the shaft extends through to the encoder on the left, which it, in turn, is connected to.

Image 5: Capstan and wheel.

That's all for now. I expect to write up a few more posts in the future with some of the interesting aspects of the robot. Let me know in the comments if you have any questions.

Monday, April 3, 2023

A New Chapter Begins

Hello, World of Card Games community!

I have some exciting news to share with all of you loyal players and supporters! After many years of dedication and hard work, I've decided to pass the torch on to someone who can bring much needed fresh energy to the site.

I'm pleased to introduce Holger, a designer and developer who's also a big fan of card games. Holger runs the solitaire site OnlineSolitaire.com, so he already has some experience with card games. I feel fortunate that I made his acquaintance; I think he is the perfect fit to run the site.

I am confident that Holger will carry on the legacy of World of Card Games with the same dedication and commitment that I have poured into it. I hope you will all give Holger a warm welcome and continue to be a part of this amazing community.

I want to express my heartfelt gratitude to each and every one of you for your support over the years. World of Card Games has been a labor of love, and it has been a pleasure to see it grow and bring joy to so many card game enthusiasts.

Thank you all for making this journey so special. I will miss you... but be assured that I will still be playing cards at the site from time to time :) So perhaps we'll meet again.

I'll be helping Holger with the transition, so you'll still be able to reach me at marya@worldofcardgames.com for a while yet.

Marya

Thank you very much for the introduction, Marya. I am very grateful to have been entrusted with the responsibility of running World of Card Games. I have long admired the site and am excited to work on expanding the repertoire of games and improving the overall gaming experience. My primary goal is to continue to run the site, as Marya has done so successfully. So rest assured, no significant changes will be made to the current games you all know and love.

That said, I am eager to explore the creation of new games and features for the site, making World of Card Games an even more enjoyable destination for people to play card games online. If you have any feedback or suggestions for the site, I'd love to hear from you at holger@worldofcardgames.com.

Stay tuned for updates and new developments, and as always, happy gaming!

Holger

Sunday, February 26, 2023

comments, I get comments

I know that World of Card Games is far from perfect. It has a few bugs (few and rare I believe!). But people notice the bad things and complain about them - those are most of the emails that I get. Despite that, I see plenty of people playing at the site every day, so I think many people play with no problems. I only rarely have problems with the site, and usually it's clear why: I'm in a location with bad wifi.

In any case, it's a rare person who takes the trouble to write a note of praise. However, I have indeed gotten many nice compliments about World of Card Games over the years. Those are the days when it's a joy to run the site!

Here's a recent one:

"Thanks for a great website. Very well done".

You may be surprised but just a few words like that make such a difference! I've decided to write this blog post and keep it updated with positive comments that I've received, as a reminder that some people enjoy the site, maybe more than I even realize.

Here's another one that I got at the end of January:

It’s a popular site. I would think you could monetize it more to bring in more revenue and higher a staff. Maybe the next Words with Friends. You could sell out to a large corporation and buy a house on the French Riviera

This comment had me laughing out loud. The site doesn't make nearly enough money to sell out to a large corporation, but it's nice to hear that someone thinks it's that popular.

These are just a couple of recent examples. I'll keep updating this post when/if I get more

Updated Feb 28: A player at the site wrote me the following lovely comment. Reprinted with permission:

It is a great site and I am sure a little tweaking would improve it, but why change something that is working. You have always answered any questions i have submitted to you. Keep up the great work -- golfer79