QuickHorse Horse Racing Software

CNET Editors' review

by: CNET staff on July 22, 2010

Many people who go to the racetrack are casual gamblers, placing bets based on the horses' names or their lucky numbers. Then there are those who take handicapping a little more seriously. QuickHorse '10 Horse Racing Software is designed for those serious handicappers, and not only because it assumes that users already have a fundamental understanding of how horseracing and wagering works. We can imagine only the most hardcore racing fans taking the time to wade through this program's abstruse interface and difficult navigation.

The program was designed with neither form nor function in mind. All of the text is capitalized, and if that weren't hard enough to read, it's also displayed in several garish colors on a dark gray background. The program's navigation takes place entirely via the use of buttons, and since it's incapable of scrolling, some parts of the interface are inaccessible. More than once we found ourselves trapped in a part of the program that we couldn't get out of, with no choice but to shut it down and start over. To say that we were not impressed with the program's interface would be a grave understatement.

It's unfortunate that the program is so difficult to navigate, because it does seem to contain some useful features. Users can view both past performances and upcoming race cards, and while the program can download free information from Brisnet, it also supports the use of paid subscription sites for users who are already members. Users can employ a variety of predefined handicapping methods or enter a custom method, and the program will print tipsheets for the day's card. The online Help file--which opens automatically in Internet Explorer regardless of whether it's your default browser-- is fairly detailed, and does a decent enough job of explaining the program to those who are patient enough to use it. Overall, though, we don't think that QuickHorse is easy to use enough for us to recommend.

QuickHorse '10 Horse Racing Software comes as a ZIP file. It installs and uninstalls without issues. We do not recommend this program.

Editors' note: This is a review of the full version of QuickHorse '10 Horse Racing Software 10.3.0. The trial version is limited to 30 days trial only.