Installing and Starting WinPicks
WinPicks Reference Manual Section 2. Starting WinPicks
WinPicks 2.0 runs two ways, with the same account, the same formulas and the same packages:
- In your web browser. There is nothing to install, no disc, no serial number to key in and no separate download for each new season. Point your browser at app.winpicks.net and sign in.
- As WinPicks for Windows, a program on your PC, included with every package. Download it from the Windows app link on winpicks.net or from your Account page, run WinPicks Setup, and sign in with the same email and password. The screens are the same; Predict, Platinum, Consensus, Analyze and the tuner run on your own computer.
Either way you need an internet connection: signing in, scores, lines and prices all come from the server.
Minimum requirements.
| Browser | Chrome, Edge, Firefox or Safari, in a version released within the last two years. WinPicks 2.0 uses current web standards and will not run in Internet Explorer. |
| Operating system | In a browser: Windows, macOS, Linux or ChromeOS. None of the program runs on your machine, so the operating system itself does not matter. WinPicks for Windows needs a Windows PC. |
| Screen | 1024 x 768 or larger. The dialogs are drawn at the sizes the original program used, so a narrower window scrolls sideways rather than reflowing. WinPicks is designed for a desktop or laptop; phones and tablets are not tested yet and may not display correctly. |
| Connection | Any broadband connection. The program sends small requests and receives text, not video, so it needs little speed - a laptop tethered to a phone is enough. |
| Disk space | None in a browser. The WinPicks for Windows installer is about 26 MB. |
| Installation | None in a browser. WinPicks for Windows installs from WinPicks Setup, with a Start menu and desktop shortcut, and uninstalls from Settings > Apps. |
There is deliberately no minimum processor or memory figure. In a browser the handicapping engine runs on the server, so tuning a formula over forty seasons takes the same time on a Chromebook as on a workstation. In WinPicks for Windows it runs on your PC. The one exception is the in-browser tuner, which does use your own machine when it is available and falls back to the server when it is not - you will not notice which.
What has replaced what. If you used the original program, the differences worth knowing before you start:
- There is no serial number and no unlock step. Your subscription is checked when you sign in. In a browser there is no installer at all.
- You do not manage a data folder. The database lives on the server and is shared; WinPicks for Windows keeps its own copy up to date by itself.
- There is nothing to download each week. Scores, schedules, lines and prices arrive on their own.
- Your formulas are stored with your account, so they are on every machine you sign in from rather than the one you installed on. A formula you save in WinPicks for Windows reaches your account within seconds.
Signing in. Enter the email address and password you registered with. If you have forgotten the password, use the reset link on the sign-in page; the message arrives from the winpicks.net address, so check your junk folder the first time.
Choosing a sport. WinPicks 2.0 carries five packages in one program:
- Pro Football Analyst (NFL)
- College Football Analyst
- Pro Basketball Analyst (NBA)
- College Basketball Analyst
The Sport list at the top right of the window switches between them. You are not restarting anything when you switch - the toolbar, the menus and the current date all follow you across, and each sport keeps its own formulas and its own database.
Which packages you can open depends on your subscription. A package you have not bought is still listed, so you can see what is there; opening it explains what it costs rather than pretending it does not exist. See section 12, Your Account and Subscription.
Leaving WinPicks. Close the browser tab or the WinPicks window, or use File > Exit. Your work is saved as you go - there is no Save step before leaving, and no way to lose a formula by closing the window.