How to Beat a Poker Bot in Online Poker

The latest rage by poker aficionados and programmers is to create and use a poker bot that will automatically play online poker with little or no human interaction, with the ultimate goal of winning money. This recent craze has alarmed both online poker sites and players as the fear of a computer program with the capacity to win online poker will essentially be able to outsmart live thinking players of their hard-earned money and eventually rob the poker sites of quality players afraid to play against so many poker bots.

A recent industry study concluded that 12% of online poker players were apprehensive about or had completely stopped playing online poker in light of the recent poker bot craze. That essentially sends players offline rather than risk their money against these new computer-generated poker bots.

However, there are several ways to beat a poker bot in online poker, and knowing these methods will certainly give the human player back the edge against poker bots. One fact that makes a poker bot a better player is that they lack the human emotion or power of reasoning that a human must use when playing online poker. A poker bot is not apt to go on 'tilt' or get angry when they are the victims of a bad beat.

In playing online poker, human players are up against two major advantages. One is the computer generated code created by the poker sites to determine shuffles, deals and outcomes of a hand, while the other disadvantage, just as dangerous to your bankroll, is the poker bot, that is pre-programmed with all the statistics and probabilities of the game.

Nevertheless, you can use the computer-generated codes of the poker sites and poker bots against them if you understand how they work. A poker bot is confined to making decisions based solely on the play of the game with regard to its statistical analysis of poker. In other words, a poker bot will only make decisions based on known patterns in the game.

Moreover, the online poker sites, which actively attempt to detect and thwart the efforts of poker bot programmers and users, have implemented a counter-measure to the poker bots, using the same known patterns. By implementing a counter measure to the poker bots, a poker site is able to ensure that a poker bot will not win since the poker bots actions are predictable and confined to a skill-set directly related to statistical odds and probability.

This, as confusing as it may seem, actually works to the advantage of the human player. While the poker site's software is actively seeking the poker bot patterns and attempting to detect who is a human and who is a computer generated bot script, they also inadvertently implemented a flaw which allows a human player to take advantage of the online poker sites weakness.

In reality, this has resulted in a human player having the ability to not only beat the poker bot, but beat human opponents as well. By following a set pattern that the online poker sites are using, an advantage is created for anyone who is aware of that pattern. This pattern is known as a sequential algorithm and that algorithm dramatically has changed the poker game online to force wins and losses in a set, specific and predictable pattern.

It is not only plausible to beat a poker bot; it is easily accomplished by recognizing the patterns used by online poker sites. These patterns are simple to learn and require little skill by a human player. So the next time you think about playing poker online, consider using the codes and algorithms created by the poker site to your advantage. They are there to prevent the poker bots from winning, but not you!

Paul Westin is a professional poker player on several online poker sites and a former software engineer for a gaming company. His latest research reveals the inner workings of the online poker sites and how the software programs used on the poker sites affect the outcomes of your play. Visit http://www.caligonia.com/poker for more information on beating the poker bots and winning online poker.

Collecting World Series Of Poker Chip Sets For Home Use

World Series of Poker is now one of the most popular 'couch sports' viewed on

television with a regular audience tuning in each week. People don't need to go to

the Casino anymore. They can buy their own set of World Series of Poker chip sets

and enjoy a social game of poker in their own home using these poker chip sets.

Poker is a game that can be enjoyed by poker players of all levels and in recent

years, professional poker has soared in popularity as people head to their local

casinos or join up with online poker rooms in an effort to try their hand at a

tournament or competition. Cable networks have also recognized this recent trend

towards poker popularity and as a result are now profiting from America's love of

poker by televising these poker championships on television on a weekly basis, as

well as merchandize all manner of poker chip sets, table tops, clothes and other

accessories.

With poker's newfound popularity thanks to World Series of Poker, everyone wants

to get their hands on some World Series of Poker chips to use at home for a game of

poker with family and friends. Despite the negative image that people sometimes

have of gambling, poker is actually a fun and very harmless game and gives many

people hours of enjoyment each week. In actual fact poker actually requires a lot of

probability and mathematical computations on the part of the players so a sharp,

quick mind is an important asset.

In decades gone by, professional poker players were not the stars that they are

today. There was no such thing as the World Series of Poker where the best poker

players in the world played for a million dollars. Before the 1950s, the only feasible

way to get good at poker was through years and years of experience and nerves of

steel. Nothing much has changed now - while the players of today are not

necessarily hardened criminals like players of yesteryear they still require nerves of

steel, a good knowledge of the game and the strategy behind the game, along with

own set of World Series of Poker chips.

Texas Hold'em World Series of Poker chip sets are somewhat different from other

poker chip sets. When it comes to Hold'em, you are going to need more chips than

most other games because of the betting process that takes place during the course

of the game. Texas Hold'em is a game that is played by the most competitive and

competent poker players but to win you need to play your cards and your skill.

Texas Hold'em World Series of Poker chip sets just refer to the engraving and the

case of the chips sets. The chips are the same weight (11.5 grams) and diameter (39

mm) as standard casino chips and they are usually of a high quality clay with a glaze

finish. The sets generally comprise of chips in five colors. This is because Texas

Hold'em can be quite an expensive game so players need plenty of chips and plenty

of denominations to keep them in the game. People tend to enjoy betting large to

really get under their opponents skin and test their resolve in this game. This

requires Texas Hold'em to have high chip values in comparison to the lowest chip.

Each chip within Texas Hold'em World Series of Poker chip sets has Texas Hold'em

engraved on the front and back and the color schemes are kept rather simple. The

base color is going to be only covered by black or white stripes that end before you

hit the center of the chip. These are the ideal chips for social and semi professional

poker players who play regularly.

Texas Hold'em World Series of Poker chip sets are usually made of high quality clay

and the imprints made are presented in great detail. The sets come in a professional

carrying case which protects chips at all times for storage, travel and organization.

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Online Texas Holdem Poker Strategy: Maintain Focus at the Poker Table

There's no doubt about it, some people are just better at poker than others. They appear to win consistently and seemingly at will. So this leaves many with a few questions which linger on the mind.

Could it be that poker is only a game of chance with no other forces to play upon besides the fickle Lady Luck?

What makes a good poker player a great poker player?

Is there a way in which I can be a more successful poker player?

If these questions have been yours at one time or another, then you're certainly not alone. Millions of average poker players would like to enhance their gaming skill, and there are tons of products out there selling every day which promise to make you a better poker player. Poker players and wannabe poker gurus spend hard earned cash every day to learn the one secret which will transform them into poker pros in twenty four hours or less.

Let's face it, if skill came in a can, and Lady Luck in a bottle, we'd all be poker pros. Sadly, improving your poker game just isn't as easy as opening a can or a bottle, but don't lose hope, there is something you can do.

The main problem which plagues poker players is the lack of focus. Focus is the key which can turn mediocre poker players into successful poker players. When a player loses focus, they will most certainly lose the game to someone who has maintained theirs.

The main causes of loss of focus at the poker table are:

Focusing on talk rather than the poker game: Talking during play is without a doubt the toughest habit to kick, and is the biggest consumer of our poker time attention. Poker time chat is something that's expected, especially among friends, so it's tough to quit without appearing rude. Tone it down over time, and you'll see your poker winning streak improve.

Focusing on food rather than the poker game: Food is essential to all human beings, that's a fact we're all familiar with. However, food shouldn't be your focus while playing poker. Instead of munching during the actual game, grab something to eat before play begins, and during breaks in play. Focus off of food leaves more focus for poker.

Focusing on alcohol rather than on the poker game: Now here's where I'll lose some of you for sure. If you really want to improve your poker game, leave the drinking of alcoholic beverages for post game chatter. A clear mind places smarter bets, and also puts you at an advantage over your inebriated poker pals.

Focusing on a personal issue rather than on the poker game: We all have issues at one time or another in life. Bringing them to the poker table isn't helping anyone but your opponents. If you have something pressing on your mind and can't set it aside, then leave poker for another time. This may sound a little harsh, but it's the truth.

Focusing on a local distraction: This could be anything from your friend's bad toupee, the barking of a distant dog or the tv upstairs. Filter out the ambient non poker essentials. Forget the toupee, the dog and the tv. It's poker time pal, let's get down to it!

Focus in itself is a skill. Any skill can be developed over time if diligently practiced. The five focus stealers we discussed will kill your poker game if you let them. By developing a razor sharp focus, you can cut them off before they become a persistent problem.

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An Overview of Different Types of Poker Tournaments

Over the course of the part five years, a significant number of men and women have been drawn towards online poker. Literally thousands of people can be found playing online poker for the first time each and every month.

You may be one of the legions of people who have become interested in online poker in recent times. As a consequence, you may be interested in finding out more about the various types of online poker tournaments that are conducted online with regularity. When it comes to online poker tournaments, there are essentially four different types of competitions:

- Elimination Tournaments

- Shootout Tournaments

- Rebuy Tournaments

- Satellite Tournaments

Through this article, we provide you with a brief overview of the different types of online poker tournaments to see if these types of online competitions might be something of interest to you. Because there are different type of tournaments, you should be able to find a competition that interests you and that is appropriate for your current skill level.

Elimination Tournaments

The most common type of online poker competition is the elimination tournament. There are significant numbers of this type of poker tournament being conducted online throughout the course of the year. Indeed, if you were so inclined, you likely would be able to find a different elimination tournament to play in on a consistent basis.

In an elimination poker tournament, play continues until one participant has all of the chips. In short, all of the other players are eliminated. The elimination poker tournament begins with each player being given the same amount of chips. In the brick and mortar world, in an elimination poker tournament, the remaining players actually will be seated at fewer and fewer tables.

Of course, in the online elimination poker tournament, there are no actual tables. However, there can be groupings in certain online poker tournaments -- electronic groupings of participants rather akin to tables in a real world casino. In such a case, in an elimination poker tournament online, there are fewer player groups as the tournament progresses and participants are eliminated.

Shootout Tournaments

Online shootout poker tournaments are rather like elimination tournaments. In fact, shootout poker tournaments really are a variety of elimination tournament.

In shootout poker tournaments on the Net, players are put into groups at the start of the competition. (In the brick and mortar world, these players would be seated at different tables.)

Tournament play continues until there is only one player left in each group. At that juncture, the players are all brought together for a final round of play. The tournament continues until there is only one player left standing, the player who will have all of the poker chips.

Rebuy Tournaments

Online rebuy poker tournaments are rather different from elimination play. In an online rebuy poker tournament, players do start off with the same amount of chips. However, during an initial period of the tournament, players who do lose their chips have the option of "rebuying" their chips to continue in the tournament.

Online poker experts believe that rebuy tournaments tend to begin far more aggressively than elimination tournaments. Players in a rebuy tournament do not risk elimination early on in the competition because they have the ability to rebuy their chips and carry forth.

In many instances, an online rebuy poker tournament will end up with a larger pot at the end of the competition because players contribute more money through the rebuy process early on in the tournament.

Satellite Tournaments

Online satellite poker tournaments are becoming more and more common as a larger number of people have taken to playing online poker. A satellite tournament is rather like a preliminary tournament in a larger poker competition.

In a satellite tournament, a group of players compete against each other, the winner advancing onward to the main event, to a larger poker tournament.

In many instances, the prize awarded in a satellite tournament is a paid entry fee to the next level of competition.

Selecting a Tournament that is Right for You

When it comes to selecting an online poker tournament that is right for you, there are a number of factors that you should consider.

First, you need to make an honest assessment of your skill level. There are a wide array of different types of tournaments geared towards people of different skill levels. It is not recommended that you enter into a tournament with people who are far more advanced in your level of play that you are at a given point in time. The process for you of participating in a tournament in which you are greatly outmatched will be very frustrating.

On the other hand, by entering into a tournament geared towards newer players will be equally frustrating. While you might have a better chance of winning, the process of getting to a tournament victory will be boring and unchallenging. In addition, the prizes awarded in such tournament usually are minimal.

By making an honest assessment of your skills, and by entering into an online poker tournament with people at a similar level, you will have an enjoyable and appropriately challenging experience.

Second, when considering entering into an online poker tournament, you need to seriously consider how much money you want to put on the line, how much money you want to pay to participate in such a tournament.

By being thoughtful about which tournament you choose to enter when it comes to online poker, you will be more satisfied with the experience -- even if you do not take home the first place prize when all is said and done.

As mentioned, each and every month, more and more people are flocking to the World Wide Web to play online poker. More and more people are entering online poker tournaments all of the time.

With the growth in online poker tournaments that are being held each and every year, you have a number of different opportunities to test your skills and to perhaps even take home a cash prize after lively competition.

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Online Poker I Bet You Will Have Fun

Online poker is popular more than ever; people from all over the world are playing poker 24 hours a day. Online poker is still comparatively new, starting in 1998 but really hitting the online industry big in 2005. The nature of online poker is fair - if you're skilled you can make money, which can be an additional pay check to help you at the end of the month, but if you're just into poker as a hobby the you can have a lot of safe fun playing poker online.

Poker Players

Poker is hot and poker players are now huge celebrities. Poker players playing online poker can range from a beginner to a professional World Series of Poker winner. Poker players now have the ability to join any online poker game at their leisure and according to their schedule of free time. Poker is the ultimate test of skill and can be very unpredictable. Poker has many variations, even though the rules of play and strategy differs, the hierarchy of winning hands remains the same.

Player Etiquette

Players are normally seated according to the order they arrive at the table. At some online poker sites players can upload pictures or images to represent themselves at the table. Whilst playing, players are allowed to take a moment to consider their actions, but are requested to do so in timely manner. Players are asked to check the Sit out Next Hand box if they need to attend to a matter away from their computer. Players that intentionally slow down play will be warned and if such behaviour continues may have their accounts suspended. Players should not endeavour to play when they are tired, upset or drunk.

Free Poker Play

Many online poker rooms also allow the players to play for low stakes (as low as 1¢) and often offer poker free rolls (where there is no entry fee), attracting beginners. Many online poker rooms also provide free money play so that players may practice these skills in various poker games and limits without the risk of losing real money. People who previously had no way to learn and improve because they had no one to play with now have the ability to learn the game much quicker and gain experience from free money play. While the practice of comping players with free meals, hotel rooms, and merchandise is quite common in brick and mortar casinos, online poker rooms have needed to develop new and exciting ways to reward faithful customers.

Rules Of Play

Once you have decided on your game of choice, you need to master the rules. This shouldn't take too long, especially if you know the basic poker rules beforehand. Once you're familiar with the rules, you need to formulate a basic poker strategy. Learning the basic rules of poker takes only several minutes and getting used to the flow of poker takes only half an hour or so. The rules are simple but don't forget that there are many poker variations available online.

Online casino poker players are no longer considered flukes when it comes to winning big money. Online poker players are definitely the new breed of poker players and they are already giving the pros a run for their money. Playing poker online is becoming a popular and acceptable pass time in many parts of the world. Playing online poker is safe as you are in the secure surroundings of you own home and you are not subjected to the dangers of common society.

Nigel is a successful webmaster and publisher of an Internet Shopping website. This site showcases, among other topics, Online Poker Rooms and Online Poker sites.

How to Choose an Online Poker Site

So, you have decided that you want to play poker Online, and your hunt for the perfect site has begun. But alas, there are literally hundreds of poker sites on the Internet. How do you discriminate between all of these available sites, to find that desired site ? There are several key criteria that you should be aware of, in your quest to find the poker site that is perfect for you. Understanding these criteria, and being able to use them as a basis for comparison, will significantly simplify your selection process:

Free Poker - If you are looking to play online poker for pure recreation, and not for money, ensure that the site you are interested in accommodates "free" players. Most online poker sites do cater to free players.

Software Download vs. Web-based - Most, if not all, online poker sites require you to download their poker client software onto your computer system to run. If you are adverse to downloading such software onto your system, then you might want to check to see if the poker site alternatively has a web-based poker interface, which allows you to play poker on the site from within your browser. Software installs run the potential risk of viruses and/or adware being loaded onto your system (although most of the reputable firms would never do that), but software installs on your computer generally run a lot faster than web-based sessions. Software installations harness the power of your local PC's CPU, whereas web-based interfaces rely on downloading any screen real estate updates over the Internet during play. This can be slow, particularly, if you are running over a slow internet connection (e.g., a dialup line). Hence, if you are after speed, select local software installations; if you are concerned about your computer's safety or cannot afford the disk space used by a software installation, select a web-based poker site.

Methods of Deposit/Withdrawal - If you are planning to play poker for money over the Internet, it is very important to consider the methods of deposit and withdrawal that a poker site supports. Many of these sites permit major credit cards to be used, which seem to be the universal deposit mechanism of choice. Others permit the use of bank transfer, ACH transfer, checks, and wire transfer from banks. Most poker sites also support some form of 3rd party eWallets, which provide an intermediary between banking institutions and the poker site itself. The main criteria to look at are: 1) What methods of deposit/withdrawal are supported by the poker site, and how many of these methods are supported by the locale that you live in ?; 2) Is it legal to fund/withdraw to/from a poker site, from the jurisdiction that you are playing in ?; 3) What are the fees associated with the 3rd party eWallet companies that you are able to use, and how reliable are they (this latter question can be researched on some of the poker message forum boards) ?

Locale Restrictions - Some poker sites restrict the playing for money (and even free play sometimes), based on your locale, and the laws governing gambling in your locale. You should check with the laws of your local jurisdiction and check with the poker site, to see if there are any imposed restrictions on play, based on your locale.

Support - You should definitely look at the methods of support that a poker site offers. Poker sites generally provide one (or more) methods of support that include: telephone support, fax support, Email support, and live chat support. The more of these that a poker site offers, the better. For telephone support, check and see if the poker site offers toll-free support from your playing jurisdiction or not.

Game Variety - Depending on your level of poker playing expertise and your interest in variety, it is important to determine which game types the poker site supports. Almost all of the sites offer Texas Holdem, but depending on your level of interest, you should check to see if they offer games like Five and Seven Card Stud, Omaha Poker (and all of its variations), Blackjack (not poker, but often included as a game option), Stud (and its variations), Draw poker, Tournament support, and limit and pot limit games. Tournaments in particular are very popular with online poker sites, and some site tournaments offer very large prize pools.

Bonuses - Most, but not all, of the poker sites offer some form of bonus to the player, when you initially sign up with the site. Each site's bonus is somewhat different, but of the one's that offer first time bonus, it is usually predicated on a minimum initial deposit. Many bonuses are also calculated based on the amount of money deposited and spent on the site. Additionally, many sites offer reload bonuses, which are bonuses that are offered to existing customers, beyond their initial deposit bonus, and as an incentive to keep you as a customer.

Graphics and Useability - This is a very important consideration. Every poker site has a different look and feel to it. If you are going to be playing poker for money, it is important that you feel comfortable with the screen graphics and your ability to navigate (via mouse or keyboard clicks) through the poker program. If you feel uncomfortable at all with the poker site, you should definitely not consider playing at it for money. You should always test a poker site out in "free" mode first, before actually considering it for real-money wagering.

Game Features - You should always consider the game features that are available with a given poker site. Game features such as hand history, multiple simultaneous playing windows, player notes, audible and visual indicators, player statistics, connection status indicator, player chat, turbo games, and screen options should always be considered.

Rake - Rake is the amount of the pot that the poker site takes (as part of its fee for doing business), from each hand. You should always be aware of how much rake a poker site takes (compared to another site). Poker sites usually use a Weighted Contribution rake method or an Average Contribution method, when calculating rake. Obviously, the lower the rake, the more money you will take home on hand wins, but this criteria by itself should not dictate which poker site you use, since all of the above factors need to be taken into consideration as well. In summary, the aforementioned criteria should always be used, when deciding which Poker site is best for you. Depending on your preferences, some of these criteria should be given more weight than others. Happy Poker site hunting !!

Douglas Hayman, President of Expert Software Systems, is a database and web engineer, who designs, develops, and hosts several informational websites, including:

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Choosing the Right Online Poker Room

Choosing an online poker room now a days is a much more difficult task then it was a just a few years ago. Online poker has grown by leaps and bounds just in the past few years and the number of rooms has grown and is growing at a rapid pace. When choosing an online poker room you should take into account at the very minimum the following: safety, quality and comfort. These are the 3 things that Gambling Guru takes into account before beginning any of our online poker leagues.

Safety

By safety it is meant as to how safe is it to move money in and out of the poker room. Take this into account first and foremost whenever trying out an online poker room. Since the industry is not heavily regulated by governing bodies and is mostly self-regulated you need to know you can trust the poker room you choose to handle your money.

For this reason it is best to stick with poker rooms that have established themselves in the industry and have built a solid player base. Poker rooms such as Paradise Poker, Absolute Poker, PokerRoom.com and Party Poker have proven to be stable online poker rooms that are going to be around for the long haul. All of these poker rooms not only have proven to be reliable, but have also not rested on their past accomplishments. Each of these poker rooms also has a 3rd party check their poker algorithm to make sure it is working properly and deals fair hands time and time again. This quality check makes sure these poker rooms remain at the industry forefront.

Quality

Quality can mean different things to different people when discussing online poker rooms. In this case it refers to a couple different things. Here it is referring to software quality. Choosing an online poker room which is satisfying visually, in game play, and in reliability is important. Most online poker rooms now offer versions of their software to download and try out playing with play money before committing to playing for real money.

Gambling Guru recommends choosing a room which is satisfying visually in order to maximize the online poker playing experience. Some rooms take extra steps to make the table seem more life like. For example poker rooms such as Pokerroom.com have added people as avatars to their tables. Other rooms such as Paradise Poker do not have people at their tables, but have added options where a player can order a drink or snack from a menu. This is something that personally keeps players entertained, however so slightly, while waiting in between hands.

Another option to balance into the equation is the quality of the game play. Make sure that the room chosen offers all of the features you need to make game play fun and easy. Decide if it is easy to follow the action going on at the table. Some rooms such as Pokerroom.com highlight the player whose turn it is to act. This seems obvious, but some rooms don't offer this option. The player must keep track of the action in the chat dialogue box. If however, you are playing multiple tables, then you may want to be able to quickly click back and forth between tables and find out where the action is visually without having to scroll through a chat box to find out.

Finally, take into account software and server reliability. This is listed third here, but may be the most important factor in choosing an online poker room. It is definitely no fun to have to be constantly disconnected from the room during play, especially when a crucial decision must be made. If you find you must battle this problem often with your online poker room it will add additional stress to the online poker experience.

Comfort

Most importantly you need to feel comfortable with the poker room you have chosen. This means you must take every element from above into consideration and decide if the online poker room you have chosen is right for you. If you don't feel comfortable with the poker room in any of the above categories then I would suggest finding a new place to play online poker. Whether you are logging on to play for poker for fun or to try to make a career out of playing online poker, you need to have confidence in the poker room to deliver your money, deliver answers to your questions quickly and accurately, and deliver an enjoyable playing experience.

Related gambling resources: Browse over to Gambling Guru to learn more about online casinos, playing poker online, sports and person-2-person betting and explore the gambling articles archives.

About the author: Alan Campbell is a journalist who writes for the Gambling Guru and other online gambling publications. He has gained experience in the entertainment and gambling industry and has a background in online marketing.