3 October 2008 - 2:44Couple of Common Mistakes in Blackjack

Mistake: The most common blunder beginners make is to stand on their stiff hands (12,13,14,15, and 16). Players are naturally afraid to hit these hands because every one of them could bust (make a total of 22 or more) with a single hit. But when the dealer has a high card (7, 8, 9,10, or ace) showing, your best odds of winning come from hitting and giving yourself a good chance of making a better total.

Mistake: Some beginners think the best strategy to play is to play the same way the dealer plays: Hit all sixteens and stand on all seventeens. This is not true. The object of the game is not to make a hand as close to 21 as possible, but to beat the dealer. Often the best way to do this is to stand with a low total, sometimes as low as 12.

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3 October 2008 - 1:23Early blackjack counting systems development

During the mid 70th, Dr. Keith Taft constructed the first in the history blackjack computer that must serve its owner in playing profitable blackjack. He went on to develop dozens of concealable computers and other electronic devices over the next two decades, ever smaller and more powerful. By the mid-’70s, Keith and his son, Marty, had met Al Francesco, and they would be putting together teams of players using computers to beat the blackjack tables.

Here’s how this blackjack computer worked

This computer communicated its decisions to the player with buzzes and taps on the sole of the player’s foot. It was not easy to use one of these devices. It essentially entailed learning to “type” with your big toes. Even once you had memorized the codes, inputting them via the toe switches was a chore. It took weeks or even months of practice to get to the point where you could use the device at casino-dealing speed without foot cramps stopping you.

In the toe of each shoe there were two “switches”, or buttons - one above each big toe and one beneath - for a total of four switches. Each of them conveyed a different code to the computer, which was a small epoxy-encased device that was strapped to the calf beneath the trousers. The computer itself was about the size of a pack of cigarettes, but thinner. By using a series of toe taps, kind of like Morse code, the player could relay to the computer everything it needed to know in order to make a decision in a blackjack game: which cards had already been dealt, what cards the player held, and the dealer’s upcard.

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23 September 2008 - 3:09Without Variety in their Online Casino, Folks decrease their Odds!

How does one settle on the casino game that is right for them? The answer is very easy: go with what you know, grow with what you like. If you find yourself browsing, looking for the best in casinos online and you find one that you like, go for it. If you enjoy the casino games offered and what to try them out, why not? Usually folks find a game they initially like and then they continue to play it until the end of their lifes. However, being that playing these online casino sites is really one big game of chance and odds, it would be safe to say that by trying your luck at more games, you are increasing your odds all the way around, right? Most importantly, if the site offers a variety of the game that you like plus provide you with the other famous casino games you want to try out, you should definitely get in on the action. So be smart when you find the online casino that’s right for you. Find one that offers more games, more odds, nice payouts, and amazing software to work with. This will leave you feeling like you are playing smart, increasing the odds that you will be back to patronize that particular gambling site.

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22 September 2008 - 2:27Read All About It! The RGN for Slots Machines are Real and Efficient!

Some people are too naive. They think that playing slots can be a game made solely for losers; one that is connected to nothing at all, and requires no skills or techniques in order to win. These people are obviously foolish and ignorant to the fact that slots are a game that requires a familiarity with the game and that is very much so a well-oiled machine, protected in order to provide players with the most efficient game of chance available!
Operated by RNG, Slots machines are always maintained to generate random numbers regularly. This makes players like you are getting the best in the game. Also, you do have to require a familiarity with the game so that you can play correctly and leave happy, knowing that there was nothing you could have done to sway the outcome. But you must always remember that no matter which way you will play, you can’t win anything. This is a practice style game. When you do bet real money, you should always try to go for max bet, especially if these are progressive slots. This would mean that your huge payout, if you do win, will be huge! Now, this is something that you should know if you choose to play slots. Or you can remain uninformed about the game and walk away with less than you could have potentially walked away with.

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16 September 2008 - 4:49Don’t Be a Nobody without money; Be Somebody with Slots Online

Some people think that slots aren’t a game that you can’t control over; this game only allow the best player to win. Those people, though, would be wrong. Slots are a game that offers the ultimate in the “trying your luck” experience. You could literally be anyone, walking around, with nothing to do. You even can have nothing in your pockets but still have a chance. Chances are you could find yourself spending that change in a slot machine, trying your luck. If your luck shines on you in that moment, at that slot machine, you may find that you win a generous amount of money. When you decide to play slots, you are giving away total control to the fates. And if you are lucky, you can have a life-changing experience. The properties for slots have grown and are now endless. You can play free slots online and try your hand at luck from the comfort of your own home. Don’t mistake luck for dumb-luck, though. You should know that you can play the best slots slots around at the right places. Slots online is one of the places where you can find the games best suited for your skill level and your lucky day!

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10 September 2008 - 9:29River Belle Casino expands its list of games

There are some ultimate changes that happened in casino business this month. This is one of the offshore online casinos. It’s currently based in Africa but, with its tax haven status ending in the near future, it will be interesting to see if the River Belle stays put or sails off to one of the remaining havens. So this month sees three more games added. They’re the usual mix of slots and video poker games which add a few more twists and turns to the playing experience. Perhaps this is the way to succeed in business. If people get too bored with the same run of games and slow down (or, even, stop playing), they need to be given novelty to reignite their enthusiasm. So, all the standart games were repackaged. This time, there’s both a science-fiction-themed and a fantasy-themed 5-reel, 20-playline slot with doubling and quadrupling gambling options, plus a revamp of Jacks or Better Level-Up Poker, where prizes increase as you work your way up through the four levels. If you think your life will be richer for another video game of poker, try this new game at the River Belle.

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1 September 2008 - 10:25How Twenty-One Became Blackjack

It’s a long story. John Scarne, (New Complete Guide to Gambling, 1961, Simon & Schuster), puts the year when this curious rule first appeared at 1912, when twenty-one tables appeared in horse-betting parlors in Evanston, Illinois. By 1919a Chicago gambling equipment distributor was selling felt table layouts embla-zoned with the announcement: “Blackjack Pays Odds of 3 to 2.” I believe Epstein’s information is taken from Scarne, and Scarne states that he discovered the origins of blackjack in America as a result of his private discussions with old-time gamblers, not from any published texts that can be looked up today.

I am skeptical of much of what people has written about blackjack, so I’ll quote from Mickey MacDougall’s MacDougall on Dice and Cards (Coward-McCann, 1944, NY), which was published prior to any of Scarne’s books: “Many professionals dress up the game by giving prizes for certain hands. A favorite stunt is to offer ten times the size of the wager to anyone holding a natural twenty-one with a blackjack. This adds interest to the game, but it also tempts a player to increase his stakes.”

That curious bonus payout that gave blackjack its name, however, has long since disappeared. There may be some casino somewhere that pays a small bonus if a player is dealt a natural 21 which includes a jack of spades or clubs, but that is no longer a normal rule of the game. Today, a blackjack is simply any initial two cards that consist of an ace and any ten-valued card.

That’s when another author dropped another bombshell. Under the auspices of their Vintage Paperback division, Random House published a revised and expanded edition of Beat the Dealer. And the most important addition was Harvey Dubner’s Hi-Lo counting system, which Thorp called the Complete Point Count, with a computer-optimized strategy devised by Julian Braun. To the casinos’ frustration, this was a system that could more easily be applied to multiple-deck games.

In an honestly dealt single-deck game, this gimmick bonus would give the player a substantial edge over the house, assuming the player knew basic strategy (an unlikely assumption). I would also assume that a gambling house that offered this bonus would be using any number of illegitimate methods to assure the house a healthy edge.

He was keeping the casinos on the run.

Still, the casino’s fears were mostly unfounded. The Complete Point Count was easier to use than the ten-count, but it was not a lot easier. It required players to keep two separate counts. In addition to the running count of the cards’ point total, the player had to keep a count of the exact number of cards remaining to be played. And in order to play his hand, he had to memorize a chart of 158 different strategy changes to be made.

Thorp also included a Simple Point Count in this new edition of his book, but at the time that strategy seemed way too simple to most players to gain much of an edge, or to be taken seriously by players who wanted to beat the game. Later, the power of Thorp’s simpler method of adjusting the running count, without keeping a separate count of the exact number of cards played, would be shown.

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1 September 2008 - 3:34Should there be laws to regulate online gambling?

A lot of thinking people in USA think that there must be a laws to regulate online gambling. The reason for this shift is the series of scandals currently roiling the world of online poker. The most positive demand for federal regulation has come through the Poker Players Alliance (see http://pokerplayersalliance.org/press-releases/2008/07/22/press-release-statement-of-ppa-chairman-senator-alfonse-damato-in-response-to-online-poker-cheating-scandals/). The gory details of these scandals and all the allegations are too much to deal with here, so I’ll just focus on this press release. When there are allegations of cheating in real world events, local regulators and, if appropriate, law enforcement officers will investigate and report. The process is reasonably transparent and people are usually held accountable for breaking the rules or the relevant laws. When cheating may have occurred on the internet, there are serious problems of jurisdiction. Who exactly has the power to investigate and what powers of sanction does the investigator have? Casino ownera argue with force that public trust can only be maintained if the same level of transparency applies to both real world and online gambling. So, if anyone, whether manager, organiser or player is to be put at risk of punishment, what is due process? What court or tribunal can decide whether there is sufficient evidence of wrongdoing and make a proportionate response? If this continues, it is left to regulatory authorities in the country where the company running the internet site has its registered office. There is very little transparency with few details of the investigations or their findings ever made public. In the history of the internet, there have been no prosecutions or formal judicial sanctions applied to any company or individual running online gambling. The U.S. Government does not have extraterritorial jurisdiction to go and investigate a company in a foreign state. Its only sanction is to bar access to the site which is a sledgehammer to crack a nut.Players are therefore left with the quite natural feeling that there is no effective regulation. But the desire for federal intervention is not likely to meet with any new laws.

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21 August 2008 - 9:29Can it be better to gamble online?

When I was young, so many years ago I can hardly remember, gambling was so much easier. You either got in your car or on an airplane, and went where people were playing casino games for real money, or you asked around and found out where the floating games were for that night. I guess when I was starting out, the illegal kind was always more exciting until you got to know everyone then it was down to a routine.

Then along came the internet with a whole lot more freedom. Although when you look around today there is a whole new bunch of casinos opening up, nothing really beats the convenience of sitting at home and playing your way through games in comfort. Yet, there is a “crackdown”. The US has been legislating. This has produced international litigation with Antigua taking action against the US. This is more action than you see in some casinos.

I suppose some of the motivation for regulation is the sense that online gaming is not regulated. Go into any real world casino, and you should always be “safe” except from your own gambling habit, of course. There are security cameras everywhere making sure no-one is going to cheat you. Regulators check the slots to make sure they are all working properly. Once you are online, there are no external eyes looking after you. You have to protect yourself. Except you do not know who the company is behind the online casino.

So why should anyone want to play online? All you have are a few animated versions of the casino games that lack any sense of physical involvement. Worse, some of the games just are not the same. For example, thanks to the random number generator, counting the cards in online blackjack is a waste of time.

But because the overheads for running an online casino are significantly less than the real world equivalents (paying salaries to all those countless people is not required), the online payout schedules are more generous. Online operators can afford to return more of the stake money to the players and still make a good profit. This means you get better odds on the slots and at the roulette table than you would in the real world. But even more importantly, once you are online, you can switch games at the click of a mouse. You no longer have to wait on other players or croupiers. There is always another game ready to play. Because you do not have people looking over your shoulder (and judging you), you have more freedom to learn new games or try out different strategies without people getting impatient with you. And finally, you can get free money. In the real world, you can get drinks, food and, sometimes, accommodation comped. Online, the only thing the casino can give you is a credit of money.

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18 May 2008 - 11:29Joining a craps game

Sitting down at any table or slot machine that has an empty chair is acceptable, but remember these caveats when joining a game:
* Ask at a crowded table if a position is open. (For example, someone may have merely run to the restroom.) Craps doesn’t have chairs or stools, so sometimes you can’t obviously determine whether the table has room for you. If in doubt, ask the dealer closest to you or the stickman if the table has room for one more. Some blackjack tables have a sign saying No midshoe entry. At these tables, you need to wait until the shuffle before you can play.
* Some games are played in natural cycles. If the table you want to join has any big bettors, you should politely ask before jumping in mid-shoe or in the midst of a hot roll. Many players are superstitious, and if they have great runs going, they often prefer you wait. In blackjack, you hold off until the shuffle so you don’t break up the sacred order of cards. In craps, you wait until the next come-out roll.
* When you do sit down, you need to buy in (convert money to chips), unless you bring chips with you from another table. To do so, place your money on the table (but outside any betting areas) for the dealer to exchange into chips.

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