Tuesday, April 20, 2010

Internet Based Casinos V. Las Vegas

When most people think of gambling, they think of going to Vegas. But today you can play online casino games from the comfort of your own home, office, or anywhere your laptop can travel. And the cool thing is, an online casino lets you play with imaginary money instead of cash, so you don't have to risk losing the shirt off your back!

In Las Vegas, Nevada, you don't get second chances and you don't get time to practice. Your money is on the line and at risk from the moment you start to play. With online casinos, you can participate in all the games using play money so nothing is at risk. Then, when you feel confident, you can put real money into an account and start making real bets if you desire.

Just like in Vegas, there are lots of different casino games to choose from when you play online. You can play craps, the slots, blackjack, Texas hold' em, and many other games-all from the comfort of your own chair. You have zero travel expenses and you can play whenever you want-at any time of day. And you can bet real money or just have fun and play with the casino's play money.

Online casinos sometimes give out freerolls for real money, too. There will probably be lots of players at the beginning, but if you're good at poker, you could win and end up with seats for the high money games or get actual cash put into your account-not play money.

At an online casino, players typically make a natural progression from playing with imaginary money to trying out the freerolls and then actually betting real currency. This is a nice advantage over Vegas. With online casino games, you can also sometimes take advantage of opportunities to play and win cash without a financial investment at all. That's another feature you won't find in Vegas.

It's not unheard of these days for people to learn how to play poker entirely online. They start out at the online casino games and keep getting better and better. Sometimes they will travel to Vegas to take a seat at a high stakes tournament if they win a seat at such a game, but often that experience is the poker player's very first time in a real Vegas casino.

Anyone who has ever wanted to learn to play gambling games like poker can find out everything they need to know at one of the many online casino sites. There you'll find instructions, tutorials, and lots of opportunities to practice without risking any real cash-like you would in Las Vegas.

Still, many people dream of playing at the real casinos in Vegas, and if you're a big poker player, it's something you'll want to try at least once in your life. It's hard to compare anything to the noise of all the machines going and the palpable excitement in the air. A few things are different, though. For instance, you'll need to know when and which chips to put on the table in Vegas, versus having the online casino tallying things for you.

Online casino games are a great prerequisite to a visit to Vegas. There are lots of advantages to learning online and then taking your trip of a lifetime when you have some experience under your belt!

Thursday, April 15, 2010

Roulette, Poker, Cards Among Most Popular Casino Games

Millions of people daily seek out the thrill and cash return of gambling. Thanks to the Internet, people can play anywhere at anytime using their computers. Online casino gambling sites, however, mimic the games and thrills that occur in physical casinos around the world.

The most popular games have included games of pure chance, such as roulette and Keno. Roulette involves betting on which number a small ball will hand on after it rolls around a spinning wheel. There are two versions of Roulette, European and American. The difference is that American roulette has an additional number, 00, which increases the odds of losing from one in 37 to one in 38. (Gambling probabilities are always expressed in the likelihood of losing, not winning). A one-point difference may be small, but it vastly affects the chances of losing at this popular game, even with the most effective betting strategy.

Card games are among the most popular casino games. Two among these high-stakes games are Blackjack and a variation of Poker known as Texas Hold 'Em.

The object of Blackjack is to gain a hand of cards totaling 21, or the highest total among all the players in the game, including the dealer. Numerical values are assigned to each card, with an automatic win being that of a Jack and an Ace. The Jack is worth 10 and the Ace can be worth either 1 or 11, meaning that in this combination it's worth 11 points to win the game.

Arcane strategies have long been employed to win at Blackjack, which has a very low probability of winning. In addition to basic strategy, such as not taking more cards or "standing" on certain card combinations, some veterans have gone to the trouble to learn various methods of "card counting" in order to estimate their chances of winning by the number of cards remaining in play. Casinos view card counting as cheating, so when it's used, players do so without calling attention to it.

Texas Hold 'Em Poker has become one of the most popular casino games ever, thanks to televised tournaments and promotion by casinos themselves. The object of this game is to build the best five-card hand possible using each player's two "pocket" or "hole" cards dealt face down and the five cards laid out face up on the table, or board.

The key to winning this game is the player's ability to "bluff" or trick other opponents into thinking he or she has a winning hand, whether that's true or not. Thus the game involves a high level of psychological skill as while as betting strategy and knowledge of the hierarchy of winning hands in Poker.

Wednesday, April 7, 2010

Hot Tips For Playing The Online Casino Slot Machine Well

If you're all about the thrill of gaming now and then, but you don't always have the spare cash and the time to take off and head out to Atlantic City, Reno or Vegas, then an online casino slot machine may be the next best thing for you. Of course, if you really want to enjoy the experience, then there are a handful of things you need to keep in mind, and here they are...

Play Smart

The last thing you want to do while gambling is to just keep spending and spending. Rather, what you want to do is set yourself a budget. Look into your account and look at how much you can safely spend. Allocate that money towards playing the slots, and do not spend a dollar more. Next time you have some spare cash, you can play again, but do not spend more than your budget per visit to the slots. It's online, but it's real gambling, and it's something you have to play as a game, not as an investment. There's no guarantee of making any money back when you play the slots, so don't expect anything but a good time.

Play For Fun

This is really the very most important part. Play just for fun. Again, don't expect to make any money. Rather, think of the money you spend on the slots as being the money you pay for a right to play the game. You have to play for the thrill, the risk of the game, not because you think it's a smart investment. Gambling really is a whole lot of fun, but if you don't recognize that fact, then you won't enjoy yourself. Yeah, you might hit the jackpot, but you need to go in with the right mentality so that, even if you don't win big, you'll still, at the very least, have had a lot of fun while playing.

Count Your Chips

Define fun for yourself. Let's say you hit the jackpot, now it's up to you whether you want to keep playing with the money you made, or if you want to cash out and have a little extra money in your pocket to go have a nice steak dinner or buy some gifts for friends. It's up to you. If you really love gaming, then there's no risk in taking the money you won and putting it back into a few more rounds. But if you like the idea of winning money, it's best to quit while you're ahead and pocket your winnings when you hit it big.