How do you get started On-line? Online Poker Rooms typically offer their games in one of two ways: Downloadable software and In-Browser (Flash or Java applets). Each format has pros and cons... Downloadable software takes time to download and install on your hard drive, but the graphics and quality of play are typically very good. Flash and Java-based programs typically offer sound and animation, but at a poorer quality. Since there is nothing to download, play can commence immediately.
Here are some other parameters you should keep in mind before selecting an online Poker room:
REPUTATION
Like any other situation where Real Money is on the line, it pays to do a bit of research before you begin. However, the number of player's currently playing should give you an idea of a card room's size and reputation.
TIME OF DAY
There's not much problem finding a game if you're based in the US and want to play early-evening, but if you're based in a different time zone or want to play before breakfast you may find even the more popular sites are fairly quiet. There are many European sites and may well have games on when the US is in bed. Poker Stars, Full Tilt and Party are the busiest online sites and have plenty of traffic 24 hours a day. To check the popularity of a site at any current time I'd recommend a visit to the excellent PokerScout.com site, which lists how many people are currently online at the major sites.
GAMES AVAILABLE
If you only want to play low/medium limit $0.50-$1 to $2-$4 Hold'em you'll be well served at most of the sites listed on Poker Paper, but if Omaha or 7 card stud are your thing then you'll have to look around more carefully. Some sites offer interesting games but have few takers, on World Sports Exchange, Razz is available but even at peak times there's rarely a table of every variety. Full Tilt has HORSE, HOSE and RAZZ, and as one of the busiest sites you'll be sure to find a game going on.
Most sites now offer pot limit and no limit as well as the traditional limit game, but the smaller sites will probably only offer these betting forms in Hold'em.
STAKES
Most sites offer Micro-Limit games such as $0.02/$0.04. But some sites seem to attract players to higher or lower stakes of games, high rollers may find themselves well catered for on WSEX or PokerNexus where games with stakes as high as $50/$100 are regularly played. WSEX has upped the stakes to $200/$400.
All sites have play money tables but unless you still don't know whether a pair of 3s is worth playing with 5 over cards on the board, it is suggested that you learn more in the real money micro-limit games. It might only be loose change you're playing for but it is real money, and you'll notice some difference in the seriousness of the game. However well you feel you're playing in a play money game you'll find many other players making plays they wouldn't dream of in a real cash game.
If you don't yet feel ready to deposit real money in an online poker site it may be a good idea to play in a Freeroll tournament. Sometimes these have cash prizes so players are taking them semi-seriously, and if you play well and win you may find you've got some real money to start you off on the real cash tables.
Another way to learn the game is at any of the Poker School's online. There are no real cash games but the students are keen to protect their online 'play money' bankroll and ranking points are given for the best players.
TOURNAMENTS
Most sites now offer some form of tournament poker along side their ring games. A great deal of these tournaments are well into the Hundreds of Thousands of dollars with 10,000 entrants or more. Check each site for the style of tournament that you might be interested in joining.
The other form of online contest is the single table tourney, sometimes called a 'sit and go' tournament. These run all day on many sites, the game will begin when ten or less players have filled a tournament table. Prizes are awarded to the top three finishers with the winner taking 50% of the prize pool, 2nd taking 30% and 3rd 20%.
There are quite a few sites that offer Add-ons and Re-buys in their tournament play. This can help both your level of experience as well as your probability of coming home with some money.
VALUE FOR MONEY
Online poker rooms make money by taking a rake, a percentage of every pot, usually around 5%. For tournaments they make money by charging a flat fee (buy-in) when you enter a tournament (usually $1 for a $10 buy-in tourney.)
PROMOTIONS
Many players have opened an online poker account at a particular site solely because of a good promotion - the most common promotion is a deposit bonus (most sites offer upwards of 100%). This 'free money' is not credited to your account immediately however, you'll need to play a certain amount of raked hands before you qualify for your prize. Obviously you should check that the site has games you're going to want to play before you commit your money to it.
New sites tend to offer the best promotions as they need to attract new players in a crowded marketplace. These offers never last long however, when the site's established it won't need to pay you to play there.
However generous the 'free money' is you do need to be wary of putting your money into sites with little or no reputation, new sites can sometimes be slow and unreliable when you try to cash out.
Reward point schemes are a common promotion at established sites. The more you play the more points you get. These points are often 'spent' on freeroll tournaments with big prizes so may only benefit you if you're a good tourney player. Reward Points are more of a bonus for playing at a site rather than an incentive to make you join.
DEPOSIT OPTIONS
Most sites have similar deposit options but check how much you're going to be charged for a deposit. Some sites waive the credit card fee or credit it back to you based on your play. A much better solution is to use what is known as a "digital wallet." If you've ever used PayPal or NETeller, then you know exactly how this works.
SOFT GAMES / HARD GAMES
Some people have called game selection, or table selection, the most important of all poker skills. It's obvious that a good poker player will make more playing on a table of poor players rather than pitting his wits against players of equal skill.
So if you're just starting out in your online poker career, and so much of a fish that you don't even know what a fish is! (A beginner player) it may be wise to steer clear of sites with a reputation for tough games. Long established and extremely busy sites seems to attract the strongest and most experienced players. Games at sites such as Ladbrokes and WSEX seem to attract the novice poker player and those who like a gamble.
Useful figures to look at in the lobby area of a site is average pot and plrs/flop (in Hold'em obviously) Poker Paper reviews list which sites display these useful 'facts and figures' .
At sites such as Poker Stars (where everyone's read their poker books and know they should fold A3os) the number of players seeing the flop (Plr/Flop ratio) in a $2/$4 game might be 25% and the average pot could be around $20. In a 'soft' or 'loose' game at a smaller site there could be 50% of the players seeing the flop making for a juicy average pot of $40. It's obvious why many online poker pros seek out these 'easy to beat' games rather than making a living earning 3 Big bets an hour at a tougher site.
Soft games at $1/$2 or $2/$4 levels may be relatively easy to find but when the stakes get more serious the players are likely to be more skilled. A clever high stakes player may find he has more of an edge at a site like Party Poker where he can make moves on weaker 'by the book' players. You may find you can steal a pot or two from the players playing above their means. Who says you can't bluff at limit poker!
SOFTWARE
What determines 'good' or 'bad' software seems to be personal taste. Some software has clever graphical representations of the players, and maybe flashing lights and music when you win a pot, others keep it very simple. All the software I've tried recently has been very user friendly - not like the bad old days with clunky images and ugly colour schemes. A good tip when you're playing any new game is to start at low stakes or play money, just until you get used to where all the buttons are and can adjust the options to suit you.
SECURITY
All the sites listed here on Poker Paper are either long established popular sites or have good backing from major online businesses. C ollusion is something to be wary of, particularly at high stakes (online colluders are hardly going to bother with a $1-$2 game if they could be cheating a $10-$20) and if you're in any way suspicious report it. Online poker sites have their good names to protect and will investigate any players they suspect are cheating.
EXTRA FEATURES
Most cardrooms will offer the following features...
- Player notes - to keep track of your opponents. Most sites (WSEX, Pokerstars, Party etc) store your notes and you only need to click on your opponents name to reveal your thoughts on him/her from the last time you played.
- Statistics - most collect statistics from your session of play to provide you with details such as how many times you saw the flop, hands won at showdown etc.
- Multiple Tables - Most sites will let you play on two or more tables at once. If you are interested in multi-tabling, make sure you read the sites feature list before you start.
- Live Customer Support - Some sites have toll free customer support or live chat with 24 hour customer support staff. However don't expect every problem to be sorted out on the spot, it's common for the live help to tell you they'll 'look into' a problem and then send you an e-mail about it.
