It is clear that there are differences between an online and live poker room. The majority of these differences can be easily observed and are transparent to all poker players. While playing online poker, there are many differences that are not easily visible. The most significant difference between online poker poker and live poker is how the cards are delivered.
You have great advantages when playing at a live casino. Because the integrity of the game is not in question due to the dealing, the shuffling and the “eye in the sky”, it’s almost impossible for anyone to undermine that integrity. Online poker does not offer many of these protections. Instead, a computer program performs the shuffling or dealing of cards.
To be able to cash out and build a bankroll, it is important to understand how the online poker software works. You can rest assured that the software is working correctly and you won’t be subject to any illicit attempts to cheat you by other players, the room, or even the software.
To create a shuffled card, all online poker sites employ a variant of a random generator. Although it may seem that this is sufficient, cheaters were able to exploit the game as well as other players several times over the years. They created additional poker algorithms in order to combat cheating and colluding after the cheaters were discovered on affected poker sites.
These algorithms would manage the action at the table and ensure that one player does not win every hand. This is similar to what happened in the Absolute poker scandal. A single player won almost 98% of all hands in a major poker tournament. He beat hundreds of other players. The software installed on poker sites was designed to prevent mathematically impossible wins in tournaments.
Online poker software can detect players who are colluding with other players. The program can alter the outcome of the hands to stop that player winning. The same software is capable of detecting poker bots. Software that detects a poker robot will analyze every player’s actions and compare them to determine whether the player is real or a bot.
These poker algorithms have the disadvantage of affecting a skilled player’s ability to cash consistently. Any change to the statistical outcome of poker hand is illegal cheating by a house. This is also the case if a dealer were to set the deck to allow one player to win, or force another player to lose.
How can we as poker players ensure that we play fair games and are not exposed to online poker software programs that can essentially alter the outcome? The first solution is to understand the patterns and flaws of the software. You can then adjust your game to avoid them being detected.
Paul Westin has published The Online Poker Code Crack. This book explains the software that your poker site uses and how it can affect your game.