Why Is Poker Emotional?

Friday, October 30th, 2009

Poker is played at casinos in an atmosphere of prestige and excitement. But the professional poker player must not be affected by those elements or his concentration may be compromised, and at the poker table, you better not be compromised.

Poker is one of the most interesting and intense casino games, because of the human factor. The element that makes poker a “people game” is the emotional factor which is in the gaming lingo also known as the “poker face”.

The “poker face” term is used in many other areas of life, but its origin is from the poker table, where players do their best not to reveal the quality of their hands. The strength of one’s hand can be revealed by its emotions which are displayed by allegedly simple physical reactions such as: facial expression, rapid hands movement and perspiring.

Naturally, people have different reactions to similar situations, but the mood needed to be determined at a poker table is extremely basic: does the player have a strong hand or not. One can check such definations and scenarios at an online gambling portal or through one of the books that have been written on the subject, but when a person knows the answer to that, he is definitely on the right track.

What we have established so far is that the first emotional capability is to hide your real emotions at the table. Now we get to the second emotional capability which is emotional sensitivity. It is not enough to be able to hide your own emotion, it is also necessary to learn how to read your opponent’s emotions as well.

There is no such thing as a strong hand or a week hand, but a relatively strong and relatively week. The history of professional poker showed that in some cases you can win the game with a pair, as long as your opponents believe you have a strong hand. The game is not determined by your hand but by what the other player think of it.

I do not think anyone can be a good poker player because it is very emotionally demanding and requires a basic quality that either you have it or not. But even this quality need to be developed and stretched far as possible. The key to improving your emotional skills is, like everything else, hidden in practice and lots of it.

Nobody is born a good poker player, but a person can certainly become one, after a great deal of practice. But how to know when have done enough? That is easy-you can never practice enough.

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The Brain Games: How Videos Games Can Make You Smart

Wednesday, October 28th, 2009

Video games have been getting a bad rap. Sure, a few involve nothing more than pointing several deadly weapons at the Undead and blasting them into a bajillion pieces. And there are cases of people wasting otherwise productive hours conquering a virtual kingdom and accumulating pixelized gold instead of going out and getting a real job.

But there are many, many times when video games actually provide a noble purpose in society. When they make you a better person. Or at least, a smarter person.

Because there are video games that are actually built on logic and reasoning, and involve complex problem solving that you can take with you even after you’ve walked away from the computer screen.

Take Tetris. Okay, so it’s a couple of colored blocks set against a metallic, monotonous sound track – but it takes some degree of analysis and quick thinking to assess the shape of the pieces dropping from the top of the screen and deciding where to put it. Factor in that the game speeds up periodically, and the pile of blocks grows with every mistake you make, until you reach a point when one wrong move can kill your chances of breaking the world record—and your brain starts working pretty fast. Faster, in fact, than you would normally use it in the course of the day; admit it, most of the stuff you do at the office is pretty mind numbing, anyway. Between sharpening pencils and performing lightning-fast spatial analysis exercises, Tetris looks like it’s actually good for you.

And then there are the memory games. Ever spent 20 minutes looking for your keys? Or stood at the center of the parking lot, trying to remember if you parked on the same floor? Well, memory games can work that brain muscle so you don’t forget the important stuff (and yes, that includes your wedding anniversary). Studies show that memory isn’t really a function of IQ; it’s a skill: the ability to organize information in your brain, and then retrieve it through a series of memory-triggers. Not all of this is conscious (although you can take active steps to improve memory by researching on what methods you can use). But like all skills, it improves with use. Hence, memory games. The best part about memory games is that they’re actually fun (as opposed to simply memorizing a list of the capitals of each state, or the periodic table of elements) and even relaxing. Yes, relaxing. You’re doing something you love and getting smarter at the same time. Not a bad way to spend a 20 minute break between meetings.

And then there are the strategy games. Conquering the world, running a city, shaping an empire from a handful of barbarian villages to being the first country to set up a space station on Mars—obviously, these aren’t just random point and shoot games. They’re about the same skills you learn in business school, but with cooler graphics: how to manage resources, motivate people, and set goals.

So yes, video games can make you smart. Tell that to Mom next time she tells you to hit the books.

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What Are The Different Versions Of Draw Poker?

Wednesday, October 28th, 2009

In a draw poker a full hand that is required for the game is dealt face down. An ante is required in most cases before the players see their cards. After seeing their cards, the players have the option of discarding some cards that is not useful and can have them replaced by a draw or re-dealing. A betting round follows the replacement and a showdown occurs. This is the general picture of draw poker.

There are several types of draws in a draw poker which are:-
• Flush draw poker
• Straight draw poker
• Back door draw poker

What is a flush draw poker game?
• When a draw is required to complete a flush then the draw is termed as flush draw poker.
• If there is a straight sequence of numbers in the same suit with just requiring another favorable draw to complete the straight it is called straight flush draw. A-K-Q-J-T of the same suit is the highest of the straight flush also called as royal flush and A-2-3-4-5 is the lowest.

What is straight draw poker game?
• If there is a straight sequence of numbers with requiring another favorable draw to complete the straight it is called straight draw.
• An outside straight draw refers to requiring a card to complete the straight in the beginning or the ending tail. X-7-8-9-T or 6-7-8-9-X
• An inside straight draw refers to requiring a card to complete the straight with filling in an inner void. 6-7-X-9-T. A double inside straight draw refers to requiring two cards to complete the straight with two voids 6-X-8-X-10

What is back door draw poker game?
• If a card requires two unseen cards (out) to conclude to win then it is called back door draw. It is very difficult to get back door draws with just picking two cards! It is a matter of luck to win with such draws.

There are several different kinds of draw poker with the most famous being the five stud draw poker. One good strategy with playing draw poker would be to fold in the first round if you do not have any kind of pair, partial flush, or chances for straight. Winning a hand with draw without anything fruitful in the first deal is quite near to impossible. The first deal should tell you how good or bad your chances with winning are.
Iain Clark has been playing draw poker for years and has recently decided to start posting articles and tips on his

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Video Games Can Be Good For You

Tuesday, October 27th, 2009

Millions of Americans enjoy video games-for the adrenaline rush, the companionship, the competition, and the chance to become a conquering adventurer, at least in a virtual world.

The good news is Americans don’t have to break the bank to play the video games they love. Turner Broadcasting System’s GameTap is one of the latest and greatest options for consumers to get their game on and experience all the good things about games. The first of its kind broadband entertainment network, GameTap (www.gametap.com) offers hundreds of the greatest games across multiple platforms for an affordable $14.95 per month.

“Turner created GameTap because they wanted gamers to have a wide variety of games-a virtual vault-that allows them to experience all types of thrills including role-playing, action, and puzzle games,” says Stuart Snyder, General Manager of GameTap.

But in addition to being fun, can playing these games really promote self-improvement? Hold on to your controllers: some researchers and social critics are now arguing that video gaming has its virtues. It can speed reflexes, improve mental abilities and even reduce violence. While nobody is arguing for a 24-hour diet of video games, many observers now see some hidden values.

Consider research done at the University of Rochester in New York, which concluded that young adults who frequently played video games can improve their “video attention.” In one experiment, for example, test subjects were asked to quickly figure out whether or not a certain shape-a square or a diamond-appeared within one of the six rings. Video gamers came out on top. The researchers said that video games force players to simultaneously juggle a variety tasks, such as detecting and tracking enemies, and avoiding getting hurt. Those game-playing skills can translate into more general visual skills that apply to everyday life.

“We sometimes think of popular culture as a passive recreation, but there’s nothing passive about video games-they are the most interactive, demanding entertainment medium ever created,” said Snyder. “If the GameTap staff of overachievers is any indication, video games are a great way to learn how to think on your feet.”

Simulation games, where players design everything from roller coasters to cities, can get kids interested in mechanical engineering and urban planning. Wrote author Steven Johnson: “My nephew would be asleep in five seconds if you popped him down in an urban studies classroom, but somehow an hour of playing ‘Sim City’ taught him that high tax rates in industrial areas can stifle development.”

Johnson, the author of “Everything Bad Is Good For You: How Today’s Popular Culture Is Actually Making Us Smarter,” has become a prominent defender of video games. He has also entered the controversy over whether video games promote aggression, arguing that crime among teens and adolescents has dropped by almost two-thirds since 1975. Whether video games can take credit is a matter of strong debate, but Johnson suggests that video games may act as a safety valve.

Video games may even have therapeutic value. Mark Griffiths, a professor at Nottingham Trent University in England, argues that video games can help distract children undergoing chemotherapy and treatment for sickle cell anemia. The games may also work as physical therapy for arm injuries.

Like many researchers, Griffiths advocates moderation in game play. GameTap’s Snyder agrees. “At GameTap, we love games, we’re immersed in them, and we’ve got hundreds to choose from. But we also know the importance of putting the controller down. A virtual world can be fun, but there’s no substitute for the real thing.”

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The Good Old Arcade Game: History And Development

Tuesday, October 27th, 2009

Gaming is already a part of our lifestyle. Starting in childhood, once we see moving images of gaming characters, we have the curiosity to try controlling it. It lasts until our teenage and adult years; we consider gaming as one of the entertainment alternatives when we are feeling bored.

Different genres of games are starting to pop up such as online strategy and role-playing games. But do you still remember the good old arcade games? That Pac-man eating yellow dots and Mario and Luigi consuming mushrooms and flowers to rescue the princess from King Koopa? These games are considered to be the ancestors of the games that you play today on your computer or videogame station.

History Reminisced

Old arcade games started after World War II, after Ralph Bauer invented the perception of creating an electronic game system to the television screen during the early 1950’s. When he presented his ideas to Magnavox, a television company during that time, it was approved and resulted in the release of a refined version of Bauer’s Brown Box prototype, which is known as the Magnavox Odyssey in 1972.

It displays only spots of light on the computer screen and it requires the use of translucent plastic overlays to reproduce the appearance of the game. In other words, this gaming version is prehistoric compared to present gaming standards.

The first gaming console system that was invented is known as the Atari 2600, which was released in 1977. It used plug-in cartridges in order to play different games.

After the release of Atari 2600, old arcade games started their Golden Age in the gaming industry. This is considered to be the era when the popularity of such games increased drastically. It began in the late 1979 when the first colored arcade game appeared.

Old arcade games started to gain their momentum in the gaming industry during the release of the following:

• Gee Bee and Space Invaders in 1978
• Galaxian in 1979
• Pac-man, King and Balloon, Tank Battalion, and others in 1980

During this era, arcade game developers began experimenting with new hardware, developing games, which used the lines of vector displays as opposed to the standard raster displays. Few arcade games derived from these principle, which became a hit including the Battlezone (1980) and the Star Wars (1983), which are all from Atari.

After the vector displays, arcade game developers were experimenting with the laser-disc players for delivering animations like in the movies. The first attempt is the Dragon Lair (1983) by Cinematronics. It became a sensation when it was released (there are instances that the laser-disc players in many machines malfunctioned due to overuse).

New controls were also cropped up in few games, although joysticks and buttons are still the arcade game standard controls. Atari released the Football in 1978 which used the trackball. The Spy Hunter introduced a steering wheel with resemblance to an actual one, and the Hogan’s alley made use of tethered light guns.

Other specialty controls like the pedals in racing games and a crossbow-shaped gun in Crossbow were also developed in this era.

Now, with the enthusiasm of modern game developers, they tried to revive this old arcade games by means of enhancing its graphics and producing newer versions. This manifestation only shows that good old arcade games are still a great alternative to modern computer games.

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