The Basics of Online Poker

Pennsylvania recently regulated online poker, making it the fourth state to do so. Michigan has also recently passed legislation authorizing online poker, although the virtual hands have not yet been dealt. In the next few years, more states are expected to follow suit. Until then, it will be a matter of waiting and seeing. But in the meantime, here are some of the main factors that should be kept in mind before you decide to play online poker. It is important to note that legalizing online poker is still a long way off, but the first steps have been taken.

The first step in playing online poker is to download poker software. This will require a small amount of memory and shouldn’t take too long to download, even on archaic connections. If you don’t want to download the poker software, you can play no-download versions of the game at any online poker site. These games don’t offer the same features as the full download version. Hence, it’s important to download the software only if you’re a serious player and have the time to download it.

In case of a violation of rules, online poker sites generally refund their players. However, they rarely spell out what kind of cheating was committed, but they often refer to the problem as a “bot ring” or collusion. While this may seem like a trivial concern, it is nonetheless important to consider the potential for scams. With the fast pace of online poker, players often play ten times more hands than they would in live poker, so the odds are heavily stacked against them.