poker copilot review

i've spent enough time with poker copilot 2 now to review the product, so here we go :)

synopsis

a stand alone poker tracking and analysis program that runs on the native mac os. its currently prices at $59.99.

highlights

> hud display

> hand and opponent analysis

> hand re-player

> performance tracking

> supports cash and tournament play

> works with pokerstars and full tilt poker

software

solid software with a simple and user friendly interface. i haven't experienced any problems since downloading and installing the program and have never had any issues with hand tracking or hud performance. from my experience poker copilot is stable and effective, in other words it just works :)

features

all the basics are there and if you only use the top-line features of any hand analysis and tracking program then you won't even notice. however if you like to play around with your and others stats then you'll start to notice some omissions, some big, some small. here are a few examples;

> there is no a date range option meaning you can't analyze how you performed over the course of the month

> you cannot break out table performance both in hud and in general. its therefore hard to see how you and other players are performing on a table by table basis.

> there's no $/bb toggle against the hands that you have played, ie. i have currently lost 9054 bb playing a/k suited. what's that in $?

having said that, the features that are missing are few and far between. there is more then enough functionality in poker copilot to add value to your game.

future

here's the thing, poker tracker 3 is meant to be released on mac in the early fall of 2009. that's only a few months away. pt3 is a great program, has been used by a lot of players in the past, and will certainly set the benchmark for mac poker tracking and analysis software. what happens to poker copilot? well they have a few months to prepare and if they can up their feature set sufficiently (which i know is possible) then they will have a chance.

overall

poker copilot is a decent program for the mac and does provide us mac users with a native option. as i said previously, its a solid and effective program that undoubtedly stable. its easy to use and does the foundation work very well. if you are desperate for some mac hand analysis and tracking then you can do no wrong by purchasing this product.

seymour:cards gives poker copilot 7/10

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will obama free online poker?

while there were many regrets american citizens had about the policies of the bush administration, one of the toughest blows came to online poker players in the form of the uigea, the unlawful internet gambling enforcement act. this act made it illegal for banks in the united states to do business with online gambling sites, which spelled the end of online poker in the united states for a number of sites.

uigea and poker

online poker players were outraged, specifically feeling that it was unfair for online poker, which can be proven to have a vital skill element, to be lumped in with video poker and other online casino games that are entirely luck. this was especially grating to online poker fans when considering the fact that forms of gambling that benefit the government, such as horse racing and state lotteries, were still considered completely safe and legal.

obama’s response

many poker players whooped that obama would ride in to the rescue. as a democrat, it was hoped that he would be less morally conservative and as a poker player, it was hoped that he would recognize the merits and distinctive character of the game.

the future of online poker

it remains to be seen what will happen. it seems likely that the current question now is not “will obama free online poker?” but “when?” when the white house posted a website asking citizens to post their most important issues for consideration and for people to vote on these issues, legalizing online poker was voted the number one technology issue and the number eleven issue overall.

when will obama free online poker?

this is a new administration with much to do in the wake of the last administration’s failures with respect to the economy and other issues. obama needs to choose and time his battles carefully. however, when the time is right and the right bill is introduced into congress to restore the legality of online poker, it is almost certain that president obama will sign it. when he does, online poker players will be free to come out into the light once more, playing on their favourites sites with no fear of persecution, hopefully ever again.

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pokerstars offers $600 sign up bonus!

anyone else notice the 1200% increase in the new player bonus at pokerstars? i first spotted something strange last week on pokerstars italia where they were offering a 600 euro bonus. interested to see if that was the norm i jumped over to pokerstars.com but alas, the sign up offer still sat at a paltry $50.

then, on wednesday i noticed that my banner execution , see below right, had refreshed and was promoting a $600 offer. again i jumped over to pokerstars.com and yes, there is was in big bold letters! interestingly enough though, the banner creative switched back to the wcoop less than 24 hours later! strange!

so what does this deal signify? from my point of view its a very aggressive message to the market. pokerstars have seen huge growth without offering the same level of sign up bonus as full tilt, party and other poker rooms yet now they have entered into the financial incentive space. was new player growth slowing at pokerstars? is this a big push by them to really turn the screw on their closest competitor, namely full tilt, as their bonuses are now exactly the same?

either way it great for new players, not so great for me as i already have an account, although hopefully an influx of fish will be my return on investment.

it will also be interesting to see if and when pokerstars promote the new bonus. the banner creative changing to the bonus and then back to the wcoop could suggest two things, one that they don't want to take any attention away from a big marketing property, the wcoop. or this is only a soft offer, in which only those consumers affected by pokerstars other marketing activity will be exposed to the bonus message rather then pushing it out with heavy investment for everyone to see.

either way people, the offer is there, its good and if you don't already have a pokerstars account it is definitely worth exploring.

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