Well roulette has met the final frontier. No not space, I mean the Internet, the final earthly frontier! Online roulette is pretty much exploding right now, as are most other casino games that have migrated into online casino software over the past five years or so. There are many reasons people try out online gambling, the most obvious one being the fact that not many people can afford to fly to Vegas as often as they might like. Bringing real gambling online has many would be Vegas frequenters saving some money on plane tickets. I've truly come to enjoy playing roulette online. It's virtually the same as playing in a real casino, and if you're a serious player it even holds some advantages. The casinos throw as much distraction as they can at you while you gamble. They feed you free booze, keep lots of mirrors around so you're never really sure where you are, constantly send beautiful girls walking by the table, clang coins and buzzers and bells and whistles all around you, all in a rather effective attempt to take your money in as smooth a way as possible. Playing online eliminates all but a few of these nasty distractions. A great number of people prefer to play in a real casino of course, because all of the distraction is elegantly disguised as entertainment. And of course to many it is, the glitz and glamour of a Vegas casino can hardly be beaten. So you would expect that online roulette is more for those who like the game itself, but I've found many different types of people enjoy it right off the bat. I think the main reason for this is the fact that there is no intimidation factor, no dealers to make you nervous, no high rollers making you feel puny, no cigar smoke, and no worries about embarrassing yourself by making a wrong move. These may not seem like huge reasons, but actually, those are some pretty powerful negatives. Many friends I have hate cigar smoke so much they often find it difficult to find a table to play at in the casino. Countless others have never actually walked up to the roulette table, however much they would have liked to, because they don't know if they may do something wrong. So playing online roulette garners as much benefit to the new and inexperienced player as it does the serious one who is interested in the game more than the casino hoopla. Most people who ask me about online roulette ask the same question. Are the odds the same playing online as playing at the casino? Well, if you've read our roulette odds page, you'll know that American roulette has a rather incontrovertible house edge and that certainly couldn't change. Unless a game has been blatantly fixed, you'll find you have as much success and failure at the online roulette tables as in the casino. The beautiful thing about playing online though, is the abundance of European roulette wheels available. Playing on a European (single zero) roulette table automatically cuts the house edge down to almost half of it's American cousin. This is by far the most convincing reason to play roulette online, unless you're lucky enough to have a European roulette wheel just down the street.

1. As per normal poker rules - playing and betting proceeds in a clockwise direction.

2. The two Players to the left of the Dealer post the blind bets.

3. Small Blind (the Player who sits left of the Dealer) bets half the lower limit.

4. Big Blind (the Player who sits left of the Small Blind) bets equal to the lower limit.

5. Betting increments in the game determine the blinds. In a game of $2 and $4 betting increments, the small blind is $1, and the big blind is $2.

6. The blind bets in Omaha Hi-Lo are considered as active bets, and therefore, Players have the option to check, fold, call, and raise when the betting action returns to their position. (Exception to first round betting) First round betting - options are to fold, bet, or raise. Only one bet, and three raises per Player are allowed on the first round. Players cannot "check" in the first round, as Blinds are bets, and not antes.

7. Second and subsequent betting rounds - options are to check, fold, bet, or raise.

8. All bets must be placed in conjunction with the game's betting increments.

9. There are four possible betting rounds in Omaha Hi-Lo poker. Each bet and raise during the first two rounds is set at the lower limit of the stakes structure, and for the last two rounds at a higher limit structure. For example in a $1/$2 Omaha Hi-Lo game, all bets and raises are $1 for the first two rounds (after pocket cards are dealt and after the flop) All bets and raises are $2 for the last two rounds (after the turn and after the river), following accepted poker rules.

10. The maximum allowable number of bets per Player during any betting round in Omaha Hi-Lo poker is four. This includes a (1) bet, (2) raise, (3) re-raise, and (4) cap. The term cap is used to describe the 3rd raise in a round since betting is then capped and can't be raised further. Once capped, Players will have only the option of calling or folding.

11. In betting rounds where Players have folded, the first active Player left of the Disc/Dealer is first to act.

12. To ensure fairness for all online poker Players - new Players entering the Omaha Hi-Lo game will be required to post the equivalent of the big blind. All Players have the option of sitting out and waiting for the actual big blind before starting play.

13. By preventing Players from constantly entering poker games in a late position and leaving before they're required to post, these rules stop potential abuse of the online environment.

There is no such thing as a roulette strategy as it is a game of chance where the house odds are the same no matter what bet is placed. The player only has to place the bet and the croupier does the rest. The only time the house odds deviate from the norm is on the special line bet where the house odds actually increase. The only way a player can increase his chances of winning is to pick a table that has less of an edge. This can be done, as there are three varieties of roulette that can be played. So the best chance of winning is to play in Europe where the house odds are lower. In America roulette is normally played on a double zero wheel and this gives the house a 5.26% edge over the player. In Europe however the single zero wheel game is played where there is no 00 number and this lowers the house odds to a 2.7% edge, this version of the game has recently been introduced to some American casinos. If you play in some European casinos like Monte Carlo there is also the a variation of the game called 'en prison' which can lower the house edge to 1.35%. This version works by when the zero is the winning number the house doesn't claim all of the players wager instead the player is given the option of losing half their wager or waiting for the next turn an if the number comes up next time the player gets the original wager back. This explains why the game of roulette is far more popular in Europe than the United States.

Nobody knows where the game of poker originated and there are lots of theories. The game played in the United States was made from several other card games. The Chinese played cards in 900AD and the Persian game of 'as nas' was a game of 25 cards and five suits. Most of the dictionaries and game historians say that it comes from an eighteenth-century French game, poque. This was stated to be using the first deck consisting of suits made from spades, diamonds, clubs, and hearts. the true origins of the game still remains shrouded in mystery. The history of the game in the United States is a much easier story to follow it seems to have originated from New Orleans and spread along the riverboats that travelled the Mississippi and Ohio rivers. By 1835 poker had become the number one cheating game on the riverboats though it was still quite a different game from the modern day version. During the civil war modifications such as stud poker, the draw, and the straight became popular. Poker was very popular about this time and it was more like the game we have today. During the Wild West period of United States history, a saloon with a Poker table could be found in just about every town. Unlike other casino card games, poker is a game in which players play against each other and not against the house. Poker has many variations, although the rules of play and strategy differ, the hierarchy of winning hands remains the same. Today Poker is the most played card game in the world and has grown into a major sporting event with tournaments taking place constantly throughout the year and large prizes available as Poker grows in popularity and strength.