Propokerchips

An understanding of the relevance of free casino chips must be put into its proper context: are the offers of the free chips coming from honest online casinos?

The first online casinos opened 10 years ago, and now there are hundreds that can be found online. Estimates vary as to the number of people who gamble online, but recent estimates suggest that a figure of around seven million worldwide would not be too far out. Taking that into account, and with a further estimate of more than 12 billion spent in online casinos alone (not including physical land-based casinos), offers of free casino chips may understandably be seen as something of a drop in the ocean.

Add to that the question of whether or not these free chips are being offered by honest online casinos, and we enter an area worth some study or serious research.

Firstly, let us consider what these free casino chips are really worth to the individual online casino player. Free casino chips are of four main types:

No Deposit Bonus. This is simply free money. Honest online casinos will offer free casino chips with no strings attached, simply to attract people to play at their virtual tables. There will sometimes be minor strings attached. For example, the casino may ask for credit card details up front. Always read the terms.

Matching Deposit Bonus. This is where the house will match your deposit. Often this is done in multiples. For example, a 200% bonus will mean that if you were to deposit 100 then the casino would add 200 in free casino chips to your account. Very nice! Especially useful for new players starting out.

Uncashable Bonus. This is the so-called ‘sticky’ bonus. This can never be cashed, but its usefulness lies in that fact that it stays in your account and enables you to use the bonus account to ‘leverage’ higher wagers. These free casino chips stay latent in your account simply to allow you to do things which you otherwise could not.

Loyalty Bonus. This is exactly as it sounds. All honest online casinos, and offline ones too, want to keep hold of their good returning customers, and will offer loyalty bonuses, including free casino chips, as a result.

Remember that online casinos can afford to do this because they simply do not have the overhead that their brick and mortar land-based counterparts have. Equally, there is no excuse for an online casino NOT to be honest for exactly the same reason. They can offer free casino chips AND be an honest online casino in circumstances where their physical equivalents would find the financial burden impossible.

So how do we go about identifying which are the honest online casinos and which are not? Well, a lot has changed since the earliest online casinos set up shop in their offshore locations in 1996. Self-regulation (at best dubious) led to accreditation of bodies like ECOGRA (E-Commerce Online Gaming Regulation and Assurance). Look out also for evidence of good customer care, positive feedback from online casino forum members and decent helpline facilities. The more honest online casinos will offer (will actively boast) 24 hour live chat and live email support as well as toll-free telephone help. Does it have a mailing list you can join to keep in contact with the latest tournaments and special offers? Trust lies at the heart of any subscription process (or people would not subscribe) so that in itself is a good indicator of an honest online casino.

Transparency of accounting systems is another good indicator of honest online casinos. When testimonials are published make sure that it is from more than a set of initials, and make sure they have a state or country. Free casino chips may be ‘virtual’ in concept, but they are used by real people!

But the best indicator of an honest online casino is by personal recommendation. This also includes affiliation of such casinos into trusted casino websites and portals. If an offer of free casino chips is made by an online casino on such a site then it can probably be trusted.

Blackjack Casino Online And Offline Rules Can Vary Among Casinos

Playing blackjack casino online is virtually the same as playing it in a real casino. One of the benefits with playing black jack online – especially if you are a newbie – is that it is much more relaxing and convenient to sit by your computer in the comfort of your own home and learn the game, than have to travel to a casino where everybody is watching all your steps.

Whether you play blackjack at a casino or on a website or even if you just play black jack for fun, you have to follow the black jack game rules. To win the black jack game you have to:

Score the highest total you can without “going bust” (over 21)

Beat the dealer’s score

Dont let this intimidate you. You can rest assured that the dealer is obligated to obey a strict set of rules to eliminate chance factors that may occur from the dealing process.

The more detailed rules of playing black jack varies from casino to casino, whether online of offline. The first thing you should do before you start to play black jack is to figure out the specific rules that apply to the casino you entered.
Experienced black jack players know that the dealer is required to draw a new card until he reaches 17. In one casino the dealer is allowed to hit a soft 17 in another casino this is not allowed.

A soft-17 hitting means the inclusion of an ace in the hand. Since it represents a value of 1 or 11, an ace and a six is called soft 17. Soft means that it may be treated as a total of 7. By contrast, a 10 and an 18 for example represent a fixed or hard total of 18, under all circumstances.

Other black jack rules can also vary from casino to casino, for example

dealing style (“face up” versus “face down”)

the number of decks allowed in a “shoe” (a shoe is a collection of decks)

minimum wagers

and others.

So know the black jack rules for the specific casino you play in before your start to play

If you want to begin gambling at any one of the online casinos found on the Internet, there are a few things you should be made aware of. For one thing, not all online casinos are created equalnot only do casinos differ in terms of rules and regulations, but just like the traditional brick and mortar casinos, different online casinos will offer up different forms of gambling entertainment. Also, not every online casino is created as an honest and forthright gambling institution and the Internet gambler needs to keep a wary eye open for online casino scams.

First, when you visit an online casino it is not wise to immediately sign up for an account just because the website
offers the type of gambling entertainment you love, nor is it wise to sign up because an online casino website offer seems particularly appealing. Rather, it becomes necessary for Internet gamblers to do a little research about the casino they are considering, before they create and account. In doing so, the Internet gambler will be taking preemptive measures to protect their hard earned money and to make sure that their gambling endeavors remain entertaining.

Internet gamblers should review every inch of an online casinos websitenot a page should be missed. Why? It is important to become familiar with the rules, regulations, game offerings, specials and bonuses that the online casino offers. Signing up for an account at an online casino before reviewing the information on their website is imprudent. Moreover, an Internet gambler should take the time to compare the online casino they are considering with other online casinos? Why? Quite simplythe gambler may find Internet casinos with more diverse gaming, better terms and conditions, or better bonuses.

Alternatively, if a gambler finally decides to sign up for an account with any online casino, one should engage in regular monitoring of their casino account. There have been instances in which gamblers were not correctly paid, and in some instances, players have been locked out of their accounts without further explanation. Thus, a wary eye must be kept on any casino one signs on with.

In the end, a little comparative shopping is in order. Internet users should read online casino reviews and news and keep alert to various scams on the Internet. As long as gamblers take measures to protect themselves, they will find that online casino gambling can be quite an enjoyable pastime.