The Online Casino Evolution?

Casinos on land have been in existence for decades but as soon as the internet became the wave of the future, around 1995, online casinos grabbed some of their market by storm. Now, you would think that the USA might want to get a piece of the pie, but it was offshore based companies that were intuitive enough to know the legal fine line and where to cross it.

Online casinos started out with the basic blackjack game, a few 3-5 line slots and maybe some craps and roulette. Now, you're looking at 9-40 line slots, several variations of blackjack, multiple variations of video poker, and pretty much every table game played in land based casinos, including, craps, roulette, war, baccarat, bingo and live poker. The smart move on the casinos to include bingo was nothing short of brilliance as this is very popular with many of all ages 21 and up. Yes, even granny is known to get online and chat away while winning thousands playing bingo. I know mine is because I showed her and she's so happy she doesn't have to go out in the bad weather and can play in her robe in the morning! She's also made some great online friends in the meantime, and it's actually less costly for her because she can play 25 cent boards all while having them watched for her so she doesn't miss her big win!
 

Word of advice, if this whole online casino adventure is new to you, make sure you do your homework and only go to the recommended ones like on this site. We make sure that all the casinos represented here are credible and have a good history of ethical behaviour. Just remember, some casinos, even though they have been online a long time, may not be the most ideal ones and some of the new ones, may be the best. They may be affiliated with upstanding casinos and be careful who you choose.

When in doubt, read the reviews and choose one that accommodates the things you're looking for.

Posted: Feb. 28, 2007

Americans Are Using Canada
To Bypass US Online Gambling Ban

Americans who want to play online poker are doing so through a loophole that employs Canadian based servers. By masking US based IP addresses, Americans are able to play poker just like before. Because the ban only affects US citizens, and not Canadians, they're able to make it appear as if they are playing from Canada.

Under this loophole US players find Canadian residential addresses that contain a common last name and then utilize findnot.com IP redirecting service. Doing so will make it appear to the poker site that it is a Canadian IP trying to access the site and will not block it, enabling the U.S. citizen to play. Because the ban restricts US gamblers from using credit cards, they're using third party payment processors to deposit and withdrawal funds.

Because it's illegal for poker sites to accept direct money transfers to and from a U.S. bank account, they're able to bypass this by using Click2Pay or ePassporte. Americans insist that this new law will not prevent them from gambling and if they want to find a way, they will. The new law just pretty much pushed the online poker community underground which is not what lawmakers wanted, but U.S. gamblers are forced to do. The bottom line is that U.S. players believe they DO have freedom of speech and to block them from this privilege just makes them angrier.

Many Americans live right near the Canadian border as well and are picking up wireless access from Canada, making it look as if they are not playing from the U.S. By physically going to Canada with their laptops and playing from a pub or friend's home is just another way for Americans to make their point.

Here is a list of casinos that still allow American players

Posted: Feb. 28, 2007

Online Card Games

Card games have been in play for ages and ages. Because of the French, we owe most of what we know, although Central Asia is where they can be traced back to. The Chinese are credited with shuffling paper dominoes back in the 10th Century - a practice that is still carried over in Asian card games today. The Moslems were introduced to card games, who in turn, introduced the four-suited deck, later spreading throughout Europe and into the hands of the French in the 14th Century.

The French really loved their playing cards, and most all card designs used today originated from the original French prototypes, including the suits of Clubs, Hearts, Spades and Diamonds. England began mass distributing cards to their Colonies in America, and Americans themselves began printing their own cards around the turn of the eighteenth Century. The Joker was later introduced in the late 1800's by the Americans. Most decks of cards come with the Joker card still intact.

Because of its expansive history, card games have inundated the gambling world, now making up a large portion of the table games, offering them at both land-based and online casinos. In the brick 'n mortar world of card table games, players will certainly find games like Blackjack, Baccarat, Video Poker, Texas Hold'em Poker, Caribbean Stud Poker, 3-Card Poker, 4-Card Poker, Let it Ride, Pai Gow and even War.

At online casinos, gamblers usually have a broader selection of games, which at the best sites; include all of the previous card games, plus several varieties of blackjack like Vegas Downtown, Vegas Strip, Atlantic City, Super Fun 21, European Blackjack and Spanish 21.

There is also a fast-growing skill games arena in the internet gambling world, which has helped boost the popularity of card games like Gin Rummy, Solitaire and Mah-jong. Some card games are even slot machines online to combine the best of both worlds. No matter what though, cards are gaining popularity online with poker revenue growing rapidly. No matter what you're game, you're bound to find it online.

Posted: Feb. 28, 2007