Confessions of a Master CD Sales Woman

A couple calendar months ago, I wrote The Rogues to inquire them directly what it is that brands them so successful at merchandising CDs, and why they are one of the top 10 sets on CDstreet merchandising CDs. Sharon Wothke wrote back:

"As caput gross sales individual for the band, I believe that I would be the 1 to speak to. The Rogues are definitely alone in what they do, and if you will indulge me, very good at what they do.

As a gross gross sales person, I cognize that the manner the cats play their music definitely is the greatest factor in their sales quotient. When the music, which can be described as infectious, is smoking hot, and everyone is having a good time, the gross sales are usually pretty good. Most people who come up up to a Renaissance Festival, where the set still makes the lion's share of their gigs, make not come
expecting to purchase a cadmium with pipes music on it. The Rogues have got converted many people to this word form of music. So in other words, they make a alone ambiance which is contributing to sales.

If the cats are doing their occupation (making great music), it do my occupation a batch easier. Iodine just have got to be available and approachable to people and looking like a I am a portion of the show for people to experience comfortable in coming up to me. We started from the very beginning employing the usage of a roaming basket. It is very effectual and other groupings have got successfully copied our approach.

Our Sellers walk around holding up the merchandise so people can see them. Our Sellers seek to intermix in with the show and not be pushy, just visible. I personally bask interacting with the crowd, spoofing off of what is being said on the phase and telling gags to do the audience laugh. And I will speak and be nice to everyone, even if they don't purchase a cadmium simply because I bask people and I am trying to be an embassador for the band. They may not purchase today, but opportunities are they will believe about it and purchase a cadmium at another time."

Straight from the Master's mouth. What makes it take?
1. Great music
2. Great unrecorded performance
3. Roaming gross sales people with handbaskets of CDs
4. Peter Sellers hold up merchandise DURING the show
5. Peter Sellers blend in an interact with the show

The Rogues utilize CDBaby to sell their CDs. Why? See for yourself?

Some Interesting Facts About Baseball

Baseball is a fun game. It drives people crazy like anything.

It is considered to be one of the most popular games in America.


Here are some of the fun facts for you to know various activities that have happened in baseball.


In the baseball, a distance is measured to be 90 feet. Picture mound and home place are 60 feet, 8 inches apart from each other.

In 1997, it ended its oldest traditions. That was the first time Inter league began.

After that American league could play the National league at the time of regular season.
First league is believed to be played on 12/06/97.

Babe Ruth used to wear a leaf that would be under the cap.
The funny thing is that he used to change it after every two innings.

Cal Hubbard, umpire in Major league is the only one who was in both the games, baseball and football.

The baseball inventor is credited with firing the first shot, which was against civil war.
The National Baseball Hall of Fame & Museum was created in 1935. It was created for 100th anniversary celebration of baseball.

In one game of base ball fourteen players could hit only 14 runs.
Philadelphia manager has the highest number of victories. The total number is 3755.

A All-Star game was played in the year 1993. the players from National league and American league participated in that.
Out of 73 games played, 40 were won by the National league.

These were some of the facts about baseball. We shall come up with more fun facts in our forthcoming articles.

Do Not Overuse Slow Playing In Texas Hold'em

What is slow-playing in Texas Holdem? Slow-playing is always defined as when you have a very big hand and you choose to check or call rather than bet or raise in order to induce future bets or call from your opponents. For example, if the flop brings you a full house, the first thing that you think about is to check. You want to hide the value of your hand and hope your opponent will catch something on the turn or river. However, slow-playing is the most overused trick in many poker players. Personally, I suggest only use slow-playing in limit Holdem when all of the following conditions are achieved:

1. Only use slow-playing in limit Holdem, and you must only use it on the flop. You only want to give up a small bet in favor of a large bet.

2. Your hand must be very strong. I suggest at least you flop a full house or higher. You do not want your opponent to catch a card that can complete a draw and be able to beat you.

3. The pot must be very small. If the pot is large, you should protect your hand because if many raises and re-raises in the pre-flop, your opponent are more likely to get a better hand than yours. Also, if the pot is large enough to cover their pot odds, you should bet because most of the people are not willing to fold their hands at this point anyway.

4. The free card you are giving must have a good chance of giving the second best hand to your opponent. For example, if you flop a full house and you know your opponent is in a straight draw or flush draw, you may want to consider slow-playing your hand and hope they will complete their second best hand (which they thought they are holing the best hand) on a later street.

5. Only use against a loose-aggressive player. Many tight and experienced players will suspect your hand if you are slow-playing.

6. Do not use slow-playing if your table image is aggressive. If you have been playing aggressive poker, you will not be giving anything away by betting out with a monster hand.

Please note that slow-playing is not the same as check-raising. Check-raising means that you are playing your hand softly with the intent of raising later on the current round, which you do not give your opponent a free card.

Personally, I do not recommend any new player to use slow-playing because slow-playing is not correct very often.

The Biggest Reward Your Fans Hope to Receive

This weekend, we're flying to Hollywood. We are booked to execute at the Into the Occident Oscar Party, sponsored by New Line Cinema's Official Godhead of the Rings Fan Club. We are so psyched.

Unfortunately, I haven't done nearly as much promotion for the event as I would've liked. After five old age of promoting twenty-four hours and night, I'm kinda burned out. Fortunately, our fans aren't.

So when I got an electronic mail last hebdomad from Hagar "the Horrible" (he get dresseds as a Viking at Renaissance Festivals and kinda looks like the amusing strip character) saying he wanted my permission to electronic mail the television stations about our Oscar Party gig, I was like, "Hell, yeah! Why didn't I believe of that?"

I didn't believe anymore of it until a photographic camera crew showed up that evening. Jim Gustavus Franklin Swift from KXAN News 36's "Out On The Porch" section saw on our website that we were playing that very eventide and decided to interview us.

The interview went antic and ran this past Sunday. It also got me thinking. Why on this Earth makes Hagar continually travel out of his manner to assist us? What's in it for him?

There are many reasons. I trust to travel into many of them in future articles. But allow me state ye, it's not for any fiscal reward. We don't pay him a thing. Actually, he won't even accept money or free CDs. He makes it mainly for two reasons.

One, we've educated our fans to advance us. Two, and more than importantly, it lets him to "pay us back" for the joyousness we've given him.

Hagar isn't so atrocious actually. In fact, he's a batch like you and me. All we desire is acknowledgment for what we do. The greatest wages your fans really trust to have come ups from two emphatic and sincere words: "Thank you!".

Danger wears many faces

What a week for bricks-and-mortar casinos. You know, the kind where it's still acceptable for Americans to play some poker.

Over at Ringo's Little Vegas Casino in Spokane Valley, it turns out a fully-fledged Hell's Angel has slipped through the net and wound up on the security staff.

"...the Gambling Commission cited six provisions of state law that are being violated by having a Hells Angel working at the state-licensed casino...
"The law legalizing card rooms such as those at Ringo’s says, 'The public policy of the state of Washington on gambling is to keep the criminal element out of gambling and to promote the social welfare of the people by limiting the nature and scope of gambling activities by strict regulation and control.'
"Nakayama’s affiliation with the Hells Angels flies in the face of that public policy, the revocation order contends. The accompanying case investigative records obtained under the state’s Open Records Act call the outlaw biker group a 'criminal offender cartel'.”

Video report below:



Over on the east coast, meanwhile, a cloud hangs over three employees of Atlanic City's Borgata Casino, currently on bail pending their trial for sexual assault.

And then, last but not least - this. The kind of story you know you shouldn't laugh at but do anyway. Casino security staff at Harrah's Caesars Atlantic City, sick of homing the cameras in on potential cheats, swap greed for lust as their mortal sin of choice and start scanning for female body parts instead.

"So, state officials say, they kept their eyes on the cleavage and buttocks of women wearing low-cut blouses or tight dresses, using the high-powered cameras to zoom in on their quarry."

The great thing about sexual misdeeds is that you always know there's a euphemistic gem coming up when pleasures of the flesh fall to be considered in the stuffy confines of a courtroom. In this case it was the Casino Control Commission and Harrah's Entertainment Inc spokesman Christopher Jonic - his principals $185,000 worse off in fines after this lusty lenswork - did not disappoint.

"Many times over, we have pronounced our zero-tolerance policy when it comes to inappropriate surveillance..." he insisted.

That's right; that's no peeping tom on yonder window ledge, just a little 'inappropriate surveillance'.

Jonic's efforts to keep a straight face were nothing, however, alongside the titanic struggle previously required from one of the defence lawyers.

"A fourth surveillance worker...was cleared last summer of any wrongdoing after authorities reviewed the 11 minutes of footage he had shot.
His lawyer convinced state regulators that when he zoomed in on a female bartender's chest, he was actually trying to read her employee identification badge, which she had pinned near her blouse opening."

What a wonderful thing legal precedent is. I don't know about you but I shall be endeavouring to ID women with renewed enthusiasm from now on.

Yet behind the flippancy, where does all this leave America? A woman effectively can't play poker for cash online because people who purport to know better say it's dangerous, so she has to go out to her local B&M casino, mix with Hells Angels and suspected sex offenders and pray to God that she's not being 'inappropriately surveyed'.

I don't pretend it's a fun choice but if I had to choose between a Society whose women risk addiction over one where they risk intimidation and violation, I'd take the former every time.

UIGEA and Hypocrisy Corner

"Without public ceremony, [West Virginia] Gov. Joe Manchin signed into law a bill authorizing county option elections for casino-style table games at the state’s four racetracks Wednesday afternoon — one of numerous bills he signed in the privacy of the governor’s office."

"Opponents of gambling would have stood a better chance of defeating table games if a vote had been held statewide, McCoy said. But the bill Gov. Joe Manchin signed...gave only voters in Hancock, Ohio, Kanawha and Jefferson counties the right to decide whether their racetracks should become full-blown casinos."

"John Carey of the West Virginia Values Coalition, said he was disappointed Manchin had signed the bill...He said he was particularly concerned by findings in the legislation that declare that racetrack table games are in 'the best interest of the state.'
'With the governor’s signature, we have clearly elevated table games to the level of issues like health care or the education of our children,' he said."

Still, at least the good folk of West Virginia are spared the horrors of Internet poker, eh?

.................................................

Spare a thought for America's newspaper readers, now that casino dealers are talking of joining a union. The scope for cheesy cliche at the hands of a newsdesk's Mr Trite is just too horrible to contemplate - "getting round the table with management", "cutting a deal", "putting their cards on the table".

I can see a journalist getting killed here; I really can.

Best Places To Play Bingo In Oklahoma

Bingo is a fun, family-oriented game which continues to grow in popularity throughout the world. It is a game of chance, and randomly-drawn numbers are matched to the same numbers appearing on a bingo card. The winner is the first player to have the drawn numbers form a specified pattern on their card (lines can be made horizontally, vertically, or diagonally). When this happens, the player yells out, "Bingo!" to inform others of their win.

In many countries, Bingo is used as a form of legalized gambling. In the United States, numerous bingo halls are available to play at, and states like Oklahoma often locate these facilities next to more traditional casinos.

If you happen to find yourself in Oklahoma, you should certainly visit one of their many bingo halls and play a few games. The action is fast-paced, and all sorts of great prizes are up for grabs (including money and cars at some of the larger facilities). In fact, I've complied a short list of some of the better places to play in the state.

Okemah, Oklahoma - Located in Central Oklahoma, Okemah is the county seat of Okfuskee County. It is the birthplace of folk music legend Woody Guthrie (if you visit in July, be sure to check out the festival dedicated to his memory). In the Indian language, the word Okemah means "things up high." And if you're not in a hurry, you might also want to check out Lake Okemah, which is one of the most well-managed lakes in the state (and since Oklahoma is "America's Frontier Lake State," that's really saying something).

There are three major centers for bingo in the city. The first is Okemah Bingo and Casino, located at 1100 South Woody Guthrie Street. Second, there's The Okemah Gaming Center, which offers a variety of slot machines as well as bingo. It can be found just off of Interstate 40. Speaking of Interstate 40, that's where the third facility can also be found. It's called the Thlopthlocco Tribal Town Casino, and it's just off of Exit 227.

Concho, Oklahoma - A rural unincorporated community, Concho is in Canadian County and can be found just north of the Concho Indian School. While there's not much to see in the small community of Concho, there's some excellent bingo and gambling to be found at the Lucky Star Casino, located on 7777 North Highway 81.

Turpin, Oklahoma - Another small community which offers excellent bingo opportunities, Turpin is located in Beaver County. While there's not much in the way of shopping or dining, fans of history may be interested in the Turpin Grain Elevator which is included in the National Register of Historic Places.

Bingo is available at State Line Bingo, which is located on Highway 83 South. Games are available every Tuesday through Saturday starting at 5:30 pm.

Haileyville, Oklahoma - Located in Pittsburg County, Haileyville has a population of around 900. Be careful when traveling to the bingo hall, however, as the town's main source of income comes from speeding fines.

In actuality, this community doesn't have an actual bingo hall. Instead, games are held at the Haileyville Fire Department, which is located at 110 Main Street. This may sound a bit odd, but it's perfect for those who want to make new friends and sample of slice of small-town life.

While the places I've listed here may sound small and unimportant, that shouldn't stop you from giving them a try. The people of Oklahoma are warm and generous, and the residents of these smaller communities are especially hospitable. Besides, there's often less competition, so that could possibly add up to more wins (and more prizes) for you.

What is Texas Hold'em?

One of the most popular poker games is Texas hold'em. It is a poker game with community cards, which are used by a lot of modern games of poker. Community cards are the cards shared by all the players at the table, and they are always dealt face up. The cards that each player holds in his/her hand are called 'hole cards' and they will make up the complete hand, together with the community cards. The most popular poker game with such community cards is Texas hold'em, which originates in the second decade of the twentieth century.

In most of the casinos in the USA Texas hold'em is the most common poker variant. It goes under different forms, and the form with no limits on betting is used in worldwide poker events such as World Poker Tour and World Series of Poker. But the popularity of Texas hold'em is not limited to the United States alone. The game is also commonly played and popular outside the USA.

The maximum number of players in Texas hold'em is theoretically twenty-two. However, it is more common to be played with no more than ten people. Of all the poker variants, Texas hold'em is considered to be the most positional because of the fact that the betting order is set at the beginning of each poker round.

The objective of most poker variants is to win pots, and so is that of Texas hold'em. The pot refers to the sum of money bet by all the players at the table in a hand. The pot can be won in two ways, either by having the best poker hand at showdown (five cards out of the seven available), or by betting until all the other players have folded and given up claiming the pot. The showdown refers to the situation which occurs after the final bets have been placed, and there are two or more remaining players. In this case, each remaining player has to make up the best hand out of the seven cards at his disposal, five community cards which are on the board and two hole cards that he/she holds in his/her hand. The best poker hand can be made up only of the community cards, but in this case, since the other player can make the same hand, the only thing to hope for is a split pot. The player can use one or both hole cards, hoping to outrun the other player(s) and construct the best poker hand. If at the end of the last betting round there is only one player left because all the others have folded, he/she wins the pot and does not have to show the hole cards.

It's not uncommon for the players to have poker hands with a close value. If the best hand that the players have is made up of pairs or three of a kind, for instance, the only way to settle the tie is by using kickers. Kickers are especially important in Texas hold'em because it is very common that the winning hand be made up of one of the two cards the player is holding and another card on the table. This means that the player's second hole card will act as a kicker.

Texas hold'em is a closed game since the showdown is the only moment when the two hole cards that the player receives face down at the beginning of the game may be revealed. Most specialists recommend a tight yet aggressive strategy when playing Texas hold'em.

Building a Band Newsletter

I first started publication my set newssheet during the Summer of '98. I tried the snail mail route. It was exhausting. Electronic newssheets (aka ezines) were the manner to go.

I must've tried it all too. I promoted gigs, told of our up-to-the-minute accomplishments, gave away a free mp3 every month. Some of it worked. Some didn't.

Here are some tips I've learned about running my set newsletter:

Give away something for free. It can be as simple as an MP3 download at MP3.com. Or a sticker. A free cadmium once a month. Well worth the cost for their loyalty. And it can be a great promo tool to pull people into sign language up for your newsletter.

Hype your band. State your fans about all the set news. Who's reviewed your up-to-the-minute CD? Post rave testimonies by your fans. Post them on your website too. Be positive and allow them cognize you are the best!

In the two old age I've managed my fan newsletter, I've had tons of fans write, saying, "Wow! I'm glad you're doing so well." We weren't. And I didn't lie. But our many little successes sounded like large 1s to our fans. That is what ballyhoo is all about.

Keep it short. Write as if you were writing for a newspaper. Compose legal brief paragraphs about your greatness. Use newspaper headlines that do your fans desire to read it. Supply frequent golf course to your website where you can post articles or more than "further info".

Publish every 7-10 days. This depends on how much information you get. But as long as the content is short and informative, people won't mind. If you add a small drama, like how you're doing on MP3.com, and how they can help, you'll maintain the fans reading. But if you're not gigging much, and don't have got much news. Don't publish. Give your fans what they deserve, the best.

Don't acquire upset if people unsubscribe. It happens. If you lose half your list, see adjusting your publication schedule. But anticipate that some people can't cover with a newssheet every 7-10 days. Perhaps every two weekes is better. I was doing every two hebdomads until I realized how much more than effectual a 10 twenty-four hours agenda was for our fans. But less than two weeks, and you are no longer on the bow presence of your fans' minds.

Choose a great inspiring name. Something that have meaning and is fairly informative. Certainly you can can acquire by without one, but a good name could pull people just out of curiousity.

Make it visually appealing. Keep lines short--60-65 fictional characters followed by a difficult return. Rich Person a nice amount of space between sections. Add a table of table of contents at the beginning of the newsletter. Text newssheets work best, at present, but if you make up one's mind on an hypertext markup language ezine. Brand certain you prove it out extensively beforehand. Artwork demand to be attached to your message. But maintain it visually interesting on all accounts.

Content is King. You hear it all over the cyberspace selling circles. Brand certain the information you supply is utile and relevant. My greatest job is that my newssheet have endorsers worldwide and until we got hooked up on MP3.com, it was useless revealing our fans about gigs in Austin. So have got information that is interesting for EVERYONE!

Reward your fans. Give price reductions for their loyalty. Rich Person your cadmium on sale to newssheet subscribers.

Planet eclipsed

To my great irritation, I can't remember the day I first played poker. I do, however, remember the room. Planet Poker was its name, so I feel a wistful sadness at learning of its demise by way of e-mail sent to all its account holders.

"After 9 years in business, Planet Poker has made the difficult decision to cease real money operations. Management regrets this decision but the impact of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act in the U.S. leaves no reasonable alternative.
During the past several months, Planet Poker explored every reasonable option to continue real money operations. This included working with other cardrooms and ecommerce processors to find solutions to the issues existing in the industry today. Unfortunately, no viable solution surfaced.
...Real money tables and tournaments will continue at Planet Poker through to 31 March 2007, but effective immediately you can no longer make a deposit.
...Thank you for your support during the past 9 years. We recommend that you transfer your funds to another cardroom so you can continue to play for real money.
Planet Poker will continue to offer you the best "Play for fun" poker on the internet and hope to see you frequently at our tables. We hope to return to real money operations when the legal climate is clearer.
...Planet Poker Management

I feel like a golfer who's just learnt that St Andrews is shutting down but then St Andrews has the luxury of timelessness, a quality in short supply in a new and booming market such as online poker.

Nostalgia was never going to be enough for Planet: it had to evolve and didn't and while there is much sadness at its demise among online players, there is little surprise.

One blogger reports that Bodog is offering to take on Planet's account balances, with a 10% bonus offer to those players who take up the offer.

'Kickass Poker', suggests that Planet had problems with its shuffle algorithm at one point, although I suspect that software that seemed locked in a time-warp was what really saw the customers drift away.

"For getting the ball rolling," Terrence Chan rightly suggests, "we all owe Planet Poker a small debt for where we are today."

Not one to let the grass grow under his feet, meanwhile, 'taz115' comes up with a nice poker strategy for such circumstances, over at ITH.com

"With the pokeroom closing I bet the games will be pretty juicy there this weekend if you have an account there. I imagine a lot of casual players will be looking to bust or double rather than transfer to another room."

Confessions of a Master CD Sales Woman, Part 2

Well a great public presentation and an synergistic gross sales crew is just the start to seling more than CDs at gigs. The Rogues also use other salespeople.

"Our Sellers work off of a commission, with bonuses built in when an individual's sales entire ranges a certain amount. Giving a salesperson a committee motivates them to sell more than merchandise than just giving them a level rate. We make have got minimal pay for a day's work when the gross sales are not good. In that lawsuit the set usually pays $50 day, or a 10% committee of the gross gross gross sales total, whichever is greater.

At the more than modern venues, such as as upland games and Celtic festivals, we have got establish that having a sales table is an extremely successful manner to increase sales, especially in combination with a roaming salesperson (when using both are appropriate). At public house gigs, we only have got a gross sales table. Having person wander in a tight space like a public house would be seen as too aggressive or invasive, which the Rogues make not promote their salespeople to be. Friendly competition between two or more than Sellers is good as long as there is a feeling of squad spirit. Our Sellers aid each other out when one necessitates alteration or more than than stock.

The bigger the crowds, the more gross sales people are needed. The sheer size of the crowd have a enormous impact on sales. When you acquire that many people standing or sitting that stopping point together and they are all excited about the music, it is like a rippling effect--once the gross gross sales start flowing, everyone looks to leap on the purchasing bandwagon.

At one peculiar show at the Old Line State Renaissance Festival, where the crowd was huge, our three Sellers were not able to maximise the full sales potential. A good indicant of my not being able to tap the gross sales possible that is when I am standing in one topographic point and have got not moved out of it the full show. Just as soon as I complete one sell, another individual come ups up to purchase a CD. I name that standing in a "sweet spot"--when people come up up to you already wanting to purchase a CD. My occupation then is to seek to calculate out, as
quickly as possible, what cadmium or CDs would best lawsuit what they are looking for. I always seek to point out the fact that they can tell more than CDs through the website or mail order, or listen to the music on MP3.com.

As a bandmember's wife, I am always trying to advance the band. I take concern cards from people who desire to engage the set for possible gigs and I direct them to my husband, Randy, who is the concern director for the band."

1. Honor gross sales people with commission
2. Set up gross sales table for venues
3. Promote friendly gross sales competition
4. More people to sell for bigger crowds, bask 'ripple effect'
5. Take concern cards to gigs and manus out at every opportunity.

The Rogues utilize CDBaby to sell their CDs. Why? See for yourself?

I'd Be Happy to Scratch Your Back

I retrieve when I first put option the Brobdingnagian Bards on MP3.com and started to larn the ropes. I would listen day-to-day to music there, but I never listened to sets that were higher in the charts than we were because I didn't desire to hike their ratings any more than than they already were.

I think greedy. It totally dog-eat-dog. But it wasn't until I started to listen to my ain advice that I started to do some alterations and helping my chap musicians. And it wasn't until I started to assist you that our success took off.

Yeah, there are many grounds why we've done consistently well on the mp3.com charts, but one of the chief 1s is that I've been willing to abrasion person elses back with no outlook of a return. And while there's no expectation, there always is a return.

It's one of those great conundrums, I guess. I mean, how is it possible that when you assist person else You will benefit... Yet I'm amazed to see that it happens. And it haps all the time.

The more than Iodine am willing to give, the greater my return.

Just yesterday, I got an electronic mail from a Nagian (one of our fans) saying he loved our music and would make everything he could to advance us. Just ask.

But the lone thing I can make is to humbly inquire him to turn around and see if he necessitates his dorsum scratched.

Face cards and a weighty tell

On the left; Joe Hachem pictured on the cover of the July 2006 issue of Poker Player magazine.

On the right; Joe Hachem pictured on the cover of the April 2007 issue of Inside Poker magazine.

From one man who enjoys his food to another - pace yourself, champ. Seven mill fills a lot of 'fridge...

Living the Dream: One CD at a Time

I read somewhere not too long ago that person was lamenting that people are putting out too many record albums without disbursement enough time promoting them. Well, I detest to state it, but my group, the Brobdingnagian Bards, is guilty of such as a crime.

You see, when I started The Bards a couple old age ago, I knew that sets needed a product. So we recorded our first album, Marked By Great Size, bought a cadmium burner, and started producing the CDs ourselves to sell at gigs.

Six calendar months later, we released our 2nd album, Gullible's Travels. By this time, we'd only had a few nice reviews of our first album, but we'd sold a couple hundred CDs after playing at numerous Renaissance Festivals. Now, our 2nd record record album was underway.

We recorded it, and got a humongous 1 review for the album. But with extended gigging we sold a couple hundred transcripts of this album.

Six calendar months later, we completed our 3rd album, Songs of the Muse. By this time, we starting to inquire if we were stretching ourselves too thin. Saint Andrew was duping all the CDs while I was getting them printed. And his burner wasn't quite fast adequate to maintain up with the demand for CDs. But it was about this time that we got started on mp3.com, and we got introduced to dam CDs, a much easier manner to bring forth CDs when you have got several, but can't afford to mass green goods any.

All of a sudden, the ground for our recording cadmium after cadmium made sense. We could acquire paid for people listening to our music, and the more than than music you have got the more money you made. Talk to Ernesto Cortazar and 303infinity if you disagree.

Now, we could tell cadmium one-offs from MP3.com, sell them at gigs for $10-15, and do a nice net income while our music climbed the charts. But did I advance "Songs of the Muse"?

Well, we started recording for our adjacent record albums (yes, plural) at the beginning of 2001. We've done some minor promotion of our album, and quite honestly, SOM is the best of our albums, and now our first mass-produced CD. So yes, we should make more than promotion for it, and we are. But no, we are still not disbursement all of our other income promoting this or another record album why? Why are we recording more albums.

Well first, Songs of the Muse was recorded to ran into a very specific market. It's an all instrumental album, and was designed to acquire us wedding ceremony gigs, which it makes quite nicely.

But the other ground we don't is because we are meeting our goals...making a living.

While some are after a record trade or becoming the adjacent dad star, we are on a journey. Yes, I'd wish to be a dad star. Sure, I wouldn't mind having a record deal. But our music is still evolving. We have got a long manner to travel before I experience we are ready for that record trade or super-stardom. The first measure is making a living.

That's what life the dreaming is all about. You have got to take attention of the rudiments first. In my case, it affects getting out of debt, edifice a regular income, edifice a following, and one twenty-four hours earning enough from the music to discontinue my twenty-four hours occupation so I can go a full-time musician. Bashes it count that our first few record albums may never be heard? No. It doesn't. Those first record albums will be Collector's Editions once we acquire there. ;)

Once those ends are met, then I can work on my dreamings of super-stardom. Yes, I am working on those stairway now. I'm not gonna happen a publicizer to advance us unless we are guaranteed a nice tax return on our money. But I will go on to acquire our music to local publications, slowly but surely. And one day, you're gonna read a message from me saying, "I am now living the dream!"

Stardust Memories

I mentioned the pending demise of the Stardust Casino last November.

Now, it pends no longer. Complete with its usual, fabulous standard of photography, as well as a video link, The Poker Prof's Poker Blog chronicles the demolition of a legend.

Strategies Casinos Use To Keep A Person Playing

When entering a casino, you are usually defeat by the visible lights and the noises of items dropping into the underside of the slot machine; items for the up-to-the-minute winner to make a scoop up into their bucket. Did you ever halt to detect that there are no redstem storksbill or windows? Once you come in a casino, you are on casino time and their end is to do you loose track of time. Casinos are hoping that the less you worry about the outside world, the longer you will set your items into their slots.

Have you noticed that casinos are speedy to change your money into items or chips as soon as possible? Once you are no longer looking at the existent money, the chips, items or credits look to lose their pecuniary value. The less you have got got to delve into your billfold for the cold difficult cash, the less likely you are to associate the exhilaration that casino play offerings with the disbursals that tin be incurred in a loss.

When you come in a casino, have you ever felt like you were getting a good bombilation or a sudden explosion of energy? Don't just chalk it up to the hustle of the environment or the sort gesture you believe you are getting from a free drink. It could be that the casino is actually piping in oxygen. Some casinos utilize the O to maintain you from getting aweary therefore enabling you to play the tables or slots longer. The casinos are hoping that the longer your stay at a black jack table or a slot machine, the more than opportunity of a net income for them.

One of the greatest schemes that the casinos utilize that should be avoided at all costs is the complimentary drinks that are offered to you. Of course, it is difficult to turn down a free drink especially when it is being they are free, but those free drinks could stop up costing you much more than in the long run. We all cognize that the more than we drink, the less inhibited we go and sometimes loose our sense of judgment. When the drinks are flowing freely, the casinos are hoping that your money will be as well. Be it a deficiency of redstem storksbill or the free drinks, the casinos occupation is to maintain you there disbursement your money and these are just a few of the schemes that casinos are using to maintain you playing.

Poker Rake and Rake Back

Online poker has grown in popularity and demand in the past few years. There is no need of visiting casinos to play poker as the internet brings online casinos to your home. Poker is a game that consists of many terms and plays; and one of the more popular phrases used in poker is poker rake and rake back.

Poker rake and rake back is a phrase many serious online poker players are quite versatile with. The rake in a poker rake and rake back is basically the method of making money by online poker sites. When playing a game of poker with real money, the house generally takes a percentage of each hand for itself; this is poker rake. Different online poker sites earn different poker rakes; but it is usually 5% of the pot amount.

Now about rake backs. Poker sites generally find out how much a player spends on online poker every month. If the player had signed up to the poker site through an affiliate, then the affiliate is paid a commission for having brought the player to the site. And in a bid to gain an advantage against competitors, the affiliates offer a larger percentage of this money to players and this is called a rake back. It is usually the poker rake and rake back that interests a player to sign up to the particular site or affiliate. This is because they charge a reasonable poker rake and a considerable rake back.

When playing online poker, both the poker rake and the rake back are important points to be considered when choosing the online poker site. Usually the poker rake is charged automatically where the person is not aware that they are being charged. When playing online poker, it is important that the player not only beat other players on the table, but also beat the poker rake. This is because winning money with no rake only ends up in the player ending up a loser.

However, when the rake back comes into the picture, players who were once losers become poker players who win with a profit. So a player who is winning in the game of poker automatically ends up with a fat bonus with the rake back. So when signing up in an online poker site, it is important that you first consider the poker rake and rake back of the site.

You have to make a rough calculation of how much you stand to lose through the poker rake and the amount of money you stand to win with rake back. You are paid a percentage of the money that the house charged as a poker rake in a rake back. In addition to this, the number of hands that the player plays and the stakes that are paid also determines the size of the rake back. So considering the poker rake and rake back of an online poker site, a casual and low limit player can earn about a few hundred dollars a month while professionals can rope in about $3,000.

So it can be seen that it is of no use to sign up to a site where there is no rake back. All poker players should be sure to receive a rake back when playing online poker; otherwise tons of money will be lost on the poker table. It is only with a rake back that a poker player can optimize his or her profits.

Wholesome Roulette Betting System Proven To Work

Roulette Casino Strategy That Leaves Your With Your Mouth Open Screaming "Eureka!!"

Finally a roulette casino strategy that is getting some great success. Although you hear all the goss on the latest system that some hermit has come up with in his sleep. There is a system that has stood the test of time and experience. It has been scrupulously tested under some strict conditions and still come out on top.

The rebellious roulette rebel system so called due to its creators "rebellious" nature to go against all the odds of previous well known systems, to increase your chances of winning it has the hallmarks for going down as one of the most genius systems ever created.

They understand all the variables of the casino, the clever ways they put you off with tactics i.e. free alcohol, bright blinding lights, heavenly sounds of coins dropping on metal constantly and colors, all used to make you bet big and loose money fast. The best way to understand how you can win understand the new ways a professional gamblers roulette strategy that they try to keep secret.

This exploits every trick in the book used by croupiers and the casino. The roulette has one of the best odd of winning but with the roulette rebel system you can increase this seven fold. Yes the house can win tremendous amounts of money in a 24 hour period but, the house cannot always win period. Thats exactly what people understand. They only expect to win on luck. Playing with a system that guarantees a win regaurdless of lucky charms, and lady luck is priceless. It is what all professional gamblers are calling the failsafe system.

Bob Hope Wasn't The Only One Who Used Idiot Cards

When Bob Hope moved into television, he lost the opportunity to hold his script in his hand , something he had gotten used to working in radio. The presentation would look too stiff to his audience. He tried to memorize his monologues, but that proved to be too cumbersome of a task and it took away from his golf game. The solution was cue cards, or idiot cards as they are known in the industry. This worked well for the performer, but was hazardous for others. On one of Hope's early NBC broadcasts a well meaning assistant director held up the cards so his star could read them, then tossed them back over his shoulder almost decapitating several members of the studio audience.

Idiot cards are a way for performers to lose the respect of their co-stars. James Caan, Robert Duvall and the rest of the cast of the 1972 classic, The Godfather , were thrilled to meet the star of the movie Marlon Brando. Actor Lenny Montana, who played the thuggish character Luca Brasi was so in awe of Brando he kept fumbling his lines when they both shared the same scenes. Director Francis Ford Coppola made it work by having the character of Luca nervously rehearse what he was going to say prior to meeting the Don, making the situation appear seamless. But if Montana was willing, if unable to learn his lines, Brando was not. In his scenes there were cue cards everywhere, causing Duvall to yell at him," Marlon, why don't you learn your lines you fat #*^%*@!"

Brando stubbornly refused to change. A year later when performing in the controversial and sex charged Last Tango In Paris he wrote some of his lines on the bottom of his shoe and in a few scenes had to hop around awkwardly to read them.

For some actors, idiot cards are the ultimate security blanket. Shortly before he died the great John Barrymore had a scene where he only had to deliver one line: "Yes". Dutifully, his personal assistant stood ready to hold up a cue card. One of the film techs informed the director that Barrymore's helper was standing in the way, they would not be able to light the scene properly. The director waited for his star to arrive. "Jack, Can I talk to you?" "Certainly." "Would it be possible for you do this one scene without your idiot card?" "Absolutely Not". The director sighed," Jack you only have to say yes, that's it. What happens if I order your friend to leave?" Barrymore looked at him coldly. "I might say no." In the end new lighting arrangements were made.

Online Affiliate Marketing Profitable Software

The latest and best way for companies to increase their internet sales is through the use of affiliate marketing profitable software. Affiliate marketing is not new, but improvements in technology have made it easier and cheaper for companies to get affiliates and easier for affiliates to make money. The latest affiliate marketing profitable software allows a company to sign up affiliates and provide them with all of the tools they need for success. There is no charge to the affiliate and no financial risk involved. This will brig in more affiliates who are willing to put extra effort into the program.

With affiliate marketing profitable software internet companies that operate highly competitive online poker rooms for example can save on advertising costs and get referrals who are interested in what they have to offer. The affiliate marketing profitable software actually does most of the work for both the poker room and its affiliates. The affiliates can download all of the training and tools they need at no charge and begin marketing the website almost immediately.

When they make referrals they get instant credit for the referrals and when these people start playing the affiliates start earning generous commissions. These commissions are paid on a regular basis which keeps the affiliates happy and working hard. The latest affiliate marketing profitable software is by far one of the best tools available. It creates a win-win situation for both the companies and the affiliates. When the poker rooms or other companies make money, the affiliates make money. It is truly a golden opportunity for everyone involved.

Hungry For Overkill

I don't have got much time to watch television. Being the lazy individual that I am, I usually allow other people in the household make my observation for me.

But some events are just so of import that I have got to watch them myself. Such was the lawsuit with the finals of this year's American Idol. The space shuttlecock Columbia River clang in Texas earlier in the twelvemonth was another event that (sadly) I just had to watch. And I certainly did not desire to lose the bang of seeing the America's Cup canvas into Switzerland.

Of course, I regularly turn on the tubing whenever a Saint George Shrub occupies Iraq. Hopefully, this 1 will soon complete invading; my electricity measure is suffering.

The up-to-the-minute must-see event is the Michael Jackson arrest, an event of such as big importance that all intelligence shows, chitchat shows, comedy shows and just about everybody else is offering wall-to-wall coverage. It have been estimated that 37% of the American population have been interviewed by the mass media for their inside-knowledge of "the dad superstar's" personal life.

So I was most aghast when I flipped to a transmission channel that was not helping me track down the most absorbing bosom inside information and most challenging and succulent minutiae of all things Michael Jackson.

"What?!" I demanded. "This is impossible. What is this trash?"

"That's Touched by an Angel," my married woman offered. "It's one of your favourite shows."

"That's no excuse," I blustered. "The web should be hot on the Jackson case. How could this be? I'm calling the cablegram company to complain."

"But dear ..." my married woman tried to interrupt.

"It's no use," I insisted as I dialed. "My head is made up. Don't seek to halt me."

"But dear ..." my married woman tried to disrupt me again.

"I am sorry. There is simply no alibi for dissemination pure amusement when there are of import inside information about Michael Jackson to be uncovered."

"But dear ..." my married woman tried once more.

"Hello? Cable Company? I desire to lodge a most serious complaint."

"But we don't acquire cablegram out here," my married woman broke in. "We have got artificial satellite TV."

"Oh."

"Look. There are some 395 channels, and at least 70% of them are airing Michael Jackson stories. Don't you believe that's astatine least, oh, let's say, 70% overkill?" my married woman asked.

"You don't understand. This is important. The whole world is watching. This adult male have changed the face of music."

"Yes, that's what some of his famous person co-workers are saying", my married woman rolled her eyes. "As if people who alteration the face of music have got all been vaccinated against child-molesting."

"That's not the point. There are so many inside information to uncover. We cognize he wishes Bluegrass State Fried Chicken, but makes he eat quiche? Everybody cognizes that existent work force don't eat quiche. Could that be his problem?

"Let it go, Happy Guy," my married woman advised. "It just doesn't pay to acquire so caught up in all the television drama. Besides, this is a serious probe with a serious complaint and it should be left to the authorities."

I sank down into the couch. My married woman was finally starting to do sense. "What are you going to make now?" she asked.

"I believe I'll watch Touched by an Angel."

"Ah, that's the hubby I cognize and love."

"Right now Michael Jackson could utilize an angel, and so could all those kids. I mean, what can one small territory lawyer do?" I moaned.

My married woman moaned, too. I was amazed that she would suddenly demo such as support.

"I know," I said, lighting up. "Never mind the cablegram company. I'll name Tess. She can put Michael Jackson straight."

Abstinence makes the mind grow sharper

Three weeks into my self-enforced absence from poker and I must admit I'm nowhere near as flakey as I expected.

The swotting-up on technique goes slower than anticipated but it is at least happening and after a week without any Damascene moments, certain gaps in my game are beginning to become apparent. I need to give position the same priority as hand-strength and, chore though it may be, I need to get serious about keeping notes on my opponents.

Perhaps the best breakthrough of all is that I now know I can do without poker for a while. The world still turns when I give the game a miss and the dreaded gremlin I feared would sit on my shoulder throughout Lent, speculating as to how much money I may be missing out on, has failed to materialise.

Opening up an on-line poker room for an hour a night had become the chain-letter I didn't dare destroy. Not any more. Sure, I'm getting a little twitchiness now but with 24 days to go, I think it will pace itself.

For the next three nights at least, it's not even an issue. On duty at the Go Fishing Show, I return to my keyboard on Sunday.

A Miraculous Movie

It was originally called The Big Heart. Daryl Darryl Zanuck the astute caput of Twentieth Century Fox couldn't purchase the mental image of Santa Claus in a tribunal room. But like so many ventures Miracle On 34th Street (1947) came about because of passion, in this lawsuit that of Director Saint George Seaton who had gone to New House Of York on his ain and made agreements with the existent Mr. Macy and Mr. Gimbel to movie inside their section stores. Impressed by Seaton's committedness Darryl Zanuck gave the show a greenish light.

Who would play the small miss who didn't believe in Santa Claus? Seaton agonized over it, until the helper manager remembered an astonishing kid wonder child from Santa Rosa, Golden State who could shout on cue. Her name was Natasha Nikolaevna Gurdin renamed Natalie Wood after manager Surface-To-Air Missile Wood . The same Natalie Wood who would later travel out on a hotel room shelf and endanger to leap when her fellow Elvis Elvis Presley ignored her to play poker with Memphis Mafia. The same miss who would outrage brother cast of characters members of Occident Side Story (1961) with her tardiness, her refusal to larn simple dance stairway and her insisting on long luncheon interruptions to see with her analyst. But the seven-year-old Natalie had none of the typical kid star precocious behavior, she gained the regard of her co-stars on the Miracle set with her professional demeanor, earning the moniker One-Take-Natalie.

Like all filmed on location movies there were logistical problems. The sequence where Santa was taken to Bellevue was done without permission. The celebrated infirmary would not collaborate with Hollywood because they had been portrayed badly in earlier films, they were not swayed by the sight of a sickly, freezing common cold Santa Claus (Edmund Gwenn) bundled up under blankets in a car, waiting to hit his scenes. The film makers were forced to hit only the auto approaching the building's entranceway and redact the remainder later. Another trouble was getting permission to hit the Macy's parade from the flat inhabitants on 34th street which had to be done right the first time, there could be no retakes. The movie crew paid the ladies of the house to place the photographic cameras in their windows. Then their hubbies came home, complained about the incommodiousness and demanded their ain equal share. Most hard to movie was the sallow but determined Edmund Gwenn who would win an Oscar for playing Kris Kringle. He suffered from a vesica control job but couldn't stand up the idea of person taking his place in the parade. The children who stood on the pavement waving at Santa never saw the long tubing under his cloak.

Overcoming his initial reluctance Daryl Darryl Zanuck who was celebrated for his memos, made suggestions to improve the film's story. The female parent Doris, played by Maureen O'Hara was too cold, she would frighten a adult male like Fred (John Payne) off, she had to be made warmer to the audience by explaining that she had been burned by an earlier human relationship and that's wherefore she didn't desire her girl believing in Santa Claus. Darryl Zanuck also felt that they shouldn't overdo the scenes where Macy's employees urge that their clients travel shopping at Gimbels, just some simple duologue was enough to acquire the point across. But despite the loud cheering by preview audiences when Santa Claus was declared sane in the courtroom scene, Darryl Zanuck never had full assurance in the film. He set it in theatres in July, the busiest time of twelvemonth for moviegoers, and told his selling staff to conceal from the public that the movie was about Christmas.

One mention in the Miracle book that's now dated was when Kris Kringle's head-shrinker mentioned a adult male in Hollywood who passed himself off as Russian Prince and owned a restaurant. It was a excavation at Microphone Romanoff, a colourful fraud whose Rodeo Drive eatery was a merriment sanctuary for Hollywood's most ill-famed figures. One nighttime Federal Bureau of Investigation caput J. Edgar William Hoover was dining at Romanoffs when he was approached by an existent gem stealer named Swifty Morgan. "Like to purchase these gold whomp links?" Amused, William Hoover offered $200. "Oh come up on Toilet the wages is more than than that!"

Remember the Alamo? I can't even remember my name...

I won't pretend I'm suprised, given the dearth of originality amongst online poker room designers these days, but I did think the men behind Alamo Poker might have come up with something a little more a propos than what appears to be a padded cell...





.........................................................................

"In just four months, Pranav Bathija of Mumbai taught himself the game of Texas Hold 'em Poker and took 3rd place at the Asian Poker Classic"

"Patricia A Smolko wins the First Tournament She Ever Plays"

"Amateur Defeats Hollywood Heavyweights and Poker's Finest at the 5th Annual World Poker Tour(R) Invitational"

So thank you, Paul Wasicka, for keeping alive the notion that poker is more about skill than chance. At this difficult time for the online game, all donations to the cause are gratefully received.
...........................................................................

Oh dear. Looks like it's not just south of the 49th parallel that lawmakers and lawyers endavour to split unsplittable hairs in their quest to defend the indensible.

“Texas Hold ‘em online, the likes of that,” said [British Columbia's Solicitor General John] Les, when asked how he defines online gambling. “Right now we have this PlayNow website and we offer a lottery product online. That in my definition is not gaming, that’s simply buying lottery products."

And poker is 'buying card products', Mr Les: the product being exactly the same in either case - the chance to make disproportionately large sums of money.

Before I lose all hope in my former profession, here, by way of balance, is an encouraging article by Prof. I Nelson Rose; a lawyer with a clue.

Can I Have Your Autograph?

Being a celebrity means dealing with fan demands for autographs, ranging from polite and appropriate to rude and overbearing. One time Katherine Hepburn was performing on Broadway and tried to exit backstage through a crowd of jostling autograph hounds. Bodyguards helped her to her limo and once safely inside the very private star rolled down the window and shouted," Run em down! We'll clean up the blood later!" The crowd scattered and the limousine sped away, pausing long enough for Hepburn to roll down the window and wave goodbye to her fans, accompanied by an evil laugh. Strangely enough, when she lived in Beverly Hills the seclusion loving Hepburn developed the habit of sneaking into her neighbor's houses as a hobby. She became expert at climbing trees, avoiding alarms and dogs, and revealing herself just before her nervous neighbors called the police.

Walt Disney had the strange experience in the 1930s of having his name famous around the world when his face was not. Often he would forget his identification and that combined with his casual attire sometimes kept him out of fancy restaurants. Later in the 50's he became a recognized figure because of his television hosting duties. The lack of anonymity made it increasingly difficult for him to walk through Disneyland without being badgered for autographs. Disney struggled not to be brusque while explaining he didn't have time, he was trying to make the park a better place. In the 60's when the company was trying to purchase Florida marshland for a second amusement park, he was warned by his advisors to stay away from the state, the real estate prices would go up once the identity of the buyer was known. But Disney couldn't resist. Eating in a Orlando diner Walt was approached by a curious waitress,"Pardon me. Aren't you Walt Disney?" Walt who was known for being brutally honest, replied," Hell no! And if I see that sob, I'll give him a piece of my mind."

Stars making movies at Universal Studios often try to avoid tour guides leading autograph hounds. One particular fellow became ingenious at tracking down Michael Caine, who toyed with the idea of having the young man fired, then decided, "What the hell, I'll just sign" and was gracious. It turned out to be a good move, the tour guide was Mike Ovitz who later became the most powerful talent agent in Hollywood.

When stardom is new, autograph signing can be a thrill. One night in Paris the 60 year old Cary Grant and 25 year old Sophia Loren wished to go out to dinner. "But the people will come up to us. I can't stand it!" said the jaded Briton. "I love it," said Sophia. When they left their hotel Grant complete with his hat pulled down,dark glasses, his scarf wrapped around his face, and his huge overcoat looked like the Invisible Man. Sophia looked like Sophia. As they walked the streets of Paris people began to come up to her for autographs which she joyfully signed. After a few fan encounters Grant began to get jealous. Down came the hat, off came the glasses, the coat and the scarf and soon he was standing under neon lights to get noticed.

Another English actor named Grant was thrilled by his breakout stardom due to the movie Four Weddings And A Funeral (1994). Hugh Grant would drive around New York looking for theaters where the film was playing then get out and wait in line, happy for the attention and to sign autographs. Later when he was arrested in Los Angeles for hiring prostitute Divine Brown, he turned down requests to put his signature on tabloids containing his mug shot.

Some actors just sign despite their annoyance. One time Arnold Schwarzenegger was being interviewed at a press junket when a reporter asked him for an autograph for his mother, a big no-no. The star grimaced and said,"Of course. I wouldn't want to disappoint your mother." He paused then added," I'm sure you have disappointed her enough already."

Autographs can cause internal conflicts for stars who take themselves too seriously. During the making of Klute (1971) Donald Sutherland received a written request from a fan who wished for an autograph for his daughter. Sutherland showed the letter to his humorless girlfriend Jane Fonda who expressed a strong opinion that he should not sign it, autographs imply that movie actors are somehow superior to others. Sutherland bowed to her philosophy and wrote a letter stating his reasons for refusing the request. The man wrote him back,"Dear Mr. Sutherland, thank you for your letter. We think you are full of it but we ripped off the signature and gave it to our daughter."

The Eight Blackjack Myths that Lose You Money

If you believe any of the following blackjack myths, you will lose money. Don't do that error!

Myth 1: The purpose of blackjack is to acquire as stopping point to 21 as possible

This is NOT the physical object of the game. The physical object is to beat the dealer's hand.

Often, the best strategy is to stand up depending on your manus and the dealer's up card. Many people lose a manus because they hit their hands, when according to basic strategy they should stand.

Myth 2: bad players cause you to lose

Other players have got got no consequence on your winning or losing long term.

It is true that stupid plays made by stupid players can impact the result of a manus for everyone else, but it can be proved mathematically that it is just as likely that this could result in the full table winning.

Myth 3: Always take coverage if you have a blackjack

Insurance is the stupidest stake in blackjack. If a individual were to take coverage every time that they had a blackjack, then they would be giving up 13 percentage of the net income that a blackjack pays.

In order for a player simply to interrupt even with insurance, you would have got to think correctly 1 in 3 times, and there not good odds!

Only if you are card numeration should you ever even see taking insurance.

Myth 4: The trader is HOT

Mathematically speaking, when you are winning, the deck composition is in your favor, and when you are losing, it is not in your favor.

The trader have no picks to make; they simply follow the house rules. You as a player make have got choices, and it is your picks that find how successful you will be.

Myth 5: People entering the game in the center of a shoe can do you to lose

This is actually the same as a player taking an other card, or a player leaving in the center of the game. Neither of which do you to lose.

Myth 6: You are owed a win soon

The trader have won 10 hands consecutively - you volition win soon.

The opportunity of the player winning the adjacent manus is independent of what happened before.

Eventually of course, the figure of hands you will win will be around 48%, but this tin be over a very long period! In the short term, i.e A single playing session, the former hands are irrelevant.

Myth 7: The deuce (2) is the most advantageous card for the dealer

Not true. We detect the deuce because it do the traders manus frequently, because there is only one card that tin "bust" the hand, (10), if the sum is 12.

Mathematically, players lose more than when the "up card" the trader have is an Ace or a 10.

Myth 8: Don't divide 9, 9 against the dealer's 9, you're making two bad hands

When the player have 9 & 9 against the dealer's 9, the player have 18. This doesn't beat 19 as of course we presume that the trader have a 10 in the hole.

It is proven mathematically a player will lose less money by splitting the 9's than by standing.

Making Money as an Online Poker Affiliate

With so many people trying to earn a fortune on the internet, it is hard to find a way to make money that is not already flooded with competition. Maybe you have tried to go the Adsense route, or maybe you have tried creating an informational product. The point is that whatever you try to do to earn some extra money online there will always be competition.

An area with some competition, but not too much, is the poker affiliate industry. With the recent legislation banning online gambling in the United States, there has been an enormous shift away from this industry. This has decreased the competition for the people currently in the gaming affiliate world. Now is your chance to get your share of the action!

To get started you will need a simple website. Just a few pages will do for now. Be sure to make your site look as friendly and professional as possible. If needed, hire a web designer. This can save you a lot of time and grief.

Now that you have a simple web site up you need some quality content. You can either write your own, pay someone to write it for you, or get free content from content syndication web sites. Writing your own can be very time consuming, but is the best way to guarantee unique, high quality content. Paying someone else is good except that it costs money.

Getting free content from article directories can be a quick and easy way to get some content up on your site until you can write your own. When looking for free articles for your site, try to find some that have not already been picked up by everyone else. Look for new articles. Be sure to keep the author bio box in tact to avoid copyright disputes.

Next you will want to sign up for a poker or casino affiliate program. Choose one that is well known and popular. Get a few links and one or two banners up on your site. Try not to make your site an offensive, flashing banner farm.

Once your new site is ready to go with some fresh content. It is time to spread the word. Since your site will be new, it will not rank highly in the search engines. To overcome this you can use pay per click advertising. Since this is an entirely different can of worms, I will explain briefly. Some search engines allow you to place ads on their pages that only show up when certain words are searched on. You only have to pay when someone clicks your ad.

Thater's what I'm talking about...

Whoever runs the PokerStars Frequent Player Points store should know that the clock is ticking.

A man can only wait so long before 'The Most Beautiful Woman in Poker' (©Wagering War) poster goes on general release...







................................................................................

My sense of outrage at discovering that Wagering War has not been censored in China knows no bounds.
...............................................................................








A word from our sponsor

Share A Pic and Earn

Join ShareApic and Earn!!!

How it works

1. Sign up for FREE membership
2. Upload unlimited photos to share with others
3. Share galleries in forums, on ebay, myspace and more
4. Get Paid via Paypal and revenue sharing from Google Adsense

That easy. They do pay. Click here to register.

Land Based Casino

A land based casino is a type of casino which is situated on the land and is possessed by corporations or individuals which have their business of gaming managed by a state gaming commission or gaming control board. Most of the land based casinos are restricted by law of the state up to the maximum degree of a particular bet or wager. In ancient times, land based casinos are the only basis and resolution to the gaming necessities. But about 10 years back, the players saw a revolution of

online casinos

taking place to a new-fangled world of gaming which was more secure, more secretive and quicker in reimbursing the reward money to the champions.

Online casinos

and land based casinos are associated to each other as they provide the similar kind of games but two types of casinos differ a lot. It is correct to say that land based casinos provide a true life betting knowledge. Land based casino games are correct and real and one can play besides real dealers and players. There is no disbelief that land based casino gaming can provide an exhilarating practice but online casinos provide gaming to a different market. A huge number of people have an ardent curiosity in knowing the distinctions between land-based casinos and online gambling.

Land based slot machines are the famous casino games played worldwide. The slot machines reimburse more amount of money to the players as compared to the table games. Land based casinos also offers simple right of entry to slot machines. These casinos definitely provide flashier sounds and lights as compared to the online slot machines.

Land Based Casinos in Michigan

Kings Club Casino

This land based casino contains the progressives, Las Vegas slots and table games in Michigan. One can win a great amount of money in various progressive slot machines and free slot tournaments. One can also play Three-Way, Blackjack and other different casino games in this casino.

Lac Vieux Desert Casino

This casino provides a large variety of table games such as Phil-em-Up, Roulette, Blackjack, Craps and Let-it-Ride.

Land Based Casinos in Washington

Emerald Queen Casino

This land based casino is the true riverboat casino in the Northwest which contains professional boxing, topmost national entertainment and Las Vegas style gambling. This casino provides table games, more than 850 slot machines, lounge acts, card tournaments and there is a beautiful shore around the casino with excellent dining comforts.

Colville Tribal Casinos

This land based casino is situated in the Eastern Washington which provides video poker, blackjack, slot machines, bingo, roulette, keno and other varieties of table games.

ESPN bites the hands that feed it

Read this startling piece on the Poker Players' Alliance by ESPN's Mark Kreidler and then see if you come to the same conclusion as me.

Somewhere in his past, I suspect, Mr Kreidler has lost an awful lot of money at a poker game...

Daniel Negreanu's view on this sorry piece of journalism can be found here, while blogger Mean Gene gets a little more direct here.

When I call it sorry journalism, it's not Kreidler's critical stance to which I object but the factual errors on which he bases it, as summarised by Negreanu. The fact you're being an opinionated columnist rather than an objective reporter doesn't exempt you from the requirement to get your story straight.

And what does it tell us about ESPN's stance on poker? They embrace the WSOP, extend their website to include a poker page and then allow a wild pitch like Kreidler's to be fired at the game from behind their ramparts.

It tells you that the next time TV executives cut a deal with sport and gush about "partnerships" and "great fits", you're entitled to ask for a sick bag.

They take everything they possibly can and they give not one iota more than they have to.

Microgaming micro-management sees bland leading the bland

It was December of 2004 when I voiced my fear that the consolidation of online poker companies would see the Internet game's graphics embrace homogeneity and the blandness that so often goes with it.

The reality is now surely here, and, as forecast, Prima Poker - now known as Microgaming - holds the smoking gun. Click on all those rooms now locked in the Microgaming stable - many of them offer a sneak preview of what their tables look like. Temples of individuality they ain't.

At the other end of the imaginative scale, meanwhile, PKR goes from strength to strength, with 200,000 new members since Christmas. "PKR uses privately developed software and is not a part of any poker network," concludes the report.

Hold that thought.

Prohibition - As bad as it ever was?

It's heavy stuff but the stream of ironies should keep any American poker player going through this analysis of the 20th Century Prohibition and its myths.

"In later statements, [Pauline Sabin, who initially favoured Prohibition] elaborated further on her objections to prohibition. With settlement workers reporting increasing drunkenness, she worried, 'The young see the law broken at home and upon the street. Can we expect them to be lawful?
'...in pre-prohibition days, mothers had little fear in regard to the saloon as far as their children were concerned. A saloon-keeper's license was revoked if he were caught selling liquor to minors. Today in any speakeasy in the United States you can find boys and girls in their teens drinking liquor...' " - from Repealing National Prohibition by David Kyvig

"You will find that the workingmen of this country, 90 per cent of them, are either making wines, beer or whisky out of every known vegetable and fruit that exists. Everyone has his own special concoction. They even make wine out of parsnips and such stuff." - Testimony of William J. McSorley, Hearings before the Subcommittee of the Committee on the Judiciary, United States Senate, 1926

That's what we need 90 years on. Parsnip Neteller.

UIGEA starts to bite

It was only a matter of time before the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act claimed its first headline casualty.

Isaac Haxton is currently $800,000 richer or poorer, depending on how you view those tournament winnings currently entombed in his frozen Neteller account. The interview referred to in the linked report can be seen here:



Remember the face. If Haxton's winnings turn out to be as vulnerable as they currently look, this is the game's biggest martyr since Wild Bill Hickok.
....................................................................

PR par excellence from the Las Vegas Monorail Co. this week.

"Repeatedly and publicly hammered over falling ridership numbers in 2006, the Las Vegas Monorail apparently has decided that less news will be good news in 2007," reports the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
"Monorail officials on Thursday said that from now on they will release ridership reports once every three months, not monthly as the system has done since opening to the public in 2004.
"We're a private company," spokeswoman Angela Torres said. "Current management doesn't feel it's necessary to release the numbers monthly.""

Which rather begs the question as to why it's taken three years to reach this decision.

How often do we see companies insult our intelligence in this way? Instead of just tackling the problem, they tackle the way the problem is perceived and assume we won't notice the difference.

If I'm in Vegas from now on, I think I'll walk.
....................................................................

I'd hoped Poker Alerts might be the ideal alternative for having to read umpteen weekly e-mail newsletters from umpteen online poker rooms.

It wasn't. Not so much alert as comatose. Give me chocolate poker chips any day.
....................................................................

No matter what Jamie Gold says; no matter whether he's a man wronged or simply a wrong 'un, it is too late now to come to any conclusion other than poker can't crown its next world champion fast enough. It will be like opening the window in a musty room.
....................................................................

"Police are seeking 10 men, including several tribal elders, accused of pressuring a Pakistani woman to hand over her teenage daughter as payment for a 16-year-old poker debt..." - azstarnet.com

So it seems not even Iran will be the end of it. Once Bush has brought freedom to Baghdad and order to Teheran, it will be the UIGEA to Islamabad...