War Against the Bots

[aflaba]

Just keep your mouths shut and enjoy another good two years or so. Then find another carrier (game over). That's my plan... actually my plan is retirement, but that's a whole other story.

ADDON: The problem isn't casual botters who try to create a winning but and fail, but serious teams and maybe staff members of poker game development (poki staff) who know they have winning bots and only need to take that to every table on the internet and become mega rich. There is no way of stopping them. Detect that there are bots? They hire 100 indians to do the job. Or better yet, 100 indians to play and 100 indians to input the relevant information to the bots on a separate computer. No way of detection. There is no way to overcome the bot problem... except... proper ID control and collaboration between sites... maybe regional sites as well... it's easier to ID control let's say Sweden than the entire world. And it's harder to recruit a big farming staff. Give bountys to players who reveals bots (50% of money confiscated?) and big farms will become even more of a hassle. So maybe bots will be controlable, but it will take aloooot of work I believe. Or when commercial bots become avalible like chess computers, jeez... forget what I wrote about poker having a chance. New profession in two years... something that won't be taken over by bots this time!

[illunious]

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They hire 100 indians to do the job. Or better yet, 100 indians to play and 100 indians to input the relevant information to the bots on a separate computer. No way of detection.

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Here's why this isn't a problem:

Removing the AI software from the equation (which both would need), a single high end server could run 10 virtual machines x 12 tables x 24 hours a day easily. Hiring/training/managing 100 workers requires a -great- deal more infrastructure than turning on one server.

And retaining them would be a huge problem. Workers are going to learn the system within a few months. They will very quickly be able to play 98% of hands without referencing the software. In no time they will be outplaying the system in the other 2%.

At some point they are going to say to themselves, "I don't need this software to tell me what to do. I made $500 last week for this place and was paid $40".

Lots of people use Warcraft as a comparison, but it's not a good one.

In WoW the (china) gold farmers need to sell their gold, they need a website or relentless marketing, paypal, bank account, their customers don't speak the same language. They are basically forced to work as a group.

In poker you have real money and numerous (comparatively easier) ways to cash out. Free BR offers, no monthly fee, and the hardware requirements are far lower.