Internet Poker... doomed from Day 1

[PlayaHata]

With the insurgrence of Poker Bots such as WinHoldem, I am writing this post as I have come to the conclusion that Internet poker has been doomed since day 1. Moving the game from the felt tables of casino's to the internet was where it all went wrong. The problem is human nature, we are evil, cunning beings that will do anything for personal gain.

From the beginning of internet poker, people have been devising ways of beating the system. From the Card Mapper fiasco at Planet Poker, to Multi Accounts in MTT, to Team Bots Colluding through a 3rd party program on ALL major poker sites. Humans have found a way to alter and 'fix' the greatest card game in history without the need of skill that some spend years to develop. Why spend years perfecting your game when there are methods to guarantee a few thousand dollars every week?

Even programs like Poker Traker and Party Miner are just as unethical in my mind as a card mapper or poker bot. Why you might ask? Because not everyone involved in these games has the same access to these programs as you do. (I do not use ANY program) Data mining is just as evil as poker bots, IMO, because that information would not be avilable to you if you did not have a BOT collect the data for you! As well as poker tracker, you would not have that information readily available if that BOT did not collect it and transfer it to your interface. Well, you might say that these programs are readily available to anyone who googles the word poker program, and anyone can purchase it. But, when one googles poker program, one can find links to card mappers, poker bots, data trackers, and so on. What makes poker tracker ethical and poker bots unethical? What makes data mining unethical and colluding unethical? There is no difference whatsoever. If you brought a device into a casino and sat at a poker table collecting information on other players on bet amounts, frequency of aggression, and so on, I guarantee that device would be confiscated or you would be escorted out of the casino. If you brought in a device that could tell you what Player A or B does in given situations because you 'recorded' his actions in a previous hand that you were not involved in, the same outcome would occur. Having ANY device that is not available through the poker client and available to EVERY player is UNETHICAL. It is NOT a part of POKER, and the fact that poker tracker has come hand in hand with downloading a poker program is ludicris. Every player should be given the cards in front of them and the chips that they are willing to wager. THAT IS ALL. Using ANY outside device is unethical, IMHO.

The world of internet poker has made a turn for the worse. I never expressed my hatred of Poker TRacker or Data Mining until now, because people do not see the bigger picture. Internet poker, due to the acceptance of such foreign devices such as Tracker or Miner, is becoming more and more a computer based game and not a human based game. Soon, every internet player will be arming themselves with every possible device from card mappers, to bots, to trackers, to miners. If we do not take a stand somewhere, we can only allow ALL devices to be used. We must ban all devices or allow all of them to be used.

That is just my 2 cents. After this month, i will be withdrawing all my money from accounts and become a B&M player only. Good luck to all, and flame away if you must. But that is my opinion, and I hope I have made some people realize my point.

Playa