[AaronBrown]

I don't like the term "standard raise." It implies a mechanical rule. It's more useful to think of min raises and big raises.

A min raise will make the pot bigger and give the players who have already acted another chance to raise; but it's unlikely to make anyone fold due to the money (they may have folded anyway, or they may fold because of the change in strategic situation or because of what the min raise says about your hand).

A big raise will induce people to fold, unless they have hands they think are stronger than yours (either because they have very strong hands, or they don't believe you have a strong hand).

A standard raise is in between. It leaves people guessing. You can think of it as the smallest raise likely to induce a fold, or the biggest raise likely to be called. But don't let the term "standard" fool you into thinking it is generally the correct amount to raise. It's a good raise in some situations and a bad raise in others.

If you are last to act, a pot-sized raise is standard. You're offering a caller 2 to 1 pot odds, which makes most drawing hands unattractive. They either have to call on strength, or bluff, or play you for a bluff. On the other hand, no one needs nuts to call, a lot of hands have 1 chance in 3 versus a range of strong hands.

If you're in early position, the standard raise becomes larger. A lot of drawing hands are attractive with 2 to 1 pot odds at the moment, and more players likely to enter. Once someone calls your bet, the next player gets 3 to 1 pot odds. Exactly how much bigger depends on how loose the table is and how much respect people give for position.