Online Poker Site Bans Software

So I bet you thought while you were playing online poker, it was just you and the other players. I bet you thought it was just like in a casino where you were sitting there and just matching wits against other players in exactly the same boat. I bet you thought everyone was just using their eyes and minds to collect valuable information about their opposition to get and edge. I guess that would be a losing bet.

As it turns out, tons of data collecting type programs are in use by players while playing on these sites. PokerStars.com has officially banned the use of database Sharkscope.com and its corresponding Heads Up Display (HUD).

Sharkscope is a tracking tool that works off of a central database of player profiles and hands dealt. As such, it is a program that operates within the sphere of data mining and offers players advice on what actions they should take. This being the case, the program is strictly against PokerStars' term of service.

According to computer experts, the manner in which the ban is being enforced will have little or no effect with players who have made the decision to keep using the software. The manner in which a player can get around the ban is a simple one. They just have to sit with a laptop next to them running the program while they play on another program and they're edge is maintained without there being any chance of being caught.

The real question is, why did it take so long to ban this type of data sharing software? Why is any electronic aide permitted during the course of play? It would seem that these types of programs are just expected to be used and there isn't much the host sites can do about it. Apparently PokerStars explicitly allows the use of something like 60 other types of programs. I don't understand if when you go into a casino, you can't use any type of electronic aide, how is it that anything should be allowed online? I've always known about the programs, I just don't understand how players knowing that others have this edge would continue to play.

Maybe it's just me but I've always believed poker should just be you, the other players and the deck. If I wanted to play video games I could have gone to the arcade. In my opinion, that's where all this stuff belongs. The ban is good, for what it is worth. Now it will be a question of finding out if it will make any difference.