PREFLOP CALCULATOR VARIATIONS

If you play online poker, then You probably are familiar with at least one of the online preflop  calculators. If you don't already own one, then you tend to be thinking of having one. But if a preflop  calculator investment is in your near future you need to know the basic variations and how they get along with the security of your poker account and bankroll.

Preflop  Calculator Variations

Mathematical - In general, all Preflop  calculators have the basic ability to calculate the bets and pot size while measuring that against your position, hole card power and drawing potential. These basic reading functions, extracted right from your poker window automatically, are basically why preflop calculators exist on the first hand. They quickly decipher the exact math and possibilities and offer a raise, call, check or fold suggestion.

Empirical - In addition to the above features, these Preflop  Calculators monitor and record the behavior of your opponents. Based on this added information, such a Preflop Calculator can help assistance or contradict your impression of a certain opponent's grid factor, but more likely, set the structure for an hypothesis all on its' own.

Operative - This kind of poker calculator will have a combination of at least some of the features in each of the Mathematical and Empirical, but is distinct in how it obtains that information. You can call this the "black hat" of Preflop  Calculators, because it extracts information on your future opponents, by monitoring your poker website's table action, and thus building a player database whether you are at a table or not. Then you can get information from that database to view your opponents' hand selection, playing styles, raising habits, bankroll changes, experience, and a host of other factors.

In general, the Mathematical and Empirical types of preflop calculators are both allowed or supported to some degree by your poker website, of course depending on compatibility. If you are pondering the purchase of an Operative Preflop  Calculator however, you should know there is risk included. On the sunny side, your poker website may never know you are using one and you will not be punished, while enjoying an individual, statistical benefits over your opponents. That however, is optimistic. The simple truth is that Mr. Big Poker Site is always on the lookout for such programs and enjoys the legal power to take away you from a table(s), confiscate your bankroll, and ban you from their site permanently. This however, is pessimistic. Let it be known though, that Mr. Big Poker Site has a huge research budget and will continue to throw money at this issue with the intent to seek and damage you and those "Black Hat" programmers. They need to, because it's their reputation at stake for fairness and image. Because simply put, a Big Poker Site cannot attract new players amidst cheating scandals.