GET STARTED
		What follows is advice on the steps to take if you are interested in playing online poker (whether for real money or play money).  I've had good luck using the method I describe, but there are many ways to get up and running.  This information is offered merely as a description of what I did to begin playing poker online.  I take no responsibility for any consequences, financial or otherwise, related to the information on this page and website.
		STEP 1:
		Get broadband Internet access.  You probably already have cable modem or DSL service if you are considering playing online poker.  It's possible to play via dial-up modem, but I would not recommend doing so, particularly because real money may be at stake.  That said, a dial-up ISP is a great security blanket.  Once, I was playing in a 1300-player freezeout NLHE tourney that lasted almost five hours.  About 3 1/2 hours in, my DSL went out.  As I franticly reset the modem and router, my stack was being blinded off at a pretty good clip.  Finally, I remembered about dial-up, and I finished the tourney (making the final table!) logged in at 50kbps.
		STEP 2:
		Pick an online site and register there.  (If you are using a Mac or Linux, you have only two choices: Poker Room and Full Tilt Poker).  You can play with play money at every site, but in order to do so, you must register.  This usually entails creating a username/password and submitting your real name, address, and phone number.  No reputable site will ask you for more information than that just to set up a play money account. One thing to consider before taking this step is whether you believe that you will want to play for real money.  This decision has to do with getting the most appropriate deposit bonus available to you.  Almost all sites will give you something like a 20% or 25% deposit bonus on your initial deposit anytime after you set up a play money account.  This bonus option is only worthwhile if you will be initially depositing over $250.  If you will depositing less than $250, you should open your play money account only after being referred by a current player in order to get the largest deposit bonus.  If you do not open your account via a special link provided by the referrer, you will not maximize your initial deposit bonus if you are depositing less than $250.  Most sites will give you between $25 and $50 for depositing as little as $50, but you must open your account through the special referral link.  In short, if you anticipate playing for real money and know that you will not initially deposit more than $250, do not open an account (even for play money) without doing it through a referral link.  I'd be happy to refer anyone who emails me at . Hint: Choose a username that you will be able to live with since many sites will not let you change it.  Most poker-themed nicknames have already been taken, so you'll want to try something more original.  If it is original enough, you might be able to use it at every site you play, which is good for developing an online reputation.  However, some players prefer to not draw attention to themselves and not only use different usernames on different sites, but they choose usernames that are difficult to recall.
		STEP 3:
		Play at the play tables on one site for at least a few days.  Most of the players claimed by online sites are not playing for real money--they have only play money accounts.  Play money games have gotten quite sophisticated over the past year, and you can play all different kinds of poker for play money, including single-table tournaments.  Some sites even offer freeroll multi-table tournaments (with real money prizes) for play money players. While you should practice playing both ring games and tournaments, it will be difficult to learn good habits when playing ring games for play money.  People do not not play the game the same way unless there is something at stake.  If you can discipline yourself to play as if the money is real, you will begin to develop good habits, but it is too easy to backslide.  What you are trying to these few days is familiarize yourself with the interface and the offered games.  While most sites have very similar interfaces, some use different terminology at times (For instance, in ring games, Poker Room terms a raise of the big blind a "bet," while Party Poker calls it a "raise").  Ask yourself if the site offers the kind of games and perks that would make it worthwhile to play for real money there.
		STEP 4:
		This will be the most skipped step, but it is perhaps the most important.  It can be summed up in a single word: Read.  Unless you are a natural, you will steadily lose money if you do not read good poker books.  The first book I would read is Lee Jones's Winning Low-Limit Hold'Em.  You can find it, along with other good books, on the Recommended Reading page of this website.  Truth be told, you cannot fully comprehend the concepts behind playing good Hold 'Em without putting into play what you have read.  So you should try to follow the strategy in Jones's book while still at the play money tables (even though your opponents will not be playing as if they were using real money).  Texas hold'em is so simple to learn that it is tempting to jump in and begin playing, but you must learn good strategy from the beginning.  Believe me: doing so will save you a lot of money in the long run.
		STEP 5:
		Once you have decided that you would like to make the move from play money to real money, you need to decide how much you will put into your account.  Like the money you take to a brick-and-mortar casino, the money you put into an online poker site should be money that you can afford to lose.  If you begin by expecting to lose most or even all of it, you will be in a good state of mind to play.  Consider online poker just another form of paid entertainment, such as going out to dinner or to the movies. You will probably begin at low-limit or even micro-limit ($0.25/$0.50 and lower) tables.  Most sites will seat you at a table with a stack of 25 times the big blind (e.g., at Party Poker's $0.50/$1.00 tables, you begin with $25 if you have that much in your account).  Unless you are what is called a very "loose" player, you do not need to deposit a lot of money to be able play at low-limit tables for a good amount of time.  $100 will last a long time at the $0.25/$0.50 or $0.50/$1.00 tables provided you play sound poker.
		STEP 6:
		Getting your money into your online poker site's account can be a multiple-step process.  Most major bank and credit cards will be rejected by the online site because their issuers do not want to enable online gambling.  I do not recommend using a bank or credit card anyway.  Doing so merges your poker expenses with real-life expenses, which can turn into a problem. Because I didn't want my regular checking account linked to online poker sites, I set up a separate checking account just for poker.  Opening a checking account is usually free, but the process does take about a week before the account is fully active.  Make sure that your new account offers online access (this will become very handy).  I deposited $500, knowing full well that it could be gone. I then opened an account with Neteller.  Neteller is a money-transferring service like PayPal, and through it you can deposit money into all of the major online poker sites.  I linked my new checking account with my Neteller account; this process takes a few business days since Neteller needs to make two small deposits into your checking account to verify it.  Neteller does not charge you a fee for transferring money between your checking account and Neteller account, but it will charge a fee if you want special services (such as immediate transfer).  Again, the standard transfer takes about a few business days.  With the exception of Party Poker's IGMPay (a proprietary service), Neteller is the only transfer service I use for online poker.  You have other cashout options (all sites will mail or courier you a check), but Neteller is the fastest and most convenient.
		STEP 7:
		At this point, depositing money into the poker site is as easy as clicking on the "Cashier" button.  Make sure that the money is actually in your Neteller account and that the transaction isn't still pending.  If you have any bonus codes, now is the time to use them.  These bonus codes can get you extra money with your initial deposit or free entries into multi-table tournaments.  If you do not link through one of the banners on the Where to Play page on this site, email me, and I will send you a bonus code for your site of choice.  In order to deposit, you will need to provide your Neteller account number and Secure ID number.  Once you initiate the transfer, the money is in your account almost instantaneously.  (Cashouts to Neteller can take longer--anywhere from a few hours to a few days.) If you have earned a deposit bonus (and you should), the bonus amount is usually set off from the amount you actually deposited.  This is because the bonus money is not actually yours yet.  Remember, you need to play a certain number of raked hands before the bonus is released to you (the number varies by site).  All sites will show you how many hands you have played toward your bonus and how many you have left to play to collect it.  Look for links to "My Account" from the main menu of the poker client.
		STEP 8:
		Get in there and play good poker!  See the Strategy page of this site for some beginning tips.  Remember to keep reading good strategy books to improve your play.  Good luck!
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