[Fonzi]

The Death of rec.gambling.poker

My readers know that I tell the truth, and I don't pull punches even when the people who publish my articles cringe at my words. For that, I want to thank my editors, the loyal readers, and the websites that purchase my articles. But I'm about to say something that will probably please the people who buy my work quite a bit:

The rec.gambling.poker newsgroup has become too useless to have any utility at all.

I used to be a regular poster on rec.gambling.poker (RGP) for years. It was an internet newsgroup that quite a few pros and semi pros used. Yes, RGP had its share of idiots, what Internet forum doesn't? But you could still pick out useful tidbits.

However, over the last 3 years, RGP has degenerated into the most useless pile of 1's and 0's on the face of the earth. The VAST majority of the messages are pure spam with no content whatsoever, off topic conversations for idiots and trolls to slag each other over, or simply outright lies and falsehoods designed to screw with new players and new posters. Where there are real facts, they are almost never backed up by the numbers (which I consider factual only because I already know or could predict the results given my long term trend tracking and odds calculations) which makes them useless for a player who is learning the game.

It didn't used to be all bad, there WAS quality there at one time, and I tried to do my part. My contributions on there were solid, from bankroll experiments where every step and every log were fully published, to quick guides for some of the more obscure games, to the physical aspects of the game, to more entertaining poker related conversation. And there were others without whom I would have been a much worse poker player, and maybe even a worse person. Through rec.gambling.poker, I was even reintroduced to Gary Wise, a fellow old school Magic player and poker nut, who is currently my editor.

But these days, RGP is a wasteland of trolls, thieves, and spammers with a handful of nice (and some talented) people being drown out by the mindless white noise of people screaming and waving their big units around. For those of you currently reading it: STOP. It is probably ruining your game as we speak. Most of the people posting there are living in a fantasy land filled with self delusional grandeur. It isn't about facts any more on RGP, it's about how much attention you can have poured upon you...good or bad attention doesn't matter.

So, what's the alternative? Small forums, or medium sized forums. Moderated intelligently, well focused, current, and useful. With registered members that clearly give a damn about the game of poker. You're reading this on one of those forums right now. The larger forums have something to say for them as well, but the biased moderation and megalomania that can happen in places like that often leaves you with just one point of view on any given issue. Stick with a brain-trust that you can rely upon. Bring your experiences back to these smaller forums, and share your feedback with others. Invite your other poker playing friends to join you. Soon, your poker game will be ramping up much faster than the people without the data, without the line of support, and without the focus that you and your peers have found.

These days, I just glance at the headlines of the day on RGP, cringe at the names of the egocentric and often deluded posters that I remember from the old days, and quickly move on. Every so often, I'll see someone helpful and skilled post something, and that will bring a smile to my face. But I get many more smiles from the people I've gotten to know in recent years: real people playing real poker. Knowing that I've had some small part in helping them, and knowing that in many cases they've helped me as well, I know that leaving RGP far behind was a good decision.

Bill Ricardi ? Internet Gaming Guru