Keeping
Pace With The Action
Internet poker action may seem fast and furious compared
to in-the flesh games. Additionally, you may feel a bit
disoriented. If you're brand new to online play, the visual
aspects are somewhat jarring: Cards appear briskly out of
nowhere from a disembodied dealer, only to whisk off into
cyberspace when players fold. This combination of faster
action and visual shorthand can be disorienting until you're
used to it.
With action whirring
around the table - or, alternatively, when it stops abruptly
for half a minute or more if an opponent "times out"
without acting - it's easy for a newbie to become flustered
and mutter, "What's going on here? Where's the action?
Is it on me?"
Just remember: The
games software will prompt you when it's time for you to
act. In general, two simultaneous events - one visual and
one audio - signal when it's your turn to act:
1. Obtrusive buttons for all permitted actions ("FOLD,
"CHECK. "BET, and "RAISE") appear insistently
on your screen the moment action reaches you.
2. These action buttons are accompanied by a pronounced
"beep- or tone-like sound.
Try closing your
eyes to listen for the audio prompt before action reaches
you - it's a distinctive sound like no other you'll hear
in the games. If you ignore it, a second, more insistent
sound will follow a number of seconds later, and it's likely
to be repetitive, louder, or more strident if you still
fail to act.
When you're distracted from following the action visually,
the audio prompts are your best friend. You'd hate to have
a pair of aces folded because you're following the sports
scores on TV, emptying the litter box, or grabbing dinner
out of the microwave. So if you're multi-tasking, turn up
your sound!
