Tracking Software Should Be Embedded Directly Into Poker Client

The subject of tracking software and heads-up displays in poker have been debated fiercely of late, with the industry’s chief concern being the harm they do in making the online game an unattractive environment for recreational players. After all, back in the ‘poker boom’ era players were drawn to poker because of its psychological mystique, and would hardly have been willing participants if the game was marketed as an exercise in number crunching.
Even the world’s most successful online cash player, Patrik Antonius, admits to no longer playing Hold’em or PLO online anymore, explaining that it feels like “you’re playing against a computer these days”, with the software ultimately rendering the game unfair. Someone who also agrees with him is UK poker pro and writer Ian Simpson, who last week wrote an interesting article for CardPlayer in which he made a number of suggestions that could help turn the game’s popularity around.
One of the most intriguing suggestions included in Simpson’s post entitled “Poker Software Tools: Good or Bad for Poker” involved the various site’s building tracking software into their poker client to enable everyone to use it, and not just those professional grinders who are already up on the technology. Either that or ban them altogether, and as Simpson goes on to explain:
“Many recreational players don’t even know that it exists at all, and are oblivious to it. This puts them at such a severe disadvantage. Tracking software is insanely powerful nowadays.”
Other areas attracting criticism includes database sharing, which allows players to gain insights into the tendencies of players they have never competed against before, or the use of seating script software, which allows grinders to locate and target “fish” as easy prey. Simpson ends his interesting post by concluding:
“If the edge in poker becomes so high against a new or recreational player then the poker economy will collapse. You don’t see me playing high stakes chess because there is no chance I could win. The appeal of poker comes from anyone being able to win.”