Poker trackers and software

[the mole]

I have never used any software or trackers, do you guys feel it is an asset to have them?
how hard are they to work?
does it take up a lot of your time?
and what are the best ones?

i am not sure whether it would benefit me to have one as i feel you may get bogged down reading into things too much.

[voiceofjoe]

Poker Tracker is IMO invaluable, and especially for someone playing at your level. I would imagine ,from reading articles in magazines, that all other serious pros use technology to a greater or lesser extent.

WIth Poker Tracker you don't have to spend hours looking over data, although i'm you can if you want, but it lets you re-play hands to see what odds your were getting, see which hands are costing you money and which hands are making you money.

I think you still can get the full program for a free 1000 hand trial (free download) which is plenty enough to let you get the low down on your trends. But with unlimited hand histories what i have started to do is open all the Ladbrokes tables and leave them collecting data for hours on end on all the other tables at my buy in. This then (after a decent while) will give you lowdown on who are the successfull players and who are the ones you can make money from.

Poker Office I also have , but don't use as much, although i may well do in the future.

Game Time is another free Poker Tracker addon that gives data on all your current table opponents. Which would be useful providing you don't play more than 2 tables at once.

GaF is a complete techno-slave so I'm sure he will enlighten you even further

In the meantime go here http://www.pokertracker.com/ and download it immediately !! you won't regret it

[GotaFancy?]

I think poker tracker for me is an absolute must - for multitabling low level cash games. It is great for 2 things:
1) Plugging leaks in your own game
2) Having live information on your opponents during a hand

I prefer PokerOffice for tournaments, but its utility is far less.

You cant use PT yet on Boss (on Paradise it's not the best system, having to utilise email) - but the new hand historues should be totally PT compatible, so it's only a matter of time.....

There is a danger of getting bogged down in insignificant details, but so long as you're aware of that and only looking for the major things (and significant - ie with enough hand histories), you should be ok.....

Does it take up a lot of my time? No!! BUT it should!!!! I largely just let it run and use it live, with a few minutes data mining here and there - I SHOULD be spending more time with it and looking at the data in more depth.....

I think you'd be surprised how much you learn about your own game by using it!!!! I think youd find some surprises - situations or hands that you think are profitable, but aren't (and vice versia!!)

Should also make it significantly easier to see your opponents weaknesses!!! For example, you can very quickly look at all the situations your opponents is on the button and shows down AA, and replay the hands .... seeing them grouped together like that makes it far easier to find weaknesses/trends/tells

[brael]

Originally Posted by voiceofjoe

But with unlimited hand histories what i have started to do is open all the Ladbrokes tables and leave them collecting data for hours on end on all the other tables at my buy in. This then (after a decent while) will give you lowdown on who are the successfull players and who are the ones you can make money from.

I thought you had to be playing to collect data on your opponents? Can you just view a table and get PT to import the hand history?

I've been using the Omaha version of PT and feel that it has made some difference. I'll see how it goes over the 1000 hand trial before deciding whether or not to buy.

[GotaFancy?]

Originally Posted by brael

I thought you had to be playing to collect data on your opponents? Can you just view a table and get PT to import the hand history?

It depends on the network - on Laddies/Prima, just "observing" the hand is enough. I too open 10 tables and leave them collecting data all day

On Poker Tracker Omaha - be careful of the default auto rate - by his own admission, Pat at PT isn't a good Omaha player and the auto rate rules he put in the software are supposedly questionable ..... these certainly need to be revised it seems ( a google will probably throw up some recommendations)

Anyone using the Holdem version - thoroughly recommend the PokerTracker articles at www.bet-the-pot.com (I think ) - and especially the new set of autorate "rules" that can be downloaded (and imported into PT) in article 2a.....

[the mole]

So is there no software at the moment that works on boss? i only play on boss and do not want to move although i will have to move away from SO soon any recomendations of other good boss sites or is it all much the same?

[GotaFancy?]

The hand history on Boss is fairly new - so it wasn't possible before ..... now it's only a question of time.....

[Masterplan]

i would reccomend anyone using PT to use Gametime+ as well, its a FREE addon (check sourceforge.com for latest version) that overlays up to date table stats onto your tables for certain sites.
very useful to track your progress/table image

[kevsul]

OK Question?

when setting it up to import your hand history from pop3 and email.

It say enter server name? (what do you put there please)

[GotaFancy?]

Thats the server that stores your email .....

Who's your email provider? (if you want a free one, you can use gmail which is pop3, but not hotmail which isn't)

[kevsul]

put in gmail ..

And it says specified host name invalid

[GotaFancy?]

Probably wants to be pop.gmail.com

[mrmuzeman]

Hey Mole,

Id defo get yourself PokerTracker. It doesnt matter if you dont use it for anything but the basics even. I feel the standard stats on how much youve won/lost net with each starting hand is a very good tool. With someone who plays many hands as you do/have youd have a very good base of data to work from and it could help you plug any leaks in your game if youve seen that youre not having much joy with certain types of hand. Alternatively if everything looks sweet itll just make you feel sweet about it all.

[rosco]

Some Great Advice coming from here

Been Reading poker books and watching poker play quite alot recently to improve my game and this will cover another angle.

Will Certainly use this to find weak players to ease money off.


Mole - Have a look at Virgin, the Money you play at may earn you quite alot in Airmiles. Free trip to Vegas?

[icky]

Are there any free trackers worth recommending ?
Or the choice is only between PokerTracker and PokerOffice ?

[GotaFancy?]

Only serious options that I'm aware of are PokerTracker and PokerOffice.

Try the demo versions If you're a cash game player, they'll soon pay for themselves if you choose to buy them

[GotaFancy?]

Have made a short (12 mins/27MB) vid of me playing a cash table on laddies to give a brief idea of what it's like in game using PT (with Gametime). Usually I do this, but with 6 tables showing the info.

You can quickly see who the poor players are (though the chat box gives a pretty good clue too).

Remember, this is jjust half of what PT is good for - in game info, the other (which you dont see here) relates to plugging your leaks, which you would do "offline"....

http://rapidshare.com/files/11120611/pokertracker1.avi.html

[FatBoyFat]

What codec is this Gaf? Media player having none of it.

[GotaFancy?]

er ... not sure mate - just checking......

Works fine in VLC Player (as EVERYTHING seems to )

[GotaFancy?]

Think it's the TSCC codec - http://www.techsmith.com/download/codecs.asp