Frostbyte's 1980s DOS Shareware Collection

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Federal Hill Software Presents XX XX XXXX XXXXXX XXXXXXX XXXXX XX XX XX XX XX XX X XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX X XX XX Video XX XX XX XX XX XXXX XX XX Blakjak! XX XX XX XX XX XX X XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX X XX XX XXX XXXX XXXXXX XXXXXXX XXXXX XXXXXX XXXX XXXXX XX XX XXXX XXXXX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XXXXX XX XXXXXXX XXXX XX XXXXXXX XXXX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX X XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XXXXXX XXXXXXX XX XX XX XX XXXX XX XX XX XX User Supported Version 2.0 (C)1990 Federal Hill Software 3722 Greenway Lane P.O. Box 765 Owings Mills, Md. 21117 410-356-5592 Contents Chapter 1 Introduction 1 1.1 What Video Blakjak Does . . . . . . . . . . . 1 1.2 Blackjack and Computers . . . . . . . . . . . 3 1.3 About User-Supported Software . . . . . . . . 4 1.4 About Federal Hill Software . . . . . . . . . 5 Chapter 2 Running Video Blakjak 6 2.1 Video Blakjak Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 2.2 Hard Disk Setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 2.3 Running the Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 2.4 The Main Menu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 2.5 Initial Setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 Chapter 3 Playing Video Blakjak 11 3.1 Wagering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 3.2 Playing the Hand . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 3.2.1 Insurance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 3.2.2 Splitting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 3.3 The Status Box . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 3.4 The Assistance Screen . . . . . . . . . . . 16 3.5 The Status Report . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 3.6 Auto-Play . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 3.7 Change Strategy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Chapter 4 The General Rules of Blackjack 21 4.1 Card Values . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 4.1.1 Hard and Soft Hands . . . . . . . . . 22 4.1.2 Blackjack . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 4.2 Hitting and Standing . . . . . . . . . . . 23 4.3 BUSTING . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 4.4 Special Two-Card Options . . . . . . . . . 23 4.4.1 Doubling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 4.4.2 Splitting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 4.4.3 Surrender . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 4.5 The Dealer's Rules . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 4.6 Who Wins and How Much . . . . . . . . . . . 25 Chapter 5 Video Blakjak Setup 27 Chapter 6 Blackjack Strategies 31 6.1 The Economics of Blackjack . . . . . . . . 32 6.2 Tipping the Edge . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 6.3 Why Not Play Like the Dealer? . . . . . . . 34 i 6.4 Basic Strategy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 6.4.1 Probability of Dealer Busting . . . . 36 6.4.2 Basic Hitting and Standing - Hard Hand . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36 6.4.3 Basic Hitting and Standing - Soft Hand . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 6.4.4 Basic Splitting Rules . . . . . . . . 38 6.4.5 Insurance - A Bad Bet . . . . . . . . 39 6.5 Advanced Card Count Strategies . . . . . . 39 6.5.1 The Point Count Strategy . . . . . . . 40 6.5.2 Point Count Differences . . . . . . . 41 6.5.3 How to Count The Cards . . . . . . . . 41 6.5.3.1 A Practice Example . . . . . . . 41 6.5.4 The True Count . . . . . . . . . . . . 42 6.6 What the True Count Means . . . . . . . . . 43 6.7 Point Count Strategy Tables . . . . . . . . 43 6.8 Adjusting Your Wager . . . . . . . . . . . 46 Chapter 7 What To Expect 48 Chapter 8 Final Notes 50 8.1 Distributing this Program . . . . . . . . . 50 8.2 Technical Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51 Appendix A Bibliography 52 Appendix B The Cambridge Handicappers 53 Appendix C How to Order 55 ii Chapter 1 Introduction Video Blakjak is for people who like to play Blackjack and want to learn how to play it better. If you're looking for entertainment, you'll find plenty here. If you're a serious student of the game, Video Blakjak will make you a better player. It will help you learn how to count cards, adjust to rules changes, and make the proper betting judgments. It will even help you develop your own card-counting system. The program requires a true IBM-compatible computer with 384K of memory. If you have a color monitor, it will play in glorious living color. If you have a monochrome monitor, it will play in glorious monochrome. It is compatible with any graphics card and will run from a floppy or hard disk drive. 1.1 What Video Blakjak Does People play Blackjack because it's fun. An you'll have fun with Video Blakjak. You'll play one-on-one against the dealer. It's a lot quicker than the real thing--and a lot cheaper. As you play each hand, on-screen prompts will tell you what your options are. And a status box will tell you what's happening all the time. If you like bells and whistles, Video Blakjak can whoop it up with the noisiest arcade games. If you'd rather play in quiet contemplation, you can turn the noise off. And if you're playing at the office (not that you'd ever consider wasting company time on something as frivolous as a card game), a single keystroke will put you in the middle of a very serious spreadsheet. But Video Blakjak offers more than fun and games. It will teach you the game and help you play it better. Here's how: * Strategy: Video Blakjak has been preprogrammed with the BASIC blackjack strategy that all players have to master and a simple but effective Advanced Point Count strategy. At any point during a hand, a keystroke will display the correct play. You can switch strategies at any time. * Assistance: If you need more help, you can summon an assistance screen that tells you everything that's going on: how many cards have been dealt, what the dealer's chance of busting is, the running and "true" card counts, the correct play for the hand, and even a display showing how many of each card remain in the shoe. * Card Counting: Video Blackjack has been programmed to "count" cards according to a strategy used by many serious players. At your option, it will display the card count on the screen as you play. * Setting up the Rules: Casinos have varying rules. These rules have a profound impact on your strategy and your chances of winning. Video Blackjak lets you change the rules to suit the conditions where you're playing. You can change the number of decks in the shoe (from 1 to 8), the dealer's hit/stand rules, doubling rules, splitting rules, the percentage of the shoe played before a shuffle, the table betting limit, minimum wager and the size of your playing pot. * Statistical Report: At any time, you can summon a statistical report showing how well you've done this session. The report includes hands played, won, lost and tied, the amount you've wagered, how much you've won or lost, the percentage you've won or lost, the number of Blackjacks and busted hands for you and the dealer, and the number of insurance bets you've made and collected. * Auto-Play: Want to see how a strategy will work against various rules BEFORE you lay down your money? Video Blakjak will play the game for you, according to the strategy you choose. It never gets tired, and it never gets distracted by cocktail waitresses. It will play up to 200 hands in the User Supported version and an unlimited number of hands in the Enhanced version. * Build Your Own System: The Enhanced Video Blakjak includes a powerful Strategy Construction Kit that will let you develop and test your own card-counting strategies against a variety of house rules. Video Blakjak Page 2 1.2 Blackjack and Computers More than any other casino game, Blackjack lends itself to computer and mathematical simulation. And it's a game in which a computer can help you hone your skills in an environment that approaches the real thing. First things first. Blackjack gives you a mathematical chance to beat the house. It's the only casino game that provides this opportunity. In every other casino game, the only thing you can alter is the size of your wager. In Blackjack, you have control over the outcome of the hand as well as the size of your bet. In playing your hand, you're a relatively free agent, but the dealer must play his hand by certain rules. If you know what you're doing, you can win. It isn't easy, and it takes serious concentration. But you can do it. If it weren't for computers, winning at Blackjack would be a matter of luck. Until the mid-1950's, even the best players could only guess at the correct strategies. Even casino owners were setting the rules as the result of gut feelings and experience, not research. Of course, their customers had even less experience and knowledge, so the casinos made a healthy profit (and they still do). It's no coincidence that the players who developed the first truly successful Blackjack strategies weren't professional gamblers, but mathematicians and computer scientists such as Julian Braun and Edward O. Thorp. Working during the 1950's, 60's and 70's, they used large mainframe computers to play millions of simulated games under varying conditions. They proved mathematically that it was possible to gain a small but significant advantage over the house. When the results of their research hit the popular press, casino owners panicked and changed the rules to make it more difficult to win. But you can still do it. Better yet, your IBM-compatible computer gives you more computing horsepower than most of the serious researchers had when they did their original work. With Video Blakjak, you can have fun playing the game and do your own research. This manual will touch on the theories behind winning Blackjack. But if you're serious about the subject, there are a dozen fine titles available. Chances are you'll find a shelf full of them at your public library. We suggest that you read some, and we've included a brief bibliography at the end of the manual. Video Blakjak Page 3 Even the "experts" often disagree, and the more you know about Blackjack, the better you'll play. 1.3 About User-Supported Software Video Blakjak is distributed as User-Supported Software, also known as Shareware. It is not "free" or "public domain" software. The program is copyrighted by the author and remains his intellectual property. Under the Shareware concept, you have the right to try the software before you buy it. If you like the program and use it, you should register it. The registration fee for User-Supported software is $30. For your money, you'll get an ENHANCED version of Video Blakjak with even more features. These include: * The Strategy Construction Kit: This powerful tool will allow you to modify and create new card-counting strategies for Video Blakjak. If you don't like our system, you can use Video Blakjak to test somebody else's system--or build your own from scratch. Our fill-in-the- blanks approach makes it quick and easy. * Adjustable wagering strategies that will show you how to vary your bets according to the card count. This is one of the secrets of successful Blackjack play. * The ability to log your entire session to disk or printer. You can go back over every hand to see where you played well and where you made mistakes. * Unlimited Auto-Play. You can tell the computer to play as many hands as you like. It will play according to the casino rules and playing strategy you've chosen. This is a valuable research tool for serious students who want to experiment without risking any money. If you have a theory to test, you can tell Video Blakjak to play 20,000 hands and leave it running overnight. When it's done, a status report will show you the results. * Our research: Most of the research and practical strategy systems we've seen are based on millions of hands played. This is fine as far as it goes. But it ignores the fact that most people don't have time to play millions of hands. So we've looked at the way people really play, and we've developed recommendations that will help you to Video Blakjak Page 4 determine when to stay in the game and when to quit-- another secret of winning Blackjack. Our ENHANCED manual includes the results of that research. 1.4 About Federal Hill Software Since 1983, Federal Hill Software has specialized in programs that help people make intelligent betting decisions. In addition to Video Blackjak, we offer professional quality, time- tested software for handicapping Thoroughbred, Harness and Greyhound races, as well as professional football games. We operate under the theory that with the right preparation and some discipline, you can even the odds and tip them in your favor. We don't offer get-rich-quick schemes, just sound handicapping systems that we've made quick and easy to use thanks to the speed and power of the computer. Over the years, we've had thousands of satisfied customers. We also offer special prices for customers who order more than one program at a time. If you're interested in our handicapping software, see Page 53 of this manual for details. Federal Hill Software is a member of the Association of Shareware Professionals, a group of software publishers who distribute their programs on a User-Supported basis. Video Blakjak Page 5 Chapter 2 Running Video Blakjak This chapter will tell you how to get Video Blakjak running on your system. If you got the program from a bulletin board, on-line library, user group or shareware company, the first thing you'll want to do is make a working copy of your original disk. Use any of the standard DOS copying functions to copy ALL the files to the working disk. 2.1 Video Blakjak Files The Video Blakjak program consists of several different files. These are the files you should have on your disk: VBJ.BAT The batch file that launches Video Blackjak. Always use the command VBJ to run the program. BJ20S.EXE The executable Video Blakjak program file. Do NOT run this program by itself. It will not load properly unless you use the VBJ.BAT file above. BJ.CFG The configuration file that records information about your computer and the playing conditions you've established. BLAKJAK.PAK A file containing the screen displays used by Video Blakjak. SPEEDSCR.COM A screen driver required for use with the program. VBJ.DOC The file containing this instruction manual. PRINTME.BAT A batch file that will send the instruction manual to your printer. READ.ME A file containing the latest information about using the program. To see what's in this file, type the command TYPE READ.ME and hit ENTER. The contents of the file will be displayed on your screen. Video Blakjak Page 6 To run the program, all of the files except VBJ.DOC, PRINTME.BAT and READ.ME must be on your floppy disk or in the hard disk directory from which you launch the program. 2.2 Hard Disk Setup If you want to run Video Blakjak from a hard disk, you should set up a directory for the program and copy the Video Blakjak files into that directory. This example assumes that you want to install the program on Drive C in a directory called \VBJ. If you're using a hard drive with a different designator, just substitute your drive letter for the letter "C". 1. Put the Video Blakjak disk in Drive A: 2. Type C: (hit ENTER) 3. Type CD\ (hit ENTER) 4. Type MD\VBJ (hit ENTER) 5. Type CD\VBJ (hit ENTER) 6. Type COPY A:*.* (hit ENTER) All of the Video Blakjak files will be copied into the new \VBJ directory. If you want to save on disk space, you can erase the VBJ.DOC file once you've printed out the manual. 2.3 Running the Program To run the program from a floppy disk, put your Video Blakjak disk in Drive A. With the A:> prompt showing, type VBJ and hit ENTER. The program will load and run. To run the program from a hard drive (assuming you've followed the instructions above), do the following: 1. Type CD\VBJ (hit ENTER) 2. Type VBJ (hit ENTER) 3. The program will load and run. Video Blakjak Page 7 In either case, your disk drive will chug for a few seconds. Then the title screen will appear. Strike any key and you'll see a screen explaining the Shareware concept. Strike another key and you'll be at the main menu. The program is configured initially for a monochrome monitor. If you have a color monitor, you can choose a color display from the Setup screen (Choice No. 5 on the Main Menu. See Page 30 for details). DO NOT attempt to run the VBJ20S.EXE file by itself. It won't work. Here's why: The VBJ.BAT file which you should use to run the program first loads into memory a program called SPEEDSCR.COM. This is a memory-resident screen driver required by the main program. If the driver isn't loaded, the program will not run properly. The VBJ.BAT file also removes SPEEDSCR from memory when you're through playing. While SPEEDSCR is harmless, it can result in some unusual screen displays should some other piece of software inadvertently trigger it. So always launch Video Blakjak by entering the command VBJ. 2.4 The Main Menu Video Blakjak is menu driven. It presents you with a list, or menu, of choices. The Main Menu looks like this: 1. Start a New Session 2. Resume Current Session 3. Let Computer Play 4. Status for this Session 5. View or Change Setup 6. Change Strategy 7. Registration Form 8. Quit When you first see the menu, Choice No. 1 will be highlighted. You can make a selection from the Main Menu in one of two ways. * Use the Up or Down Cursor Key to move the highlight bar to your selection. When your selection is highlighted, hit the ENTER key. * Just type the number opposite your choice. You don't have to hit ENTER. Video Blakjak Page 8 * Note: Video Blakjak is set up initially for Monochrome monitors. If you have a color monitor, you can switch to a glorious color display through the Setup screen. See Page 30 for details. Here's a brief description of each choice: 1. Start a New Session: This will take you directly to the Blakjak table and erase all statistical totals for any previous sessions. The deck will be shuffled. Be careful when you choose this if you haven't printed out the totals from the current session. 2. Resume Current Session: This will take you directly to the blackjack table. Results of new hands will be added to the current statistical totals. The deck will not be shuffled. You'll pick up where you left off. Use this to resume playing after you've taken a break to check your status. 3. Let the Computer Play: This valuable tool allows you to tell the computer to play a given number of hands according to the strategy and playing conditions you've select. Far better than any book explanation, it will demonstrate how differences in rules and strategies can affect the outcome of the game--and the size of your wins or losses. It's also fun to watch. In the User-Supported Version, Auto-Play is limited to 200 hands at a time. In the Enhanced Version, Auto-Play is unlimited. 4. Status for this Session: This will show you statistical information for the current session, with an optional printout. 5. View or Change Setup: This will take you to the setup screen. There you'll have the opportunity to change betting and playing conditions to reflect the rules at various casinos. Some of these options are available only in the ENHANCED Video Blakjak. If you have the enhanced version, you'll be able to tell the computer to print out or record on disk the results of each hand played. For information on the Setup procedure, see Page 27. 6. Change Strategy: This will allow you to switch from the standard BASIC playing strategy to an advanced, card counting strategy. 7. Registration Form: We've made it VERY easy to register. When you choose this option, an on-screen registration Video Blakjak Page 9 form will appear. Just fill in the information, and the program will print out the form. Send the form to Federal Hill Software, and we'll rush you the ENHANCED Video Blakjak right away. 8. Quit: This will terminate the program and return you to DOS. 2.5 Initial Setup As we mentioned above, you can customize Video Blakjak for any particular casino and various playing conditions. See the Chapter on configuration settings, Page 27. If you want to start playing right away, here are the default settings: 6 Decks in the Shoe Sound Effects On Double Down on any Two Cards Double after Split Allowed Surrender Allowed Card Count is Displayed Dealer Stands on Soft 17 Deck Shuffled after 75% of cards are played. Your starting pot: $5,000 Table Limit: $200 Minimum Bet: $10 Strategy: Basic Monitor: Monochrome Video Blakjak Page 10 Chapter 3 Playing Video Blakjak This chapter assumes that you know the rules of Blackjack. Unfortunately, many players sit down at a table without knowing all the rules. If you have any questions about the rules, see the chapter on rules starting on Page 21 before you start playing. If you're anxious to start playing now, read on. When you select "1" or "2" from the Main Menu, you'll be taken to the blackjack table. The table is divided into four areas: * The main playing area, at the left, contains boxes that display the current card totals for you and the dealer. The cards will be dealt to the right of the boxes. * The wagering box at the lower left is where you will enter the amount of your wager. * The Information Area, to the right of the wagering box, will display information about your choices and the results of each hand. * The status box, at the right of the screen, displays current information including your pot, the dealer's pot, hands played, hands won, hands lost, and push (tied) hands. * At the bottom right of the status box, the current and running card counts will be displayed if you have chosen that option from the Setup screen. Video Blakjak Page 11 The diagram below shows a typical playing screen. +--------------------------------+---------------------------+ : : STATUS BOX : : DEALER : +-----------------------+ : : +----+ : : Your Pot : 5,065.00 : : : : : : : House Pot: 19,935.00 : : : : : : : Status : +65.00 : : : +----+ : +-----------------------+ : : : +-----------------------+ : : : : Hands Played: 54 : : : : : Hands Won : 26 : : : : : Hands Lost : 23 : : : : : Push Hands: : 5 : : : : +-----------------------+ : : : +-----------+-----------+ : : PLAYER : : (H)it : su(R)rend : : : +----+ : : (S)tand +-----------+ : : : : : : (D)ouble :RCount:-14 : : : : : : : s(P)lit :TCount: -3 : : : +----+ : +-----------+-----------+ : +--------------------------------+---------------------------+ : +-------------------+ Hit ENTER to bet $10 : : : Your Bet: 10 : Enter new amount to change wager : : +-------------------+ ENTER "0" to Quit. : +------------------------------------------------------------+ 3.1 Wagering When a hand begins, you'll be asked to enter your wager. You have three choices. * If you want to repeat the last wager you made, just hit the ENTER key. The amount of that wager will be placed in the box. If you are just starting a session, hitting ENTER will place the minimum wager. * To enter a new wager, type the amount of the wager and hit ENTER. Wagers must be whole dollar amounts. The maximum and minimum wagers are determined in the Setup Screen. The default minimum wager (the minimum set by the program if you haven't changed the setup) is $10. The default table limit is $200. You can change these at any time. If you attempt to enter a wager that is too high or two low, you'll be returned to the wagering box to try again. Video Blakjak Page 12 * TO LEAVE THE BLAKJAK TABLE: To leave the table and return to the Main Menu, type the number Zero in the wager box and hit ENTER. Make sure you type a Zero, and not the letter "O". THIS IS THE ONLY WAY TO EXIT FROM THE BLAKJAK TABLE. 3.2 Playing the Hand Once you've placed your wager, you and the dealer will each get two cards. Your cards are at the bottom. The dealer's cards are at the top. One of the dealer's cards will be face down. This is known as the dealer's HOLE CARD. At the bottom of the screen, you'll see the message "Your Choice: ", followed by a string of letters. These letters represent keystrokes for different playing options. Type one of these letters to do the following: H - Hit: The dealer will give you another card. S - Stand: You're satisfied with your hand and it's time for the dealer to play. D - Double down: Your initial bet will be doubled and you'll get one more card. This is an option ONLY after the the first two cards have been dealt. If you've selected restrictive doubling, you'll have this option only if your two-card total is 10 or 11. P - Split: You can split only if your first two cards have the same point value. For example, you can split a "7,7", a "10,10" or a "10,Queen." You can only split once. You can't split on a split. When you split, you will automatically place a wager equal to the amount of your original wager on the second hand of the split. You will play each of the split hands separately. R - Surrender: If surrender is allowed in your setup, you may surrender your hand after the first two cards. You'll lose half your wager and a new hand will be dealt. A surrendered hand is counted as a lost hand in the statistical summaries. C - Cheat: This will display the recommended action according to the strategy you've chosen. The recommendation will appear as a blinking letter in the lower right-hand corner of the screen. Video Blakjak Page 13 A - Assistance: This is a more sophisticated form of cheating. You'll be shown a screen displaying information about your hand, the status of the deck, and a recommended action. At this point, you can press "C" to see a detailed Card Layout or "T" to return to the table. For a discussion of the Assistance Screen, see Page 16. ESC - Hit the ESC key if the boss walks in. A spreadsheet screen will pop up. This isn't just a junk screen. It shows the margins of error pollsters encounter when they survey groups of different sizes. If anybody asks, you're doing statistical research. To return to the table, strike any key. If you "BUST," or go over 21, you're an automatic loser. The dealer does not play out his hand. If you stand, the dealer will play out his hand (See the section on Dealer's Rules, Page 25.) When a hand is complete, you'll see the results at the bottom of the screen. Hit ENTER to go onto the next hand. 3.2.1 Insurance If the dealer has an Ace showing after the first two cards are dealt, you'll be asked if you want "Insurance" (if insurance is an option). This gives you the opportunity to "Insure" against the dealer having Blackjack. To buy insurance, type "Y". If you don't want insurance, type "N". If you buy insurance, you place an additional wager equal to half your original bet. If the dealer has Blackjack, you lose your original wager, but you get a 2-1 payoff on your insurance bet. The net result is a zero for the hand, just as if you'd never wagered. If the dealer doesn't have Blackjack, you lose your insurance bet but go on playing the hand. Insurance is NOT a good buy when you're playing a basic strategy, and only rarely if you're playing an advanced strategy. Most serious Blackjack players consider it a sucker bet. Video Blakjak Page 14 3.2.2 Splitting If you choose to split a pair (or two cards with a 10 value), you'll see two hands appear on the screen. You'll play the lower hand first, then the upper hand. Arrows will point toward the hand you're currently playing. Playing split hands is very much like playing regular hands. There are a couple of exceptions. * If you should wind up with another pair in one of your split hands, you can't split again. Some casinos allow this, but the size of your computer screen doesn't. * You may or may not be allowed to double down on a split hand. This depends on the rules of the house, which are reflected in your configuration setup. See Page 27. * If you split a pair of Aces, you get only one additional card for each Ace. Should either of those hands total 21, you're not an automatic winner, as you would be with a standard hand. The dealer gets his turn. If he gets a 21, it's a PUSH, or tie hand. 3.3 The Status Box The Status Box at the right of the playing screen shows you what's happening at any given point. At the top of the box, you'll see your current pot, the dealer's pot, and your monetary status--how much you've won or lost. A positive value means you're ahead. A negative value means you're behind. Below that the box you'll see the number of hands you've played, the number you've won, the number you've lost, and the number of "Push," or tie hands. At the bottom of the status box you'll see two fields labeled "RCount" and "TCount." These stand for running count and true count, respectively. You can turn these on or off from your setup screen. For an explanation of the two counts, see the section on Card Counting, Page 39. Video Blakjak Page 15 3.4 The Assistance Screen If you're really stuck or just want a quick glance at the progression of the current hand, you can choose "A" for "assistance" any time you're deciding whether to hit or stand. Here is a sample Assistance screen. ========================================================== Your current hand is a HARD 16. Split is possible. Dealer's up card: 10. Probability of dealer busting is 23% Basic Strategy Recommendation: SURRENDER this hand There have been 110 Cards played out of 312. Current Running Card Count is +1 True Card Count is 0 ========================================================= Hit "C" for Card Detail, "T" to Return to the Table ========================================================= To return to the table, type the letter "T". To get a breakdown of the cards remaining in the deck, hit "C" and you'll get a table that looks like this: Card No. Pct. +/- A 17 8.4 +0.7 2 18 8.9 +1.2 This table shows how many of each 3 19 9.4 +1.7 Card remain in the shoe, and the 4 11 5.4 -2.2 percentage of the shoe each card 5 16 7.9 +0.2 represents. Normally, 10 value 6 17 8.4 +0.7 cards make up 31 percent of the 7 14 6.9 -0.8 deck. Others make up 7.7 pct. 8 12 5.9 -1.8 9 14 6.9 -0.8 Running Count: +1 10 65 32.2 +1.4 True Count: +0 TOT: 202 64.7 The first column refers to the card value. The second is the number of cards with that value remaining in the deck. The third column shows the percentage of the deck represented by that card. Video Blakjak Page 16 The fourth column shows, in percentage points, the excess or deficit of that card compared to a strictly random distribution. 3.5 The Status Report When You choose the Status Report from the Main Menu, you'll see a screen showing complete statistics for the current session. Each time you resume a session and return to the Main Menu, the status report will be updated with the latest figures. Here's a sample report (broken into a single column to accommodate the margins on your printer): VIDEO BLAKJAK STATUS REPORT Statistics for Current Session Hands Played: 200 Hands Won: 82 Hands Lost: 100 Push Hands: 18 Win Pct: 41.0% Starting Pot: +5,000.00 Current Pot: +5,005.00 Total Wagered: +3,280.00 Gain/Loss: +5.00 Pct. Gain/Loss: + 0.15% Highest: +30.00 Lowest: -195.00 Player Blackjack: 7 Dealer Blackjack: 12 Tot% Lost% ------------ Player Busted: 18 9.0% 18.0% Dealer Busted: 48 24.0% 58.5% Insurance Offered: 16 Insurance Bought: 0 Ins. Paid Off: 0 Declined/BJ: 5 31.3% Hands Surrendered: 7 When this screen is displayed, you'll be asked if you want a printout. If you do, type "Y" and the report will be sent to your Video Blakjak Page 17 printer. If you don't want a printout, type "N" and you'll return to the Main Menu. Most of the information is self-explanatory. But we'll go over a few of the interesting items. * Win Pct.: This is the percentage of hands won. In this case, you've won 82 out of 200 hands, which translates into 41 percent. You will often find yourself losing more hands than you win, even with an advanced system. However, the Blackjack payoff at 3-2 and your ability to split and double mean that you'll often wind up ahead in dollars, even if you haven't won a majority of the hands played. * Total Wagered: This is the total amount you've wagered. It may be substantially greater than your bankroll, because you win money and lose money repeatedly over the course of a session. In fact, the $3,280 wagered during this session could have been managed with a stake as small as $200. The odds in favor of the casino or player are calculated as a percentage of this total wager. * Pct. Gain/Loss: This represents the percentage of the TOTAL AMOUNT WAGERED that you've won or lost. Casinos and players consider this the important statistic. When we talk about changing the odds by intelligent play, we're talking about changing the net percentage of the total wagered in favor of the player or dealer. * Highest/Lowest: These dollar figures show your best and worst showing during the course of the session. In this instance, the player was $30 ahead at his highest point and $195 down at the lowest point. Knowing the expected high and low points for sessions of various lengths can help you make intelligent decisions about staying in the game or quitting. * Player/Dealer Busted: This figures show how many times the player and the dealer busted. The first percentage figure to the right of these numbers shows the percentage of total hands that the player and dealer busted. The second figure shows the percentage of losing hands that were the result of the player or dealer busting. * Insurance: These figures show how many times the dealer offered insurance (with an Ace showing), how many times the player bought insurance, and how many times that insurance paid off. The percentage figure shows what Video Blakjak Page 18 percentage of hands in which insurance was declined were actually Dealer Blackjacks. 3.6 Auto-Play When you choose "Let The Computer Play" from the Main Menu, you'll be asked how many hands you want the computer to play. Type a number between 2 and 200 and hit ENTER. If you don't want to use the Auto-Play feature, just hit ENTER and you'll return to the menu. When you've typed a number of hands, you'll be asked, "Pause Between Hands? (Y/N)" If you type "Y" the computer will wait for you to hit ENTER after it plays each hand. Use this if you want to examine the play of each hand. If you type "N," the computer will play until it's done, with no interruptions. This is faster for pure statistical research purposes. The computer will automatically begin a new session and play the number of hands you've chosen. It will play according to the strategy currently in effect, BASIC or ADVANCED. When it's through, you'll be shown a status screen for the session. How long it takes to play is a function of your computer's microprocessor. On a standard XT-compatible running at 4.77 mHz, the computer will pay about a hand a second. On a 20 mHZ, 80386 machine, it will play four to six hands per second. To get the maximum speed and preserve your sanity, it's a good idea to turn sound effects off from the Setup Screen before engaging Auto- Play. The Enhanced Video Blakjak offers two major improvments to auto-play. First, you can tell the computer to play as many hands as you wish. Second, you may use Auto-Play to continue a session you've already begun. 3.7 Change Strategy This Main Menu choice will allow you to switch from the BASIC Blackjack Strategy to the ADVANCED, Point Count Method. The computer's hits and Auto-Play strategy will be based on thhe strategy you've chosen. Video Blakjak Page 19 When you select "Change Strategy" from the Main Menu, you'll be asked, "Do you want BASIC or ADVANCED Strategy? (B/A)." Type "B" for the BASIC strategy or "A" for Advanced Strategy. Video Blakjak Page 20 Chapter 4 The General Rules of Blackjack Blackjack, or "21," is a popular game around the world, although it goes by various names. For example, the English call it "Van John" and Australians call it "Pontoon." Most of the names are variations on the "21" theme. In Germany, the game is called "Drei und Achtzehn," which translates into "Three and Eighteen." The basic rules of Blackjack apply to virtually every casino in the world. However, there are a number of variations that can have a major impact on your strategy and wagering patterns. Blackjack is generally played at kidney-shaped tables that can accommodate up to 7 players and a dealer. Each table has a minimum bet requirement and a "table limit," or maximum allowable bet. Tables are referred to by the size of the minimum required bet; for example, a $2 table, a $5 table, or a $25 table. The minimum bet and table limit may be changed as part of your Video Blakjak Setup. See Page 27 for details. In some casinos (Northern Nevada in particular), one or two decks of cards are used. These are generally dealt from the dealer's hand. In other areas, four, six or eight decks are used. These are placed in an open box called a "shoe." The dealer removes cards one at a time from a slot in the front of a shoe. You can change the number of decks as part of your Video Blakjak setup. At the outset of a hand, each player places his wager in a circle or other designated betting area on the table in front of his seat. The dealer puts two cards before each player, including himself. The players' cards may be face up or face down, depending on the casino. One of the dealer's cards is always face up, and the other is always face down. The down card is called the dealer's Hole Card. The point of the game is to get cards totaling as close to 21 as possible without going over 21. Each player plays his hand against the dealer. When all players have finished playing, the dealer plays his hand. Video Blakjak Page 21 4.1 Card Values Here's how the cards are counted: * All numbered cards are counted at face value. * All picture cards (Jack, Queen and King) are counted as 10. * An Ace may be counted as 1 or 11. 4.1.1 Hard and Soft Hands A hand that containing an Ace that can be counted as 1 or 11 is called a SOFT hand. A hand that does not contain Aces, or a hand in which counting an Ace as 11 would put you over 21, is known as a HARD hand. We likewise refer to hand totals as HARD or SOFT. And we always refer to SOFT hand totals by the highest possible count. For example: 10,7 is a HARD 17. A,6 is a SOFT 17 (It can also be counted as 7). 10,6,A is a HARD 17 4.1.2 Blackjack If a player or dealer is dealt an Ace and a 10-card at the outset of a hand, he has a natural 21, or BLACKJACK. When a dealer has an Ace or 10 showing, most casinos require him to look at his cards to see if he does have Blackjack. If a dealer has Blackjack, he automatically wins and collects bets from all players who do not also have Blackjack. If the player has Blackjack and the dealer doesn't, the player automatically wins. The payoff for a player's Blackjack is 3-2. So if you wagered $10 on a hand, Blackjack would result in a $25 payoff (your original $10 wager plus 1.5 X $10, or $15). Video Blakjak Page 22 4.2 Hitting and Standing If neither player nor dealer has Blackjack, the player has the option of HITTING or STANDING. When a player tells the dealer he wants to HIT, he is dealt another card. If his total is still less than 21, he has the option of HITTING or STANDING again, and so on. When a player STANDS, he tells the dealer he doesn't want any more cards. If there are other players at the table, they proceed in turn. When all players are finished, the dealer plays his hand. 4.3 BUSTING When a player is dealt a card that puts his hard total over 21, he has BUSTED his hand. The hand is over and the player loses his wager. The dealer does not have to play out his hand against a BUSTED player, although he must play his hand against any other players at the table who have not BUSTED. 4.4 Special Two-Card Options When the first two cards have been dealt, the player may have several options besides basic hitting or standing. 4.4.1 Doubling When the first two cards are dealt, the player may have the option of DOUBLING DOWN. This means he places a wager equal to his original bet in the circle in front of his seat. A player who has DOUBLED gets only one more card. The dealer then continues with the next player (or his own hand, if the DOUBLING player is the last one at the table). Some casinos allow players to double on any two cards. Others allow doubling only if the first two cards total 10 or 11. Being allowed to DOUBLE on any two cards is advantageous to the Video Blakjak Page 23 player. Doubling rules may be changed as part of your Video Blakjak setup. See Page 27 for details. Also, some casinos allow doubling on SPLIT hands. Others do not allow this. Being allowed to DOUBLE on a split hand is advantageous to the player. This can be changed as part of your Video Blakjak Setup. 4.4.2 Splitting If a player's first two cards have the same point value, he may SPLIT his hand. For example, a player can split a 9,9 or a 10,Queen (since the 10 and Queen have the same point value). The player who splits places an amount equal to his original wager in the circle in front of his seat. The two cards are split, and each becomes the first card of a separate hand. Split hands are played normally, with a few exceptions. * Some casinos allow doubling on the first two cards of a split hand. Other do not allow doubling after a split. This can be changed as part of your Video Blakjak Setup. * If the first two cards of a split hand have the same point value, some casinos allow the player to declare another split (with another wager). Other casinos do not allow splits on splits. Video Blakjak does not allow splits on splits. * If a player splits a pair of Aces, he gets only one more card for each hand. Play then moves to the next player, or to the dealer if the splitting player is the last one at the table. 4.4.3 Surrender When the first two cards are dealt, some casinos allow a player to SURRENDER. A player would normally surrender if he thinks his hand will lose. When a player surrenders, he loses half his bet. The other half is returned to him. The dealer continues with the next player. You can turn surrender on or off through the Video Blakjak setup screen. See Page 27 for details. Video Blakjak Page 24 4.5 The Dealer's Rules One of the advantages a Blackjack player has is that the dealer must play his hand by a strict set of rules. They are as follows: The dealer must HIT, or draw a card, if he has 16 or less. The dealer must STAND if he has 17 or more. If the dealer's hand contains one or more Aces, an Ace must count as 11 unless it will put the dealer over 21. A hand with an Ace that can be counted in two ways is known as a SOFT hand. If counting an Ace as 11 will put the dealer's total between 17 and 21, it must be counted as an 11. There is one exception to these rules. In some casinos, the dealer must HIT a Soft 17 (for example, an A-6). This gives the house a little extra advantage. You should always be sure you know how the dealer treats a Soft 17. You can adjust this rule in your configuration setup screen. 4.6 Who Wins and How Much If the player's total is higher than the dealer's, the player wins. He is paid even money. This means a $10 wager returns $20 (the original wager plus $10). If the player and dealer have equal point totals, the hand is known as a PUSH hand. The player's original wager is returned. Some Video Blackjack machines that accept bets of less than $2 do not return the player's money on a PUSH hand unless a minimum amount is wagered (generally $2). This is VERY DISADVANTAGEOUS to the player. If you're going to play one of these machines, always wager the minimum amount that will cause a bet on a PUSH hand to be returned. Likewise, a very few casinos don't return your bet on a PUSH hand. Do NOT play in one of these casinos. It's virtually impossible to win. If a player has Blackjack and the dealer doesn't, the payoff is 3-2. A $10 wager would therefore return $25 (the original bet plus 1-1/2 times $10). A natural 21 on the first two cards of a split hand is not Blackjack. The dealer still gets his turn. If the dealer gets a Video Blakjak Page 25 21, the result is a PUSH hand and the player's wager for that hand is returned. If the dealer does not get 21, the payoff is even money. Video Blakjak Page 26 Chapter 5 Video Blakjak Setup While many computer Blackjack simulations area available today, most are designed for simple play and amusement. Video Blakjak takes this a step forward by letting you tailor the game to simulate different casino rules and strategies. Variations in the rules and strategies can have a profound effect on your ability to win money at the Blackjack table. Practicing under the rules you'll actually encounter is important if you want to leave the casino with more money than you brought. When you choose Option 5 from the Main Menu, you'll see the Video Blakjak Setup screen. It lists the various options and allows you to change them. The screen looks like this: ------------------------------------------------------------ Video Blakjak Setup Screen -----------------------------------+------------------------ : How many Decks? (1-8): 6 : True Count Ratio of Sound Effects? (Y/N): N : Min Bet. Double on Any Two Cards? (Y/N): Y : -5 1.0 Double After Split? (Y/N): Y : -4 1.0 Surrender Allowed? (Y/N): Y : -3 1.0 Display Card Count? (Y/N): Y : -2 1.0 Dealer Stands on Soft 17? (Y/N): Y : -1 1.0 Shuffle Percentage (25-85): 75 : 0 1.0 Player Starting Pot: 5000 : +1 2.0 House Starting Pot: 20000 : +2 3.0 Table Limit: 100 : +3 4.0 Minimum Wager: 10 : +4 5.0 Log session to Printer? (Y/N): N : +5 6.0 Log session to Disk? (Y/N): N : +6 6.0 Log File Name: BJ +------------------------ Default Strategy (A/B): A : Use ENTER or ARROW keys Monitor Type (C/M): C : Hit ESC When through. -----------------------------------+------------------------ To change any of the values on the screen, just type a new value in place of the old one. You can move from item to item by using the Up or Down arrow keys or by hitting the ENTER key. If you don't want to change a particular value, just skip over it. Video Blakjak Page 27 When you reach the last item, the cursor will automatically cycle back to the first. For items with single-character settings (such as "Y" or "N"), you do not have to hit ENTER. The cursor will automatically jump to the next item when you type a character. For items that require more than a single character (such as monetary amounts), type your information and hit ENTER to move on to the next item. * When you're through with the Setup Screen, hit the ESC key. * A message will appear at the bottom asking if the information is correct. * If the information is correct, type "Y" and the information will be stored on disk in the BJ.CFG file. The next time you run Video Blakjak, the program will remember these settings. * If the information is not correct, type "N" and you'll be returned to the Setup Screen to enter the proper information. * When the Setup has been stored, you'll get a message telling you to strike any key to return to the Main Menu. Here's what the entries mean: 1. How many decks? Type a number between 1 and 8. This is the number of decks in the shoe. Today, most casinos use a six or eight-deck shoe, although some Northern Nevada casinos still deal a one or two-deck game. The default setting when you first run Video Blakjak is six decks. 2. Sound effects? Type "Y" if you want arcade style beeps, bloops, dings and dongs. Type "N" if you prefer the game to be played in silence. 3. Double on any two cards? Type "Y" if you want to be allowed to DOUBLE DOWN on any two cards. Type "N" if you want doubling to be limited to two-card totals of 10 or 11. The default allows doubling on any two cards. 4. Double after split? Type "Y" if doubling is allowed after the first two cards of a split hand. Type "N" if doubling is not allowed during a split. The default allows doubling after a split. Video Blakjak Page 28 5. Surrender Allowed? Type "Y" if you want the surrender option. Type "N" if you don't want the program to allow surrender. The default setting allows surrender. 6. Display Card Count? Type "Y" if you want the running and true card counts displayed on the playing screen. Type "N" if you don't want the card counts displayed. By default, the program displays card counts. For more information on counting cards, see Page 39. 7. Dealer Stands on Soft 17? Type "Y" if you want the dealer to stand on a "Soft" hand of 17 (A,6). Type "N" if you don't want the dealer to stand on soft 17. If you choose "N" the dealer will hit instead of standing on a soft 17. By default the dealer will stand on soft 17. 8. Shuffle Percentage: Type a number between 25 and 85. This is point at which the deck will be shuffled. If you choose 75, for example, the cards will be shuffled after 75 percent of the deck has been played (actually, a few cards beyond 75 percent will be dealt because shuffles only occur after a hand is completed). 9. Player Starting Pot: Type a number between 1 and 99999. This is the size of your bankroll. If you lose it all, you'll be returned to the Main Menu. You can get more money by starting a new session. This is why practicing with a computer is preferable to practicing in the casino. The default is $5,000 (Why not be a big spender?). If you select Auto-Play, make sure you have enough money so that you don't go broke. 10. Dealer Starting Pot: This is the size of the dealer's bankroll. The default is $20,000. Normally, there's no need to change this, but some people might want to adjust it downward to get the thrill of breaking the bank. Or, you can adjust it upward if you want to play for really high stakes. 11. Table limit: Type a number between 2 and 1000. This is the maximum bet you can place. In most casinos, you'll find the maximum is $1,000. This usually occurs at tables where the minimum bet is $100. 12. Minimum Bet: This is the minimum bet for the table. Type a number between 2 and 1000. At most casinos, $2 is the minimum, but in practice, it's often hard to find a $2 Video Blakjak Page 29 table. You're more likely to find $5 table with an opening. The default is $10. We're big spenders, too. 13. Log Session to Printer? This is an option only with the Enhanced Video Blakjak program. It will print out each hand (including all the cards played, the wager, and the player's running cash total). If you're using the Shareware version of the program, changing this value to "Y" will not result in a printout of each hand. 14. Log Session to Disk? This is an option only with the Enhanced Video Blakjak program. It's just like logging the session to your printer, except that the information will be placed in a file on your disk drive. The file is a standard ASCII text file that can be sent to the printer via the DOS print command or viewed with any word processor. If you're using the Shareware version of the program, changing this value to "Y" will not result in logging the session to disk. 15. Log File: This is an option only with the Enhanced Video Blakjak program. It's the name of the file in which you want the record of your session saved if you choose the Disk Logging option. The default filename is BJ. The filename you choose will always be given the .LOG extension. 16. Default Strategy: This determines which strategy (Basic or Advanced) the program will assume when you run it. Type "B" for Basic Strategy or "A" for Advanced Strategy. 17. Monitor Type: Type "C" if you have a color monitor and you'll play the game in beautiful living color. Type "M" and you'll play in beautiful Monochrome. If you're running the program on a Laptop computer with a Liquid Crystal Display that emulates a color monitor, choose Monochrome anyway for best results. 18. Ratio of Minimum Bet: This option is available only in the Enhanced Video Blakjak program. When you let the computer play for research purposes, it varies the size of your wager with the true card count. The number for each count is a multiple of the minimum bet. Changing these numbers will not affect anything in the Shareware version of the program. Video Blakjak Page 30 Chapter 6 Blackjack Strategies In the 1950's, serious students of Blackjack began wondering whether it would be possible to develop scientific strategies that would give the player an advantage over the house. These researchers were not professional gamblers, but mathematicians, game theorists and others with advanced professional training in statistics. In fact, the first truly scientific study of the game was published in the Journal of the American Statistical Association in 1956 by Roger Baldwin, Wilbert Cantey, Herbert Maisel and James McDermott. Their basic strategy, the result of three years of excruciating work with desk calculators, served as a building block for later researchers. Two of those researchers in particular are credited with with developing the strategies used by serious Blackjack players today. They not only had strong scientific backgrounds, but they also had access to mainframe computers which enabled them to play millions of hands to develop and test their theories. Edward O. Thorp was a professor of mathematics at the University of California at Irvine when he published "Beat the Dealer" in 1962. Using an IBM 704 computer, he refined the work of Baldwin's team and developed the first workable "point count" theory. He became an instant celebrity, and the book became a national best-seller. As a result, casino owners changed the rules of the game to make it less favorable to the player. While Thorp's systems are generally regarded as being too complex for the average player, (and new playing conditions make some of Thorp's strategies impossible) "Beat the Dealer" remains the Bible of the game for those who want a solid background in Blackjack theory. As an interesting footnote, Thorp used some of the same tools to analyze the stock market and founded an investment consulting firm that provided its clients with spectacular successes in the 1970's and 1980's. He retired from active investment consulting in 1990. Video Blakjak Page 31 Thorp's work was later analyzed and refined by Julian Braun, a computer scientist with IBM. Braun is credited with developing the simplified point count strategy used by most players today. His system was detailed in his 1975 book entitled "How to Play Winning Blackjack," another must for anyone seriously interested in studying the game. Since Thorp's book was published, there has been a constant battle between "card counters" and casino owners. As counters have refined their strategies, casino owners have countered with ever more restrictive rules. In many cases, casinos have increased the number of decks in the shoe, which makes it more difficult for a player to gain an advantage. Decks are shuffled more frequently. Where one or two-deck games still exist (Northern Nevada, in particular), the rules of splitting, doubling and surrender have been adjusted to take away much of the player's advantage. In Nevada, casinos may bar card counters from play, and owners circulate names and pictures of suspected system players. In Atlantic city, where the gaming commission has ruled that casinos may not bar card counters, eight-deck shoes are common, and shuffling techniques that make random distribution of cards less likely have been employed. Still, it's possible for a smart player to make money playing Blackjack. In Nevada, where casinos have more control over the rules, it's a matter of competition. The houses with the most favorable rules generate the most business. Since most players will lose anyway, the casinos still make plenty of money. Even in Atlantic City, where the rules are more consistent, casinos find that anti-card counter methods such as frequent shuffles hurt business because they reduce volume. Our own research shows that even with a basic, non-counting system, an intelligent Blackjack player who knows how to pace himself, when to quit, and is willing to accept a series of small profits instead of a blue-sky big payoff, can wind up ahead of the game. 6.1 The Economics of Blackjack If you've played Blackjack in a casino, you've noticed that there's an ebb and flow to the game. You'll win a few hands, lose a few hands. If you start with $500 and play for an hour or two, you may wind up a slightly ahead--or more likely, slightly Video Blakjak Page 32 behind. Unless you're making foolish moves or ridiculous bets, you probably won't walk out with enough to buy a new Mercedes, but you probably won't end up dead broke, either. Casino owners aren't interested in the size of your bankroll, but in how much you wager. Let's say you start with $500 and sit down at a table with a minimum $5 bet. You double and split aggressively and bet the minimum most of the time, with a maximum of $30. After 100 hands of blackjack, you've broken even. But over that period, you've wagered a total of $1,000. The $1,000 you wagered is the casino's "action." Its profits or losses are reckoned as a percentage of that amount. In most casinos, the rules (and the ignorance of most Blackjack players) give the house a 5 percent edge. This means the casino will keep 5 percent, or $50 of every $1,000 bet. You may be a winner today and the next guy may be a loser, but overall, the casino makes its 5 percent. If you're a businessman, you'll probably say that a five percent return on sales isn't a very good margin, and you're right. But if you do a big volume you can make a LOT of money. Supermarkets operate on this theory. They make 1/2 to 1 percent profit on sales, but they generate huge sales volumes. The problem with depending on volume is that things can turn rather nastily against you. If you make a penny on each dollar and generate $100 million in sales, you're up $1 million. But if you're not careful about costs, shrinkage and returns, you might lose a penny on each dollar. That's a $1 million loss. There isn't any cushion. Because most Blackjack players are not proficient, the casino's margin is virtually guaranteed by mathematical certainty. But a smart Blackjack player can narrow that margin considerably and even turn the tables slightly in his favor. As we've seen, the percentage switch doesn't have to be that large if the volume is high enough. A team of card counters descending on a casino can create substantial losses in a short period of time. This is why casinos do their best to discourage counting and set up rules that will guarantee their profit. On the other hand, casinos cannot promote rules so restrictive that they would hurt business and decrease volume. You can foil almost any card-counting scheme by using an eight deck shoe and shuffling it halfway through. But that would slow down play tremendously (decreasing volume) and turn many players Video Blakjak Page 33 away. People come to the casino to play Blackjack, not to watch card shuffling. Card counting aside, volume is one reason casinos are gravitating toward tables with higher minimum bets. There are fewer and fewer $2 tables available. A $2 table doesn't generate much volume, even when it's full. If the same players can be persuaded to play $5 hands, the volume (and take) have more than doubled, while the casino's expense is the same. 6.2 Tipping the Edge When playing casino Blackjack, it's virtually impossible to tip the odds greatly in your favor over the long run. But you can nudge them a little. That little nudge is all it takes to make your trip to the casino profitable. Basic and Advanced Blackjack strategies are aimed at moving the percentage of wagers collected a few tenths of a percentage point in the the player's favor. In this chapter, we'll talk about two kinds of strategies. The first is a Basic strategy which requires that you remember only a few simple rules. Given casino countermeasures, it's not as effective as it once was, but it will give you a shot at making some money. The second strategy involves so-called "card counting." Counting cards is not nearly so mysterious or difficult as many would have you believe. But it does require some concentration and practice. It will also yield better results if pursued with discipline and patience. 6.3 Why Not Play Like the Dealer? Many novice Blackjack players figure that if the dealer can make money playing by his rules, they should be able to do the same thing. There's nothing further from the truth. Although the dealer is bound by the house rules (hit on 16 or less and stand on 17 or more), he has a major advantage. If you bust your hand, you lose automatically. The dealer doesn't have to play the rest of his cards against your hand. As a result, research shows, playing the dealer's rules will result in a net, long-term loss of 5.6 percent of the total Video Blakjak Page 34 amount you wager. In real terms, suppose you play 200 hands of Blackjack and wager $10 a hand. Your total wager would be about $2,000 (this can vary with splits and doubles). If you adopt the dealer's playing rules, you can virtually count on losing $112. This is hardly the strategy we're looking for. The house does give players a chance to overcome this disadvantage through the 3-2 Blackjack payoff and the options of doubling, splitting and surrender. Knowing when to hit and stand, when to split or double, and when to take advantage of the distribution of the cards to increase the size of your bet can make the odds more favorable. 6.4 Basic Strategy The Basic Strategy is at the heart of most Blackjack systems. It assumes a random distribution of cards. It requires that you remember a fairly simple set of rules based on your hand and the dealer's up card. The Basic Strategy is built into Video Blakjak's on-screen recommendations if you choose to use it. Depending on the rules, a Basic strategy will generally reduce the house's natural advantage to something approaching zero. In some cases, you'll have a slight advantage. These differences are measured in tenths and hundredths of a percentage point. Either way, the nullification of the house's edge gives a smart player the chance to make some money. Before getting into the Basic Strategy rules, it's a good idea to familiarize yourself with the overall distribution of the cards and the possibility that the dealer will bust, based on the card he is showing. The overall distribution is simple. Cards with a value of 10 make up 31 percent of the deck. Other cards account for about 7.7 percent each. The probability of the dealer busting is a little more complex. Here's the way it looks: Video Blakjak Page 35 6.4.1 Probability of Dealer Busting TABLE NO. 1 PROBABILITY OF DEALER BUSTING Up Card Probability that dealer Value Will Bust (%) ============================================ 2 35.3 3 37.6 4 40.3 5 42.9 6 42.1 7 26.0 8 23.9 9 23.3 10 21.4 A 11.6 ============================================ As you can see, even if you have a two card total of 4, you can stand on your hand and win more than 40 percent of the time when the dealer has an up card of 4, 5 or 6. If you play your hand with even a minimum of common sense, you're pretty likely to win the hand. If you take the opportunity to double your bet, or slit a pair when you face a 4, 5 or 6, you can push your advantage even further. Likewise, the dealer is quite unlikely to bust when the has a 7 or better showing. So you need an entirely different strategy when the dealer is showing strength. 6.4.2 Basic Hitting and Standing - Hard Hand In the following tables, your hand will be shown in the left hand column, while the dealer's up card will be shown across the top. First, the basic hitting and standing rules. (Note: All tables assume a four to eight deck shoe. It's possible to adjust the table for one or two decks, but the advantage gained is slight). Video Blakjak Page 36 TABLE NO. 2 BASIC HIT, STAND AND DOUBLE RULES YOU HAVE A HARD HAND Dealer Shows Your Hand 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 A ============================================ 17+ S S S S S S S S S S 16 S S S S S H H H H H 15 S S S S S H H H H H 14 S S S S S H H H H H 13 S S S S S H H H H H 12 H H S S S H H H H H 11 D D D D D D D D D H 10 H D D D D H H H H H 9 H D D D D H H H H H 8- H H H H H H H H H H S=STAND H=HIT D=DOUBLE If you look closely at this table, you'll notice a couple of patterns. First, the dealer's strongest position occurs when he has a 7 through Ace showing. You have to play aggressively to have any chance of beating him. This means hitting 14, 15 and 16. You'll wind up busting a lot of these hands, but you'll wind up winning more than if you stand. There's a good reason for this. When the dealer has a 7 or better showing, the probability that he will bust is 26 percent or less (See Table 1 above). Moreover, the probability that he can beat a 16, 15 or 14 is better than even. The dealer's weakest position occurs when he has a three through six showing. Five and six are particularly bad news for the dealer. He has a relatively high probability of busting. For this reason you can stand on relatively low totals and double aggressively when you have the advantage of a 9, 10 or 11. Likewise, your strongest position occurs when you have 11. If you have 11, you should DOUBLE against all dealer up cards except an Ace. Video Blakjak Page 37 6.4.3 Basic Hitting and Standing - Soft Hand TABLE NO. 3 BASIC HIT, STAND and DOUBLE RULES YOU HAVE A SOFT HAND Dealer Shows Your Hand 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 A ============================================ 19+ S S S S S S S S S S 18 S D D D D S S H H H 17 H D D D D H H H H H 16 H H D D D H H H H H 15 H H D D D H H H H H 14 H H H D D H H H H H 13 H H H D D H H H H H 12 H H H H H H H H H H S=STAND H=HIT D=DOUBLE Notice that the rules for soft hand play are quite different. Some of them, such as the decision to double or hit on a soft 18 or 17, would seem to go against common sense. But research (and a mathematical look at card distribution) shows that you'll better off making this decision over the long run. 6.4.4 Basic Splitting Rules TABLE NO. 4 BASIC STRATEGY SPLITTING RULES Split Dealer Shows Card 2 3 4 5 6 7 7 8 10 A ================================================ 2 P P P P P P H H H H 3 P P P P P P H H H H 4 H H H P P H H H H H 5 D D D D D D D D H H 6 P P P P P H H H H H 7 P P P P P P H H H H 8 P P P P P P P P P P 9 P P P P P S P P S S 10 S S S S S S S S S S A P P P P P P P P P P P=SPLIT H=HIT D=DOUBLE S=STAND Video Blakjak Page 38 This table assumes that doubling after splitting is allowed. This makes it more profitable to split aggressively. Video Blakjak's internal rules are programmed for doubling after a split. If you want to eliminate this rule, make the following adjustments: Do not split 4,4. Hit on 2,2 or 3,3 against the dealer's 2 or 3 6.4.5 Insurance - A Bad Bet If you're playing a BASIC strategy, don't buy insurance when the dealer has an Ace showing. Without going into details of the mathematics, consider that the odds are greater than 2-1 that the dealer does not have Blackjack (10 cards account only 31.7 percent of the deck), while the payoff is only 2-1. Over the long run, you'll wind up with a disadvantage of as much as 6 percent if you buy insurance regularly. This is why dealers will often encourage insurance. It's a free ride for the house. If you're counting cards, you can narrow this a bit, and there are instances in which insurance is advisable. We'll discuss those later. 6.5 Advanced Card Count Strategies The Basic strategy we've just examined is based on the assumption that the distribution of cards throughout the deck is random. This means that at any time, we can expect 31 percent of the deck to be 10-value cards, and 7.7 percent for each of the other cards. However, the deck is rarely distributed in this manner. As play continues, there will be imbalances of various types of cards. For example, an inordinate number of threes may be dealt early. Or there could be three Blackjacks in a row, depleting the 10's and Aces. This means that the odds are constantly changing. This makes Blackjack unlike any other casino game. For example, the roulette table always has the name numbers, and the chance of the ball falling in any particular slot is always the same. But in Video Blakjak Page 39 Blackjack, the chance of getting any particular card changes constantly as the deck is depleted. Obviously, the player who can remember every card played has a definite advantage over the dealer. The dealer is bound by a strict set of rules, while the player can alter his hitting, standing, doubling and splitting strategy, as well as the size of this wager. We've all heard tales of people with "photographic memories" who can tell you at any time exactly how many of each card have been played. This is extremely difficult with a single deck of cards, and virtually impossible with a six-deck shoe. In fact, we've never met anyone who could do it. So Blackjack researchers were faced with two formidable tasks. First, they had to determine what advantage or disadvantage the player faced given a surplus or deficit of particular cards. Second, they had to develop a simple way for the player to determine when those advantages or disadvantages exist. 6.5.1 The Point Count Strategy Thorp's research showed that a deficit of low value cards tended to favor the player, while a deficit of high value cards favored the dealer. He developed a fairly complex method of assigning a plus or minus value to each card dealt. The player's job was to keep a running total of these point values. When the point value was high, the player would bet large amounts and modify the Basic Strategy to be more aggressive about doubling and splitting. This is a lot simpler than trying to remember how many of each card have passed before your eyes, and it turned out to be the basis for the strategies to follow. After more research, Thorp, Braun and others came to the conclusion that a complicated set of point values was not needed. In fact, they determined that a player could do very well by remembering that low cards had a point value of one, while high cards had a value of minus one. Thus, starting with a running total of zero when the deck is shuffled, players only have to add or subtract one from the total when each card is dealt. This point total is the "count" referred to when people talk about "card counting." They're not really counting cards at all. Card counting of this type is not difficult to learn; it just takes some practice and concentration. The real difficulty is in Video Blakjak Page 40 remembering what to do and how much to bet given different point counts. 6.5.2 Point Count Differences Ever since Thorp, Braun and their peers developed the first point count strategy, the debate over card counting has centered on just what point values to assign to each card played. Video Blakjak uses a slightly modified version of the so- called Hi-Opt point count described by Lance Humble and Carl Cooper in "The World's Greatest Blackjack Book" (Doubleday, 1980, 1987). If you're looking for an understandable and entertaining primer on the game, it's definitely worth buying. The differences between single-level point counts are minor, although the experts will fight duels to the death over which one is better. We chose the Hi-Opt largely because it is somewhat simpler than the others. 6.5.3 How to Count The Cards Counting cards is actually very simple. When a 3, 4, 5 or 6 is dealt, add one to the running total. When a ten is dealt, subtract one. All other cards count as zero and can be ignored. In table form, the count looks like this: Card Dealt: 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 A =================================================== Point Count: 0 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 -1 0 For those who might want to try alternate strategies, Braun and Thorp also recommend adding one to the count when a 2 is dealt, and subtracting one when an Ace is dealt. Since there are an equal number of twos and aces, these will balance out in the long run. Hi-Opt players believe it's not worth the extra effort. However, much of the debate among Blackjack experts over the last decade has revolved around just which cards to count as one and which to count as -1. The most successful players learn one count and stick to it. The Enhanced Video Blakjak allows you to set up the count any way you desire. 6.5.3.1 A Practice Example Here's an example to show you how the running point count works. Let's say the following cards are dealt immediately after a shuffle. Our running count starts with zero: Video Blakjak Page 41 10 Q 5 A 9 3 4 The respective point values are: -1 -1 +1 0 0 +1 +1 ----- +1 As you can see, the running count at the end of this string of cards is +1. In normal play, the count will vary most of the time between -4 and +4. Occasionally it will go as high as 18 or 19 in either direction. But as we'll see in the next section, the running count is not always accurate. So we'll have to compensate. 6.5.4 The True Count The running count would be fine if we were playing a single deck game. If you're playing single-deck Blackjack, it's all you have to remember. In fact, all counting systems work best with single-deck games. Unfortunately, most casinos now use multiple-deck shoes. Obviously, the removal of a single card from a six-deck shoe of 312 cards will not have anywhere near the impact that the removal of the same card from a 52-card deck will have. So we have to adjust the count proportionally to the size of the shoe. This adjustment produces the "True Count," the count we use to make betting and playing decisions. In simplest terms, the True Count is the running count divided by the number of decks remaining in the shoe. Mathematically, this can be expressed as: True Count = Running Count/Decks Remaining Since the top of the shoe is open, you can estimate the number of decks remaining. However, this will take a little practice. Just remember that the formula works the same whether the count is positive or negative. Use normal rounding. For example, if there are four decks remaining in the shoe and the count is +8, the true count will be +2. If the running Video Blakjak Page 42 count is -8, the true count will be -2. If the running count is -1 and there are four decks remaining, the true count will be considered zero. 6.6 What the True Count Means The True Count is really an expression of whether the deck favors the player or the dealer, and by how much. A positive True Count means the deck favors the player. The deck is rich in 10's and depleted in lower-value cards. With a deck rich in 10-value cards, the dealer is more likely to bust, since he's required to hit on 12, 13, 14, 15 and 16. The player, on the other hand, is not required to hit. Ken Uston, the card-counter who gained widespread public attention for his single-minded pursuit of decks with favorable True Count values, was known to jump in and out of games with huge wagers on a single hand. Unfortunately, this made him a marked man in the casinos, and ostentatious play will do the same for you. Casinos don't like card-counters. In Nevada, they'll throw you out if they think you're card-counting. In Atlantic City, they can't throw you out, but you'll find more frequent shuffles (which, combined with the large shoe, makes it very difficult to put a point-count strategy to work). 6.7 Point Count Strategy Tables The following tables show a relatively easy-to-learn modification of the Hi-Opt strategy. Some strategies require that you remember different rules for true counts from -8 to 8. This table requires that you memorize only true counts from -4 to 4. While it may result in a few hundredths of a percentage point difference in the odds, it's better to learn a simpler system well than struggle with a harder system. Video Blakjak Page 43 HARD HIT AND STAND Dealer Shows 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 A ============================================ 18 S S S S S S S S S S 17 S S S S S S S S S S 16 S S S S S H H S 0 S 15 S S S S S H H H 3 H 14 -3 S S S S H H H H H 13 -1 -2 -3 S S H H H H H 12 2 1 0 -1 -1 H H H H H HARD DOUBLING 11 D D D D D D D H -3 1 10 D D D D D D H -1 H 4 9 1 0 -2 H H 3 H H H H 8 H H H 3 2 H H H H H 7 H H H H H H H H H H H=Hit S=Stand D=Double #=Trigger Number The table above shows the rules for hitting, standing and doubling when you have a HARD hand. It's a minor modification of the Basic Strategy. Where you see a number shown in the HIT/STAND portion of the table, STAND if the True Count is GREATER than or EQUAL TO than the number shown. HIT if the True Count is less than the number shown. Where numbers are displayed in the DOUBLING portion of the table, DOUBLE if the True Count is GREATER THAN or EQUAL to the number shown. Hit if the True Count is less than the number shown. SOFT STAND AND HIT Dealer Shows 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 A ============================================ 19 S S S S S S S S S S 18 S S S S S S S H H 1 17 H H H H H H H H H H This table shows you strategies for hitting and standing when you have a SOFT hand. As you can see, this is almost identical to the Basic Strategy table. The only difference is Video Blakjak Page 44 that you STAND on Soft 18 if the True Count is GREATER THAN or EQUAL to 1. HIT a Soft 18 if the true count is LESS THAN 1. SOFT DOUBLE Dealer Shows 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 A ============================================ 20 S S S S S S S S S S 19 S S 3 1 1 S S S S S 18 1 -1 D D D H H H H G 17 1 -2 D D D H H H H H 16 H 3 -1 D D H H H H H 15 H H -1 D D H H H H H 14 H H 1 -2 D H H H H H 13 H H 2 -1 -1 -2 H H H H This table shows you doubling strategies when you have a SOFT hand. Where numbers are displayed, DOUBLE if the True Count is GREATER THAN OR EQUAL to the number shown. HIT if the True Count is less than the number shown. The "G" under the dealer Ace column where you have a Soft 18 indicates that you should GO TO the Soft Standing and Hitting Table for your play (HIT if the True Count is less than 1, STAND if the True Count is greater than or equal to 1). PAIR SPLITTING Dealer Shows 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 A ============================================= A P P P P P P P P P -3 10 S S S S S S S S S S 9 -2 -3 S S S 3 P P S S 8 P P P P P P P P P P 7 P P P P P P 1 H H H 6 -1 -3 P P P H H H H H 5 G G G G G G G G G G 4 H H 3 1 0 H H H H H 3 -2 H P P P P H H H H 2 H H P P P P H H H H P=Split H=HIT S=STAND This table shows the rule for deciding whether to split pairs. Where a number is shown, SPLIT your hand if the True Count is GREATER THAN or EQUAL to the number shown. If the True Count is less than the number shown, treat the hand as a regular Hard Hand. Use the normal Hard Hit, Stand and Double table. Video Blakjak Page 45 The letter "G" in the 5 row indicates that you should GOTO the Hard Hit/Stand/Double table. We do not split 5's. The choice is between HITTING and DOUBLING. Note: This table assumes that doubling is allowed after a split. It is possible to modify the table for casinos where doubling on splits is not allowed, but the modifications are fairly minor. The most important adjustment is to treat 4's the same way as fives--if doubling on a split is NOT allowed, use the Hard Hit/Stand/Double table with both fours and fives. SURRENDER Dealer Shows 7 8 9 10 A ========================= 16 H G 1 -2 0 15 H H 2 -1 1 14 H H G 3 G 13 G G G G H When you're counting cards, surrender can be more beneficial than it is with a Basic strategy. This table applies to HARD hands only. Do NOT surrender a soft hand showing any of these totals. Where numbers are shown in this table, SURRENDER if the True Count is GREATER THAN or EQUAL to the number shown. Otherwise, play the hand as a normal hard hand. Where asterisks (*) are displayed, do NOT surrender. Play the hand as a normal HARD hand. In cases of hands where a split is possible, the following modifications apply: * Split 8's against everything except a Dealer's 10. If the dealer has a 10 showing, SURRENDER if the true count is GREATER THAN or EQUAL to 1. * Do NOT surrender 7's against a Dealer's 8. Refer to the Hard Hand tables for the proper play. 6.8 Adjusting Your Wager The strategy outlined above does not call for adjusting your wager. It assumes placing the same size bet on each hand. Video Blakjak Page 46 However, other systems often call for adjusting the size of the wager based on your advantage at a particular time. Generally, when the count is POSITIVE, the advantage is on the player's side. A NEGATIVE count gives the dealer the advantage. Theoretically, the smart player would increase the size of his wager when the count is positive and bet the minimum when the count is negative. This is simply pressing your advantage. Let's say we've decided that $5 a hand is our minimum bet (it may well be the table minimum, too). We'll call that $5 a betting unit. The most common strategy calls for increasing the bet by one unit for each positive point in the True Count. For example, if the True Count is 1, we would bet 2 units, or $10. If the True Count were 5, we'd bet $30. Unfortunately, there's a down side to this equation. First, casinos look for just those patterns to ferret out card counters. A smart dealer may be counting cards with you, and he'll notice pretty quickly if you're betting $5 a hand and suddenly jump in with $25 bets. The result will be "heat," as they say in the trade. You may find quick shuffles, unfriendly pit bosses standing over your shoulder, or an invitation to leave the casino. As a result, most experts recommend limiting the "spread" of your bets to a maximum of three or four units, no matter what the card count. The idea is to avoid suspicion. Some counters will start a session with random bets, or sprinkle larger bets throughout the session in an effort to look like an impulse player (the kind casinos love) and avoid detection. The other problem is that Blackjack is still a game of chance. No matter how good your counting, you can run into a streak of bad luck, even when the card count is in your favor. If you're making large bets when this happens, you may find yourself in a hole from which you can't recover (see the next section on "What You Can Expect"). The Enhanced Video Blackjack gives you the option of setting different spreads, so that you can test them against various playing conditions and house rules. This will allow you to do your own research over thousands of hands (played by your computer in a very short period of time). Video Blakjak Page 47 Chapter 7 What To Expect As we mentioned earlier, Blackjack playing strategies are aimed at changing the odds by a few percentage points. Under normal circumstances (if you played by the dealer's rules), the house would have a 5 to 6 percent advantage. With a Basic strategy, you can even those odds and even tip them fractionally in your favor in a one or two-deck game. In games with larger shoes, you'll probably come close to the theoretical break-even point. Card counting improves on the Basic Strategy and can provide a slight advantage even if the shoe contains six or eight decks. The problem, statistically, this that these percentages are accurate over a very large number of hands. You're not very likely to sit down to 1,000 or 2,000 hands, let alone 100,000. You're more likely to play a hundred or two hundred hands. Our research shows that the outcome of any particular 100 or 200-hand session can vary widely. This makes it important to practice and get some feel for the ranges of dollar gain and loss you can expect, given the length of time you'll be playing. (In auto play, the Enhanced Video Blakjak does this for you). The critical factor is when you quit. If you get comfortably ahead, be willing to call it a day and take your money home with you. A series of modest wins is the best way to make money over the long run. When you try for the Big Score, you're likely to wind up with nothing, or even less. Likewise, if you're behind, don't assume that you'll make up your losses by staying in. It doesn't work that way. SET AN AFFORDABLE LOSS LIMIT AND STICK TO IT. A couple of points to remember: Things don't always even out. Researchers have shown that even in random contests, such as coin-flipping sessions, you're likely to be ahead or behind most of the time in each session. Even if events do come close to being even over the long run, you can still wind up losing your shirt. Let's say you start Video Blakjak Page 48 out with $500 in your pocket. You've played 200 hands with $10 standard bets. At the end of 200 hands, you're down by $150 on a total wager of $3,000. That's a 5 percent loss on the total wagered, but it represents 30 percent of your bankroll. If you stick it out for another 200 hands, the odds may tilt toward the theoretical break-even point. In fact, you may have cut the 5 percent deficit to only 3 percent. But in doing so, you've wagered another $3,000. That makes your total wager $6,000. Three percent of $6,000 is $180. So in theory, you're closer to breaking even, but in reality, you're worse off than when you started. Over 1,000 hands, you might get the deficit down to 1 percent. But you've wagered $15,000. Which means you're still down by $150. And you're probably very tired. Worse yet, you may never even get to 1,000 hands. Our research (based on several thousand sessions of 200 hands each), shows that over the course of play, you may be down by as much as $1,500. In this case, you've lost your bankroll completely before you had the chance to "catch up" with the odds. If you're serious about playing, consult some of the better books on Blackjack to get a feel for the exact percentages involved. The Bibliography at the end of this manual is a good starting point. The Enhanced Video Blakjak includes the results of our research into the issue of when to quit--the real secret of successful Blackjack. Video Blakjak Page 49 Chapter 8 Final Notes LIMITED WARRANTY: This program is designed for entertainment and research only. It carries no warranty of any kind. The Enhanced Video Blakjak is guaranteed to load and run as indicated in the manual. Otherwise, it carries no warranty of any kind. Neither the author nor Federal Hill Software will be responsible for any loss resulting from the use of this program or manual, or any other program or manual. In no case shall the liability of the author or Federal Hill Software exceed the purchase price of the program. 8.1 Distributing this Program The User-Supported version of Video Blakjak is distributed only by third parties, such as user groups, "Shareware" companies, on-line services and bulletin board operators. If you have purchased or obtained the User-Supported version from one of these suppliers, the responsibility for the integrity of the media and inclusion of the proper files rests with the supplier. If you have a problem with the disk, or the disk does not include the proper files, contact the supplier. Federal Hill Software receives no money or royalties for this version of the program. Federal Hill Software does guarantee the reliability of the media and inclusion of proper files on registered versions of the Enhanced Video Blakjak which it distributes. Please feel free to pass on copies of the User-Supported Version of Video Blakjak. User groups, shareware companies, and bulletin board operators are permitted and encouraged to distribute it. There are only two conditions. You must include all the files on this disk (or in the archived file which contains the program). These files are listed on Page 6. Also, shareware companies and user groups who charge a fee for a disk containing a copy of the program are required to notify purchasers, through their catalog or other written materials, that this is a User-Supported, or Shareware product. Video Blakjak Page 50 8.2 Technical Notes This program was written and compiled using the Microsoft Basic Professional Development System, Version 7.0. The playing and data input screens were designed using Screen Sculptor and Speed Screen, products of the Software Bottling Company of New York. The SPEEDSCR.COM file included with this program is licensed from the Software Bottling Company for distribution with Federal Hill Software's products. Video Blakjak Page 51 Appendix A Bibliography This manual is not intended to be a definitive work on Blackjack. It merely discusses overall strategy for playing the game. If you're interested in playing Blackjack seriously, the following Blackjack titles will be of great help to you. Braun, Julian H. How to Play Winning Blackjack, Chicago, Data House Publishing, 1980. Cardoza, Avery. Winning Casino Blackjack for the Non-Counter, New York, Cardoza Publishing, 1985. Humble, Lance and Cooper, Carl. The World's Greatest Blackjack Book, New York, Doubleday, 1987. Revere, Lawrence. Playing Blackjack as a Business, Lyle Stuart, Secaucus, N.J., 1980. Einstein, Charles. How to Win at Blackjack, Las Vegas, Gamblers Book Club, 1976. Thorp, Edward O. Beat The Dealer, New York, Vintage, 1966. Video Blakjak Page 52 Appendix B The Cambridge Handicappers If you're a racing fan, you've probably wondered whether your computer can help you make money at the track. It can. The Cambridge Handicappers from Federal Hill Software are solid, time-tested programs for analyzing Thoroughbred, Harness and Greyhound races. We first published our handicappers in 1983, and we've been improving them ever since. We have thousands of satisfied customers. As you probably noticed from reading this manual, we don't believe in get-rich-quick schemes. Our handicapping programs are designed to make you a winner over the long run by identifying good horses in good races and showing you how to make sound wagers. Our theory of handicapping rests on two simple premises. First, the handicapping system itself must be a sound one. There's no magic to handicapping. There are plenty of good handicapping systems around. Ours uses solid handicapping principles. It would be good with or without a computer. The computer just makes it faster and more accurate. We show you how to pick your races, and how pick the best prospects in each race. We explain how to bet on those prospects, and how to manage your money. The problem with many handicapping systems is that they're just too time consuming and complicated. This brings us to the second premise. A good handicapping system must be easy to use. If a system requires three hours to handicap a race, you aren't likely to use it very long. You'll go back to betting hunches and wind up losing your shirt. With The Cambridge Handicappers, you can handicap a race in a few minutes and a whole card in less than an hour. Just fill out a simple, on-screen handicapping form for each horse or dog in the race. All the information you need is readily Video Blakjak Page 53 available in the Racing Form, Harness or Dog Track program. We even provide a diagram showing exactly where to get each piece of information you need. On-screen help is always available. When you're through, the program ranks the horses or dogs in each race. It displays its analysis on screen or sends it to your printer. Our clearly-written manual tells you which races to bet and which to sit out--one of the secrets of good handicapping. It tells you how to eliminate bad horses and dogs right away--which saves you even more time. Most important, we tell you how to bet and how to manage your money. The Thoroughbred, Harness, and Greyhound Handicappers are $30 each. You can order any two for $50 or all three for $70. If you order Video Blakjak, you can get any of our handicappers for $20 each. Use the order form at the end of this manual. You can spend a lot more for handicapping software, but we don't think you'll find a better one. Video Blakjak Page 54 Appendix C How to Order Use the form on the following page to order Video Blakjak and/or The Cambridge Handicappers. If you just want Blakjak, you can also use the on-screen order form directly from the program. The price is $30 for the first program and $20 for each additional program. Mix and Match any way you want. Foreign orders must be payable in U.S. funds. We accept checks, money orders, Visa or MasterCard. If you're ordering by credit card, be sure to include the card number, expiration date and your signature. We'll rush your software to you right away. Video Blakjak Page 55 =========================================================== Video Blakjak Order Form Federal Hill Software 3722 Greenway Lane, P.O. Box 765 Owings Mills, Md. 21117 410-356-5592 =========================================================== Your Name: ------------------------------------------------ Address: ------------------------------------------------ City: State: Zip: -------------------- ---------- ----------- Please Send Me the Following Software: ( ) Video Blakjak ( ) Thoroughbred Handicapper ( ) Harness Handicapper ( ) Greyhound Handicapper Total Number of Programs Ordered: ( ) Price: 1 Program - $30 3 Programs - $70 2 Programs - $50 4 Programs - $90 Payment Type: ( ) Check/M.O. ( ) Visa ( ) Master Card Credit Card No. Exp. Date. ------------------------------ --------- Signature: ---------------------------------- Send this form to: Federal Hill Software, 3722 Greenway Lane, P.O. Box 765, Owings Mills, Md. 21117. Video Blakjak Page 56