home
***
CD-ROM
|
disk
|
FTP
|
other
***
search
/
Fritz: All Fritz
/
All Fritz.zip
/
All Fritz
/
FILES
/
GAMECARD
/
UNOPKSIX.LZH
/
POKER.DOC
< prev
next >
Wrap
Text File
|
1991-03-09
|
13KB
|
261 lines
DRAW POKER
Release 5.66 March 1991
Gellman Software
431 Fifth Street, S.E.
Washington, DC 20003
(C) Copyright Robert Gellman 1987-1991
All Rights Reserved
POKER.EXE plays five card draw poker head-to-head. The program
provides a real challenge for the serious poker player and helps weaker
players sharpen their skills.
The program attempts to play winning poker consistently. It has a
sophisticated style of playing and betting designed to win more money than
it loses. The program doesn't get tired or lazy, and it doesn't call bets
just because it is curious. Can you play winning poker against a tough,
disciplined opponent? That is the challenge of this game.
The program allows you to play dozens of hands in a few minutes. You
can acquire a lifetime of experience in two hours. Despite the limitations
of head-to-head poker, you can still acquire a good sense of draw poker
odds. Remember the challenge: Can you beat the computer?
The program assumes that you know how to play poker and requires
no manual. There are several introductory screens with explanations of the
program's operations. Two help screens are available during play at the
touch of a button. Now you can play even if you can't remember whether a
flush beats a straight (it does!).
***************************************************************************
* PLAYING THE GAME *
***************************************************************************
To start the program, just enter POKER at the DOS prompt. If the file
is on a floppy disk, enter A:POKER if appropriate. The first few screens
will explain the mechanics. Try some hands and you will catch on quickly.
The program will run under DOS 2.0 or better. The program requires
less than 256K and is compatible with both color and monochrome monitors.
A graphics card is not needed.
If you want to start playing, go ahead. Nothing in this short DOC
file is vital. Read it once, but the documentation is not worth printing.
The file was created with margins at 5 and 75. There are form feeds
approximately every 60 lines.
***************************************************************************
* COMMENTS & ADVICE *
***************************************************************************
First, the program is totally honest. The computer does not know what
is in your hand unless there is a showdown. Nor does the computer know
what cards are in the deck waiting to be drawn.
Second, there is one minor, otherwise undocumented, feature whereby
the program actually "cheats" in your favor. After cards are drawn, the
program will "remind" you of how many cards the computer drew by displaying
one period (.) for each card the computer drew.
Given the fast pace of the game (once you get the hang of it), it's
easy to miss the message showing the number of cards drawn by the computer.
After the draw is complete, the periods appear at the top of the display
following "AFTER THE DRAW". On the showdown screen, the periods appear at
the top of the display after the word "pot".
Third, be aware that the computer has different patterns of betting.
Some of its betting is random, and it won't always bet the same way with
the same hand. The computer also observes your play and modifies its
behavior in response to your betting methods.
The computer is also able to bluff in several ways. The computer will
sometimes make large bets with bad hands and no bets with good hands. Like
any good poker player, every move the computer makes has at least two
possible interpretations.
Fourth, a run of very good or very bad hands is just a coincidence.
The randomness of the program has been tested in simulations involving over
half a million hands. The results mirror those expected in normal poker
playing. If you are losing, just keep playing, and your luck may improve.
If all else fails, try playing better poker!
Fifth, as you play, you will occasionally be offered the chance to
increase the stakes and the ante. The maximum bet (or raise) starts at
$10, and it can be doubled twice until it reaches $40. This is high enough
for a game where each player starts with $200. Contrary to normal poker
practice, the minimum bet remains at $1 even when the stakes are raised.
In most games, the ante is equal to the minimum bet.
Sixth, in head-to-head poker, a high percentage of hands will be
folded by one player or the other. This is normal. Conservative players
fold when they don't think they can win. Of course, there will be
occasional spectacular showdowns when both players have good hands. But
the odds are that you are likely to win only half of these hands.
The key to winning poker is discipline. Play your cards and learn
how to exploit small advantages. Over time, the luck will even out.
***************************************************************************
* TECHNICAL NOTES *
***************************************************************************
POKER has been more than twenty years in the making. The first
version was written in FORTRAN in 1969-70 on an IBM 360 Mod 65. Later
versions were written in IBM BASIC and ATARI BASIC. The current version
was written and compiled in Microsoft's QuickBASIC 4.5.
Version 5.60 was a major improvement over previous releases. The card
displays and messages were completely rewritten, and the betting routines
were sharpened. Most of the visual improvements are the result of PROBAS,
a Professional BASIC Programming Library, from Hammerly Computer Services,
Laurel, Maryland. Later versions of the program were more evolutionary.
The source code, which has not been released, is over 1300 lines.
A serious programmer/poker player may be able to convince me to provide a
copy of the source code. However, you will not be able to use the source
code without major modification unless you have PROBAS.
***************************************************************************
* FEEDBACK *
***************************************************************************
If you find any errors, please let me know exactly when and how they
arose. The program has been extensively tested, but I cannot guarantee
that it is bug-free. My address appears on the top of this document and
on the second screen (hit ENTER at the first screen).
User feedback is hard to get. I welcome comments about the program,
its mechanics, or poker strategy in general. Any suggestions for changes
or improvements will be considered. There are thousands of copies of this
program in circulation, but I have had little response from users. If you
like the program, tell me. If you hate it, tell me what's wrong. This is
how you support freeware! If you find a bug or make a suggestion that I
adopt, I will send you a copy of the new version.
If you develop a betting strategy that enables you to win
consistently, please let me know so I can make changes. The program does
not play perfect poker, but I would like to eliminate any gaping holes in
the betting algorithm.
Finally, my thanks to the Study Group for poker lessons and to B.C.,
D.B., and S.A.C. for helping me refine the betting algorithm and the
general look of the program.
Good luck to the rest of you. You may need it.
***************************************************************************
* LEGAL STUFF *
***************************************************************************
This program and accompanying documentation are provided "as is"
without warranty of any kind. The entire risk of using the program is
assumed by the user. Gellman Software disclaims all warranties, either
express or implied. In no event shall Gellman Software be liable for any
damages whatsoever arising out of the use of or inability to use this
program.
This program is freeware. You are licensed to use the program and
to give copies to others. You may upload the program together with this
documentation on computer bulletin boards anywhere. No registration or
other fee is owed to the author. However, both the program and this
documentation are copyrighted by Robert Gellman. No one is authorized to
make changes to either. Also, no one is authorized to sell the program
except as specifically provided in this documentation.
The program may be distributed by software clubs, computer bulletin
boards, and shareware/freeware libraries at a standard charge for media
and distribution. The maximum charge permitted without specific written
permission from Gellman Software is $6.00. No other forms of distribution
for money are authorized.
***************************************************************************
* OTHER GELLMAN SOFTWARE PROGRAMS *
***************************************************************************
As of the date of this file, Gellman Software has released five other
programs:
SPRM32 - Stock Portfolio Record Manager (shareware)
1POKER13 - Poker Solitaire (freeware)
CALC12 - Calculation Solitaire (freeware)
LABELLE3 - La Belle Lucie Solitaire (public domain)
SIXLTR40 - Six Letter Word Game (freeware)
The last two programs were coauthored by other programmers.
These programs are available from the Public (Software) Library, P.O.
Box 35705, Houston, TX 77235. The latest versions are normally sent to PSL
as soon as they are released. I recommend PSL to anyone interested in
shareware or freeware. Gellman Software programs are also available on
finer computer bulletin boards in the Washington, DC area and elsewhere.
If you send me a self-addressed, stamped, disk mailer and a disk, I
will send you any of my programs that you request. Let me know if you can
unzip files. All programs will not fit on one 360K disk.
***************************************************************************
* HISTORY OF RECENT VERSIONS *
***************************************************************************
Version 5.66 - Added F8 switch so that you can keep all cards in a pat
(3/1/91) hand with one keystroke. Added verbal descriptions (e.g.,
KINGS OVER SEVENS) of hands at showdown. Both changes
requested by users. Music for computer winning hand
shortened. Minor conforming screen and documentation
changes made.
Version 5.65 - Minor revisions of screen displays. Internal changes
(9/16/89) to increase efficiency infinitesimally. Added average
pot information to final screen. Modified the "charity
call" algorithm. Slight changes to both help screens.
Revised documentation.
Version 5.64 - Fixed an ancient mistake. The program failed to
(1/22/89) properly evaluate competing straights when one hand
was a baby straight (A-2-3-4-5). The program was
"dazzled" by the ace and determined mistakenly that
the baby straight was higher than any other straight
that didn't have an ace. It took 20 years for this
error to surface. My thanks to R. Brosseau and B. Binford
for finding and reporting this problem. In the coincidence
of the year, both wrote me on the same day!
Version 5.63 - Revised the rules screen and added a new screen
(1/10/89) showing the order of poker hands. Made both screens
available at a keystroke. Revised the main screen
display. Changed the sound screen and the opening
sounds. Small changes to the betting algorithm made
the computer a slightly more aggressive bettor.
Cutesy card cutting display added. Recompiled in QB
4.5.
Version 5.62 - Modified the frequency of chances to raise the stakes.
(7/31/88) Fiddled with frequency and content of insults.
Eliminated extra keystroke in sandbagging situations.
Recompiled in QB 4.0b - size reduced by 10 percent.
Version 5.61 - Fixed overflow for bets over 32768 (!!??).
(4/28/88) Revised rules screen. Insult frequency reduced.
Minor betting algorithm change (top secret!).