Trying to find a place to play light

First of all, hello everybody and thanks for having me here. My 1st post yay!

Okay, several questions I'd like to ask you guys. Let me mention I'm a complete newbie in online or land gambling (I've never trusted an online establishment since I thought I can't be sure they're set up fair and although my country has a lot of small casinos they're really not the place I want to go in and win some money if you know what I mean).

I have my eye on 2 places and been trying the practice mode for about a week now. Been doing some detective work on the online gaming scene too and picked these two to try out.

First is Europa Casino, using Playtech software. Runs very smoothly, fast games and a wide variety to choose from. From what I can tell, I see they have many acreditations and seem legit. One of the problems though is the fact that I fear my country doesn't support a lot of their depositing and withdrawing options. So the best option remains paying directly using my credit card. I currently own 2 debit cards (a Mastercard Mondo and a Visa Electron, both compatible with international use). Has anyone had any problems using this system and what do I need to worry about? I'm unsure about my bank allowing money transfers to and from an online casino, I hear some banks deny it. Otherwise, are NETELLER or Moneybookers any good?

Second we have Casino on Net or 888.com .They boast on being the world's largest online casino. Compared to Europa, I've noticed everything runs less smoothly and the number of games they offer are limited. However, they do support Paypal which I know works for me.

I forgot to mention, I'm interested in Blackjack Split or Blackjack Surrender. In your experience, which is more winning friendly? (I'm not talking about the odds which have to be virtually the same). And what other good casinos you've tried offer it, together with a fast gameplay and fair odds?

I've been playing BJ Split for a bout a week now on Europa Casino practice mode and I've been on a constant winning streak. I play flat 1$ bets and I occasionally increase it to 5,10 or 25$ but no more when my intuition kicks in, after losing a lot of hands in a row. I've managed to turn 100$ into 650$ without knowing much about the game. I used what I thought would work, which is very close to what the Wizard posted on his site related to BJ Split, with the difference that I always hit 12 and 13 and always stood at 16 (all hard) & only split aces when the dealer showed a 4/5/6. Considering all these, is it possible the Practice Mode here or on more online casinos is rigged so that the player's chance is much better than in actual money play?

I've read the Basic Strategy. But what would be considered an advanced strategy when playing online? Let's say the games uses 6 decks. Do they reshuffle after every hand or how does it go down? Is it possible to count cards or use any other manner to roughly predict the hits?



Alright, If you're too lazy to read all that crap (and I can't blame you, here are my questions in simple terms)

1. Casino on Net or Europa Casino? Or another?
2. Any problems with paying using my debit card directly on the site?
3. Practice games are rigged so that the player's chance is higher than in Money Play?
4. Blackjack Split or Surrender? Or some other variation?
5. Any other game worth mentioning? (interesting to play, good odds)
6. Can you count cards when playing online?



Your insight is valuable to me, thank you all for answering and congrats for the fine community assembling over here. Also, I was impressed with the Wizard's sites. Thank you and good luck with your future projects.

I can't answer all your questions but can give you some advice based on my own experiences online

ISSUE ONE IS FINDING AN HONEST CASINO
--I have found that casinomeister has the best reviews of casinos. They have an honest casino list and rogue casino list. If you do nothing else be sure to check out their recommendations. There are lots of good ones but lots of bad ones too.

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE READ THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS AT A CASINO YOU ARE GOING TO USE
You will find all kinds of things you need to be aware of before you deposit. This applies especially to bonuses the casino offers. Some casinos require 30x play thru combined with 25-30% of money played on the games you suggested. Some will not allow bonuses to be used for anything other than slots and should you take the bonus and play other games the terms say they will confiscate everything in your account when its time for you to withdraw money.

I have not had any problems with debits to my checking account. It's the easiest way to depost and it doesn't cost anything. Not many casinos offer it though. As a precaution I would set up a separate checking account with a minimimum amount of money in it. When you want to make a casino deposit add the money to the account then let it go back to minimum. That way if anyone goes after your funds they won't get much. All the pay services--pay pal and ewallet express work well but their charges are outrageous. For real credit cards sometimes will go thru and sometimes won't depending on how tricky the casino is in disguising they are a casino. Most credit card banks try to block charges made by casinos. The law in the US that prohibits credit card companies from accepting charges from casinos has been recinded for 6 months while congress sorts out whether they want to make online gambling legal.

Hope this helps a little
ZIPPEDUP

One other thing I forgot to mention in my response. If you are working with a new casino it makes a lot of sense that after you win a few bucks you try a test withdrawl to see how they handle it. You may be surprised what you find . Some casinos take weeks or months too send you your money. Others send it right away and some even offer next day delivery (for a fee of course). You may find that some checks bounce leaving you with bank fees for any that do. Since many of the checks come from Canadian banks you may find your financial institution unwilling to even deposit them or they may put a 90 day hold on the amount of the check in your account until they get paid by the casino's bank. I do not tolerate delays because it means to me they are on thin ice for reasonable cash flow. Nor do I tolerate any casino that bounces a check. Testing a small withdrawl is the best way to find out what's what regarding payment.
ZIPPEDUP

Thank you very much Zippedup, after posting this I did some more digging up and discovered all these things. It's crazy how many things a regular Joe has to consider when choosing an online place to throw some money and I'm sure most people don't and end up losing a lot. I wish everything was more transparent and there were places people talk about this freely. The casinomeister site you mentioned is excellent, I'm going to run through it my list of candidates, hopefully my first online casino experience will start off on the right foot. Thanks again and all the best. Happy holidays!

p.s. should anyone else have anything to add, I would be most grateful

3) not usually, but it has happened. The wizard has proof of it at one casino somewhere on wizardofodds.com

6) online casinos almost always shuffle after every hand. So, no, no use counting between hands. Some casinos let you play multiple hands at once, so there is a very small advantage in using the cards that are out on that deal to help you with your decisions.

Good luck!
zippedup

Quote: ionutd

Otherwise, are NETELLER or Moneybookers any good?

Both are good. Fees on MB are slightly less and they give you a slightly better exchange rate when converting money also.

ok so MB > Netteller, thanks mate.

I came across Betfred the last days. I hear it's very reputable and all, but in your experience, is it any good?

Quote: ionutd

ok so MB > Netteller, thanks mate.

I came across Betfred the last days. I hear it's very reputable and all, but in your experience, is it any good?

BetFred is very solid. They've been around for a long time and are reputable.