The first three are shorthand notations for video poker variations: nine-six Jacks or Better, full-pay Deuces Wild, and not-so-ugly Deuces (or not-so-ugly ducks). What these terms, and several others like them, do is identify the pay schedules on video poker machines. If you’re not familiar with them, you need to give yourself a crash course in video poker game selection (and strategies).
The best place to start is with the video poker chapter of Jean Scott’s The Frugal Gambler. There she explains all about paytables, optimal strategy, positive and negative expectation, full- and short-pay video poker, and more.
After you’re familiar with the terminology, you can proceed to The Winners Guides by Bob Dancer and Liam Daily, which explain in detail how to play the most popular video poker variations.
And once you’ve digested that information, it’ll be time to purchase a computer tutorial, which not only allows you to play nearly any variation of video poker on your computer, but also corrects you when you make a strategy error. The two good ones are WinPoker and Frugal Video Poker.
All the above products are available from Huntington Press. Call 800/244-2224 or click here to order.
TITO means "ticket-in ticket-out." This refers to coinless slot and video poker machines, which print out receipts when you cash out, rather than dropping coins or tokens into a tray. These machines also accept the tickets if you want to buy back in, as well as greenbacks (though the latest TITO machines actually don’t accept coins).
Tomorrow’s QoD: What does it mean when casinos advertise double and triple or bonus points?
