Remember the days when it was you against a dealer, who was holding a single deck of cards? There were no electronic devises on the table, no special lighting, no shoes, no "hole card" peekers, etc.

Nowadays, when you look at a blackjack table it appears to be some kind of kitchen appliance with wires, lights, and peek devices. One even wonders if the dealer just obtained a full charge before starting her shift. However, this isn’t the worst of it, as you will quickly learn. Nowadays, like it or not, computers and the corresponding software are used in almost every aspect of the casino games.It started back when a smarter than the average bear developed the player-concealed computers named David and Casey. These were such novel and new editions to the scene that there were no laws against using them back then, and these new computer users didn’t see the need to brag about them.The little binary counting machines were a cross between a calculator and a basic strategy machine and worked with some success (when the batteries worked correctly and didn’t start fires or overheat and start smoking like a chimney). Today, the casino has what appears to be an unlimited arsenal of computer goodies. Such items stem from The Bloodhound, a card-counter tracker and comp calculator. This computer can pick out an advanced player in minutes but the inventor asks the casinos to run at least two shoes before you start the analysis process. The latter consists of tracking the following: the player’s wins, losses, cards dealt, correct moves, bad moves, percentage of good cards dealt where the player could have taken advantage of them, if he did or didn’t.

This type of computer is pretty much the standard in many casinos. Other types incorporate the table betting spots (they weigh the cheques), RFID (Radio Frequency ID) cheques, shoes with bar code readers that are printed on the cards, and all the information is then sent to a processor in surveillance, where it’s dumped into their laps and they have to make heads or tails out of it and advise the Shift Manager.So many bells and whistles when a quick pen to paper would do just as well if not faster but, it’s the scope of the info the casino now seeks and not just if the player is advanced enough to maybe win a few rounds and sit out on the bad ones.This software, just like the old faithful bloodhound, will analyze the player seven ways to Sunday but creates more paperwork and more really cool things to consider, such as, if this player was allowed to continue to play, what would the casino seek to win (or lose) over a 12-month period. This calculates almost every comp mentioned in Max Rubin’s Comp City book (thanks Max).So, now, if you take a drink or go to a casino sponsored boxing match, it will be added to your total value to the casino. This goes for room, gifts, etc. as well.Therefore, it seems that backing someone off ASAP is not the casinos biggest concern anymore; it’s what your overall value will be to them over a longer period of time.

Sure, they’re still some cowboy surveillance agents that will back you off for splitting Aces but this will be going the way of the dinosaur soon because the latest software has no human emotions and takes a "wait-and-see" attitude.Don’t be fooled by even the simplest of all card-counting software (including the one you get when you buy two meat lovers pizzas at Pizza Hut. Yea, that was a joke but just how far off am I)? Anyway, a $20 card-counting software can pick you off in less that than six rounds but the casinos know better than to act on it, otherwise, they would have no players left after just a few minutes. (If you want longevity when you play blackjack, you’ll have to re-read your copy of Cellini’s book again.)Computers or no computers just remember these words of advice: