I recently took a cruise with Carnival. The ship had one of these
PokerPro tables, so I have some first hand experience with this game.
The table held up to a maximum of 10 players. As long as at least 2
players were there, they could have a game. Each player position
contained an individual video screen which showed information such as
you and the other players' chip count, your cards (face down), and your
options when it was your turn to act. To view your cards, you shielded
the two face down cards with your hands and touched the screen just
above the cards. The cards would "peel up" on the screen so that you
could read them. I found this action to be suprisingly natural and
very similar to viewing cards in a regular game.
In the center of the table was a much larger screen which showed the
community cards, the name and chip count of each player, the dealer
button, who had folded and who was still in the hand, and whose turn it
was to act.
All actions were performed on your individual screen. When it was your
turn to act, all the options (i.e. call, raise, fold) would light up on
your screen and you could make your selection. Thus, there was no
acting out of turn, no splashing the pot, no string raises, no fouled
hands, or anything like that. For most major actions, you had to tap
the button on the screen twice to confirm your action (as in "are you
*sure* you want to fold?") Things like split pots and side pots were
handled automatically by the computer. There were no dealer errors to
worry about. If everyone folded around to you, you had the option of
showing one, both, or none of your cards to the other players. The
table automatically raked the pots, just like in a regular game. Of
course there was no dealer to tip 
To buy in, you went to the cashier and set up an account just for the
PokerPro tabler. This was entirely separate from the regular shipboard
casino accounting system. You were issued a special PokerPro card.
You inserted this card into the card reader at any open position at the
table, and your screen would ask what amount you wanted to buy in for.
There was an established minimum ($60 as I recall on the table I
played). The maximum buy in was whatever was in your account. When
you were ready to quit, there was an options menu where you could
select "quit game". Your remaining chip count (if any) was credited
back into your account. You could also sit out for a while if you
needed to take a quick break, without cashing out (your position was
held for you).
The table could be set up for limit games, no limit games, or
tournament mode. If the players all wanted to change the game (for
instance from a $3/$6 limit to $1/$2 no limit) someone had to go find
the table game supervisor and get him to change the game.
The game went very quickly. I would estimate that the table played 2
to 3 times as fast (hands per hour) as a normal poker table. On the
negative side, the table was really not all that popular and it seemed
that it was difficult to get a game started. I noticed the table would
sit empty for hours at a time. I have been on previous cruises that
offered poker with a "live" dealer, and it was often difficult to get a
seat at those games. No such problem with the electronic poker table.
I think many passangers were intimidated by the game and were scared to
give it a try.
EE
···
--- In vpFREE@yahoogroups.com, "mickeycrimm" <mickeycrimm@...> wrote:
I found an article in pokerplayernewspaper.com archives under the
heading of "press releases" about these new poker tables. Evidently,
the cruise ships are going for these machines bigtime.>>>>>>>>>>>>
