When faced with the prospect of gambling, one receives a wide range of opinions. You get some who object to it on moral or even religious grounds, through those who see it as the odd bit of fun but nothing really serious, through to those who are die-hard pundits who live to gamble.

And gambling has kept up with the times as well; online betting sites are doing storming business with sites such as Blue Square, Party Poker and all other types cropping up all over the place. If one looks hard enough, there will be the opportunity to bet on almost anything; from sport to politics to global events and even Awards ceremonies.

Some call it immoral, but there is little wrong with a flutter on something, a sweepstake or a set bet and this is just why these sites are so popular. From the comfort of your own home you can scan a multitude of websites, find the best odds and double or triple (or more) of your money instantly.

The problem however, arises with the slightly suspect sites. Despite being an anachronism, the bookies’ shop in the high street was a fixed, permanent place and it was easy to hold someone to account. With the web being used more and more for online betting and gambling there is the increasing chance that you will be being fleeced.

It is all very well signing a terms and conditions form upon entering a site, but if that person wants to con you, they can control the odds and the way in which the website runs and short of starting criminal charges there is little you can do.

My advice is to stick to the tried and tested sites, ones like Blue Square or William Hill - the online betting versions of the old high street bookies. At least then, you can feel secure (paradoxically enough) when you take your gamble

In the last few years the UK has undergone a pastime revolution.  What started out a few years ago with the relaunching of bingo halls as trendy places for a fun night out on the high street has now sweeped across the country with more and more people wanting to play gambling games for fun. Despite this demand the UK has failed to capitalise on it, with plans for the first Las Vegas-style super casino in Manchester being shelved and the plan for the Millennium Dome to play host to a super casino being turned down in favour of a live music venue.

With so many people wanting to play these games in Britain, but with a distinct lack of venues to host them, punters are increasingly turning to the web to play.  With online games customers typically register with a specific gaming site, upload funds using a debit card, and cash winnings directly back to the card.  Although the ‘live experience’ is lost in online gaming customers are able to communicate with each other and specific chat rooms exist for players of each particular game.

Of all the online gambling games bingo has been the most successful.  Particularly targeted at women, it is now thought to be the most popular leisure activity for women in their early twenties.  The UK Online Bingo market has seen massive growth with big brands like Mecca Bingo (the company that introduced bingo to Britain in the 1960’s) launching games online.  Players are drawn to the fact that they can win large amounts of money and make friends with people from all over the world.  Multi-player bingo allows both play and chat between customers, with the latter specifically targeted at female customer.  Free bingo games are also available offering players a way to win small amounts of money with no risk of gambling.

The popularity of Online Casino websites offering games like poker, slot machines and roulette has also increased massively.  Of these, online poker has proved the most popular and has been responsible for a dramatic increase in the number of players worldwide.  Online poker tables normally offer Texas hold ‘em, Omaha, Seven-card stud, razz and various other tournament games.  Like with bingo, customers play against each other from around the world.

There are of course dangers associated with this increase in online gambling.  As gaming numbers swell the risk that people will play to excess and become addicted increases.   Concerns over the limited amount of support available to problem gamblers was one of the reasons cited for the postponement of the Manchester super casino, and on the Internet it would be even harder to control.  However, gambling networks insist that they have facilities in place to monitor customers gambling habits and suspend accounts that are deemed to be excessive.  The majority of customers play these games for the thrill of an online flutter rather than the prize money itself.

These days even some of the leading bingo operators such as Mecca are providing online games. Of these games online blackjack is probably the most loved, vibrant and fascinating game. It offers reasonable chances, is easy to pick up and can involve complicated strategies. The rules are fairly simple, but to play it without giving the house too big an advantage involves an element of strategy. Often, success in playing online blackjack is a reflection of ability as well as pure luck.

As with most online casino games, there is of course to opportunity to first try your hand before risking real money - With free expert advice, many people new to the world of online gambling are honing their game skills and playing free online blackjack at online casinos such as Riverbelle.

It’s a enjoyable and relatively inexpensive way to become familiar with the rules and terminology of the game as well as developing your strategy – provided you know your limits. Remember, knowledge is power and the more you know, the more comfortable you are making decisions at the table.
 
The Aim of Blackjack

The basic premise of the game is that you want to have a hand value that is closer to 21 than that of the dealer, without going over 21. Other players at the table are really of no concern. Your hand and your game is played out against the hand of the dealer. The rules of play for the dealer are strictly dictated, leaving no decisions up to the dealer. Therefore, there is not a problem with the dealer or any of the other players at the table seeing the cards in your hand. In fact, if you're playing at a shoe game, the player cards are all dealt face up.

A standard blackjack deck contains 52 cards in four suits (hearts, diamonds, clubs, and spades). Each suit consists of numerical cards 2 to 10 and a jack, a queen, a king, and an ace. Two or more decks of cards may be combined.
 
Cards values in Blackjack:

The values of the cards contained in a deck of cards are as follows:

    * A card from 2 to 10 has its face value
    * A jack, queen, or king has a value of 10
    * The value of the ACE depends on the sum of your cards if the sum is lower than 21, the value of your ACE is 11 however if the sum of your cards increase to more than 21(if ace counts =
for 11) then your ACE drops to the value of one.

Examples of Ace Value:

Suppose that you have the beginning hand (Ace, 5). This hand can be either 6 or 16. If you stop there, it will be 16. Imagine that you hit and draw another card to the hand and now have (Ace, 5, 3). Your total hand is now 19, counting the Ace as 11. Let's pretend that instead of drawing a 3 you had instead drawn a third card which was an 8. The hand is now (Ace, 5, 8) which totals 14. Notice here we’ve now counted the Ace as only 1 to avoid going over 21 and bust. In this case 24
 
If an Ace can be counted as either 1 or 11 without the total going over 21 the hand is referred to as ‘soft hand’. For example (Ace, 6) is a soft 17. The description stems from the fact that the player can always draw another card to a soft total with no danger of "busting" by going over 21. The hand (Ace,6,10) on the other hand is a "hard" 17, since now the Ace must be counted as only 1, again because counting it as 11 would bust the hand .

The value of any hand is simply the sum of the point counts of each card in the hand. For example, a hand containing (5,7,9) has the value of 21.

There are many different ways an online bingo game can shape up. Depending on which bingo site you play with, there are choices of 75, 80 and 90 ball games. Each of the 75, 80 and 90 ball games offer players a different experience entirely; here we look at what each type of game involves.

75-ball bingo

75-ball bingo is the most popular version of bingo across the Atlantic, with shorter games and different patterns to follow in every game. Each card in the 75-ball game is divided into 5 columns where each column represents a letter in the word 'bingo'.
 
Patterns played can be as diverse as a simple row, a diagonal shape to follow or simply four corners to black out. Patterns work their way right through the card ultimately to a “coverall”, where players have to daub every number on their card to win. Each pattern is determined at the beginning of play, and players can either follow the shape or call bingo within the stated 'balls to bingo' number.

80-ball bingo

80-ball bingo is the perfect compromise between the two popular games of 75 and 90-ball bingo. Neither too short or too long, 80-ball bingo has been traditionally played in live bingo halls on plastic shutter boards.  Each of these shutter boards is divided into 16 squares. Squares of 4 across and 4 down are divided into coloured columns with a 'free' square in the middle of each board. This game is currently not as widely available in the world of Internet bingo as it is in bingo halls. You can, however, find choices of sites that do offer this new to online bingo game by visiting one of the many bingo portals available such as Bingo Hideout and searching out 80-ball games.

90-ball bingo

90-ball bingo has its roots in live bingo play and remains today the most popular choice of bingo game in the UK. As a result, online bingo sites offer up a huge range of choice when it comes to this game, with the most competitive jackpots and prizes usually found on larger online bingo sites such as Mecca or Foxy in the 90-Ball games.

90-ball bingo is popular due to the longer length of the game. There are three chances to win in every game, meaning that the game stays interesting throughout play, no matter which lines have already been called. Each individual game is also long enough for any newbies in play to get to grips with the rules, making it a more accessible version of play.

Cards bought for 90-ball games consist of 9 columns and 3 lines, and players can win across a Single Line Across, Two Lines and a Full House. Players are not limited as to how many cards they can buy, thus increasing their chances of winning. Prize sizes increase as players cover more numbers on the card – however - if more than one player bingos at the same time it is commonplace for the prize to be shared.

Online bingo has become immensely popular since its launch, and with more and more people joining in the fun all the time, let's take a closer look at the benefits of playing online.

Taking up any Sign Up bonuses offered is an excellent way to get to know any UK online bingo site if you haven't played there before or if you’re totally new to the game, with most offering free money or cards to get you started. Whereas live gaming might offer free play once in a while or as part of a “buy one get one free” offer, bingo sites welcome new members into the fold with huge bonuses and with huge enthusiasm so that any newbie can find their way around and start enjoying the game straight away.

In fact, Internet bingo is all about playing your favourite game in a friendly, community style atmosphere. Playing bingo online differs from playing live in as much as chat is positively promoted among players and is an integral part of the game. Live chat is used as a tool to play games within games for extra bonuses as well as ongoing tourneys. It also functions as a superb way to get to know those around you. Bingo chat differs from site to site with phrases specific to each as with bingo calls, but there are plenty of pages dedicated to deciphering the most popular of these so you need not be intimidated by the use of unfamiliar acronyms or phrases.

One of the massive appeals of online bingo is the huge jackpots you can regularly play for from the comfort of your own home. Depending on which site you choose to sign up with these can range from smaller guaranteed jackpots to ever increasing progressive jackpots to play for.

Larger Internet Bingo names such as Mecca also set up huge monthly promotions to keep players interested in play. These tourneys are designed for regular players and often come with the largest payouts. Join in with the race during your sites next monthly promotion and you can be in the running for prizes, bonus points or cash prizes that outstrip daily play.

Most sites will also reward players for submitting a player profile for their gallery as this serves to further promote the sense of community throughout the site. Player profiles are a useful way of getting to know a site before registering. Prospective members will always look at the type of person already on board to get a sense of whether this site is for the right crowd for them. Internet sites know this and recognise that the more people who have a profile the more effective their number retention will be. Submit your profile once you have signed up and you'll be amazed at how many roomies recognise you and how friendly they'll be toward you just by simply being able to put a face to the name.