ONLINE POKER - SITE - PokerStars

I may bore you guys with my diatribe, but here goes. I've played internet poker for about 3 years now, and I think in terms of hi/lo limit games, variety of tourneys, Pokerstars is the best I've come across. And, as far as freerolls go, what do you expect? Something for nothing? The reason you have to beat 3000 to 4000 people in those is that it is geared towards cheapskates, with the hope they may invest REAL money in the future. As far as the sites I've frequented, Ultimate Bet would rank as the worst due to 3 people regularly FLOPPING flushes, or the CONSTANT AA vs. KK matchup. But in terms of all the poker sites I've played at, they ALL have some things in common: They want the BAD players to keep coming back, since that is their cash cow. As for decent players, which I consider myself, they are a lot harder to permanently drive off, since they have experienced some sort of success in the past. And at all these sites, my success usually comes IMMEDIATELY after I open an account, just to give me a taste of winning quick cash. And even though I believe bad beats happen almost as much in LIVE play, I DON'T believe that any computer program is completely random. The goal of any business is to make as much money as possible, even if it means bending the rules a bit. And EVERY computer program is made by man, and man is inherently greedy. That's why I ask regular LIVE Blackjack players if they would play the same money on internet BJ, and they almost always say NO! Internet poker follows the same premise: Even though you are competing against other players, the house is ALWAYS looking for the best way to maximize its profits. And if this means letting new players win early, letting bad players regularly outdraw you, then I have come to accept this. On a conluding note, 2 of the biggest problems I have with Pokerstars is that first, it is hard to win BIG pots back-to-back (seems like the hand after I win a big pot, I get "set up" with the 2nd best hand) And secondly, if the UNDERDOG makes a "bad" play with a big raise, he gets rewarded more than he should with a big pot. Hope this write-up helps. BTW, if you chat with someone or read an article from someone that has NOT played internet poker ("pro" poker writer John Vorhaus comes to mind), and he offers his analysis (good or bad) on internet poker, pay NO attention. They are commenting on something they have NEVER experienced. Good luck at the tables, so long as it's not at my table.