BJ21.com Usage and Posting Tips -- Please read before posting

1. 1. Think the message through carefully before you post it. Having just one message in a given thread reflects better on you than if you need multiple posts to explain one idea.

2. 2. Accept that no matter what you say, someone can find a way to turn your own words against you. When that happens, do not counterattack.

3. 3. Accept that other people have the right to express wrong opinions. Do not argue when someone disagrees with something you posted. As long as your original post still exists, anyone can read it and accept it as if it were a response to your critic.

4. 4. Do not attack another member of the BJ21 community. Attacks of things other than people are fine. It is okay to say that a book stinks, but not okay to say that the author stinks. It's okay to think that another poster is an idiot, but not okay to say so.

5. 5. Do not post the same message multiple times, either on the same page or on different pages.

6. 6. Do not feel obligated to respond to any post. Of course, when someone asks if you meant "Howard Schwartz" when you said "Howard Grossman" and the answer is affirmative, a response is appropriate.

7. 7. Let the other person have the last word in a disagreement. Making the final post in an argumentative thread is perceived as weakness, not strength.

8. 8. Assume that any comment overly critical of you will not be believed, and will soon be offset by a response from someone else, who thinks you are being treated unfairly.

9. 9. If you are asking a question or requesting information, use a question mark in the subject line.

10. 10. Do not disclose others' personal information.

11. 11. Unless there is a security risk or other unusual situation, it is generally considered bad form to delete a post you have written after it has received a response.

12. 12. Before posting a question or asking for help on a particular topic, please use the search option to make sure the question has not already been asked and answered by other members.

13. 13. Don't be a troll. A troll, as partially defined by Wikipedia, is a person who creates discord on message boards by starting pointless arguments or by intentionally upsetting people, by posting inflammatory, extraneous, or off-topic messages with the intent of provoking readers into an emotional response, by posting numerous useless messages, or by otherwise disrupting normal on-topic discussions.
    14. Posts that appear to be made primarily to advertise another site will be deleted.

The following was originally posted on Green Chip by EmeraldCityBJ:

There are times when you can get valuable feedback from this forum by posting details from your trip, but you need to take care to not provide enough detail to out yourself.

Here are a few things you can do to get around this:

1. 1. Wait a few weeks or months to post anything. Give anyone who may have been working in the casino at the time who observed your play time to forget about your specific situation. If you have a truly unique story, you will want to wait longer than if you experienced something that happens on a regular basis.
    

2. 2. When you do post the story, don't provide specifics as to the timeline. Use vague terms like "a while back", "recently," or "several months/years ago." You may even want to lie about the timeline. For example, state "over the summer" when the event took place in October.
    

3. 3. Avoid disclosing the name or location of the casino unless it's relevant. For example, our response to statements like "When I bought in for $2000 and the pit boss got on the phone", or "When I wonged in, the pit boss pulled out a three ring binder full of flyers and started flipping pages while looking in my general direction" would likely be similar regardless of the casino.
    

4. 4. If your story cannot wait, or you need more immediate feedback, it may be best to have the discussion on private email rather than a public board. If you're not sure who to contact, a simple message like "Please email me if you know anything about the tolerance levels at [name of casino]" will often get the ball rolling. You're not disclosing any specific information about your session, and many would assume that you're planning a trip there at some point in the near future rather than wanting to discuss an event which already took place.
    

The following was originally posted on Green Chip by wisereyes:

I've participated in a wide variety of message boards for years. Green Chip is in a message board category by itself. And it takes time to understand the pulse of these pages. There are some unwritten rules which only become apparent over time. So good luck in learning and navigating those rules.

1. 1. Members here do not suffer fools gladly, nor do they appreciate ignorant arrogance. I'm not suggesting you have acted like a fool or behaved arrogantly ignorant. You haven't. But other new members have and are quickly put in their place.
    

2. 2. An IQ test isn't required to join Green Chip, but it's evident to me that the average Green Chip member IQ is much higher than the general population. There's benefits and disadvantages to that. You are not likely to pull the wool over somebody's eyes; but if you want a skillful, informed answer to a difficult question, you will likely find the answers you need here.
    

3. 3. You may notice an edgy, arrogant, sometimes ungracious tone to posts. Don't let that bother you. We really are nice guys (and gals). Whether recreational or full-time AP, we are in a tough business. To learn what we have learned took a ton of time, effort, and commitment. We might be a little offended by those that seem to minimize or inadvertently disrespect what we have learned by study and experience by writing cavalierly, or carelessly. Or by assuming a posture of unwarranted arrogance before they really know or understand the audience they are addressing.
    

4. 4. As I type, I'm thinking of the blackjack player (some would call him a ploppy) that I met the other day that decided he wanted to school me on the disadvantages of spreading to two hands because it "messes up the flow of the cards." In broken English, he tried to explain how I was in error and he was quite animated. And his local friends and neighbors in this one-horse town were all nodding in agreement. How would he know that I'm an expert and own a blackjack library of over one hundred books, have studied the game and practiced the game like an athlete in training, and have a track record of earning money playing the game for around twenty years? The answer is, "He wouldn't." Like other fools, he made rash conclusions.
    

5. 5. In almost any other field with the possible exception of sports, those that offer comments do so with caution and trepidation when they don't know the background and qualifications of the audience to which they speak. Without caution as a throttle for their words, they end up saying some really stupid things.
    

6. 6. You should also know that most of my fellow Green Chippers are far better at brevity than I am. Forgive the rant. And again, welcome. If you are willing to stick it out, like me, you will find that it's one of the best values around.
    

The following was originally posted on Green Chip by Cougfan:

Welcome to the forum.

A couple words of warning about the group that we have here.

1. 1. This board is definitely not of the "everybody be nice to each other" variety. You will see a lot of frank opinions being expressed, and very direct language being used. You need a bit of a thick skin, and please try to not to take negative comments personally.
    

2. 2. People tend to react negatively when specific info is shared on this board. Specific info includes game conditions at a particular casino, juicy promotions, or discussion of specific AP techniques that are not widely known (not talking about counting here). This board is pretty much open to anyone willing to pay the fee, and it is assumed that casino spies monitor these boards on techniques that are not widely known (not talking about counting here).
    

3. 3. The good news is that the members here are more than willing to share information in e-mail. Make sure you have an e-mail address in your profile (and not one that includes any part of your name, etc), and if you are looking for specific info, request that folks send you an e-mail.
    

The following was originally posted on Green Chip by WRX:

What commonly leads to friction on the site is people coming to blackjack with different goals.

Some of us assume that BJ21 exists for the one purpose of helping players to become winning professionals, full time or part time. In fact, not everyone who frequents this site plays blackjack with that end in mind. There are those who are satisfied to play for small stakes, but who want to play a technically great game, for the simple satisfaction of knowing that they play well--much like someone who plays chess or bridge avidly with no money at stake. There are those who mostly want to get the casinos to buy them free vacations. There are those who have the overriding goal of surviving in their "home casino." And all kinds of variations on these themes.

It might be helpful for a member, asking advice, to be up front about his objectives. Some of us have trouble understanding why anyone would want to spend hundreds of hours of his life in smoky casinos, if not to win good money. But some of our members do enjoy playing blackjack for its own sake, and other activities in the casino, and I suppose that we have to respect their preferences.

On another site, I recently had an exchange with a well known, active participant. It developed that he admitted that he was a red chip recreational player who enjoyed making two week long vacations to Las Vegas. The point being that this had not been obvious, despite his frequent messages on the site, and on its predecessor, over many years. He was quite knowledgeable on many technical points, but nevertheless did not choose to devote his talents and savings in the direction of making a living from blackjack.

The tough love seen on this site often comes out of frustration--that the player has previously received advice that he seems not to be following, that the player has the knowledge and experience to be a winner, but doesn't make the choices that will make him one. The person on the receiving end sometimes doesn't see the love, only the tough. It doesn't look like love, where the response he's getting doesn't fit with his possibly unspoken personal goals.

All of this being said, there are players who profess to put all of their energies into winning as much money as they can, even some who are well known around here, and who give respected advice, who at crunch time don't stick to the standards that they know they should. They may err on the side of being too conservative in betting, or in playing decisions, for fear of getting backed off. We all need to be critical of our play, and question if we are keeping our priorities straight. I can't think of a single player who has told me that he runs ahead of expectation. I constantly hear from players that over time they don't win nearly as much as they calculate they should. Few of us play as good a game as we think we do.