Does Your Resume Lack Vision?

By David Richter Youre just getting over the shock of having become unemployed. You know you need to begin a job search, but you may not know the best way to proceed, or where to start. More than likely, you will dust off your old resume and modify it to include your most recent job experience. Most people search the classifieds and Internet job sites for job openings matching their qualifications. They then submit their resumes to these postings. You will probably do the same with your modified resume. If you follow this routine, you will very likely experience a long and frustrating job search. At the end of this exhausting journey, you will find yourself in a job that doesnt truly capitalize on your unique gifts or talents, nor compensates you according to your worth. Most job seekers go through this. The job market is especially lean for higher paying positions, yet flooded with good candidates. Your competition is huge and not about to go away. In this climate, mediocrity will not bring you success. You must take a different path. The best place to start is with a vision. What is your vision for yourself? Imagine some of the unique and fulfilling qualities your next job can have. What unique gifts and talents can you bring to the table that set you apart from the crowd and make this next job all the more enjoyable? Write all this down. You are learning how to write a resume that will yield very positive results. This is truly an opportunity for you to look at your career from a fresh perspective. By translating your vision and differentiating qualities into a new resume, you are giving yourself an opportunity very few job seekers experience. Your resume will spark the interest and grab the attention of the employer reading it. You will gain immeasurably as you stand head and shoulders above your competition, get called for the right interviews and receive financially healthy offers. A successful job search starts with a powerful vision for yourself and your career, and a strong, well-written resume that reflects that vision. Be creative with this. Hold yourself to no boundaries. Allow your imagination to soar. Your efforts will pay off handsomely. Copyright 2005 TopDog Group All rights reserved. David Richter is a recognized authority in career coaching and job search support. He has spent many years in recruitment, staffing, outplacement, counseling psychology and career management spanning most industries and professions. David founded TopDog Group in response to the needs of job candidates to have a higher quality of career coaching and support available on the Internet. David understands the mechanisms for success. He has formulated specific strategies anyone can use to secure interviews and receive offers. His extensive knowledge and experience sets David apart in this field, allowing him to offer a wealth of information and a vast array of tools, resources and strategies not found anywhere else. He has shown countless job seekers how to differentiate themselves and leverage their potential to the highest possible level, making a real difference in their careers. David holds both a Bachelors and Masters degree in Electrical Engineering and a Masters of Arts degree in Counseling Psychology. David's website address is: http://www.procareercoach.com Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=David_Richter http://EzineArticles.com/?Does-Your-Resume-Lack-Vision?&id=33395 zolpidem online mx
ambien online orders
purchase zolpidem prescription on line
zolpidem online pharmacy

Free Up Cash With a School Loan Consolidation

By [http://ezinearticles.com/?expert=Christopher_Luck]Christopher Luck A school loan consolidation is a great way to think about being able to save yourself some money. Sounds a little too simple, doesnt it? Well the fact is that it really isnt much more complicated than that. Take some time to look into what a school loan consolidation is and you will see how easy it is to save yourself some cash.
School loans are loans available to college student and their parents in need of financial assistance. For some, it is either the major source or only source for income while they are in school. However, there are different types of loans, so by the end of school, you may have a number of separate student loans. That is the first place that school loan consolidation comes into play. You can get those separate loans made into one simply loan with one payment.
What a school loan consolidation is, in effect, is the same thing as any other debt consolidation or mortgage refinance. It is basically multiple debts combined into one debt; the consolidation company pays off your debts for you and you pay them back with one payment per month. With a school loan consolidation, like with any consolidation, you will end up with less overhead, lower monthly payments, and thus more money in your pocket for your personal use.
A school loan consolidation is something you really should consider whenever the consolidated loan would have a lower interest rate than the current loans do. Plus, you wont have to be concerned with making multiple payments each month, since your school loan consolidation is just one monthly payment. In addition, many merged loans result in more flexible repayment options and no prepayment penalties. If you shop around, you can likely even find a school loan consolidation that doesnt require a credit check.
It is important to keep an eye out for school loan consolidations that do not charge for prepayment. When you consolidate your loans, you will likely be able to refinance the loans for up to 30 years, the length of a typical mortgage. However, you will likely want to pay that off sooner once your post-college job kicks in and your earning power increases. If your school loan consolidation charges a prepayment penalty, you will end up spending more than you should on the loan. Especially since the longer the loan period is, the higher the interest rate will likely be. That is great while you are still in school, since you need more cash available and are on a tighter budget. However, once you are in the working world and have more money available, you will want to either refinance again or just pay your school loan consolidation off early.
If you, like most students, have multiple school loans, a school loan consolidation may be of great help. Students, as you know, are on tight budgets and are just trying to tread water while they are finishing their education. With a well thought out [http://www.therivertimes.com/category/finance-reviews]school loan consolidation, you can free up money and then make up the difference later and pay off the loans early, at least as long as you avoid consolidations with prepayment penalties. If you would like more information on my [http://www.cdconsolidationloanschoolguide.info]school loan secrets, or read more articles like the one you just read, please feel free to visit my [http://www.therivertimes.com/category/finance-reviews]debt consolidation blog Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Christopher_Luck http://EzineArticles.com/?Free-Up-Cash-With-a-School-Loan-Consolidation&id=107074 buy valium otc
buy valium online
online prescription for valium
valium prescriptions mexico

Can We Still Be Friends

By Graham Billingham Life is really not like the movies. If peoples life was like the movies then every persons love life would be pretty healthy. There would be no unhappy endings. Lets face, life is not like the movies. If theres anything in life that resembles movies its the nightmarish things that happen in the middle of movies. I say this because of some endings in movies where relationships end and one party asks if they could still be friends. In the movie world it can still work out, in the real world it just might be a dream. When your ex asks if you too can still be friends after the relationship, it would make you think a lot. Do you think that this is really possible? It might make you sit back a moment and think very well. But why in the world or how your friendship can last when everything you had in your relationship just broke down. So when an ex ask that question it might only be polite to say sure why not. But deep inside both of you know that it might be hard to be good friends again. That expression is just used as a consolation prize for the dumping you had. People who ask and say yes to these things do not really mean what they are saying. How can both of you be good friends when you have some bitterness? Maybe if the relationship has ended without the bitterness and with common consent. Even though, this will still be hard especially for the first couple of months, because being with the person will make you remind of some stuff that could have and have not been. It would be hard to make these new-ex friendship work really. This may also happen to persons who have just had a crash and burn during their first couple of dates. When one party thinks you are getting lame, he or she may only say, its best we stay as friends. Yeah right! How can both of you be friends if you are not able to go out, talk or have fun most of the time. A friend is a person you develop your trust through time. What happens during that time is that you only became acquaintances and not friends. So its pretty stupid too make the other party be on the expecting end. It might happen on some rare occasions. But it would need a whole lot of work, where you would need to remove the emotional baggage. It might also work if you get some Hollywood magic. Graham Billingham writes for DrDating.com a site filled with help and advice for online dating relationships and love Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Graham_Billingham http://EzineArticles.com/?Can-We-Still-Be-Friends&id=246711 tramadol with fedex and no prescription
order ultram on line
cheap online pharmacy tramadol
cheap pharmacy refill tramadol ultram

Blackberry: Crushed?

By [http://ezinearticles.com/?expert=Keith_Longmire]Keith Longmire Why all the hype over the Blackberry? You know, that personal organiser so beloved of city executives. As far as I can tell the Blackberry does one thing well deliver your emails to you while your are on the move. Forgive me if I am underwhelmed. For less money you could buy DiaryPoint on a top range mobile telephone and get email, multiple diary coordination, work on your MS Office documents, watch video, take photographs Let me be honest. Ive never used a Blackberry. Most of my knowledge about the Blackberrys features come from web sites trying to sell Blackberrys. My insights into Blackberry thumb (a condition brought about by typing with your thumbs) come from an accountant friend of mine. My friend thinks his Blackberry is brilliant. But I just dont get it. I just cant get excited over the ability to receive email on the move. DiaryPoint operates on the latest generation of mobile telephones - Pocket PC with inbuilt smart phones. Like the Blackberry, DiaryPoint allows you to collect your email on the more. But unlike the Blackberry, you can coordinate multiple diaries, download your MS Office attachments, work on your spreadsheets, manage your contacts In fact, using the DiaryPoint you can do just about anything you can do in the office. And thanks to the wonders of GPRS (and 3G as it becomes more widely available) you can already use DiaryPoint across more than 98% of the UK. GPRS coverage is not perfect - and 3G networks have some way to go before coverage is anything other than patchy - but DiaryPoint adds Wireless LAN network to the mix of connectivity technologies, including Quadband GSM/GPRS, Bluetooth and infrared. Just compare that to the limited connectivity options offered by the Blackberry. DiaryPoint provides a sophisticated contact management system providing instant access to all your contact information. Never again will you have to call the office for the name of that supplier that is on your desktop PC. All contacts are always available and always updated. Make your calls with one touch telephone dialling. Search for your contact by name. Click on the name. The number is dialled. Want to send an email - click the email icon and the email client opens ready for use. Adding attachments is just a couple more clicks. It is as easy as it gets. How Does it Work? DiaryPoint resides on your mobile phone. The central diary resides on our central server (no need for MS Exchange or Lotus Domino licences). Using your smart phone you will instantly be able to make appointments, add contacts and manage your time more effectively than ever before. You will also be able to access the diaries of any of your colleagues, subject to security privileges, that also have DiaryPoint. Scheduling appointments across multiple diaries has never been so simple. Obviously, you can also access your diary from any PC through a standard web browser. To work off-line (useful when you want to organise your contacts or schedule appointments in bulk) there's a one-click install that installs DiaryPoint on your PC. So now you can understand why I just dont get the Blackberry. Another triumph for marketing hype over true innovation? Until now. Anyone for Blackberry Crush? Keith Longmire is a self-confessed technophile and Director of DiaryPoint. His guiding philosophy is, "if it doesnt't deliver cost-effective business benefit it is useless". You can learn more about DiaryPoint by visiting the [http://www.diarypoint.co.uk]DiaryPoint web site. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Keith_Longmire http://EzineArticles.com/?Blackberry:-Crushed?&id=84474 xanax from the us no prescription
buying 2mg xanax without prescription
prescription free xanax
xanax without a prescription

Do You Suffer From Bipolar Depression Symptoms?

By [http://ezinearticles.com/?expert=Matt_OConnor]Matt OConnor Research on brain structure and function, neurochemical messenger systems (neurotransmitters), and brain-body connections suggests fundamental, delicate, two-way relationships between the brains environment and mood, behavior, and resistance to disease. One focus of brain research has been to identify and integrate traditional medical and psychiatric knowledge with new psychobiological and psychoneuroimmunologic data. Researchers in the field of psychobiology study the biologic basis of disturbances and have established some relationships between mental disorders and changes in the structure and function of the brain. Findings on research about mental disorders suggest that the health care community ought to place as much emphasis on emotional health as it places on physiological health and ought to recognize how biological, emotional, and societal problems combine to affect individual patients, families, and communities. Typically, people who are mentally healthy are satisfied with themselves and their life situations. When people have unmet emotional needs or distress, they experience an overall feeling of unhappiness. As tension escalates, security and survival are threatened. How different people respond to these troublesome situations reflects their level of coping and maturity. As a consequence, a particular mental disorder, known as bipolar depression, takes place and brings about extraordinary alterations in an individuals energy, frame of mind, temper, and capability to work. Contrary to most popular beliefs, bipolar depression is not an ordinary mood swing, where the individual experiences normal ebb and flow of personal experiences that everybody lives through. The signs of bipolar depression are so grave that it is almost impossible to cure immediately. Bipolar depression, when untreated can bring about serious consequences that may lead to poor functionality, wreaked relationships, and even death as caused by suicide. In the United States, statistical reports show that more than 5 million people are affected with bipolar depression. This is such an alarming state considering the fact that bipolar depression can definitely wreak havoc to ones life, community, or even the whole nation. Bipolar depression can notably manifest drastic changes in ones mood. It can show a drastic, significant change in ones temper, ranging from being extremely bad-tempered to a normal frame of mind. The stages of low and high mood swings are known as episodes of depression and mania. To know more about bipolar depression, here is a list of symptoms of bipolar depression: 1. Extreme irritability Violent and aggressive behavior, usually episodic, is a means of expressing feelings of anger, fear, or hopelessness about a situation. A person who suffers or has a history of outburst rage, temper tantrums, or impulsive behavior, can be suffering from bipolar depression. 2. Amplified energy, restlessness, and activity Patients with bipolar depression have defensive behavior against real or perceived threat to self. These people are impulsive and unreliable. They tend to be hyperactive and commit to a lot of tasks that they cannot even finish. 3. Poor judgment They are in contact with reality but have difficulty dealing with it. Hence, it is hard to impose judgments. 4. Refutation of the current situation They are trying not to be aware that they have a problem. When depression interferes with a persons ability to function comfortably and inhibits the effective management of personal needs, that person is at risk for emotional problems. In order to solve the problem, the patient needs to understand that bipolar depression is treatable. Antidepressants and anti-anxiety agents may be prescribed. Crisis and supportive services in the community include mental health centers, telephone counselling and referral, suicide prevention centers, group therapy, and marital and family counseling. Theres a lot of help out there, we can but hope it gets used. Matthew runs a site dedicated to the latest news and developments in [http://www.helpmydepression.info]depression where you can read more info on [http://www.helpmydepression.info/Bipolar_Depression_Symptom.html]bipolar depression symptoms Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Matt_OConnor http://EzineArticles.com/?Do-You-Suffer-From-Bipolar-Depression-Symptoms?&id=300609 search engine optimization seo search engine spamming seo

Subtlety - The Key To Success With Online Dating and Google Adwords

By Gary Kelly On the surface, online dating and Google Adwords appear to have very little in common. If however, you dig a little deeper, you will find they both have one very important thing in common. Subtle changes in your Google Adwords campaign or your online dating profile can have a huge impact on their success. Google Adwords, for those of you not familiar with the concept, is a way of advertising on the search results pages when someone does a Google search. Say for example you own an online dating website and you wanted to advertise with Google Adwords. You would select certain key words, determine the price that you are willing to pay per click and start your campaign. Keywords you could use are online dating, internet dating, American singles or single golfers for that matter. On the surface, this approach appears to be very simple. The truth of the matter is that it can be very frustrating and challenging to mount an effective Adwords campaign. Many people have made a very lucrative living from coaching others on how to be successful using Google Adwords. Depending if you use the words by themselves or place them in quotes, will make a big difference in how your ads will perform. Believe it or not there is a big difference between online dating and dating online. There are many variables that affect the overall success of the advertising campaign. Subtle changes can make a big difference. The same can be said for online dating. Having success with your online dating profile can be frustrating at times. The important thing to remember is to tweak your profile periodically and make those subtle changes that can make a big difference. Like Google Adwords, there are many subtle changes you can make with your online dating profile to help increase the response you get from other singles in the online dating world. Make a change to your opening line to help grab peoples attention. Try integrating some humor in the opening line or let people know something interesting about you. Change your picture in your online profile to showcase yourself in a more flattering way. In the body of your online dating profile, describe some of the things you like to do or interesting places you have golfed. Look at other profiles and see what everybody else is saying about himself or herself. Try to say something unique and different that helps you stand out in the online dating world. If you make small changes to your online dating profile periodically, you are more likely to receive a better response from other singles on the dating site. The same can be said about composing a successful Google Adwords campaign. Gary Kelly is co-creator of the online dating website for golfers, http://www.DateAGolfer.com and http://www.PuttingForPar.com, a golf website specializing in personalized ball markers Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Gary_Kelly http://EzineArticles.com/?Subtlety---The-Key-To-Success-With-Online-Dating-and-Google-Adwords&id=155300 online pharmacy no prescription phentermine
buy phentermine online jo blogspot com
phentermine 375 online consultation
buy phentermine without a script

I Can't Hear A Word They're Sayin

By Brian Grinonneau If you use any genre of advertising to attract new prospects, your world is upside down. The popularity of TV, Radio and Print is on a slippery slope. Response to commercials and ads has slipped further. Some blame it on technology like digital video recorders, iPods and satellite radio. You should blame it on the Internetfast becoming the best place to do business despite a dot.com stumble just a few years back. That cyber behemoth, World Wide Web, is the marketplace of smart business people. They know mass media doesnt cut it any more. You have to be direct in your marketing approach. The Internet is the direct marketing king. In fact, the medium that was known mostly for the mechanized words, youve got mail, topped 100 billion dollars in sales for 2006. Thats $100,000,000,000! You know, more than the Gross National Product for most smaller countries in the world. Fighting for survival, Radio, TV and Print companies are yelling at you louder and more often trying to be heard above the din of sameness. We dont listen. We cant. We have become like Harry Nilsson in his ballad Everybodys Talkin. Heres what he said in the refrain, everybodys talkin at me, I dont hear a word theyre sayin, only the echoes of my mind. Were there. Weve exceeded critical message mass. Too much comes at us too fast and furious. Weve tuned out. Our attention span is gone. The Internet, with its pop up blockers and spam filters, looks like a haven. It is a place where we can decide who talks at us, for how long and about what. In fact, we initiate the process by seeking out meaningful information rather than being sought out. We are the hunter, not the hunted. Well evaluate a sales pitch on our own time. The Internet is gold for business, if it harnesses the power the right way. To do so, you have to forget all of your past chest-thumping braggadocio copy writing, outrageous, impossible to prove claims and other trickery. The Internet surfer is too smart for that. He can compare you to 50 or 5,000 like-minded businesses. Be straight forward, stand up and explain what makes you different in clear, easy to understand language. Web measurement tools provide the feedback that will tell you if youre just taking cuts or hitting a home run with your cyber audience. The testing and feedback software available now allows you with pinpoint accuracy to determine the effectiveness of your campaigns. Information like this was only dreamed of by old school ad execs who wondered privately if their campaigns ever really hit the target.
With very little exception, your advertising vehicle of choice is the World Wide Web. Your audience is already segmented. They are hungry for your offering and will come and find you. If youve done your job right, they will become long term, loyal customers. Smaller business owners have no business in the mass media arena. Response rates to those ads are predicted to continue falling. Its too crowded, provides a poor return on investment and no one can hear a word youre sayin. Brian Grinonneau is the general manager and partner in the Internet ad agency McMann & Tate http://www.mcmannandtatesite.com Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Brian_Grinonneau http://EzineArticles.com/?I-Cant-Hear-A-Word-Theyre-Sayin&id=515393 purchase valium
buy xanax ativan buy ativan valium buy valium lora
canadian online pharmacy valium
buy in uk valium

Having Dating Options And Exercising Them

By Scot McKay Unless you been popular with the opposite sex your entire life, today's topic is uncharted territory for you. Although just about anyone who is highly eligible can struggle with what we are about to talk about, it's those who have most recently made changes in their lives resulting in increased popularity who are most confounded by it. Since we're all about helping you have a wildly successful dating life around here, you may be closer than you think the day when you find yourself confronted with the concept of having real OPTIONS when it comes to who you are dating. And that's a great place to be. The vast majority of people on Earth quite simply do not have a copious supply of people who can't wait to be with them romantically. Perhaps that's why so many of us end up marrying the first (and often times the only) person who is willing to "put up with us". Invariably, this leads to a state that I non-affectionately refer to as having "settled". "Settling" leads eventually to both partners experiencing virtually zero fulfillment from the relationship. He or she who has "settled" will always have his or her nose pressed to the glass gazing at the greener pastures outside. Meanwhile, his or her partner is likely to become very bitter in a relatively short period of time knowing that he or she is not "enough" for the other. Feeling inadequate--let alone BEING inadequate--is a humiliating existence. For that matter, a partner who feels as if he or she has "settled" can also feel humiliated at times-generally when others think (either implicitly or explicitly) that he or she could have "done better". So who has the more miserable existence? The partner who is forever feeling slighted or the partner who is longing for better and embarrassed to be seen in public together? I don't know and I don't care, frankly. The point is that YOU don't have to be either one of them. In your case, the greatest gift bestowed upon you by having options is that you are thereby decreasing the probability that you will end up "settling" as indeed most others do. Instead of taking whatever you can get, even if only for a single date as is the case for many people, you have CHOICES. The experience of having options is a key earmark of dating success. You are truly attractive to the opposite gender and are doing things right. Now, simply put, you have to give yourself permission to explore those options. It is my opinion that one who has the choice among numerous worthy members of the opposite sex should be dating several of them at once until he or she has not only a clear picture of what he or she wants in a mate, but indeed until he or she feels that person has actually been identified. One does not have to sacrifice character or integrity in order to do this effectively. Your reputation as a man or woman of integrity and class is not at stake simply because you are getting to know other people more often (and more efficiently, frankly) than you used to. If you are more comfortable dating one person at a time, I can't deny that it will be easier for you to manage your dating life. And there is, of course, no inherent fault in doing so. Yet, I maintain that life is simply too short to stick with one potential partner you are unsure of until being fully sure he or she is not what you want. The only way to quickly gain the most effective perspective on what your ultimate partner will be like is to date as many people as you can. Unless and until you do that, all of your own conjecture regarding what you want in a person is merely unproven speculation, isn't it? In order to maximize your dating success, you must leverage the options you have towards having a greater sense of exactly what kind of person you want to be with long term. Scot McKay's dating strategies for those who refuse to settle for anything less than the ULTIMATE relationship are found at: http://www.relationship-advice.us/. Stop by right now and grab a FREE e-book ($20 value) when you sign up for the X & Y Communications Newsletter, which is always packed with unique and practical dating tips. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Scot_McKay http://EzineArticles.com/?Having-Dating-Options-And-Exercising-Them&id=457773 cheap soma no prescription
watson soma online

Non Homeowner Loans - Home Is Not a Must to Get Loans

By [http://ezinearticles.com/?expert=Peter_Taylor]Peter Taylor If you think you cannot get loans because you do not own a house, you very much need to go through this article. With the financial market becoming more and more extensive, it is gradually opening new options to cater to all sections of borrowers. Being a homeowner is thus not at all a prerequisite to get loans. With non homeowner loans, you can avail fund easily and fulfill all your desires. Non homeowner loans are offered to all individuals who do not own a house to put as collateral against loan. This loan is collateral free loan and thus is suitable for non homeowners like tenants, students, people living with friends and relatives, paying guests etc. Thus being an unsecured loan, you do not have to put your property at risk and the lender has no rights on your property if you fail to repay the loan. Non homeowner loans since they are unsecured, lenders offer a loan amount ranging from 1,000 to 10,000. The repayment term is around 1- 10 years. The interest rate is a bit higher since no security is offered to the lender. In order to avail non homeowner loans you need to fulfill certain conditions: - You should have a permanent employment - You should have your employment and income proofs. - You should also have the identity proof, residential proof, - You should have a UK bank account. These prerequisites are important to get a non homeowner loans in order to get quick and fast loans. The most apt mode of getting a loan is to apply online. Online lending offers you various benefits. It provides you an opportunity to choose among a wide range of lenders with varied rate of interest. Apart from that the loan is availed fast because the entire loan process is carried online thus it saves your time and money. The lender will just ask you to fill an online application form in which you will be required to put your details. After that the lender will transfer the loan amount in a very short time in your account. You will get a good loan amount if you have an excellent credit history. But do not be disappointed if you have a bad credit history. Non homeowner loans are available to individuals having arrears, defaults, poor credit history, bankruptcy or CCJ . Non homeowner loans are offered for many purposes. You can use this loan to buy new home, car etc., to consolidate your debts, for wedding or business purposes and so on. Avail non homeowner loans and you will enjoy all benefits that a non homeowner is devoid of. Peter Taylor is a senior financial analyst at BestTenantsLoanUK with an acumen for finance and insurance.In recent years he has taken up to provide independant financial advice through his informative articles.His articles are widely read because of the lucid manner of writing and thoroughly researched datas. To find Poor credit tenant loans, [http://www.besttenantloansuk.co.uk/non-homeowner-loans.html]Non homeowner loans, unsecured tenant loans,
unsecured bad credit tenant loans UK that best suits your need visit http://www.besttenantloansuk.co.uk Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Peter_Taylor http://EzineArticles.com/?Non-Homeowner-Loans---Home-Is-Not-a-Must-to-Get-Loans&id=309224 buying tramadol online
cheap ultram online pharmacy

Online Poker Bots - Threat or Not?

By [http://ezinearticles.com/?expert=Harrison_Elliot]Harrison Elliot Introduction Online games from chess and backgammon to 1st person shooters are rife with people who use computer assisted play or computer robots - even when there is no money at stake. With the appropriate program any player is able to play at a world championship level ruining the game for honest players. What makes online poker different, given that there are huge amounts of money at stake? In this article I will explain how I developed a poker bot and what I learnt from this experience. My conclusion is that although it is possible to construct a poker playing bot the threat from poker bots to the online poker player is extremely small to non-existent. "Games" Theory For interest and college courses I had previously written computer playing programs or bots for games including chess, Connect 4, Othello, backgammon, bridge and various others. For games such as Connect 4, Othello, chess and backgammon where all players have the same available information about the game state, the theory on how to construct expert bots is well known. Deep search techniques, looking many moves ahead, are used for games such as Othello and chess. Recently (10 years ago) it was discovered neural networks could be taught to play backgammon better than almost any human player. Games such as poker and bridge contain hidden information where the players can see their own hand but not that of the other players. The published theory behind writing expert computer bots for these incomplete information games is decades behind the complete information games and there are doubts techniques will be developed so that computers can play at expert or world championship level. At present the best techniques for these incomplete information games seem to involve some form of simulation and opponent modelling. Anatomy of An Online Poker Bot There are 3 basics parts to a poker bot: 1) Data Gathering - observing the game state and history 2) Data Processing - using the information from the data gathered to determine whether to fold, call or raise. 3) Output - Pressing the appropriate button on the poker room client. My Poker Bot My program was written in early 2004 with Microsoft .Net C++ and was developed to play at one online room only. For the technically minded the program relied heavily on MFC and the Win32 API. 1) Data Gathering My bot gathered information about game state and history from online poker tables by taking repeated screenshots and analysing the image. To begin with I just observed games, taking screenshots automatically so I could gather data on the position of the cards, chips and button. By determining the color of a certain few pixels I was able to gather all this information about the state of the game. Eventually I was able to gather data from multiple poker tables (4 at a time) by repeatedly bringing each window to the foreground and taking a screenshot. From this screenshot I was able to determine my cards, board cards, button position, who was left in the hand, pot size and player bet sizes. 2) Data processing This is the component that eventually bought my poker bot project to an end, unable to develop a strong enough strategy to win consistently. I tried various rules based, neural net and simulation techniques. At best my bot was able to make a very small profit at $1/2 and $2/$4 limit holdem, but nowhere near the thousands of dollars a week I envisioned earning when I started the project. In the end it just wasnt worth my time to continue to put resources into developing my poker bot further. 3) Output This was the easiest component to write. This involved programmatically moving the mouse pointer to the appropriate screen co-ordinates and then sending a mouse down/mouse up command signalling a left-click. I did give consideration to adding the ability for the bot to use chat but never progressed that far. Conclusion Although you might run into a poker playing bot whilst playing online the odds are it plays very poorly. At any level of play you are much more likely to run into an expert human player than an expert computer player. Harrison Elliot wrote this article for [http://www.reviewpokerrooms.com/]Review Poker Rooms-Online poker room reviews plus useful news, articles and links. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Harrison_Elliot http://EzineArticles.com/?Online-Poker-Bots---Threat-or-Not?&id=76533 buy online buy finasteride on the net finasteride order online order buy propecia online usa purchase finasteride cheap online