That is correct; you need pro for a rake. I don't take a rake on my site. It's all close family and friends. In order to offset the cost of running it we asked for an extra $10 from everyone.
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Online Home Poker (4 Viewers)
- Thread starter kk405
- Start date
Thanks. I've been playing on the Windy Crest site with some other guys from here, so I sorta know how it plays. Also it looks like they have a free trial version (up to 500 hands) The people that would join my game are not sophisticated poker players. So if I'm happy with it, they would be happy. My main reason for wanting my own game is that I want to play micro stakes. Craig has some .10 / .20 games on his site, but they don't get much action. Honestly. I'll probably do .05 / .10. I also want to have a Zoom option so we can look at and talk to each other. I hate trying to chat (type) during a game. And this will be family all around the country so a great way to stay in touch.
You can always upgrade to the next versions. I started with the free version and then upgraded to the $500 Pro version in about 2 days once I started using it. It really is amazing software and with the $150 version you can change basically any setting but you can't remove the Poker Mavens branding. Kent who develops the software offers AMAZING customer support and the $500 for the Pro and all the support he offers is WELL worth it in my opinion. Also @BearMetal knows just a little bit about configuring PM software.
So how computer savvy do I need to be? I'm above average, and I can follow directions, but I'm definitely not an IT level guy. So looking at your first link, you're discussing AWS. That's Amazon Web Services, correct? Aren't I hosting this on my own home computer?
Speaking of which, do I need a dedicated server, or can I run it on my laptop? It's a new one, with an i7 processor. Currently 8GB RAM, but I can bump it to 16GB if I need to. Or not powerful enough?
When money is concerned, I would never run it out of my house. Random power outage... Blip on your internet... And a tournament is ruined... And you've got angry players.
That's why I run mine in AWS in the cloud.
So now we're talking more cost than even the software. Significantly more than the Lite version. Like I said originally, I'm just looking at a few casual games a month. I wasn't thinking about $30 a month for a web hosting service.
I'm going to have to do some inquiries and make sure the group I have in mind is really committed to this. They may not be to a level to support over $500 a year.
I'm sorry if I've wasted y'alls time. I wish I had seen this part before I started asking so many questions.
I'm sorry if I've wasted y'alls time. I wish I had seen this part before I started asking so many questions.
Rakrul
Flush
Depends on how many players you're gonna get, but based on your posts I'm guessing not many so the laptop would be more than enough. I have a small PC connected to my TV that I run it off. (https://www.lenovo.com/us/en/deskto...-nano-series/ThinkCentre-M90n-1/p/11TC1MNM93N with i5 8365U and 8GB RAM)
I haven't dwelled into the AWS abyss, but there are some quite detailed posts here on the setup. The "problem" with a laptop is that you need to forward ports in the router to the laptop, and the laptop might change IP between each session so you need to update the port forwarding settings for each session. It depends on how your router hands out IPs to your home network. You can circumvent that issue by using "static DHCP" (handing out the same IP to your laptop every time) if your router supports it.
AWS is free for 1 year. But if you don't want to start there, yes you can run it out of your house. You don't need any specialized hardware; PM is very light.
The most important thing is a strong, wired network connection. PM uses websockets which is more prone to losing data over a weak network.
StevieG
Pair
Don't sweat that. Happy to help, I enjoy running our game on Mavens, and enthusiastic about helping others do likewise.
It's like all the people here who help out with chip selection and so on.
Moreover, how you spend your money is your business (again, just like the chips).
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OK, thanks all. Looks like I have options. My desk is less than 10 feet from my router, so I can definitely run cable to the laptop if I need to. I was even looking at getting a UPS for power blips. I would only need to keep the router running since the laptop has it's own battery.
My target group are all close friends and family, and are not serious poker players. If a power outage takes down the game, they are not going to crucify me over that. Thanks again for all the help!
My target group are all close friends and family, and are not serious poker players. If a power outage takes down the game, they are not going to crucify me over that. Thanks again for all the help!
AceFour
Two Pair
Running Poker Mavens on https://cheapwindowsvps.com/ $10/mo is not going to kill anyone and I don't have to worry about my power or internet outages
Do I understand correctly that I can do all my configurations and setup in the free trial version, and even start letting people log in and play games up to the 500 hands? And then when I tell Briggs that I'm ready to buy the Lite or Pro version, it all just transfers? I don't have to do all the configuration again? Other than any new features if I get the Pro.You can always upgrade to the next versions. I started with the free version and then upgraded to the $500 Pro version in about 2 days once I started using it. It really is amazing software and with the $150 version you can change basically any setting but you can't remove the Poker Mavens branding. Kent who develops the software offers AMAZING customer support and the $500 for the Pro and all the support he offers is WELL worth it in my opinion. Also @BearMetal knows just a little bit about configuring PM software.
I emailed a group of family and close friends, and enough of them seem pretty interested in the idea. So I want to get it set up and schedule a game to see if they actually log in and play. 500 hands should get me about 10 hours of play, shouldn't it? Enough for at least a couple of sessions. I just don't want to put in all the time and then have to start over, so I hope that's not the case.
The trial version actually has very little when it comes to customization of the software. So there really isn't all that much to set up. I honestly don't remember if I had to set anything back up again, but I don't think I had to.
The games themselves are exportable no matter what. So you could always export them, install the new software with the license, and then reimport them.
I do know that each of the different additions is a different installable. However I believe that you can install the Pro version right on top of the Lite.
It's a Trial. It's free. I guess I just need to get off my butt, download it and get started. Quit dragging my feet trying to analyze everything to death...
Since lockdown, we've played over 100 tournaments, countless cash games, and exchanged nearly 3 stacks of high society... All between about 20 regulars.It's a Trial. It's free. I guess I just need to get off my butt, download it and get started. Quit dragging my feet trying to analyze everything to death...
Don't drag your feet; for some of us it's the only way to play right now. And we're here to help you get it going...
StevieG
Pair
I'll echo that. Weekly tournament. Ring game with a mix of stud and Omaha. Configured a Sit 'N Go tournament that gets used on a whim. And the ease of logging in (and lack of other social activities) means people play more than once a week now.
Several of us have used the setup to host games with friends from other social circles.
Even when we are able to play in person again, I know we will use this setup for spur-of-the-moment games.
Go for it.
Same here; we're able to include family/friends who aren't local, which means that once in-person poker is back, we're still going to want to run tournaments on some kind of regular basis just to keep them included.
Thanks so much! So it sounds like you bring your site up when you want it and take it down when you're not using it, correct? That was one of the things I was wondering about, since my only other experience is with Windy Crest which seems to be up almost 24/7.
Which Version are you using? The main thing that's keeping me from going with Lite is I think I'm going to want multi-table for tournaments. Other than that, I can live with only having one ring table up at a time. I may still start out with Lite, just to see how many users I get out of the gate.
Also, I still think having a tiny rake is better than asking everyone to give me money up front for the license, and eventually for web server fees. Some people may play weekly, while others only jump in once a month or so. I want those occasional users to join in, so I don't think it's fair that they pay the same as the regular users. My plan is to keep track of the rakes (yes, I see the system will do that for me) and whenever it accumulates to some amount more than the site expenditures, I'll hold a freeroll tournament to give it back. I'm also thinking of tacking on a small surcharge to tournaments, since I think some users may play only tournaments. Maybe 5%?
I leave mine running 24/7 - I never know when people will hop on for a midnight cash game. Yes, it costs more on AWS since you pay-by-the-minute, but I bought 3 years in bulk, so whatever
I started out on Lite; when I realized we needed multi-tables and wanted custom graphics, Kent gave me a discount (the difference between the 2) to upgrade to the Pro license.
But only having it up for a certain schedule is an option, correct? I'm concerned that if I don't have a strict schedule - holdem Monday night, PLO Thursday night, Tournament Saturday night, or something like that, then I won't have enough players, since I may only have as few as 10 players when I first go live. I want to start out by promoting 3 games a week, then hope it catches on and THE PLAYERS demand more. And the number of players grows as the ones who did join talk about it with the ones who didn't.I leave mine running 24/7 - I never know when people will hop on for a midnight cash game. Yes, it costs more on AWS since you pay-by-the-minute, but I bought 3 years in bulk, so whatever
I started out on Lite; when I realized we needed multi-tables and wanted custom graphics, Kent gave me a discount (the difference between the 2) to upgrade to the Pro license.
What I don't want is two or three players showing up each night and getting disappointed that there isn't more activity.
Sure thing! You can bring it up and shut it down as you please.
StevieG
Pair
Our site runs all the time. We have a pretty steady predictable set of nights and times people play, anchored by a once-weekly tournament on Thursday nights. People pretty much know when games are going to run, so no need to pull down the site on our side.
We run Gold. The ability and flexibility to have multi-table tourney and multiple ring games is important. We average a dozen or more on game nights, and even just that little extra over one table means it is nice that no one has to wait and no one is shut out of action.
Your barbecue, cover your costs the way you think best makes sense.
I would argue a tournament fee may be a better way for you to do it than rake, as you probably have a very good idea how many runners enter your tournaments, and how often they happen. This allows you to figure on a budget, divide up what you need across how many events will pay for it, and make a reasonable entry fee number that avoids any shortfall or excess that you have to give back somehow.
MrCatPants
Full House
Does anyone more technical than me have an idea of what AWS costs are going to run for administering Mavens after the free year is over? Is it still potentially covered by free tier services or might I be in for a wicked surprise?
You are definitely in for a surprise. Basically once you're one year free tear is up, it will convert into on demand pricing which charges you per minute.
What you're going to want to do is switch to reserved pricing which essentially means that you pay for a chunk of time upfront. It's $99 for one year or $234 for 3 years.
Of course this is all considering that you're using a t2.micro and that you are located in the US.
MrCatPants
Full House
Both are true. I'll have to look into that. Ty!
Was looking at this the other day as well, that option is essentially the same "service" as the free micro tier most of us are using now right? No real time limit (so we can keep Mavens running all the time)? I'm hoping to not have to redo anything in transferring from free to the paid option.
Brave new world, right? Paid Amazon is new for me too. But from what I understand you're essentially paying for the credits to run that type of machine. It doesn't matter which machine is running, just that when a t2.micro is running it's using your t2.micro paid credits.
So, there should not be any disruption. You're just buying the credits to run it ahead of time and then it'll start using those credits as it runs.
StevieG
Pair
Correction, we run Pro. I forgot the terminology BriggsSoft uses.
No worries. I'm going to go with Pro too. I've got the Trial version up now. My biggest issue is how small the cards are on a phone. I'm, assuming lots of players will want to play on their phones rather than booting up the laptop. It is better on a tablet, but still surprisingly small. I've been playing zinga poker for years on my phone and never had any issues seeing the cards. They're just a lot smaller on PM.
Anyone have their players gripe about playing on a phone? Maybe it's just me - old and blind.
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