Calculatem Pro

Clear and easy to read, but two years outdated now with no improvements, poor customer service and potential money-losing programming errors.

Recently downgraded again.

CalculatemPro was one of those few online poker odds programs that paved the poker odds calculator way and defined the whole market for others that are now coming in numbers. It's also another piece of software the Roy Rounder originally promoted as an affiliate, so he probably helped with it's credibility. Like most others, you buy this poker calculator by signing up at participating poker sites. (Oh I wish they would all stop this practice). You see, all the programmers, like CalculatemPro get more for the program by affiliating with a poker site like Party Poker than they can by selling it outright. Partly because they earn a percentage of the rake from the players using the software at the site for a limited time. Anyway, as for CalculatemPro it is the leader of all poker odds software in clarity while having a few other nifty features that makes this one hard to beat.

As you can see, the hole cards and flop and odds calculations are all very prominent, even if you are not in the hand any more. I really like this feature, because it further improves your poker judgment by embedding in your thought process, what would have been the best move, whether you made it or not. As well the "Action Thermometer" is great for visual people like myself. I don't have to comprehend the percentages, I just want to know in a glance what to do. CalculatemPro goes out on the limb and MAKES a recommendation, unlike other poker calculators. Now, if you don't like the recommendations, CalculatemPro makes it easy for you to adjust the settings to fit your style, and your table better... It's like Set it, and Forget it! However, in regards to the reccomendations read the odds display below.

CalculatemPro also has a window-in-window feature that allows you to view the table position (not much use in this), or your odds to the NEXT CARD or your odds to the RIVER CARD. This is a hidden, but very valuable feature in that after the calculatem pro poker calculator flop, facing an aggressive better you want really good odds to make your card on the turn, more so than the river. This could be handy in ring games but this and other features have been far surpassed in the last couple of years.

The Best of it: CalculatemPro has the easiest to read and view interface, thereby allowing to act quickly if to your advantage. The visual Check/Fold gauge is quite clear as are the options to switch from Turn or River probabilities.

In with the worst of it: No Profiling, robotic recommendations that are often just silly, outdated screen scraper software. This software has not been updated in 2 years now and is simply in dire need of redesign and correction of faulty poker math.

Just because it's a piece of software, doesn't mean it's right.

It pays to pay attention to your poker calculator. I have found some errors and program bugs during online play and hence made a note of it and forwarded it the software designers/marketers. What they do with that information is entirely up to them - take for example Calculatem Pro. Have a look at this image during an online ring game one of my poker forum participants grabbed for me off his computer.

Take note that there are two program running here - Calculatem Pro and Tournament Indicator both of which can pick up information from your table, although CalculatemPro uses the outdated screen scraper technology. I have blown up a couple of the images here because after the flop Calculatem Pro shows the user to have 15 outs while Tournament Indicator shows the user having 6 outs. This demands some analysis and corrections because the difference of 9 outs will have a direct effect on money earned and making the right decision. Let's look closer:

As you can clearly see here, Calculatem Pro shows all the 6s, 7s, 8s, and 9s left in the deck as outs. The reasoning behind this here is that normally if your hand improves to two pair, you should count that as an out. But in the case of your current pocket 5c 5d, you may already be behind, a higher pair may solidify your opponent's hand, and if two of these outs hit like a 9 and an 8 or a 6 and an 8 9 (etc), well your hole cards can't even beat the board then. So to say that you have 15 outs here is not only misleading but rather unprofitable as well. Now these out will spew your pot odds and drawing game especially if it's in a ring game.

Have a look now at the same outs listed on the exact same hand at the exact same time for Holdem Indicator and Tournament tournament indicator odds Indicator - That's right - 6 outs - not 15. Tournament Indicator correctly surmised here that any 6, 7, or 8, (even though that makes two pair) is NOT an out for you, but more likely helps your opponent. Now these out will spew your pot odds and drawing game particularly in a ring game. So pay attention. Further, you can see from this close up image that Calculatem Pro simultaneously shows erroneous out information that is drastically different and even more incorrect

- have a look here >>>>Now even though Calculatem Pro shows 15 outs the odds you will draw to win are shown as 42:1. That is about the equivalent of a one outer on the river. And you can also see here that Pot Odds are not even available.
So when you go to commit to a software product choose something that has some service, updates, and can deliver. Sad to say in this case, Calculatem Pro has the potential to cost you huge mistakes.

Poker Sites offer Purchase Options for Poker Calculators

Have you ever wondered why Party Poker, Ultimate Bet, Pacific, Paradise and all the rest of them don't offer their own poker calculator software? Well, yes money is at the root of it, but perception is the face of it. You see, the most successful poker websites have a lot of rake at stake, and the perception of one player having a distinct advantage over another could literally mean the loss of millions in an amazingly short amount of time. (Think on the level of a restaurant being investigated for food poisoning.) In fact, a good deal of Big Poker Site's budget is now allocated to fairness of play, and security for that very reason.

Have you ever wondered why Party Poker, Ultimate Bet, Pacific, Paradise and all the rest of them don't offer their own poker calculator software? Well, yes money is at the root of it, but perception is the face of it. You see, the most successful poker websites have a lot of rake at stake, and the perception of one player having a distinct advantage over another could literally mean the loss of millions in an amazingly short amount of time. (Think on the level of a restaurant being investigated for food poisoning.) In fact, a good deal of Big Poker Site's budget is now allocated to fairness of play, and security for that very reason.

Now does that mean you could be banned, penalized, or accused of cheating at your favorite poker website? Save for using a select few programs, this won't happen because while Big Poker Site is representing one thing - security and fairness, they are covertly supporting that very advantage as an additional revenue stream. Let me explain.

There are a dozen or more new poker sites jumping into this business every month! But Big Poker Site really likes the oligopoly as it is, and is getting very, very aggressive at attracting and retaining the base. Have you not noticed Big Poker Site giving away bonuses, points, entries, and yes, even direct deposits into your old account that's been dormant for months? Add to this, an intricate affiliate marketing system that basically enlists an army of online marketers. Oh, and among those affiliates - are the programmers or marketers of most online poker calculators available right now. So, Big Site won't be caught dead in bed with an online poker calculator, but it will take money from them. How? By paying commissions and rake percentage to those very poker calculator businesses to bring Big Poker Site even more players. Yes, again money is at the root of it.

Check on my website for all the poker calculators and see how many you can purchase by simply paying credit or pay pal. I'll save you the time. 80% require you to open an account at Big Poker Site using their affiliate sign-up process. That's the only way you can get the software. Why? It's because Big Poker Site is actually paying poker calculator marketers more than they could earn by selling it to you outright. Yes, more.

The marketers get a cut of your initial deposit and then a cut of your rake contribution for a predetermined number of hands played over a specified time period. Which, by the very nature of poker newbies will always be an attractive number. Good for the marketer. Good for Big Poker Site. In this way they can make it very difficult for an upstart to get a foothold in the market place. As a result, in the near future I predict that at least one of the Big Poker Sites and several new upstarts will be offering their own poker calculator software in the face of marketing distinction and pure survival. That's business. Poker business.