The internet is becoming a more interesting place day by day. While browsing the net last week, I came across several different sitees that offer poker videos that you can watch over your computer.
Probably the biggest warehouse of videos on the net that I've seen so far is You Tube. If you search their selection of videos you can find everything from instructional strategy videos, demonstrations of chip tricks, hands from High Stakes Poker, the World Poker Tour, or people's home games.
A for instance of why I really appreciate the videos on YouTube is the hands they have from the tv show High Stakes Poker. I don't get the channel that carries that show where top pros compete in a cash game (not tournament) setting. After reading about several hands involving Phil Hellmuth, I was dying to see what the fuss was about. By searching the video library at YouTube, I was able to find a video of those hands and watch them for myself.
Other examples of video on the web can be found at training sites like Gidders.com. At his site, Gidders makes videos of the games he plays online, doing a running commentary while he plays. It's completely home grown video, and is the kind of thing I'd like to see more of.
Most poker strategy is a dry read at best. It's hard for authors and readers to stay on the same page while walking through complex poker situations. On video, poker concepts are easier to explain, and easier to understand. Gidders.com is a site that keeps their video library private, requiring membership to see most of them, but there is an interesting sample video that you can view over the net for free.
Another place you can find a host of poker videos for viewing over the net is google. Well, more precisely, Google Video. Much like YouTube, google has a huge warehouse of internet videos of all kinds, and you can search for the type of poker video you are most interested in watching.
Another way that poker videos are making their way around the internet is in the form of "Vodcasts", which are the video form of podcasts. Full Tilt Poker has some Vodcasts featuring some words from their lineup of Poker Pros like Howard Lederer and Chris Jesus Ferguson. Of course there are other Vodcast sites out there, so you may want to check those out as well.
Besides the whole grass-roots poker video movement, there are actual television shows based on poker that are distributed via the internet. Poker Updates is probably one of the most popular of these shows. They do interviews with the pros, cover major land-based events, have shots of beautiful women, and even television commercials. It's a real show, with top production quality, that you watch on your computer.
And the last of the web poker casts I want to mention is "Live at The Bike". If you visit the Bicycle Casino's website you can register to watch their online poker tv show. Thier video library does require a membership, but there are over 1,500 hours of poker being played that you can sift through. That's an endless supply of poker videos, on demand.
