The lobby

Start out by running the poker client you already installed. Usually you can double-click it from your desktop.

The first thing you see when you start the poker client is the "lobby". This screen shows you what tables are active and has details about each table such as the stakes, the game being played (Texas Holdem, 7-card Stud, etc.) and the number of players already seated. There is some variation among the different sites in exactly how they display this information. Some clients use a simple tabular grid while others show a 3-D graphic display of an imaginary card room. In general, all the sites make it easy to navigate and find the games you are interested in.

The lobby divides the games into a few categories. The most important differences are play money vs. real money, and ring games vs. tournaments.

Browse through the lobby in search of a play-money holdem game with an open seat. The lobby shows you how many players are seated at each table. Choose a table with fewer players than the others and double click it. A new window will open for the table.

Wait list

If there isn't a seat available in the game you want, you can join the wait list for that game. As players stand up from the game, each person on the wait list is called in turn. When your seat is ready, a dialog box will pop up asking you if you want to accept it. You have one to two minutes to look over the table again and decide.

Sitting down and standing up

Once you have found a table and opened it up in a window, see if there is an open seat. If not, go back to the lobby and try another table. Once you have found an open seat, sit in it by clicking where it says “Sit down”.

Later, when you want to stand up, just click on the “Leave table” or “Stand up” button (depending on the site).

Putting chips on the table

When you sit down, the dealer will ask you how many chips you want to put on the table. Since this is a play-money game, you might as well buy a lot of chips.

Later, if you want to buy more chips, most sites let you click on the dealer tray, though some sites have a special button. When you buy chips in the middle of a hand, they aren't brought to you until after the hand is over. That is to prevent a player from playing short-stacked and adding chips only when they have a strong hand.