Mac Poker: The Guide to Playing Poker on a Mac

Mac and online poker have come a long ways over the course of the past few years. The online poker player base has grown exponentially and Mac has had tremendous success as well. The successes of the iphone and ipod have brought tons of revenue for the company and therefore, Mac computers are more affordable than ever before. The amount of the population that owns Mac computers is at an all-time high. Online poker sites have indeed, begun to notice the incessant need to cater to the Mac market. Many online poker sites now offer downloadable versions of software that are specifically for Mac OS X. Many online poker sites that do not offer Mac software, instead offer an instant-play version that Windows, Mac and Linux users can use.

Downloadable Software

Mac downloadable software will be available as a download link on the website of online poker sites that offer the option. Players can also use the web's search engines to find a direct link to the Mac software of a site if they wish. Players will need to download the software, which will most likely be a .dmg file or a .zip file that opens up containing a .dmg file. This type of file is the same as a .exe file on Windows. The file contains an application that needs to be installed. However, Mac is much simpler in terms of installation processes than Windows.

Players will either be walked through a quick setup wizard or the majority of the time; they will only need to drag an icon from the window (opened when double-clicking the .dmg) to their applications folder. Once players have the application installed, they can launch (open) the application, create an online poker account, make a deposit and get to the action. Mac users that are playing at an online poker site that offers downloadable software and instant-play should know that the downloadable software provides more functionality and stability. Multi-tabling should always be conducted on downloadable software.

Instant-Play

There are a number of online poker sites that have begun offering instant-play versions as a way for online poker players to play without having to download and install anything. Instant-play runs entirely out of the player's Internet browser and only requires an updated Internet browser and an updated version of Flash. Instant-play is quick and serves as a viable option for Windows, Mac and Linux online poker players alike. The downfall to instant-play is often the lack of functionality. The customizable options are not the same as with downloadable software and one the most common ones tends to be table sizing. The lack of effective table sizing and multi-tabling views makes instant-play not so great for those that wish to multi-table.

Mac Poker Sites

888 Poker - Instant-Play Version

Party Poker - Instant-Play Version

Bodog Poker - Instant-Play Version

Full Tilt Poker - Downloadable Software

Pokerstars - Downloadable Software

Absolute Poker - Downloadable Software and Instant-Play Version

Ultimate Bet - Downloadable Software and Instant-Play Version