How can I play online poker on Ubuntu (or other Linux flavors)?

So, you have the pleasure of running the Ubuntu OS on your computer. However, the chances are that you have found yourself in a bit of trouble when it comes to finding a suitable Ubuntu-compatible online poker room.

In this quick guide I will highlight the most popular options available to you when it comes to installing and running online poker rooms on the Ubuntu OS.

Ubuntu is the most popular distribution of Linux, which means that because it is a Linux-based OS the following guide will be useful for users of other similar Linux operating systems such as; Fedora, Debian and Mandriva amongst others.

Options for playing poker on Ubuntu.

There are two main options for playing online poker on Ubuntu:

1. Play at a Java-based no-download poker room in your browser.
2. Install Wine, which will allow you to run Windows programs on Ubuntu (and any Linux distro for that matter).

Unfortunately, there are currently no poker room clients that have been developed specifically for Linux/Ubuntu users. Therefore, your only option for playing at the most reputable online poker rooms for either play money or real money is to use either one of these two simple work-arounds.

It's a great shame that there are no Ubuntu-specific poker rooms out there just yet, but for now there is nothing else that we can do.

(1) No download poker rooms for Ubuntu.

Going down the no-download route is the easiest way to play online poker on Ubuntu.

With Java-based online poker rooms you do not need to download anything to run them, as they will run just as they would on a PC or Mac in your Firefox browser (or whichever browser you decide to use). Simply visit the no-download poker room page on the poker room's website and wait for it to load.

Two of the most popular no-download rooms are Party Poker and Bodog.

The downside to no-download rooms is that there are only a limited number of them available, as many poker rooms do not offer a Java-based version to their players. In addition to this, the now download rooms tend to be very basic with very little in the way of in-game features.

(2) Using Wine to download and run poker room clients on Ubuntu.

Wine is a free piece of software that you can install on Ubuntu to allow you to install and run Windows programs. Due to the fact that almost every poker room's client has been developed for Windows users, you can choose to play at any poker room you like using Wine.

http://www.winehq.org/

Your best bet is to stick with the more popular online poker rooms like PokerStars and Party Poker when using Wine, as these tend to have the most stable poker clients. In a nutshell, the better the software of the poker client, the more smoothly it will run when being used in conjunction with Wine.

In case you have a few concerns, Wine is a perfectly stable piece of software that works wonderfully on Ubuntu and other Linux distros. From my experience, poker room clients run surprisingly well through Wine. They do run a little slower, but in my opinion the difference in speed is marginal.

How well do poker rooms run on Ubuntu?

When I first tested a number of no download rooms and downloadable poker rooms using Wine on Ubuntu, I expected them to be quite buggy and glitchy. However, to my pleasant surprise I encountered very few problems and on the whole they all ran smoothly enough to keep the games enjoyable.

Poker rooms on Wine are ever so slightly slower than they would be if you ran them on a Windows PC, but the difference is not significant enough to take anything away from the overall experience. The no download rooms on the other hand run just as well as they would on a PC or Mac.

All in all, even though you can't expect these rooms to run just as well as they would in their natural environment (Windows), they still manage to run impressively well on Ubuntu.

Is it safe to play for real money?

In all honesty I'm not really that much of a tech guy, but I can't think of any reason why it would be unsafe to play for real money when playing at a no-download room or when using Wine.

I've personally made deposits at a number of the major online poker rooms through Ubuntu and I have never encountered any problems.

Which method is best?

It's completely a matter of preference when it comes to going for a no download room or using Wine. It also depends on how often you intend to play, but here's a general overview of the pros and cons of both:

1. No download rooms are simple to start with, but they have less features.
2. Using Wine take a little more effort at the start, but the poker clients have far more features and run more smoothly.

One more point I would like to add is that you have far more choice if you're using Wine, as there are a limited of no-download rooms available at this time.

In my opinion, using Wine is the best option for the majority of players, especially so if you intend on playing regularly or for real money. It takes very little time to install Wine, so there's no reason to really stop yourself from using a more advanced client when playing online poker.

No download rooms on the other hand are handy for the more casual players that just want a quick game of poker every now and then. These rooms will also be popular amongst the Ubuntu users that want to keep their OS free from Windows software (I know that there are a lot of anti-Windows people out there!).

Will there ever be a poker room client developed specifically for Ubuntu users?

I guess that all depends on how popular the Ubuntu distro or other Linux distros become over the coming years. I have not heard anything about any plans from any poker room to create a Linux-friendly poker client, but who knows? I wouldn't hold my breath though.

If any poker room is going to be the first to make an Ubuntu compatible poker room it is likely to be PokerStars. They're one of the most innovative rooms out there, so hopefully as Linux based OS's become more popular they will create a new Ubuntu client for us.

But for now, no download rooms and download rooms + Wine work perfectly well.

This article was written by Greg Walker of ThePokerBank, which also contains a small section dedicated to Ubuntu Poker and helping players find poker rooms that work well with the Ubuntu OS.