If you want to be an online poker or casino player, you've got to know all the rules. You don't want to sit down at the table and slow things down with a lot of questions, but without an easy resource outlining the basics, there isn't much else you can do. Until now. The days of wandering around a virtual or live casino, wanting to get into the action but not knowing how, are over. Here, in easy-to-read format, are all the rules for all of the games you are likely to encounter at a casino, whether online or live.

But just knowing the rules isn't enough. You've got to learn the ins and outs of every game you want to play. While sometimes these games are played just for fun, most of the time they are played for real money, and no one wants to part with their hard earned cash, least of all the casinos who make their living cashing in on your mistakes. Knowing the basic strategies of each game you play will give you your best chance to beat the casinos, or the other players, if need be. There's no need to hunt those strategies down or ask the player next to you; the most important tactics for winning the most popular games are right here.

Here are the kinds of things you'll find in the rules and strategies section:

Casino game rules: You'll get the clear, bottom line instructions for how to play games such as blackjack,craps, roulette, and poker. No obscure rule is left out, no complex rule is left unexplained. More importantly, you'll learn the variations. Blackjack isn't just blackjack: It can be Spanish 21, single deck, and double exposure. Online it can be any of these, or blackjack switch or pontoon. Roulette can be American Roulette or European Roulette. Slot machines can be multi level, multi payout, or progressive. Make sure you understand the basic rules and the basic variations before you sit down to play.

Casino game strategies: Casino games are all about odds, and there are definite strategies to tilting the odds in your favor. Learn the basic odds for every game in the casino, and then learn how to manipulate them. If you're playing poker, learn how to get the edge on your opponents, making positive expectation plays while they're making negative ones. If you're playing blackjack, roulette or slot machines, learn how to shave the House edge down until it's almost non-existent. If you play craps, learn about all the different bets and side bets, which ones can give you a real edge, and which ones are best left for the suckers.

Poker and other online games can be tricky, and there are enough strategies to these games to fill several books. Start here though, and you can give yourself a winning edge before you ever sit down to play.