Ninlightning

Yes it is. It is actually 100.14% at max bet (5.007/5).

I have a minor feature request. All the action in the calculator currently takes place at a single URL, http://wizardofodds.com/games/video-poker/strategy/calculator/. The problem with this is that if you have a game analysis loaded in your browser, and you refresh the page, you lose everything you've done and get sent back to the beginning. This is not so much a problem on a normal computer, but browsers on mobile devices (like iPhone or Android) routinely dump rendered pages to save RAM when you switch to another tab or another application. And I would imagine mobile use is fairly common for this particular web application.
This would be easy to fix - when an analysis is complete, redirect to a new URL specific to that paytable. Something like http://wizardofodds.com/games/video-poker/strategy/calculator?game=ddb&rf=1240&fl=5 (encoding all non-default payouts in the URL), or even http://wizardofodds.com/games/video-poker/strategy/calculator?game=384592 (referring to an internal database ID).
This would also allow users to bookmark games they've analyzed for future reference.
Thanks again for the excellent tool.

I ran into an odd output from the calculator the other day, analyzing 9/6 DDB with a 1240 royal. Part of the basic strategy is:
3 to a Royal Flush TJA; TJQ; TJK; TQA; TQK; TKA; JQA; JQK; JKA; QKA
2 Pair 2233; 2244; 2255; 2266; 2277; 2288; 2299; 22TT; 22JJ; 22QQ; 22KK; 3344...
1 Pair JJ; QQ; KK
But every single conflict between RF3 (AHT) and two pair (no AA) is listed as an exception to the basic strategy:
Right Play Wrong Play Pattern(s)
2 Pair: TTJJ 3 to a Royal Flush: TJA (more)10♣ 10♦ J♣ J♦ A♣
2 Pair: TTQQ 3 to a Royal Flush: TQA (more)10♣ 10♦ Q♣ Q♦ A♣
2 Pair: TTKK 3 to a Royal Flush: TKA (more)10♣ 10♦ K♣ K♦ A♣
You can increase the accuracy of the basic strategy and reduce the number of exceptions by separating out the weaker RF3's:
3 to a Royal Flush TJQ; TJK; TQK; JQA; JQK; JKA; QKA
2 Pair 2233; 2244; 2255; 2266; 2277; 2288; 2299; 22TT; 22JJ; 22QQ; 22KK; 3344...
3 to a Royal Flush TJA; TQA; TKA
1 Pair JJ; QQ; KK
This is what my desktop software does, and I was surprised that JB's calculator didn't do the same. Intentional, or bug?

Minor issues with the output analyzing QQ DDB. Top of the chart:
Pat Hand Four 5's through K's; Four 2's, 3's, 4's with any A,2,3,4; Four Aces with any 2,3,4; Straight Flush; Royal Flush
4 of a Kind 2222; 3333; 4444; 5555; 6666; 7777; 8888; 9999; TTTT; JJJJ; QQQQ; KKKK; AAAA
Pat Hand Four 2's, 3's, 4's
Obviously that last line is superfluous. (The output for regular DDB doesn't do this.) A little further down:
3 of a Kind + 1 Kicker
5552; 5553; 5554; 555A; 6662; 6663; 6664; 6665; 666A; 7772; 7773; 7774;
7775; 7776; 777A; 8882; 8883; 8885; 8886; 8887; 888A; 9992; 9993; 9994;
9995; 9996; 9997; 9998; 999A; TTT2; TTT3; TTT4; TTT6; TTT7; TTT8; TTT9;
TTTA
With the following exceptions listed:
Right Play Wrong Play Pattern(s)
3 of a Kind + 1 Kicker: 6662 3 of a Kind + 1 Kicker: 6663 (less)6♣ 6♦ 6♥ 2♣ 3♣
6♣ 6♦ 6♥ 2♣ 3♦
6♦ 6♥ 6♣ 2♣ 3♠
6♥ 6♣ 6♦ 2♠ 3♠
3 of a Kind + 1 Kicker: 6664 3 of a Kind + 1 Kicker: 6663 6♦ 6♥ 6♣ 3♠ 4♣
3 of a Kind + 1 Kicker: 6665 3 of a Kind + 1 Kicker: 6663 6♦ 6♥ 6♣ 3♠ 5♣
3 of a Kind + 1 Kicker: 666A 3 of a Kind + 1 Kicker: 6663 6♦ 6♥ 6♣ 3♠ A♣
Much simpler to put '3 of a Kind + 1 Kicker: 6663' on a separate line of the basic strategy. Also, while it makes no difference, odd that the calculator was able to collapse suit symmetries when displaying example exceptions for 6664, 6665, 666A but not 6662.
(JB, should I be posting this minor stuff in the forum thread, or should I email or PM you?)

Can the Video Poker Strategy Calculator be used to calculate progressives? I was hoping to use the calculator to determine, based on the pay table, the house edge for vp progressives. I would like to know at what point the game's return is over 100%. I entered the following paytable but it keeps returning an error message.
$1 Progressive Double Double Bonus:
Royal Flush Jackpot was $4500 so I entered 900 into the calculator
Straight Flush 50
Four Aces with any 2,3,4 Jackpot was $2025 so I entered 405 into the calculator
Four 2's, 3's, 4's with any A,2,3,4 160
Four Aces 160
Four 2's, 3's, 4's 80
Four 5's through K's 50
Full House 8
Flush 5
Straight 4
Three of a Kind 3
Two Pair 1
Jacks or Better 1
Maybe the calculator is not designed to do this.

Always look for opportunities.

Quote: fivespot

Quote: fivespot

First thank you, JB, for creating vpgenius.com and thankyou to the Wizard for bringing JB over to wizardofodds.com in order to create a VP stategy calculator over there. You have helped an immeasurable number of people who wanted to learn the game of VP and improve their VP skills. Your willingness to put forward such incredible websites and to do it basically for free for the public shows alturism way beyond what the average person has. I apologize in advance for the length and wordiness of this e-mail. This is my first post on any gambling website and I'm also excited to get a chance to possibly speak with the programming genius that designed vpgenius.
I play Deuces Wild exclusively and almost exclusively play it at the Tampa Hard Rock (not the best place for good returns but there is no real competition in the area- which is a topic for another post). Basically, I chose Video poker because of what I read about it regarding returns from the Wizard at wizardofodds.com I have enjoyed it quite a bit and have also profited from it somewhat. I started off by using the optimal strategy for Deuces Wild (DW) on the wizardofodds.com website. Soon I realized that the paytables at the Tampa Hard Rock are nowhere near Full Pay and I needed another source for optimal DW strategy. This is how I found VPgenius.com, which is one of the most amazing websites on the planet for VP players. Over the last year or so I have used vpgenius.com a lot in trying to determine optimal play for the three or four different DW paytables available at the Tampa Hard Rock. I have used the training feature also to help me memorize the optimal strategy and to learn about penalty cards. This brings me to my questions, which may be on many other people's mind:
1) The vpgenius site seems to be down in that it shows a runtime error 'Server Error in '/' Application' every time you click on a game to get it's strategy. This has happened before, but the website has always recovered before. However, this time, the site has been down for an extended period of time and shows no sign of coming back up. I can't contact anyone since all of their contact links don't work correctly either. Any idea on what's going on? I know that you are no longer associated with this website but you may have some connections and would be able to find out when/if this website will be running correctly in the future? Also, you created the website so maybe you can shed some light on this error that is showing up.
2) I understand that the vpgenius.com strategies are not entirely accurate and the one you made for wizardofodds.com are better (which kind of worried me a little since vpgenius.com is what I have been following for a while). I had noticed in the past a discrepancy between the optimal strategy laid out by vpgenius.com compared to the optimal strategy laid out by wizardofodds for full play DW (in the lower value plays) and I was fixing to 'ask the wizard' regarding this, but now I know the answer now after reading your post. Also, I understood that vpgenius.com optimal strategy did not take into account penalty cards. Having said that, I feel that the interface that you created for vpgenius.com just looks better and, in some ways, is easier to follow. Plus, the training feauture is awesome and allows you to learn about penalty cards and hone your skills at a specific pay table. The wizard of odds strategy guide that you created is nice too, but it is much harder to learn about the lower value hands and penalty cards because you have to go through the extensive exception list to learn (at least for DW it's extensive). So my second question is if you are planning to create a similar interface to vpgenius.com for wizardofodds.com
3) Speaking of exceptions and penalty cards, I know from reading what the Wizard wrote that it's a painstaking process to go through the exceptions and penalty cards to derive a perfect optimal stragegy for DW (or any VP game for that matter). In fact, the wizard had provided us with a great optimal strategy for Full Play DW that takes into account exceptions and penalty cards. However, full play DW is mostly a thing of the past and most VP palyers do not have access to this game. Here in Tampa it is nonexistent. The wizards full play DW strategy is a great place to start learning about DW but it is not practical because most players out there are not playing this paytable. Even 'not so ugly ducks' DW is often not available. Here at Tampa the best you can get is 'Ugly Ducks' DW and lesser paytables. As you know, these lesser pay tables do have differences in optimal stategy compared to full pay that are important to recognize (ex. flush and two pair are higher value in may pay tables). So my question is if it is possible to have optimal strategy, including exceptions and penalty cards, available to us on the wizardofodds website for pay tables other than Full Pay and 'not so ugly ducks' (maybe the wizard can answer this)
4) Could you or the wizard recommend for us a website or program for free or for money that is closest to the interface of vpgenius, with the training tools, but has the more accurate strategy calculator available on wizardofodds? Also, could you recommed the best VP iphone app?
Hopefully, you made it this far and hope to hear from you soon. Once again thank you JB and the Wizard for your incredible work.