




                       BLACKJACK STRATEGY  (version 1.1)
                      (copyright 1985, 1988, David Fibush)
                              A SHAREWARE PROGRAM



          TABLE OF CONTENTS                               PAGE

          1.0 Getting Started                               2
               1.1 Option Menus                             2
               1.2 Basic Play                               2

          2.0 Changing Options                              4
               2.1 House Rules (first menu)                 4
               2.2 Point Count Weights (first menu)         5
               2.3 Play & Display Options (second menu)     5

          3.0 Manual Bet Inputs                             7

          4.0 Shuffle                                       8

          5.0 Deal                                          8

          6.0 Play                                          8
               6.1 Insurance                                8
               6.2 Player's Blackjack                       8
               6.3 User Play                                9
               6.4 Dealer Play                             10
               6.5 End of Play                             10
               6.6 End of Game                             10
               6.7 Data Summary and Exit Options           10

          7.0 Strategy                                     11
               7.1 Hard Hands                              11
               7.2 Soft Hands                              12
               7.3 Hands That Can Be Split                 12
               7.4 Surrender                               12

          8.0 Bugs and Fixes                               12

          9.0 Copyright and Shareware Registration         14

         10.0 Disclaimer                                   14

         11.0 Product Support                              14

         APPENDIX A. Basic Rules of BlackJack              15

         APPENDIX B: Bibliography                          16

















     1.0 GETTING STARTED

     System requirements: IBM PC, 128K, Mono or graphics display

     Your master disk contains the following files:

          BJ.EXE main program for the blackjack game.

          STRATEGY.DTA strategy data used by the program.

          OPTIONS.DTA options data used by the program.

          BJ.DOC this documentation file in MS Word format.

          BJ.TXT this documentation file in ASCII format.

     Only the first two files are needed to run the program. The program
     will create an OPTIONS.DTA file if it does not exist. STRATEGY.DTA is
     a text file which can be created or modified with any text editor
     however you must use the exact original as a template.

     To protect your BLACKJACK STRATEGY game you should always operate
     using a working copy of the program disk. Use the following procedure
     to make the working copy.

       1. Format a blank disk. Include your operating system if you wish to
          boot your computer from the work copy.

       2. With your master disk in drive a: and the formatted disk in drive
          b: copy all programs from the master to the work copy using the
          command     Copy a:*.* b:

       3. Place your work copy in drive a: and at the prompt  A>  type the
          command   BJ <carriage return>.


     1.1 OPTION MENUS

     As soon as the program has loaded into computer memory you will see
     the first option menu (shown in figure 1) which displays the House
     Rules and Point Count Weights data from the file OPTIONS.DTA. If you
     do not wish to change the options enter 0 <carriage return> or just
     <carriage return> to continue to the Play & Display Options menu
     (shown in figure 2). Again you may enter 0 if you wish to go directly
     to the game without changing any options. Use the original default
     conditions to start playing the game immediately and become familiar
     with its operation.


     1.2 BASIC PLAY

     With the original default conditions you are the third player at a
     five player table, bets are automatically made at 10 units so you need
     only play your hand. Press F1 for a display of the possible actions.
     See section 6.0 for detailed playing instructions.












            *** HOUSE RULES ***            *** POINT COUNT WEIGHTS ***

             * DEALER PLAY *                  11. Weight for  A = -1
      1. Dealer hits soft 17         N        12. Weight for  2 =  0
                                              13. Weight for  3 =  1
              * SPLITTING *                   14. Weight for  4 =  1
      2. 1 card only on split Aces   Y        15. Weight for  5 =  1
      3. Allow split of unlike 10s   N        16. Weight for  6 =  1
      4. Allow more than 1 split     Y        17. Weight for  7 =  1
                                              18. Weight for  8 =  0
              * DOUBLING *                    19. Weight for  9 =  0
      5. Allow double on split       Y        20. Weight for 10 = -1
      6. Allow double 10 and 11 only N        21. Weight for  J = -1
      7. Allow double on 3+ cards    N        22. Weight for  Q = -1
                                              23. Weight for  K = -1
           * DECKS & SHUFFLE *
      8. Number of Decks             6
      9. Shuffle Percent            80

             * SURRENDER *
     10. Allow surrender             N

     Item to change or 0 for no change _

                         Figure 1.  First Menu


                   ***  PLAY & DISPLAY OPTIONS  ***

             * TYPE OF PLAY *                      * DISPLAY *
     1. Position     6  5  4  3  2  1   10. 1st card down on autoplay  N
           User ?    N  N  N  Y  N  N   11. Player hand point count    Y
     2. Number of Players           5   12. Player present bet size    Y
     3. Manual bets for player      N   13. Player present holdings    Y
     4. Speed of play (1 to 20)    10   14. Number of cards not dealt  Y
                                        15. Number of hands played     N
           * GENERAL VALUES *           16. Size of dealer's bank      N
     6. Number of Hands           100   17. Point count of cards shown N
     7. Basic bet size             10   18. Record of decisions made   N
     8. Initial player holdings  1000   19. Sound on                   Y
     9. Strategy file    STRATEGY.DTA

                                        20. Return to House Rules menu

     Item to change or 0 for no change

                         Figure 2.  Second Menu


















     2.0 CHANGING OPTIONS

     When each menu is displayed you may change a value by entering the
     corresponding item number. You are then prompted to enter either a
     value or a yes/no response. A carriage return will give the default
     value. The menu is then reprinted showing the new value and you may
     enter more changes or continue to the next step. If you have made any
     changes they may be saved before the game starts.


     2.1 HOUSE RULES (first menu)

                         * DEALER PLAY *

     Option 1. Dealer Hits Soft 17 - this gives an advantage to the house
     since there is a good chance to improve the hand. If this is set to
     "N" the dealer will hit all 16s and stand on all 17s.

                          * SPLITTING *

     Option 2. Allow 1 Card Only on Split Aces - split aces are a powerful
     hand, some casinos will only give you one card for each hand in this
     case.

     Option 3. Allow split of unlike 10s - this means you can split a
     combination like Jack - Queen. Although this might seem to be an
     advantage it is never advisable to split 10s as 20 is a very good
     hand.

     Option 4. Allow more than 1 split - definitely an advantage to the
     player hence limited to one split by some casinos. In Blackjack
     Strategy the maximum amount of splits is two with five or less players
     and only one split with six players due to screen size limitations.

                          * DOUBLING *

     Option 5. Allow double on split - this gives an improved advantage to
     the player since you only double if you have a good chance to win. If
     this is set to "N" a double is not allowed on split hands.

     Option 6. Allow split on 10 and 11 only - many casinos have this
     restriction.

     Option 7. Allow split on 3 or more cards - a fairly unusual option of
     considerable advantage to the player.

                      * DECKS & SHUFFLE *

     Option 8. Number of decks - a number between 1 and 10 as determined by
     the house management. Some casinos have tables with different numbers
     of decks. The smallest number of decks is advantageous to "card
     counters" however when one deck is used it is often shuffled about
     half way through to limit the counter's advantage.













     Option 9. Shuffle percent - the point in the deck which triggers the
     next shuffle when a hand is completed. Generally around 80% for
     multiple decks and as low as 50% for a single deck. You may select a
     value between 50% and 99%.

                       * SURRENDER *

     Option 10. Allow surrender - you may surrender your original hand for
     one-half of your bet. This action takes place after the dealer has
     checked for a blackjack when your turn to play comes. This is
     advantageous to the player with a bad hand when the dealer has a high
     card showing.


     2.2 POINT COUNT WEIGHTS (first menu)

     Options 11 through 23 on the first menu allow you to set the weight
     for each card in a suit to be used for card counting. The weights
     chosen will depend on the system you wish to use, see the bibliography
     for reference material. Blackjack Strategy will keep track of the
     point count and either display it continuously or momentarily at your
     request.


     2.3 PLAY AND DISPLAY OPTIONS (second menu)

                         * TYPE OF PLAY *

     Option 1. User Inputs - Each of the active player positions (there can
     be up to 6) will be played either automatically by the computer or
     manually by you, the user. By setting just one position to "Y" you
     simulate an actual game where you are playing that position. Note that
     positions are numbered from right to left which is the dealing order
     at the blackjack table. If you wish to play more than one position for
     more practice at making play decisions then set the desired number of
     positions to "Y".

     For completely automatic play set all the positions to "N" and the
     computer will play all the hands. This allows you to sit back and
     watch or let the computer play a few thousand hands to evaluate the
     automatic strategy or one of your design.

     Option 2. Number of Players - Values from 1 to 6 are allowed. Due to
     screen space limitations, splitting a second time can only take place
     if there are 5 or less players. You would be surprised how common this
     can be if you are using 6 to 10 decks. Other numbers of active
     positions are available to suit your desired playing conditions.
     Remember you can manually play any or all of the positions.

     Option 3. Manual Bets for Players - If you want to modulate your bets
     set this to "Y". In that case you will have to supply a bet input for
     each position you are playing. Bets must be multiples of 2. When
     placing your bet a <carriage return> gives the value of the Basic Bet
     if desired. When Manual Bets is set to "N" the computer automatically
     bets the Basic Bet each time.











     Option 4. Speed of Play - A value which controls the speed of the
     game. The highest speed will play about 3000 individual player hands
     per hour with all positions in automatic play which is useful for
     evaluating different strategies. The slower speeds will help you learn
     to count cards. Try different numbers to get the effect you like.

                    * GENERAL VALUES *

     Option 6. Number of Hands - This specifies the number of hands that
     will be played before the program automatically stops and offers an
     exit point or various continuation possibilities. Large numbers are
     useful for evaluating strategies or just not being bothered with
     restarting the game. There are interrupt methods to access the exit
     options at the end of each hand or at any point in the game you have
     the following control possibilities:

         Control-S stops action, hit any key to restart.
         Control-C quits the game and returns to the operating system.

     Option 7. Size of Basic Bet - bet size to be used if no manual input
     is given. This value must be a multiple of 2.

     Option 8. Initial Player Holdings - this is how much money each player
     starts with. Don't lose more than you can afford.

     Option 9. Strategy File Name - If you have a number of different
     strategies you may select the desired one. The program will check to
     see if the file exists but you are responsible to insure that the data
     is all correctly located in the file.

                    * DISPLAY OPTIONS *

     Various values can be displayed on the screen as the game is in
     operation. A setting of "Y" displays them and a setting of "N" keeps
     them off. Each is described below.

     Option 10. First card down on automatic play - For a more realistic
     (but less informative) display you can have the first card dealt down
     on hands you are not playing. At the appropriate times (bust, end-of-
     hand, etc) the card will be shown with a delay so you can see what it
     was. If you are using this option it would make a more realistic
     situation to set option 11, hand point count, to "N".

     Option 11. Hand count values - this will show the point value of each
     hand just above the first card as play progresses. Turn this off if
     you are doing some serious practicing.

     Option 12. Bet size - shows the present bet value for each player.

     Option 13. Player holdings - shows how much money each player has.
     "There's time enough for counting when the dealings done". Unless you
     are about to run out and want to double or split. (The bank will
     "lend" you the money as negative holdings are possible)













     Option 14. Cards not dealt - a graphical display that shows the number
     of quarter-decks used and those that have not been dealt. The
     exclamation point indicates the quarter-deck that contains the shuffle
     trigger point.

     Option 15. Number of hands played - shows the number of hands played.

     Option 16. Size of dealer's bank - shows the amount of money in the
     dealer's bank. The dealer starts with 10,000.

     Option 17. Point count of cards shown - a continuous display of the
     sum of the weights of all cards whose faces have been displayed since
     the previous shuffle. This value is available on a momentary basis if
     requested by the player during play of a hand.

     Option 18. Record of decisions made - each action taken by the user-
     player is compared against the strategy. If the action does not agree
     with the strategy the computer will beep to let you know of your
     "error". A running count of the actions and percent correct may be
     displayed.

     Option 19. Sound on - the beep described in option 18 may be turned on
     or off.


     3.0 MANUAL BET INPUTS

     If you have selected the option for manual bet inputs a screen similar
     to figure 3 will be displayed at the start of each hand. Only even
     numbers from 2 to 100 will be accepted. The figure shows that Player 1
     bet 20, Player 2 bet 10 and Player 3 is being asked for a bet value.
     The function keys allow easy input for multiples of the basic bet.
     Push F1 for a help menu.

                                       Deck [..*****************!****]
                 Place your bets.
                Multiples of 2 only.

         Player 4        Player 3        Player 2        Player 1



                        Your bet?


                                          Bet=10          Bet=20
         Hold=355        Hold=780        Hold=600        Hold=1255

                       Figure 3.   Manual Bet Screen

















     4.0 SHUFFLE

     This is automatic at the start of the game, if the end of the deck is
     reached during a hand or and when the cards left with the dealer at
     the end of a hand are less than the calculated amount based on the
     Shuffle Percent (see option 9 in the first menu). Also there will be a
     shuffle if there are not enough cards left for 4 per hand to be played
     including the dealer. Each shuffle is a computer representation of
     cards randomly chosen from the decks to be used. Cards are then placed
     in that order to be used until the next shuffle.


     5.0 DEAL

     Cards are dealt in the usual order. The first card to the dealer is
     shown "down" as are the first cards to automatically played hands (if
     that option is chosen), all the rest are up. After the cards are dealt
     various optional values are displayed, such as, hand number, player
     bets, etc.


     6.0 PLAY

     6.1 INSURANCE

     If the dealer is showing an Ace, all user controlled hands are asked
     if they would like insurance. Acceptable responses are:

                    F9 or Y or y for Yes
                    F10 or N or n for No

     Insurance is a side bet for an amount equal to one-half the present
     bet on the hand. If the dealer has a blackjack, insurance pays 2 to 1
     hence you break even if your hand (say a 20) would have lost to the
     dealer's 21. At that point the screen is cleared and a new hand is
     dealt.


     When the dealer does not have a blackjack you lose your side bet and
     play continues. Automatically played hands do not take the insurance
     bet.


     6.2 PLAYER'S BLACKJACK

     Any players that have blackjack are immediately paid at 1.5 to 1 and
     their first card is shown, if necessary, and then the cards removed
     from the "table".


















     6.3 USER PLAY

     If hand point count values are to be shown it will be displayed at the
     top of the hand in the form "NN H" for hard hands or "NN S" for soft
     hands. As the individual hand is played the value will be updated as
     an aid in decision making. The hand values are also displayed on
     automatically played hands.

     The user is then asked to make play decisions based on their cards and
     the allowed possibilities by answering the prompt "Action" with the
     following choices available:

       F1 displays a one line help display of these responses.

       F2 or E or e to go to the exit options at the end of the hand.
          Normal play continues.

       F3 or L or l  for look which will momentarily display the decision
          programmed into the strategy. This is like learning from flash
          cards, you can always look at the answer if needed.

       F4 or V or v to view the hand count value. This is of interest if
          the hand count option is off. It simulates asking the dealer for
          the count.

       F5 momentarily displays the card count based on the weighting system
          being used.

       F6 or Q or q to surrender (or quit) only with the original hand if
          that action is allowed by the house rules.

       F7 or Y or y will split the hand. If the player has a "pair" they
          may be split and played as two hands with the same bet required
          on each hand as the original bet. When the hand is split each
          hand is played separately. If a second pair were to be dealt on
          either hand and a second split is allowed (provided there are 5
          or less player positions) and then there are three hands played
          for that position.

       F8 or D or d  for double when allowed by the house rules. If this is
          selected the bet is doubled and only one more card is dealt to
          that hand.

       F9 or H or h  for hit which deals another card to the hand.

       F10 or S or s  for stand which ends the decision process for that
          hand.

     Following the action determined by the decision the hand value is
     calculated. If the total is greater than 21 the hand is bust which is
     indicated in the hand value location and the cards are removed from
     the "table" after first showing any down card. If the total is 21 or
     less, further action is requested in the case where the previous
     action was a hit.












     Since all this action happens automatically if no user positions have
     been specified there is another "escape" to the exit options. If you
     hold the space bar or any other key down during the end of the hand
     you will interrupt the action and move to the exit options by entering
     a <carriage return> when requested by the program.


     6.4 DEALER PLAY

     After all hands are played the dealer's hand is played. First the down
     card is shown then the dealer hits 16 and stands on hard or soft 17
     depending on the house rules option setting.

     6.5 END OF PLAY

     Each hand still active (not blackjack or bust) is compared to the
     dealer's to determine win, lose or push. Player's holdings and the
     bank are adjusted accordingly.


     6.6 END OF GAME

     New hands will continue to be dealt until the hand count reaches the
     maximum set by the options. Shuffling will occur as needed. Once the
     hand count maximum is reached a summary of the data for that run of
     hands will be displayed along with the exit options.


     6.7 DATA SUMMARY AND EXIT OPTIONS

     Figure 4 shows the data summary and exit options. The highest, lowest
     and final holdings are shown for each player along with the hand at
     which those holdings occurred and the "efficiency" at that point.
     Efficiency is defined as winnings divided by the total amount bet
     expressed as a percentage. This calculated value can be used to
     evaluate the quality of your strategy as modified by the "laws of
     chance". The values shown are typical for the built in strategy
     contained in the file STRATEGY.DTA.

     At this point you have three exit options:

       [E]nd the game and return to the operating system.


       [N]ew options  essentially restarts the game by returning to the
          options screen and resetting the hands played to 0.

       [P]rint will send a copy to the data summary to your line printer.

       c/r <carriage return> will continue the play until the maximum
          number of hands is reached or on a hand-by-hand basis if the
          hands are already at the maximum.














        DATA SUMMARY              Strategy file name = STRATEGY.DTA

                 Player 6  Player 5  Player 4  Player 3  Player 2  Player 1
     Highest
     holdings       2015      1800      1735      1920      1710      2075
     at hand        6036      1586      2028      1496      2023      4243
     efficiency    1.39%     4.19%     3.02%     5.11%     2.93%     2.10%

     Lowest
     holdings        865       285       135       590       -70       740
     at hand          40      5764      5547      5843      5482       129
     efficiency  -26.47%    -1.03%    -1.30%    -0.58%    -1.63%   -16.56%

     Final
     holdings       1920       530       635       785       250      1415
     at hand        6140      6140      6140      6140      6140      6140
     efficiency    1.24%    -0.64%    -0.50%    -0.29%    -1.02%     0.56%

     Total Amount Won   =    -465           Total decisions =       0
     Total  Amount Bet   =  443250          Total correct   =       0
     Total Hands Played =   37671           Percent correct =  100.00%
     Overall Efficiency =  -0.10%

     [E]nd game, [N]ew options, [P]rint summary, or c/r to continue

               Figure 4. Data Summary and Exit Options


     7.0 STRATEGY

     The strategy used for automatic play (and as a prompt if you "look"
     before making your decision point) is determined by characters in a
     text file approximately shown in figure 5. You may change the
     controlling characters with a text editor but it is critical that each
     one be in the correct location for proper operation. Make a copy of
     STRATEGY.DTA under some other name and then use your text editor in
     the overwrite mode. The name of the new file may then be entered under
     option 9 of the second menu or you may rename the altered file to the
     default name STRATEGY.DTA for use by the program. Each table has the
     dealer up card values across the top and player hand values shown on
     the left and in the middle. Action determining characters are <S>tand,
     <H>it, <D>ouble, <Y>es do split and <Q>uit as in surrender.

     If no strategy file exists on the disk a "dumb strategy" of hit 16 or
     less, stand on 17 or more will be used.


     7.1 HARD HANDS

     These are hands that do not contain an Ace valued at 11. If they
     contain only two cards or if a double is otherwise allowed by the
     house rules the right side of the first table is used. Only player
     values down to 4 need to be considered as lower values must contain an
     Ace and would be determined in the second table.












     7.2 SOFT HANDS

     These hands contain 1 Ace valued at 11 which could be reduced to 1 if
     the subsequent hit were to cause a "bust". Only values down to 12 need
     to be considered as 2 Aces is the lowest soft hand.


     7.3 HANDS THAT CAN BE SPLIT

     In this table the "Y" stands for, yes do split. The other characters
     indicate the action of choice rather than split and are assumed to be
     <N>o in automatic operation. Only even values for the player
     considered as they are all pairs. The only soft pair is 2 Aces.


     7.4 SURRENDER

     "Q" for quit is used for surrender to differentiate it from the other
     choices. When the "Q" occurs in the table it will be interpreted as an
     "H" if surrender is not allowed by the house rules option setting.
     Therefore you do not want to put a "Q" in a location that should be
     split, double or stand except when actually using the surrender
     option.


     8.0 BUGS AND FIXES IN VERSION 1.1

          1. Printed data summary shows "overall efficiency = 0%" when it
             should be something else. (fixed)

          2. If you have used the exit command the dealer takes his cards
             up too quickly to see. (fixed)

          3. On manual played hands when player declines insurance and
             dealer wins the bet is not collected from the player. (fixed)

          4. Doesn't always beep on a strategy error. Example is hit a pair
             of nines. (not fixed)

          5. One-deck shuffle at 75% occasionally causes screen to go crazy
             during the shuffle. (not found)

          6. When using a strategy which never doubles or splits, more is
             bet than the expected 10% per hand. (fixed relates to 3 above)

          7. When entering bets manually the first digit of the user input
             does not show on the screen but is entered. (fixed)

          8. Deck meter (upper right hand corner of display) now expanded
             to full length for all numbers of decks.

















         HARD HANDS                  Dealer Shows

            |....Can not Double........|      |.........Can Double.......|
     Player 2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9 10  A      2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9 10  A
        21  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  21  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S
        20  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  20  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S
        19  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  19  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S
        18  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  18  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S
        17  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  17  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S
        16  S  S  S  S  S  H  H  Q  Q  Q  16  S  S  S  S  S  H  H  Q  Q  Q
        15  S  S  S  S  S  H  H  H  Q  Q  15  S  S  S  S  S  H  H  H  Q  Q
        14  S  S  S  S  S  H  H  H  Q  Q  14  S  S  S  S  S  H  H  H  Q  Q
        13  S  S  S  S  S  H  H  H  H  H  13  S  S  S  S  S  H  H  H  H  H
        12  H  H  S  S  S  H  H  H  H  H  12  H  H  S  S  S  H  H  H  H  H
        11  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  11  D  D  D  D  D  D  D  D  D  H
        10  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  10  D  D  D  D  D  D  D  D  H  H
         9  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H   9  H  D  D  D  D  H  H  H  H  H
         8  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H   8  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H
         7  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H   7  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H
         6  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H   6  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H
         5  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H   5  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H
         4  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H   4  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H

        SOFT HANDS                   Dealer Shows
            |....Can not Double........|      |.........Can Double.......|
     Player 2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9 10  A      2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9 10  A
        21  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  21  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S
        20  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  20  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S
        19  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  19  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S
        18  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  H  H  H  18  S  D  D  D  D  S  S  H  H  H
        17  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  17  H  D  D  D  D  H  H  H  H  H
        16  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  16  H  H  D  D  D  H  H  H  H  H
        15  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  15  H  H  D  D  D  H  H  H  H  H
        14  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  14  H  H  H  D  D  H  H  H  H  H
        13  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  13  H  H  H  D  D  H  H  H  H  H
        12  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  12  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H

     HANDS THAT CAN SPLIT            Dealer Shows
            |......Player Hard.........|      |.......Player Soft........|
     Player 2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9 10  A      2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9 10  A
        20  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  S  20
        18  Y  Y  Y  Y  Y  S  Y  Y  S  S  18
        16  Y  Y  Y  Y  Y  Y  Y  Y  Y  Y  16
        14  Y  Y  Y  Y  Y  Y  H  H  H  H  14
        12  H  Y  Y  Y  Y  H  H  H  H  H  12  Y  Y  Y  Y  Y  Y  Y  Y  Y  Y
        10  D  D  D  D  D  D  D  D  H  H  10
         8  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H  H   8
         6  H  H  Y  Y  Y  Y  H  H  H  H   6
         4  H  H  Y  Y  Y  Y  H  H  H  H   4

                     Figure 5.  Strategy Text (approximate)














     9.0 COPYRIGHT and SHAREWARE REGISTRATION

     BlackJack-Strategy is copyright 1985, 1988 by David K. Fibush.

     The BlackJack-Strategy (Program) is protected by copyright laws and is
     a proprietary product of J.P. Enterprises and David K. Fibush. This is
     a shareware program. If you received this program from a source other
     than J.P. Enterprises you are expected to send the $15 registration
     fee to:
                         J.P. Enterprises
                         3877 Hancock Drive
                         Santa Clara, CA 95051


     10.0 DISCLAIMER

     Use of this program acknowledges this disclaimer of warranty:

             The Program is supplied "as-is". J.P. Enterprises
             disclaims all warranties, expressed or implied,
             including, without limitation, the warranties of
             merchantability and of fitness of this program for any
             purpose. J.P. Enterprises does not warrant that the
             functions contained in the Program will meet your
             requirements or that the operation of the Program will
             be either error free or appear precisely as described
             in the Program documentation. J.P. Enterprises assumes
             no liability for damages direct or consequential,
             which may result from the use of this program.


     11.0 PRODUCT SUPPORT

     This program has been thoroughly tested. If you find the program does
     not work as described in this documentation, or if you have
     suggestions for improvements, please write to:

                    David K. Fibush
                    J.P. Enterprises
                    3877 Hancock Drive
                    Santa Clara, CA 95051

























     APPENDIX A. Basic Rules of BlackJack

     A.1  THE OBJECT OF THE GAME: The player attempts to beat the dealer by
          obtaining a total of cards equal to or less than 21, such that
          the player's total is higher than the dealer's. Note that the
          idea is to BEAT THE DEALER, not get as close as possible to 21.

     A.2  NUMBER OF PLAYERS: Generally the game has a dealer and one to
          seven players. BlackJack-Strategy allows up to six players.

     A.3  NUMBER OF DECKS: One to six decks are common. "Card counters"
          prefer a one deck game.

     A.4  VALUE OF CARDS: Each card has the same value as its spots except
          for the ace and picture cards. All 10s and picture cards are
          counted as 10. The ace can be valued as either 1 or 11, at the
          option of the player. A hand containing an ace that can be
          counted as 11 (that is, by counting the ace as 11, the hand does
          not exceed 21) is called a "soft" hand. All other hands are
          "hard" hands.

     A.5  THE DEAL: Each player is dealt two cards in sequence, one at a
          time, either face-up or face-down, depending on the rules of the
          house. The dealer's card that is face-up is referred to as the
          "up-card" and the value of this card is the key piece of
          information used to determine the playing strategy. Additional
          cards to the players are dealt face-up, one at a time based on
          the players choices during the play.

     A.6  BLACKJACKS: If the first two cards dealt to a player are an ace
          and a ten-valued card, the player has a blackjack and receives
          one and one-half times his original bet. If the dealer has a
          blackjack and the player does not, the player loses the total of
          his original bet. If both the player and the dealer have a
          blackjack, the hand is a tie or a "push". In most casinos and in
          BlackJack-Strategy, hands with a blackjack are settled
          immediately.

     A.7  HITTING OR STANDING: A player may draw as many cards as he wants,
          as long as his total does not exceed 21. "Hitting" is when a
          player asks for an additional card and "Standing" is when no
          additional cards are requested.

     A.8  BUSTING: If the player's cards exceed a total of 21, he has
          "busted" and loses the hand regardless of the dealer's total. If
          the dealer busts, all players who have not busted win the hand.

     A.9  TIES: If the player and the dealer have the same total, the hand
          is a tie or a "push". No money settlement takes place.

     A.10 DEALER'S PLAY: The dealer must draw cards until he has a total of
          17 or above. In some casinos the dealer may hit a soft 17 in
          others he must stand on any 17.













     A.11 DOUBLING DOWN: In most casinos a player may double the amount of
          his bet after looking at his first two cards. He then receives
          only one additional card. Many casinos allow doubling only on
          totals of 10 or 11, some allow doubling on any hand.

     A.12 SPLITTING PAIRS: If the player's two cards are identical in
          value, the player may "split" them by betting an amount equal to
          his original bet on the second card. Each card is then played as
          a separate hand except that if aces are split, only one
          additional card is allowed on each ace. Some casinos allow
          splitting only once and some up to three times, for a total of
          four hands. BlackJack-Strategy allows splitting two times (three
          hands) when there are five players or less in the game. With six
          players BlackJack-Strategy only allows splitting once for each
          player.

     A.13 INSURANCE: If the dealer's upcard is an ace, the player may make
          a side bet called an insurance bet. The amount of the side bet
          may be as much as one-half of the original bet. If the dealer has
          a blackjack the casino will pay two to one on the insurance bet,
          therefor, the player loses his hand but wins on insurance and
          "breaks even" if he bet the maximum amount on the side bet. If
          the dealer does not have blackjack, the insurance bet is lost and
          the play of the hand continues. In BlackJack-Strategy an
          insurance bet is always one-half of the original bet. (This is
          why only even numbers are allowed for bets, it the keeps numbers
          as integers.)

     A.14 SURRENDER: The player may surrender his original hand for one-
          half of the bet. This action takes place after the dealer has
          checked for a blackjack when your turn to play comes.


     APPENDIX B: Bibliography

     1.   R. Baldwin, W. Cantey, H. Maisel , and J. McDermott, "The Optimum
          Strategy in Blackjack", Journal of the American Statistical
          Association, 51, 429-439, (1956).

     2.   L. Revere, Playing Blackjack as a Business, Lyle Stuart, Inc.,
          New York, (1973).

     3.   L. Revere, The Revere Advanced Point Count Strategy, Paul Mann
          Publishing Co, Las Vegas, Nevada (1973).

     4.   E.O. Thorp, Beat the Dealer, (2nd edition), Random House, New
          York (1966), also in paperback Vintage Books, (1966).

     5.   E.O. Thorp and W. Walden, "The Fundamental Theorem of Card
          Counting", International Journal of Game Theory, 2, 2, (1973).

     6.   C. Ionescu Tulcea, A Book on Casino Blackjack, Pocket Books, New
          York, (1982).

     7.   K. Uston, Million Dollar Blackjack, SRS Enterporises Inc,
          Hollywood, California, (1981).





