Though Internet casinos offering a variety of games remain popular, it is poker that has taken the world by storm.

Television has driven much of the poker craze. ESPN, The Travel Channel and even NBC broadcast poker tournaments.

"It is unbelievable how it has struck a popular nerve with the American public," said Tony Cabot, a Las Vegas attorney and Internet gambling industry expert.

Getting into a game is as easy as logging on to a computer.

Boyko has identified 53 networks and at least 280 poker Web sites with more popping up all the time. According to his estimates, there were 1.8 million active players in May, nearly triple that of a year ago.

"I wouldn't be surprised to see 100 percent growth in 2005," he said.

And nowhere is it growing faster than on the Internet.

"Poker seems to fit the Web extremely well," he said. "It's a really good match of technology."

Free vs. real money

McBride likes the quicker pace and the ability to play at three or more tables at a time. Live poker bores him now. "It's difficult playing 30 hands an hour when you are used to 100 or more," he said.

Seven-card stud and seven-card stud high/low are his games of choice.

"The reason they are my favorites is because not many people know how to play them very well, so the competition is rather soft," he said.

Internet poker also can be played at much lower stakes — micro-limit games — than at real card tables. Players might wager only a couple of dollars an hour. Many consider it entertainment.

"For a lot of people it really is a decision, 'Do I go to a movie for three hours, which costs $9, or do I play online for three hours for the same amount?' " Cabot said.

Poker, he said, also is a game people can win at. "It is clearly a skill-based game," he said.

Internet gamblers account for a fraction of all gamblers. According to a 2005 American Gaming Association survey, only 2 percent of Americans gambled online. Comparatively, 53 percent played the lottery and 35 percent visited a casino.

Free poker sites have much more traffic than those that require money to play. Most people play to pass the time. But sites often contain pop-up ads urging people to put up real money.

According to the Morning News poll, 14 percent of Utahns have played online casino games for fun.

Tyler Jarvis, a Brigham Young University math professor who studies gaming odds and probability, says what you see for fun might not be what you see when the stakes are real.