There are currently a large number of blackjack systems and have even been created computer programs that help us to overcome our opponents in the games of online blackjack.
But we must remember that only existed by 1956 an article published in the Journal of the American Statistical Association. Developed by Baldwin, Cantey, Maisel, and McDermott, the system was a basic strategy that in the long term, gave a huge advantage to any blackjack player.
That article had no impact, as it was a technical paper, which blackjack players not usually accessed. But as many know, that article came up to the hands of Dr. Edward O. Thorp, who after reading and testing the system, was inspired to add a count of cards which was described in his book Beat the Dealer, published in 1962.
Thorp’s book contained almost all of what was known of blackjack in the early sixties. The first edition included a discussion on the use of an alternative count of aces with betting purposes.
Also introduced the use of counting points as a guide to bet while using a count of ten to play. The second edition contained a basic strategy and counting of ups and downs, which was introduced by Harvey Dubner at the Fall Joint Computer Conference in 1963.
We could say that in the sixties the casino blackjack game became popular. Since there the casinos began to take safe measures against the ones who counted cards. That made that the counting systems became increasingly easier and more efficient. A new era for blackjack was starting.