True penetration

Just double checking - how does one determine how much penetration a dealer is giving you? Does one consider ALL cards that are dealt before shuffling, or just how many cards were dealt BEFORE the last hand? At my local casino, the dealers will go ONE DEAL past 50%. So, does that mean I am only being given 50% penetration, or am I being given more like 60%?

Also, to Ken Smith, I am curious about two things. One, which counting system do you prefer/had the most success with? I want to use a higher level system but at the same time do not want to deal with bigger numbers. Henceforth, I have recently been using Stanford Wong's 'Halves count'. Also, out of curiousity - have you ever used card counting in a tournament for the sake of taking insurance or any other reason?

Most players report penetration as the depth of cards after the last hand, which is less useful than Wong's definition for his Current Blackjack News. His reporters use a more useful standard, reporting the deepest depth at which the dealer will deal another hand. That's the real key anyway.

However, it's more difficult to report accurately, and because of the confusion, you'll just have to do what the rest of us do: Use reported penetration as an estimate. It tends to be highly variable in many cases anyway, because of the dealer, the table limits, and who the players are and how big a threat they are perceived to be.

Counting systems: I settled on Wong's Halves myself years ago. It's a powerful system, but for many recreational players it may not be worth the extra effort.

And, on your last question, I do use counting in tournaments, for insurance, playing decisions, and some utility for betting as well. The main risk is the temptation to overuse it for betting, taking needless risk just because the count is high.