# Computer card trick--how does this work? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 27, 2006, 7:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/computer-card-trick-how-does-this-work/366227 "2006-07-27T07:10:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hilarity_n.suze/32/6223_2.png) [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hilarity_N.Suze)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2006, 7:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/computer-card-trick-how-does-this-work/366227/1 "2006-07-27T07:10:10Z")
Some of these computer mind-reading tricks are easy to figure out. [This one](http://www.geocities.com/Baja/4954/trick1b.htm) has me baffled. Can anybody explain it? ---
**Author:** ![grimpixie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/ecb155/32.png) [@grimpixie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/grimpixie)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2006, 7:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/computer-card-trick-how-does-this-work/366227/2 "2006-07-27T07:19:12Z")
Well, it didn’t seem to work for me - the five cards loaded and then it sat there and played some “creepy” music and that was it… Anyway, I’m fairly sure it works this way, as I have seen other similar ones - NONE of the four cards that you get shown at the end of the trick are amongst the five which you are shown at the start, so no matter which you choose, it will have “vanished”. The changes are subtle (e.g. the Jack of Hearts instead of the Jack of Diamonds) and by telling you to concentrate on your chosen card, they’re hoping you don’t pay too much attention to the other four. Am I right? Grim ---
**Author:** ![Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hilarity_n.suze/32/6223_2.png) [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hilarity_N.Suze)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2006, 7:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/computer-card-trick-how-does-this-work/366227/3 "2006-07-27T07:32:17Z")
Is [this link](http://www.geocities.com/Baja/4954/trick1a.htm) better? I mean for the whole trick . . . Yup, that’s it all right. They are not lying. The card I picked is gone! ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2006, 7:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/computer-card-trick-how-does-this-work/366227/4 "2006-07-27T07:33:54Z")
The link goes to the second page in the trick (the reveal). You should start [here.](http://www.geocities.com/Baja/4954/trick1a.htm) Anyway, I see the KH, JC, KS, QD, QC, JD on the first page and QH, KC, JH, QS and KD (i.e. five different cards) on the second. Your card (along with the other five in the first set) has been removed. ta-DA! And the music is really irritating. ---
**Author:** ![Princhester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Princhester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princhester)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2006, 7:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/computer-card-trick-how-does-this-work/366227/5 "2006-07-27T07:40:31Z")
We should have a sticky on this. Someone asks about this goddamn trick about once a month:). Although mostly they link to a far more slick implementation of it. ---
**Author:** ![Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hilarity_n.suze/32/6223_2.png) [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hilarity_N.Suze)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2006, 8:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/computer-card-trick-how-does-this-work/366227/6 "2006-07-27T08:32:42Z")
> [@Bryan Ekers](#): > > And the music is really irritating. Sorry about the irritating music. I had no idea. (No speakers.) ---
**Author:** ![Will\_Repair](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a698b9/32.png) [@Will\_Repair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Will_Repair)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2006, 9:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/computer-card-trick-how-does-this-work/366227/7 "2006-07-27T21:23:59Z")
None of the cards in the last screen are among the ones in the first screen.