How does it compare to DeepBit? What other pools should I consider? What are the pros and cons?
Pros: better for the bitcoin network to not have a single large pool - this is a known protocol vulnerability, we should diversify the pools.
Pro/Con: size
All pools mathematically average towards the same rate of return. Size provides a level of stability, with DB winning almost half the block you will see LOTS of VERY small credits. On the other hand Eligius will pay you out larger shares, but only a few times a day, if Eligius has a string of bad luck it will matter more, since they expect to win fewer blocks a day the difference of only a few makes a big dent.
If you leave your miner running all week and check it once on the weekend, you will probably not notice a difference in payout.
If you are a console jockey who is constantly hitting refresh to see how your miners are doing, you will likely find a larger pool more edifying.
I duel mine ( two miners running per core ) on Eligius and BTCGuild. I have mined both on slushes pool, and on btcmine and was happy with them. When I decided to duel mine I picked one decent size and one smallish pool both of which had very low fees in order to avoid downtime, and help stem the DB tide.
