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Games and Casinos and the Love of Blackjack

March 28, 2011 by Leave a Comment
Example of a Blackjack game. The top half of t... 

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Compared to other casino games, Blackjack is a “hands-down” player favorite. Also known as “Twenty-One”, this game of luck (as well as memory skills) remains one of the most popular casino games in the world!

Blackjack is player-friendly in comparison to other casino offerings.  The reason for this unique attribute is due to a wide plethoria of available player decisions, as opposed to dumb luck.

The table consists of one dealer and an average of seven players. Players have an opportunity to “Hit”, “Stand”, “Split”, or “Double-Down” as desired after their two initial cards are dealt. Strategy books and cards are available to the novice player, offering guidance in specific situations. The goal for each player, playing against the dealer versus the other players, is to achieve a total of “21″ without taking a “hit” and going over.

Face cards count as ten points, and aces have dual values of one and/or eleven. Ideally, if the dealer has to “hit” and goes over “21″, everyone at the table wins, assuming they have not gone over “21″ during their respective turns.

A “Blackjack” or “21″ pays off more than a routine win, which occurs when a player outranks the dealer in points without “busting”. Rules vary in different establishments regarding the arts of “doubling-down”, “splitting” and whether or not the dealer has to “hit” in certain situations.

VIDEO BLACKJACK is available in-home, and in casinos. This is a much more private way to learn and enjoy the game if you are a bit shy about initially exposing yourself to a live table game in your favorite casino. An important bit of advice: practice, practice, practice! Enhance your good fortune with some well-made decisions and you can come out a winner!

 

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SLOT MACHINES – TODAY’S WONDER

March 9, 2011 by Leave a Comment
A row of "Wheel of Fortune" slot mac... 

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Fast-forward one-hundred twenty-five years from the gun-slinging American Old West and the glittering “Iron Case” slot machines and enter 2011 jaw-dropping theme casino.

Once again, (and maybe we never stopped)…..  We are still awed by this little machine.  We cannot seem to get to them fast enough.  We jet, we drive, and we hustle onto crowded buses.  Note that we are no longer carrying our coin bags, but a wallet full of regular bills, ready to feed our fun.

Little blue-haired, burly men and excited Baby Boomers fight for seats in the casino during crowded time periods.  There is no certain demographic that populates the Slot Arena.

Listening to the bells, whistles, shouts, and clamor, we can barely recognize the jazzy video wonders that have evolved, yet they provide the same thrill.

Now we go deeper into our fantasy as we collect extra “spins”, whoop at our jackpot of “credits” and enter the “bonus world”.  Video bonuses take you into a game, exclusive to the type of slot machine you are playing.  Certain spins land you in this coveted zone, and the fun really starts here.  So do the credits, as they rack up with each choice you make during your bonus round.

We sit in a comfortable chair, feeding in our Player’s Reward Card, and our money, dreaming of Megamillions and the sleek red car spinning on the top of our slot machines.

The Penny Slot is no longer the Penny Slot – Right now it has taken over in the casino to become one of the most popular machines.  It is, of course, electronic, and allows you to play MANY more “lines” than quarter or dollar machines without going broke.  What will the next decade bring us in slots?  Stay tuned…

 

 

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LAS VEGAS GAMES AND GAMBLING

March 7, 2011 by Leave a Comment
Golden Nugget Las Vegas 

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Where are the FREE DRINKS? In Vegas, of course!  What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas, perhaps with your hard-earned money, but what can beat that glitzy gala of exciting theme resorts and exclusive hotels? You make think a slot is a slot, but Las Vegas IS the true frontier of casino gambling.

Don’t look for Bugsy Segal-types here – the whole aura of the Strip has changed and evolved, featuring a plethora of wondrous shows, true spectacles to behold.

You will be mesmerized by live-action shows, glamorous restaurants and roller-coaster experiences.  The circus is in town every day. There are entertainment parks, galleries, gondolas, stage shows, shops and restaurants galore.

Save a bit of that hard-earned cash for gambling. For those of your without an addiction who really want to enjoy a good ole Vegas good time, it can still be done on the cheap!

First, find and book an inexpensive, red-eye round trip flight from your city.  Book a hotel in downtown Vegas.  (Suggestions: Fitzgerald’s or Golden Nugget).  Eat on the cheap here downtown, while taking in the fantastic nightly Fremont Experience. Enjoy the street musicians, artists, and outdoor markets just about any time of year.  And, most importantly, it’s an easy walk from casino to casino!  Should you desire to tour the Strip, the bus is readily available; a very cheap and convenient method of transportation.

A really fun thing to experience is Laughlin, Nevada.  The bus tour is inexpensive, takes a really neat long trek through the desert, and you spend some fine hours gambling, “slotting”, touring and watching koi fish in this unique desert gambling town.

Odds are you’ll have a fabulous time in Vegas.

 

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Gambling Statistics in Casinos

February 14, 2011 by Leave a Comment

Casinos have held our attention since their invention. The glitz and the glamour of a casino keeps people coming back for more. There is also the desire to win a big prize. No matter what you like to play within a casino, you need to be realistic. Your chances of winning are slim to none.

The best way to think about gambling is as a form of entertainment. It is fun while you have money in your hand but when that money is gone, the entertainment is over. Realistically, if every person who gambled won something, how would casinos make any money. The simple fact is, they make money because people do not win.

Unless you are playing black jack, a common casino card game where the odds change with every hand, the odds of your winning a game are pretty consistent no matter which game you are playing. You may not want to hear it but casino games are fixed so that they house, or the casino wins a certain percentage of the games you pay, and that percentage is pretty high.

This does not mean that you will never win. If there were no winners, people would never go the casinos. Therefore, the best way that you can limit your losses is to make sure you understand how to play the game before you begin to play. That way you will understand if you are making a good bet or not. Also know what are good bets and what are bad bets and stay away from bets that are to high.

However much you gamble, you need to remember that for the most part you are destined to lose. The casino has to make money and that ensure that you are going to lose no matter how long you sit at a machine and no matter how much money you put into it. There are no ways to ensure that you will win except to play the game well.

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Your Odds of Winning at Gambling

February 12, 2011 by Leave a Comment

If you play the slot machines, your dream is to hit it big. You would just love to see the pictures line up and you hit the big jack pot. However, the chances of that actually happening are pretty slim. First of all, you need to realize that when you walk into a casino, the odds are already with the casino. The machines may look all shiny and inviting by they are programed to take your money eight-three to ninety-nine percent of the time, which means you lose.

Even if the slot machines that you are looking at look exactly the same, they are completely different machines. It is not the same as putting the quarter in one gum ball machine instead of the other. With any gum ball machine you will get a gum ball, with slot machines, you could be getting an entirely different machine. Machines are run by microchip that processes a series of random numbers even when the slot machine looks like it is not being played. These machines have billions of combinations, so the odds of you hitting the jackpot are pretty slim.

This processor that runs the machines is controlled to make sure that you lose a good percentage of the time. Therefore, when you are playing and you finally see those pictures stop in place, you are really seeing the will of the machine. You are seeing the machine give your money back to the casino. Before you even begin to play the outcome of your spin is already set in place. Therefore, it does not matter how long you have been sitting there, what matters is what the processor is thinking at that exact moment.

All this means that they way that you pick a machine has absolutely not basis in whether you will win or lose. If you are noticing that a machine has been played all day with no wins, that machine is not due for a win. It just means that the processor is coming up with combinations that are not a payoff.

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Gambling Laws Revealed

February 9, 2011 by Leave a Comment

For anyone who has ever gambled you are probably wondering how you can beat the system. There are several movies that have been made where someone has found a way to control a casino and win. However, there are laws in place that protect against that very thing. These go all the way to the federal level, but states have their own mandated laws that protect gamblers and casinos.

The Dominant Factor Test is always applied to every gambling situation. This law states that the only factor that can be present when you are gambling is that of chance or luck. This means that if you are hoping to swing the game in your favor, bribe a race in your favor, or any other kind of element that would ensure that you win is against the law. Never fear, there are expert gamblers, people who have made a career out of gambling and casinos and the law take those people into effect.

Many states allow professional gambling but some do not. Professional gambling is often defined at something else entirely from regular gambling because professional gamblers are present. The stakes are higher and the beats are larger. You usually have to qualify to get in. Usually these people are well known, so to become an overnight success is pretty unheard of.

If you are trying to beat the system and you get caught you better hope that they state you are in sees your actions as a misdemeanor. Depending on the state you are in when you try to sway the outcome of a beat or game you could either be looking at a misdemeanor where you will tried before a state judge or you will be looking at a felony where you will be facing a harsher sentencing.

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Reputable Online Gaming

February 2, 2011 by Leave a Comment

For the small amount of time that online casinos have been around, their legal troubles and the amount of money they hold in transaction is legendary. This is even more intriguing when realizing the unlikely countries at the helm.

Many people do not realize that one of the most significant players in the online casino industry is Antigua Barbuda. Starting in 1994, this small nation in the Caribbean was one of the first countries to allow online gaming activities in their jurisdiction. When it opened for gaming activity, Antigua Barbuda secured a very lucrative revenue stream by taxing the online gaming web sites based there. Since then many other countries have followed in the island nation’s footsteps, most notably Argentina and some U.K. territories. While many others, such as India and Australia, have foregone the financial gain and tried to legislatively ban the practice from its shores.

Regardless of where your online casino is based, there are several online casino games that are a necessity for an online gaming outlet. Some of the most popular are video poker, video slots, blackjack, roulette and craps. There are variations to some of the games, especially video poker and slots, but the general rules of the games are the same as real life casinos, as are the winnings. Just like real life casinos, online casinos can offer incentives to play at their casinos, such as matching bets or free tutorials.

If you wish to try online gambling, the key is to find an online gaming web site that is reputable. There are many gaming options available to you but you must trust who you choose to play with. One of the best ways to decide which game site is best for you is to go to gaming forums and see what other consumers are saying about the site you are interested in. Once you choose the right site for you, you can enjoy peace of mind during your gaming.

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