It’s not brain surgery, but there are some words and expressions you need to know when playing slot machines.
Slot machine slang: Casino words and expressions
Reel – The circular devices on which the slot machine symbols are printed on. A typical slot machine has three to five reels. These reels spin and stop revealing the symbols on a:
Payline – a line on the slot machines face, where the symbols must line up on in order to win. You can see how much you win for each combination on a:
Paytable – an area on the slot machine that shows the different winning combinations, what they will pay and how much must be wagered in order to win certain amounts, bonuses or jackpots.
On some slot machine you will also find a “ticking” number which keeps increasing. These slot machines are called:
Progressive slot machines – a network of slot machines that are linked together to pay out one large jackpot. A percentage of every amount played from every machine is put towards one large jackpot. When someone wins this jackpot, the jackpot is reset (usually not to zero) and starts to grow again until someone wins again, and so on. These jackpots can usually not be won with a:
Wild symbol – symbols that can represent all the other symbols, like a joker in some card games.
Myth: “Slot machines are for old ladies on ferry crossings and Caribbean gambling cruises”.
The reel story: Gambling and ferry crossings go together like flights and airports. It has been a phenomenon as early as the Mississippi river boats in the 1800’s, if not earlier. As the Mississippi River connected waterways for numerous trade avenues, many gambling establishments were popular, not only with professional gamblers, but also with many of the cash carrying travellers and traders.
Who plays the slot machines? – Online Mobile Slots
Nowadays, the slot machine is a popular way to kill time during ferry crossings all over the world. There are even boats where the main purpose for the voyage is to gamble, like poker cruises in the Caribbean. If the boat leaves a country or a state where gambling is illegal, the casino and the slot machines will open as soon as the ship is three miles offshore in international water. Gambling is always popular on these voyages.
But are the slot machines principally popular among old ladies? A glance at the slot floors in Vegas and on some European ferry crossings could sometimes indicate exactly that.
It turns out this old stereotype is still somewhat true today, but only to a certain degree. Slot machines are popular amongst people from both genders and most age groups.
According to recent studies, while about 66 percent of male casino players play the slot machines, totally 81 percent of female casino players choose slot machines as their primary game. As for demographic age, recent statistics published in the U.S. News and Word Report show casino players having a median age of 47 and a median income of $41.000.
Grizzly_Granny says: “Slot machines have been a hit among aging ladies for as long as I can remember”.
Keeping it random – How to manipulate slot machines
Myth: “Casinos can manipulate and rig the slot machines with the flip of a switch”.
The Reel Story: We can say it right away: This myth is false. How can we reach such conclusion: Let us explain how, in five easy steps.
1: The Randon Number Generator. The moment you make your bet and spin a slot machine’s reels, a computer algorithm decides the outcome of your spin through a computer program called a Random Number Generator (RNG). This RNG generates thousands of numbers each second.
2: Dividing the RNG numbers. One of these randomly selected numbers is selected for each reel and is already plotted algorithmically into each reel’s stop position. This plotting is the result of dividing the random number generated by the RNG by 16, 32, 64, 128, 256, or 512.
3. Where will the reel stop? Once the RNG-generated number has been divided by one of these numbers, the remainder of the resulting value represents the number of the stopping position of the reels.
4. Recognizing the symbol. The stop number is then compared with the slot machine’s lookup table. That table lists the symbol for each reel that should appear given a particular stop number.
5. Did you spin a win? Then, the slot’s computer chip checks the internal pay table to determine whether there is a winning combination. If there is, the computer further checks the appropriate amount of the winning combination’s payout.
Spins247.com says: It sounds complicated, we know, but wouldn’t you want it to be?
There’s a moment in Ocean’s 13, the most fun but also most nonsensical of the Oceans movies, where a slot machine* is programmed to pay out when a certain order of buttons are pushed by Danny Ocean Aka George Clooney Aka Batman With Nipples.
History of ways to hack a slot machin
In the film, it seems like one more ridiculous step in a heist that also requires an earthquake be set off, a magnetron be hidden in a mobile phone and for Matt Damon to don a fake nose for no other reason than…actually there is no other reason.
In reality, the hacked machine is not only a plausible scam, it’s actually happened on multiple occasions.
Ronald Dale Harris
In the early nineties, dozens of slot machines were reprogrammed by Ronald Dale Harris, an employee of the Nevada Gaming Commission whose job it was to make sure such machines were fair. And by fair I mean designed to screw players out of their money and make casinos rich.
Rather than having to push a certain combination of buttons, Harris set up the machines so that when a certain combination of coins was entered, the next spin would pay out. For example, insert three quarters, wait, two dimes, wait, one more quarter.
Harris was only caught when he tried a similar scam in Atlantic City and was caught because no one, not even the cheats, are allowed to have a good time in Atlantic City.
Dennis Nikrasch
Another hacker, Dennis Nikrasch, pick up an old slot machine on eBay and figured out how to alter the chip inside to pay off a jackpot on command. He picked up a pile of blank chips on the black market, reprogrammed them and then swapped them into machines across Vegas. Incredibly, he achieved this live on the casino floor, swapping in the new chips for old right under the noses of casino security like some kind of a neon lit Indiana Jones swapping a bag of dirt for a gold idol.
John Kane and Andre Nesto
John Kane and Andre Nesto took it a step further, figuring out a perfectly legal way to win. A software bug in The Game King machines allowed players to play two games at one, increasing the odds of winning on one game while increasing the amount bet on another. The men discovered a glitch in the machine that allowed them to combine the two games, playing a high payout game with a high chance of winning.
They won $400,000 and, despite being arrested, walked away with the lot because, as their lawyer pointed out: “All these guys did is simply push a sequence of buttons that they were legally entitled to push.”
When slot machines first became popular, the hacks were simple: a coin on a piece of string that could be pulled back out of the machine or a guitar string hook that would trigger the coin mechanism.
As the machines became more sophisticated, so did the devices: Light wands that could set off the digital sensors and top-bottom joints that could power the coin release by bypassing the internal electrical system.
In the last few years, a new device has been hitting slot machines. Bill Validator Devices look like regular one buck notes but, in reality, have two hidden prongs that tell the slot machine that every note being insert is a hundred. Casinos are busy retro-fitting their machines to stop the device but it’s only time before hackers build a better mousetrap.
Who knows, maybe the next big slot machine hack will require an earthquake machine and a phone sized magnetron.
These days, with the invention of more complex video slots, one of the most effective methods of slot hacking is to use a software bug. These can be spotted in all kinds of devices, even those that have been made by top software manufacturers. If the bug is variable, that is not such a huge deal. However, if the bug is a permanent one, scammers can use that glitch, again and again, to keep on winning.
Slot Tricks You Need to Know
One key time this happened was with “The Game King” slots. These slots had a bug that came up periodically — they paid out too much money to punters in particular situations. While a software bug is primarily the fault of the software developer, if someone deliberately exploits a bug to make money, this is said to be fraud and is against the rules in most casinos.
The Shaved Coin
You don’t actually need to make a fake casino chip or spend any money on making one. Instead, all you need is one chip. Then, cut a small amount off it. This allows it to be used again and again. In 1982, this simple trick was used by several scammers who cut pieces off some real chips to make a tiny change in the shape. The device accepted the chip, enabling the scammers to play. It then ejected the coin because it was unsuitable for use.
If someone says they play slots for fun, then this is exactly what the mean. Modern slots are still as much fun as when they first appeared, only the style and presentation has grown sophisticated. They are still played for their fun and with no money being wagered, for some people it’ a great way to be kept entertained and most free online slot machines are entertainment all the way.
There is always an inevitable question whether free play slots give out more winnings than real money play. Also some people worry if online slots are actually fair. As everyone is playing for fun nobody really cares about how long losing straights last for. Sometimes playing for fun seems very easy with numerous free spins being hit and play money normally in the ascendancy.
When people change to real money suddenly the game seems harder and wins become fewer. It is probably due to the increased attention one pays to losses and bad streaks that are normally forgotten when playing for fun. The truth is that free online slot machines work on the very same software as real cash slots so there should be no difference whatsoever.
In theory both the play slots for fun machines and real cash slots receive a TST certificate of fairness before casinos take them. This label virtually guarantees fairness. When you play slots for free, you will no doubt be using software and programming written by companies such as Playtech, Novomatic, Aristocrat or Microgaming so the chances of getting bogus numbers is remote to say the least.
Free to Play Slot Game
When you play slot games free, you are getting a highly developed machine to entertain you and provide you with all the thrills and spills you would come to expect from top level gaming. Just because you play slots for fun, all the excitement is there but without the hassle of signing up for an online casino membership. You can quickly and conveniently switch through many various free online slot machines and avail of all that fun and excitement that when you play slots for fun, you know what you are getting.
Video Slots Today – A Different World | History of Slot Machines Part 4
Video Slots Today- A Different World
Video slot games were introduced in 1975 and quickly gained popularity. The video slots have evolved today into multiple pay line games with bonus features, free spins, and much more. The video slot games are the same games that so many of us enjoy even today, although technology has allowed then to evolve far beyond their simple beginnings. Online video slots today utilize state of the art graphics, crystal clear audio and some serious imagination to provide an outstanding online gaming experience. It’s crazy to think that it all started with a deck of cards put on 5 reels.
The Slot Machine Boom | History of Slot Machines Part 3
The Slot Machine Boom
After Mill introduced the more compact slot machines, they started spreading rapidly. You could find slot machines in almost every saloon. These early slot machines were loud and could only be operated by pulling the arm to spin the reels. This all changed in 1964 when the first slot machines that used micro-processors to determine the outcome of the game were introduced. This invention made slot machines more secure which allowed operators to offer bigger prizes. This is when large jackpots starting being offered to slot players. This immediately increased the popularity of slot games and attracted a lot of newcomers hoping to win a massive jackpot. After all, there is something very enticing about the knowledge that a single spin of the reels could be your passport to life changing sums of money.
Real Money Slot Machines | History of Slot Machines Part 2
Real Money Slot Machines
Slot machines that accepted coins and paid out money were introduced in 1899 by Charles Fey. His first slot machine was called “The Liberty Bell”. It was a 3 reel slot machine with various symbols including the featured symbol which was a cracked liberty bell. The first machine was placed in a San Francisco saloon as a trial. The machine was so popular that Fey quit his job and started developing as many slot machines as he could. He was the only person at this time developing slot machines, and he made a very nice living for himself.
In 1909, Stephen Mill saw the opportunity to capitalize on Fey’s invention. He altered Fey’s original design making the slot machine smaller and easier to install. The smaller machine was widely accepted by businesses and quickly became a hit.
The first slot machines appeared in the late 1800’s in San Francisco. These slot machines featured card symbols, and they were very different from the flashy video slots that we play today. The slot machines had 5 reels with 10 cards on each reel. The 10 of spades and the jack of hearts were left off of the reels. The bigger prizes were awarded when a player hit a royal flush, but this could only be done in the diamonds and club suit since the 2 cards were omitted from the reels. When players won on these machines they would receive prizes such as free food, cigars, or free drinks. These machines were an instant hit, and grew to become a common fixture in stores and bars around the world.
