Slot Machines or One Armed Bandits as they are known for their ability to take a players money, were invented by Charles Fey. In 1887, Mr. Fey made a few machines by hand for his Liberty Belle Saloon and Restaurant in Reno, Nevada, where one of the original machines can still be seen today. Slot machines really caught on in the late 1940's in the Las Vegas Flamingo Hotel owned by Benny "Bugsy" Siegel. Originally intended to entertain the wives and girlfriends of high-rollers, slot machines have gone on to become the most popular form of gambling today as well as the major source of gambling revenue for casinos. It is not unusual for a major casino to have over 5000 slot machines in their casino offering dozens of different variations on the game with all sorts of amazing graphics, bells and whistles. With the growth of gambling on the Internet, Slots have become even more popular as they are easy to learn, fun to play and can provide hours and hours of entertainment for a very small investment.

A Slot Machine is a mechanical or electronic machine with three or more reels that spin when a lever is pulled or a button is pushed. The object of the game is to win money by matching symbols in a pre-determined combination on the various reels after they stop spinning. The symbols are usually brightly colored and easily recognizable, such as symbols of fruits, numerals or letters, and shapes such as bells, diamonds, or hearts; newer video-based machines use animated cartoon characters and images of
popular actors or singers, especially in the case of themed slot machines.

The player activates the machine by first putting a coin or token, or in more modern machines, a pre-printed, bar coded ticket, in the slot and then either pulls the lever or pushes the button to play. Bets may vary from one coin of a penny all the way up to special machines that take 100 dollar and even 500 dollar bets. Machines allow the player to play multiple coins and some machines may require multiple coins in order to trigger a bonus round and win the jackpot. There are also progressive machines with multi-million dollar payouts. The current world record for a progressive slot payout is for over 39 million dollars in Las Vegas in 2003 and your author had the pleasure of being 5 feet away when the machine lit up to announce the winner. (One can only dream that one day it may happen to me.)

The variety of winning combinations and possible bets is almost unlimited in modern casinos. It is up to the player to become familiar with what their land based or Internet casino offers and play the machines that are both within their budget and offers the most fun for the longest playtime. One can have a great time and play for hours on end with a bankroll of 20$ in a penny slot machine. The idea with slots is to have fun while trying to win money as the odds really do favor the house in slot machine games.

Most people believe the odds on a slot machine have something to do with the number of each kind of symbol on each reel, but in modern slot machines this is not the case. Modern slot machines are computerized, so that the odds are whatever the casino programs them to be within the guidelines of the regulatory agency. Modern slot machines use a Random Number Generator to determine the positions the reels will stop on and payouts are also pre-determined.

The payout percentages in slot machines in casinos are regulated by law in the casinos gaming jurisdiction and closely monitored. Slot machines are usually programmed to pay out as winnings 82–98% of the money that is wagered by players and each jurisdiction sets a minimum payout. For example, the minimum payout in Nevada is 75%, and in New Jersey, 83%. If a slot machine is set at 95% payout, this means that over the course of players putting 1 million dollars into the machine, 950,000 dollars will go back to the players as winnings and 50,000 dollars will go to the house. Typically casinos will advertise something like "95% PAYOUT FROM OUR HIGH PAYING SLOTS." However, there may be only a few of these 95% payout machines in a bank of 100's of machines and it is up to the player to find them.

A major factor in making slot machines so profitable for the house is that the player has no control over what kind of payout they will be playing for after they pull the lever or press the button. In other Casino games like Craps the player knows what a wager will offer and what that wager will pay in advance and may pick and choose which wagers to make. As of the current time, slot machines do not offer the player the same betting options as other casino games and this puts the odds strongly in the houses' favor.

Typical slot machine payouts are preset and depend on the number of coins bet. On a regular slot machine, one coin bet may payout 30 coins, two coins bet may payout 60 coins and 3 coins bet may payout 90 coins. The variety of payouts is so great that it is advised the player look over the machines in a casino and pick one that offers the game play and payout they find most appealing.

Another popular type of slot machine that offers the chance for huge payouts is Progressive Slot Machine. Progressive slot machine are a group of slot machines, sometimes even in different casinos, that have been networked or linked together. The Jackpot is pooled between all the machines until the winning combination is played and some progressive jackpots have been as high as 35 million dollars or more. One can win the jackpot on any of the machines in the network of machines. Imagine being able to win a million dollars for a 25 cent bet and you will begin to understand the amazing popularity of progressive slots.

Video Poker is a variation of the Reel based Slot Machine usually based on 5-card draw poker. Video Poker is played at a machine with an electronic display. Video Poker is a single player form of poker and is found by many to be more fun and less intimidating than playing poker at a table with a group of other players. As in regular poker, in video poker, the machine deals the player a five card hand. The player then may keep or discard and replace his cards. After the draw, winning hands are payed out on a pre-determined schedule. On some machines a special hand, like a royal flush will offer a very high payout or may offer a progressive jackpot until that hand is hit. Video Poker has become very popular in Online Casinos and among Classic slot machine players in live casinos. It should be noted that as with Classic Slot machines, in video poker, betting the maximum credits will give the maximum payout.

1. You can play at home. You don't have to fly or drive to a crowded casino and put up with the noise and rush in a casino. You can also take a break when you feel like it and do whatever you want in your own home before resuming play and you can also dress in whatever and in as little clothing as you wish. Nothing beats online gambling for comfort and ease.

2. You can roam the internet and thereby, the world, for the absolute highest advertised payouts. According to renowned odds experts like the Wizard of Odds, payouts are usually better at online casinos for slot machines.

3. You can get bonuses on the amount of cash you deposit. This will give you more cash in your bankroll to wager on the slot machines.

4. Entertainment value. When you play online you have dozens of casinos to choose from without leaving home. There are always special events and tournaments being offered by online casinos to make your play online even more exciting.

We do suggest gambling devotees try to find a comfortable balance between live casinos and online casinos. Unless you live in a city like Las Vegas, live casinos are usually reserved for trips or vacations while online casinos are available easily and as often as you like. Have fun and stick to your limits.

1. Set your limit before you start playing and stop playing before you lose your entire bankroll. If you plan to play over a few different play sessions if, for example, you are on vacation, pre-divide your bankroll by the number of planned play sessions. If you plan to play 500 dollars on slots and you plan to play once a day for a 5 day vacation, make your daily limit 100 dollars. Keep your winnings separate from your starting bankroll so you always walk away with some cash at the end of your play session.

2. Look over the payouts offered by the various machines in the casino and choose the one with the best payouts for the lowest winning combinations.

3. Look for a machine that offers the highest winning payout percentage. Look through the various casino advertisements in advance and speak to the slot manager in the casino where you decide to play. This will help you find the machine offering the best winning payout percentage. Casino floor managers are there to help the players. They want to see you win bets because they know winning players will to continue to gamble. They are usually more than willing to be helpful.

4. Be aware that playing a single machine over and over will not loosen it up. Individual payouts are totally random as are your chances of hitting a jackpot. Modern slot machine payouts are controlled by a random number generator and that means exactly what it says. They are RANDOM. There is no magic formula to win at slot machines.

5. Take advantage of any and all bonuses and reward cards offered when playing online or in a land based casino. Bonuses can extend your bankroll and playtime and reward cards can get you comps and gifts for the amount of money you wager.

6. When playing Progressive machines always bet the maximum coins and payline so you have a chance to win the biggest jackpot. If the machine you are on has a maximum that is too high for you then look for a progressive machine with a lower max. Don't ever go in the hole or over your head playing slot machines.

7. If you find your self getting tired or angry , talk a break or walk away for the day. The slots are for enjoyment first and foremost. If you arent having fun, its time to stop. If the machine you are playing is becoming the enemy, find another machine or take a break. Win or lose, gambling should be entertaining and fun.