"I never win when I use the Players Card!"
The card reader and the slot machine mechanism are completely unrelated. In fact by law the two must not be connected in any way (except physically in the same cabinet). Also by law Nevada slot machines must pay back at least 75%. Most machines actually pay back more than 80% ad this is stringently monitored. Casino executives would rather lose an appendage than their casino license because it's really a license to print money.

"The machine has a big sign about it that says... This Machine Pays Out 98%! How come I put in $100 and got nothing, not even 3 bars?"
What the sign didn't tell us is over what period of time the machine will pay 98%. Typically this is calculated over the life of the machine (5 years or longer). Sometimes several machines will be linked together and this combination of machines called a carousel will payback 98% not any individual machine.

"The machine just hit a big jackpot, it's not gonna hit again."
I must admit that it took me awhile to understand how the Random Number Generator (RNG) worked and that each spin is what they call an "independent trial" a geeky way of saying that back to back jackpots are entirely possible... Jeffry A hit $20,000 on the Double Diamond slot machine at the Palms TWICE IN A ROW! Check out more pictures of winners at www.KimosVegas.com.

"The slot machine attendant said this machine is due to hit!"
If you knew what machine was gonna hit would you tell someone who may or may not give you a tip or call your mom and split the money?

"My cousin works in a casino and he said... they have a switch in the back that they flip to make the machines pay more during the, day (or night or early morning or whenever)."
Like the great earthquake rumor we just had... there is no such thing. We can't predict an earthquake and the casinos can't flip a switch to modify the slot machines hold/payoff percentages (it's against the law). The casinos order a bunch of slot machines at a time. They tell the manufacturer what games they want (Wheel of Fortune, Star Wars etc) and they tell them what they want the payback percentage to be. The casinos can change this percentage but it's a labor intensive process that requires supervision from the Nevada Gaming Control Board.

"The lose machines are near the door" or "The lose machines are at the end of the isle."
There was a time when the casinos ordered different paying percentages for the same machine. For example a $1 Wheel Of Fortune would have various payoff schedules 87.4%, 92.3% and 97.1%. Nowadays the casinos will order the same percentage for all their WOF machines. Have you ever been in a casino and watched them move machines around? If you were a slot mechanic and your boss said "put this machine on the end near the door" I'd have my momma on the phone quicker than you can say "Little Green Men"!

Join us next month for Part III of "How To Win Playing Slot Machines, Really".

For the latest Vegas news and more Kimo's Vegas visit us at www.KimosVegas.com.

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