Neighbor Ron shared a fine article in the January edition of Popular Mechanics on the security systems in Vegas. Much of it I had read before, but some of the observations I had not thought much about:
1. "There is no underwriter's Laboratory for security technology."
A good bit of the security used at airports and other industries is tested first in las Vegas because they invest and use the cutting edge technologies. And so become "a pioneer in surveillance tech and data mining."
2. Government benefits as well. "Slot machines all operate using a complex algorithm knows as a random-number generator. And the same technology that determines jackpots is also useful for high-tech cryptology, which protects government secrets via encryption.
3. New sensors can detect the presence of chips "whether they are in your pocket or your stomach"
So stealing chips will soon be almost impossible.
4. Secret files on personal data are becoming increasingly more sophisticated. There is a danger here. " Digital data has a long memory, and effective surveillance technology spreads fast. The software that measures your gambling skills at the blackjack tabel today could be the gathering data for your performance review tomorrow."
5. And here is the slot player's biggest nightmare:
"To make adjustments on standard slots, attendants have to stop play, open the housing and swap out the chips, a time-consuming process that reduces profits for the casino. The Mirage's soon-to-open sister property, Aria Casino and Resort, however will be the first casino in las Vegas outfitted with server based slot machines. That means Aria's one-armed bandits will run off a single computer, allowing supervisors to alter machines simply by pushing backroom buttons that can change games, odds and limits to suit the player or the situation."
http://casinogambling.about.com/od/slots/a/server.htm
http://www.slots.cd/server-based-slots.html
http://grochowski.casinocitytimes.com/article/server-based-games-26734
Well, there is lots more in the article.
A good article with some good and some bad news.
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