The Martingdale is usually the first choice of a novice gambler. It sounds perfect, wait until a table result is statistically due, then launch a wagering series. If you lose, double your bet. Lose again, keep doubling. Given time, the odds will be so heavily in your favour, that you'll have to win. Hold on. Not so fast. Do you recall the table I told you about when an even money proposition didn't show up for seventeen spins? Do you know how much it would cost to finance a series of eighteen bets that double each time? Assuming that you start at the $5 level, your eighteenth bet (which would net a $5 profit would cost you $655,360. Financing those bets would cost you over a million dollars. But it's a moot point, because you would never get a waiver against the house maximum in the midst of all that. And that point would be reached about half way through the series.

You begin by placing a bet on the table. You will then receive two cards face up. The dealer will receive one card face up and one face down. The down card is called the "hole card" and will remain face down until you have completed your play.

If the dealer up card is an Ace, the insurance option will be offered. You may accept or decline this offer (see Insurance for details.) The dealer will then check for Blackjack (if the dealer's up-card is a 10-value card, the dealer hand will be checked without revealing the hole card.) If the dealer has Blackjack, play ends and your wager is lost, unless your hand also contains a Blackjack (resulting in a "push" or tie)

If there is no dealer Blackjack and you have a Blackjack, the dealer will not take any hits. You automatically win US$1.50 for every US$1 of your original wager.

If no Blackjack is present, you must decide whether to keep your hand as is ("stand"), or take additional cards in an attempt to increase the value of your hand. The decision to take an additional card is called a "hit" or a "draw." There is no limit to the number of hits you can take. If you "bust", by going over 21 while taking a hit, you lose and play is over. When you are done taking hits, you must "stand" and await the results of the dealer's hand.

Now it is the dealer's turn. First, the "hole card" will be revealed. If the dealer's hand totals 17 to 20, the dealer must stand. If the value is 16 or less, the dealer must take hits until the value of the hand is 17 or higher. If the dealer "busts" while taking additional cards, the dealer hand automatically loses.

If the value of your hand is closer to 21 than that of the dealer, you win an amount equal to your original bet. If the dealer's hand is better, you lose your bet. If the hands are of equal value the deal is a push and your money is returned.

After each game has been played, the used cards are shuffled back into the deck.

List of Poker Etiquette.

Do not move another player's cards before the winner has raked the pot.

Never touch or move another player's money without that player's permission.

If you put your cards face-down on the table and put a chip on top of them, your cards are safe.

It's traditional for a dealer to offer a cut of the deck to the player to his right. That player may cut, tap or pass the cut to the player to his right. A tap signifies no cut is needed.

Answering your mobile phone in the middle of a hand is considered the equivalent of folding your hand.

It is assumed you know all the rules of a game when it's played.

A player should not talk across a player who is involved in a hand. Chatting is fine, but it never should reach the point where it interferes with the flow of the game.

Use of profanity and obscenities is a violation of poker etiquette.

No player should create a disturbance by arguing or shouting.

A player can quit anytime without criticism, and no one should be rude about it.

At no time should any player make statements that could unfairly influence the play of a hand, whether or not the offender is involved in the pot

Respectful treatment of dealers also is part of poker etiquette.

Cards should be discarded on a low line of flight so that people can't see them, Chips should be placed as far forward as reasonably possible to make it easier for the dealer to scoop them.

Do not stack chips so is stacking chips in a way that interferes with dealing or viewing of cards or conceals how much you really have in play.

Players should speak up when they see an error such as an improper amount of a bet, a card going to the wrong person or a flashed card, or the pot about to be incorrectly awarded.

Players should manage their table space in such a way as to be fair and reasonable to other players be aware if you are infringing on another player's space

Don't lean forward or backward to see a player's cards. It is proper for an opponent to complain when a player constantly has the opportunity to see another's holecards,

A player who repeatedly violates these principles of poker etiquette is a disruption to the game, and accordingly ought to be subject to discipline, up to and including ejection from the game and being suspended or barred from the cardroom.

Here's some advice to play the slot machines
1. Always load up a progressive machine. The progressives don't pay as often or as many of the small winning combinations that simple machines do, so you are actually playing for the jackpot only. In that case, you have to load them up in order to get the jackpot. Read the payout table! 2. Pay attention to the sound of the casino. Notice which slot machines are hitting and which aren't. oftentimes there will seem to be "hot" carousels and cold ones. Follow like sheep to the hot ones. 3. Play the progressives with the highest jackpots. It makes sense to seek the greatest reward if you're willing to take the progressive risk. As the change person for help in locating top jackpots. 4. Stake out a seemingly hot carousel and spend an evening (between dinner and second show time) watching how the machines do. Once you've seen enough, go to sleep. Then come back in the very early hours of the morning and hit the ones that have been played hard but haven't hit yet! 5. Resist the temptation to move up the pay scale when you're losing. Because slots have the worst odds, increasing your level of play can be the worst bet in the house! If you must keep playing, get off the progressives and find some simple nonprogressive (flat top) machines. 6. When you finally hit a jackpot¡­ just sit there. Take a deep breath. Don't mistakenly pull the handle again or touch a button. Most jackpots, especially those that are $1,000 or more, are paid by an attendant who will come over to verify your win and pay you off in cash. There is one way to almost guarantee yourself a good time, satiate your appetite for slots, and possibly even come out ahead ,