Shuffling

Shuffling

Shuffling is a procedure used to randomize a deck of playing cards to provide an element of chance in card games. Shuffling is often followed by a cut, to help ensure that the shuffler has not manipulated the outcome. A common shuffling technique is called the riffle or dovetail shuffle, in which half of the deck is held in each hand with the thumbs inward, then cards are released by the thumbs so that they fall to the table interleaved. Many also lift the cards up after a riffle, forming what is called a bridge which puts the cards back into place. This can also be done by placing the halves flat on the table with their rear corners touching, then lifting the back edges with the thumbs while pushing the halves together. While this method is more difficult, it is often used in casinos because it minimizes the risk of exposing cards during the shuffle. There are two types of perfect riffle shuffles: if the top card moves to be 2nd from the top then it is an in shuffle, otherwise it is known as an out shuffle which preserves both the top and bottom cards.

Riffle shuffling does, however, carry a risk of damaging cards from excessive bending. Casinos often replace their playing cards to prevent cheating from players that detect deformations in the cards. However, collectible card game cards are considerably less replaceable than playing cards, and CCG cards can be damaged from riffle shuffling, even when protected with card sleeves.

Because standard shuffling techniques are seen as weak, and in order to avoid inside jobs where employees collaborate with gamblers by performing inadequate shuffles, many casinos employ automatic shuffling machines. They also save time that would otherwise be spent shuffling, allowing several more hands per hour to be played and increasing the profitability of the table. These machines are also used to lessen repetitive motion stress injuries to a dealer. Note that the shuffling machines have to be carefully designed, as they can generate biased shuffles otherwise: the most recent shuffling machines are computer-controlled, though they have not yet fully been integrated into gaming.

Progressive Jackpot

A progressive jackpot is a jackpot highest payoff for a gaming machine usually a slot machine or video poker machine where the value of the jackpot increases a small amount for every game played. Normally multiple machines are linked together to form one large progressive jackpot that grows more quickly because multiple players are contributing to the jackpot at the same time.

The amount of the jackpot is shown on a meter as a money value. Usually the jackpot can only be won by winning the combination with the highest payoff, e.g. a royal flush at a video poker game, or five of the most valuable symbols lemons, cherries, alligators, etc on a slot machine. Once a player wins the jackpot, the jackpot resets to a preset minimum level.

The amount on the jackpot progresses increases a small amount for every play on a connected machine. The amount that the jackpot advances by is set by the casino the house. For example, on a machine whose house edge is 5%, a generous jackpot contribution might be 1% one fifth of the expected profit. The house is prepared to contribute some of the profit of a jackpot linked machine because players are attracted by the:

Relative novelty of progressive jackpots generally, only a small fraction of the house's gaming machines will be connected to a progressive jackpot

Constantly changing meter, often displayed on large LED or LCD displays

Large amount of the jackpot, which eventually motivates more players to play the game

Usually only players who wager the maximum number of credits per play qualify to win the jackpot. All wagers, whether or not they are maximum credit bets, contribute to the jackpot though. As a result, a game which requires a 10 credit wager to qualify for the progressive jackpot will tend to have the progressive jackpot rise to higher levels relative to its break-even level than a game that requires only a 5 credit wager to qualify.

In some games such as video poker, it is possible to compute an optimal playing strategy based on the frequency for each payoff versus the odds of hitting that payoff. Since the jackpot of a progressive video poker game is constantly growing, it eventually can reach a break-even point where the machine becomes a positive expectation bet for the player.

When the progressive jackpot is less than the break-even point, there is a negative expected value house edge for all players.

In the long run, with optimal strategy, a video poker player can make a profit, although the long run is generally longer than most people think. Several tens of thousands of plays.

It is worthwhile to note that a break-even point cannot be easily calculated on a slot machine game, because the payback percentage for the game is normally unknown to the player. The break-even point in video poker can be calculated because the payback percentage for the game is a function of the paybacks and odds of the poker hands, which is based on a standard 52 card deck. The return of a slot machine is based on the published paytable, but also on the normally unpublished reels. For a five reel slot machine, the player would need to know each symbol on each of the slot machine's five reels, in order to calculate the odds. For a three reel slot, the reels are normally weighted, and this would not be possible. However, in some circumstances the manufacturer may publish the payout of their machines.

Brick and Mortar

Brick and mortar bricks and mortar or B&M in its simplest usage is used to describe the physical presence of a buildings or other structure. It's a concept usually referred to in business, which applies to the physical location for a business or organization.

The term brick and mortar business bricks and mortar business or B&M business is often used to refer to a company that possesses a building or store for operations. The name is a metonym derived from the traditional building materials associated with physical buildings — bricks and mortar. Its first use was in 1992.

More specifically, in the jargon of online ecommerce businesses, brick and mortar businesses are companies that have a physical presence and offer face-to-face customer experiences. This term is usually used to contrast with a transitory business or an internet-only presence, such as an online shop, which have no physical presence for shoppers to visit and buy from directly, though such online businesses normally have non-public physical facilities from which they either run business operations from, and/or warehousing for mass physical product storage and distribution.

An example would be the movie-rental shop Blockbuster Video, which has physical stores and is in competition with the newer online rental services offered by Netflix. In this sense, the term is also a retronym in that all stores had a physical presence before the advent of the Internet, making such a term unnecessary.

A comparable term in the United Kingdom is High Street shops, although the phrase bricks and mortar business is also commonly used.