Aargle Zymurgy

Hm.. that would be about 1% of over 1000 posts. I guess I missed those.

That "situation" being a debate? Or just so many relentless comments assuming the worst about my character?

Dunno if you were sincere with that -- considering your following statement -- but I'll take it as something nice.

Well, I hope it's repealed, too. At the risk of getting a trifle political here, I was a little appalled at one person equating protecting children from abusers with protecting $Billion Corporate Casinos from competition on the internet. And, in the process, making it illegal to do in the USA what the rest of the world can do without issue. We did that once with alcohol. It was stupid and anti-freedom then, just as it is now.

Colette Meiji

Yet .. you somehow remembered half of it.

Yes since there is a federal law which you are involved with trying to skirt, I have doubts with regards to your character.

And yes thats the situation I mean entirely - If you cant defend yourself here in the open - leave me the fuck alone.

Hey was it just "good luck". I could always be wrong and this stuff actually be legal.

The problem is that if it ISN'T legal but LL makes the wrong call you might be helping hurt EVERYONE. Which would really be slimy and low.

You should have waited till it was repealed. Luckily for you the law targets the Credit card companies not those who facilitate internet Gambling.

Except those Casinos are REGULATED. They can check ID at the door in Brick and Mortar Casinos .. protecting minors from Gambling in a way SL/ The internet sites cant.


Thats kinda what a law is .. It makes things illegal when you break it. And the Congress did vote on it. They are the ones who set up the Parliamentary Procedure where they throw all kinds of garbage into one bill.

Except Gambling isn't banned - theres Gambling all over the place. Nearly every American has the freedom to easily Lose all their money Gambling.

I could spend all my money on Lottery tickets. I wouldn't even need the car - The Gas Station is only 2 blocks away.

Aodhan McDunnough

The issue with gambling isn't the gambling per se. It's the fact that LL deals with international banks and that they process online transactions.

The issue of internet gambling is not one of protecting casinos but preventing money laundering from drug trade, for terrorism, and from political ill-gotten gains. Money in SL crosses international borders on a very regular basis.

Law likely not to be repealed. In fact it's more possible that other countries will do the same eventually.

Why is this singling out the US? Because that's where the money the US gov't wants frozen is located. There is a hell of a lot of the aforementioned money located in the US.

Gigs

You can't invoke libertarian ideals to get out of this one. I'm probably the most libertarian person here and I was one of the first to call out this scheme as bullshit.

Trying to turn this into a political debate to take the focus off yourself is pretty low.

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"It is the paramount duty of governments and of politicians to secure the wellbeing of the community under the case in the present, and not to run risks overmuch for the future" - JM Keynes

Gigs

Actually it's very likely to be repealed, it violates a lot of international treaties, and the international community has called on us to repeal it as an unfair restraint of trade.

But allowing this thread to be derailed into a political discussion is exactly what he wants. We should start a new thread to talk about the safe port act.

http://www.sluniverse.com/php/vb/bus...tml#post356944

IntLibber Brautigan

Well bringing it back to legal issues, I'd like to comment on prior claims that the FBI told LL that the L$ was akin to a poker chip. I can attest that the FBI NEVER said that, they told me this directly. Because as soon as that story came out, I contacted the FBI to get them off their asses wrt cybercrime reports I'd filed against griefers who had damaged my business. The FBI told me point blank that they did NOT tell LL that the L$ was akin to a poker chip because they recognise that if they did they would be obligated to investigate and prosecute interstate/international criminal activity known as griefing if it caused actual monetary losses.

So anybody operating on the idea that the L$= poker chips story is true is sadly mistaken.

For those who complain about gambling that it uses up sim resources, I recommend you implement a measure in your sim covenant that limits lag to x.xx milliseconds of script time per x many square meters of land. We implemented this when we first started and had no trouble keeping casinos under control. And fwiw, strip/escort clubs are laggier on average than casinos, particularly those who use multi-pose-ball devices. A lag ordinance keeps all laggy applications under control equally.

Now, I am proud to say I've never operated a casino or adult business in SL, but I would defend to the death someone else's right to do so.

The US signed the GATT/WTO treaties, thus constitutionally making them the law of the land and overriding any congressionally passed statutes (as the Constitution states).

LL can justifiably stand on the GATT/WTO in refusing to obey an unconstitutional law like the Safe Harbor Act, if they had any scrotal fortitude. Of course they dont, so fascism wins.

Now, theres plenty of ways around the LL policy legall. For instance, real world slot machines do NOT use random number generation, they have datafiles of numbers which are gone through in a sequence, and winners are picked by a fixed schedule. This eliminates the 'random number generation' clause from the problem, as all numbers and outcomes are predetermined.

Also, betting on RL sports is bad, but betting on SL sports is fine (the US law does not recognise virtual activities as sports).

Gigs

No. This is absolutely incorrect.

And even if it were true, simply pregenerating a list with an RNG and then playing back that list doesn't change anything legally.

Colette Meiji

What theres not a single FBI named "FBI" ?

lol

Colette Meiji

And this matters how when Credit Cards start to deny payments?

I don't think you grasp how the law works.

Macphisto Angelus

So how about those refunds?

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Colette Meiji

This makes no sense, is he trying to say Real World Casinos are governed by these silly no games of chance rules thats part of this internet law?

Macphisto Angelus

You are in the wrong thread. You are needed somewhere over in other grids/virtual worlds where Frank Corsi is saying you scammed everyone and took tons of loot but he didn't do anything. Yeah, I know.. not something new, but if you want to put your side in this thread is a good start:

Centralgrid.com: any info ?

Joshua Nightshade

Aargle Zymurgy

If the show "How it's Made" is to be believed, the original poster is partly correct. They mentioned that issue in the episode on how slots are made.

Macphisto Angelus

Missed you!

I will now step away as this is about to get lulzy.

Joshua Nightshade

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slot_machines#Technology

"It is a common belief that the odds on a machine have something to do with the number of each kind of symbol on each reel, but in modern slot machines this is no longer the case. Modern slot machines are computerized, so that the odds are whatever they are programmed to be. In modern slot machines, the reels and lever are present for historical and entertainment reasons only. The positions the reels will come to rest on are chosen by a Random Number Generator (RNG) contained in the machine's software.

The RNG is constantly generating random numbers, at a rate of hundreds or maybe thousands per second. As soon as the "Play" button is pressed, the most recent random number is used to determine the result. This means that the result varies depending on exactly when the game is played. A fraction of a second earlier or later, and the result would be different.

Some professional gamblers observe that the RNG does not actually generate random numbers. Indeed, most RNGs (so-called pseudorandom number generators or PRNGs) will eventually repeat their number sequence. This behavior is due to poor programming, as it is relatively easy to build PRNGs with periods so long no computer could complete a single period in the expected lifetime of the universe. Having access to the PRNG code and seed values Ronald Dale Harris, a former slot machine programmer, discovered equations for specific gambling games like Keno that allowed them to predict what the next set of selected numbers would be based on the previous games played. However, this is impossible for most machines, because the RNG picks numbers even when the machine is not being played, so the player cannot tell where in the sequence they are."

Aargle Zymurgy

I'm probably going to shock the crap out of my various detractors in this forum with my next comment:

That is incorrect. If what you are "wagering" on is out of your control, it's not valid. SL sports are included.

I'm fully aware that the TOS refers to RL sports. However, other principles are in effect. I asked about this with the Lindens and they said the same. So, no, you can't start a betting pool over some sword-fighting in a RP sim. You CAN, however, pay an entrance fee to try to win the sword-fight prize.

Joshua Nightshade

"Slot machines are typically programmed to pay out as winnings 82–98% of the money that is wagered by players. This is known as the "theoretical payout percentage". The minimum theoretical payout percentage varies among jurisdictions and is typically established by law or regulation. For example, the minimum payout in Nevada is 75%, and in New Jersey, 78%. The winning patterns on slot machines—the amounts they pay and the frequencies of those pay-outs—are carefully selected to yield a certain fraction of the money played to the "house" (the operator of the slot machine), while returning the rest to the players during play. Suppose that a certain slot machine costs $1 per spin. It can be calculated that over a sufficiently long period, such as 1,000,000 spins, that the machine will return an average of $950,000 to its players, who have inserted $1,000,000 during that time. In this (simplified) example, the slot machine is said to pay out 95%. The operator keeps the remaining $50,000. Within some EGM-development organizations this concept is referred to simply as "par". "Par" also manifests itself to gamblers as promotional techniques: "Our 'Loose Slots' have a 93% pay-back! Play now!" It is worth noting that the "Loose Slots" actually may describe a very few anonymous machines in a particular bank of EGMS.

A slot machine's theoretical payout percentage is set at the factory when the software is written. Changing the payout percentage after a slot machine has been placed on the gaming floor requires a physical swap of the software or firmware, which is usually stored on an EPROM but may be loaded onto non-volatile random access memory (NVRAM) or even stored on CD-ROM or DVD, depending on the capabilities of the machine and the applicable regulations. Based on current technology, this is a time-consuming process and as such is done infrequently. In certain jurisdictions, such as New Jersey, the EPROM has a tamper-evident seal and can only be changed in the presence of Gaming Control Board officials. Other jurisdictions, including Nevada, randomly audit slot machines to ensure that they contain only approved software.

In many markets where central monitoring and control systems are used to link machines for auditing and security purposes, usually in wide area networks of multiple venues and thousands of machines, player return must usually be changed from a central computer rather than at each machine. A range of percentages is set in the game software and selected remotely.

In 2006, the Nevada Gaming Commission began working with Las Vegas casinos on technology that would allow the casino's slot manager to change the game, the odds, and the payouts remotely. The change cannot be done instantaneously, but only after the selected machine has been idle for at least four minutes. After the change is made, the machine must be locked to new players for four minutes and display an on-screen message informing potential players that a change is being made."

Aargle Zymurgy

Oh? Didn't get yours? hm. Read my posts to my customers or STFU.

Joshua Nightshade

Go fuck yourself, orrr go fuck yourself.

Macphisto Angelus

Ah yes.. clear and direct answer to a clear and direct question.

Mark of a very honorable and well respected man.

I TOTALLY saw that one coming.

Frank Corsi hath a brother.

Joshua Nightshade

Seems like Aargle hates random friend requests.

Let's start a pool of z-beanbucks as to how many unsolicited invites we have to send him before he has a tizzy.

Jessyanne

5

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Aargle Zymurgy

Oddly, things you say like this make me consider you a reasonable person. I would never have IM'd you if I thought you a fool.

OK, call me naive if you like. I tend to think people tell me the truth unless I have good reason to say otherwise. I wasn't the first with the system I used. I inquired about existing methods, warned the Lindens that if I adopted it, it would become widespread. I got a positive response. In the end, it was my wallet hurt worse than anyone else's.


Hrmf. Well, LL allegedly removes minors. (See the naive thing above.)

<Snarl> OK, you said it all there. Let's be real about this: well-heeled casino owners bought congressmen who tacked a rider on an un-beatable bill. You've alluded to my levels of corruption. If I'm like those congressmen, just shoot me, ok? Sorry, Colette, but I'm an honest businessman. I try to provide what people want in a way that I believe benefits them and me.

You know something? I just opened myself to a cynical shot by you with that last statement. Go for it if you like. Your last comments have been ...hm... fair and frank. Go ahead and surprise me.

Gigs

It's not to be believed. If a How It's Made comes on in a field you are familiar with, you'll realize just how bad a lot of the information on that show is. It's still an entertaining show, but I wouldn't consider the narration reliable.

I think a lot of the time the crew interviews the people on the factory floor about a process instead of people that actually understand the science behind the process, because a lot of the mistakes made in the narration reflect the sort of understanding a factory worker with no scientific background might have.