In 1887, Charles Fey brought to America what was to be one of the jackpot of inventions.The Slot Machine. A 29 year old mechanic from San Francisco, Fey started a craze that thrives til this day. On the first slot machines the reels had symbols of ordinary playing cards, not the fruit and array that we see today. The term 'One Armed Bandit' was soon after adopted as it was thought that the odds were not the greatest and people kept putting their money in without much thought to how much they were actually losing. With 3 reels and 20 symbols in it's early days, the slot machine has evolved to some that have random number generators and close to 100 symbols and multi pay-lines. Fey, being the inventor was also the first to actually offer the slot machines to the public and he would rent his hand made machines to other businesses on a 50% rental agreement. His first slot machine was called the Liberty Bell and can be seen in a local Reno restaurant that is owned by his family. Casinos began putting slot machines in mainly as a distraction for the lady friends of their male gamblers to keep them occupied and away from the gaming tables while the men gambled. Soon the craze spread to all peoples regardless of gender and walk of life. Along with the introduction of slot machines came the eventual crackdown on the gambling phenomenon by local police. Raids would ensue and slot machines confiscated. It wasn't long before the action was moved to the backrooms of taverns, bars and clubs. The introduction of slot machine to Nevada has been credited to Bugsy Seigel, notorious gangster turned casinos entrepreneur in the mid 1900's. With legalized gambling came a new love and fervor for the slot machine and this has carried over to the internet with online casinos. The slot machine has always held a certain fascination to gamblers everywhere and in part is due to the bells and whistles, the sounds and lights and the almost hypnotic quality of the game play. Slot machines started out as simple and requiring no skill, a great way to escape where you didn't really have to think or plan a strategy when playing. Todays machines still require little or no skill to play, but have added new technology, stunning graphics and sound effects, and some of the largest jackpots of any game of chance, and have captivated the hearts and minds millions of people worldwide and continues to attract and hook thousands more yearly. You can find slot machines that still have very inexpensive pulls, starting at a nickel and going all the way up to $100 a pull and jackpots in the millions. So there is a game out there for everyone and every budget. How to determine your odds? Take the number of reels, example 3 reels and multiply the amount of symbols. This would work out to 20 x 20 x 20 = 8,000 so the odds would be 7,999 to 1.  .