Books have been written on this topic, and the disquiet and face-offs about where the "hot" slots are installed in a casino are still bubbling – more than sixty yrs after the slot machines were first placed in casinos.

The standard rule is that the more favourable slots were installed just inside the entrance of the casino; so that people going by would be able to see real jackpot winners and be drawn to come inside … play. Our attitude is that this is definitely no longer so.

Almost all of the major casinos nowadays are magnificent complexes and you can no longer see inside from the sidewalk, so there’s no longer a reason to put the ‘loose’ slot machine games in close proximity to any entrances.

Another standard rule is that loose one armed bandits are positioned on the major aisles in the casinos, again so that more potential players could see winning jackpots and be encouraged to play. Notably though, we find that this also is no longer a universal rule.

What casinos found over the years is that people walking down the busy aisles were frequently on the way to somewhere else. If they played the slot machines at all, they would simply put in their loose change because they happened to be walking by. Win or lose, they would very often not stop to keep playing. And the very last thing a casino wants is for someone to win a jackpot by playing only a few coins and then not stay to put it all back in!

These days, casinos are constantly changing their philosophy about where to place the loose one armed bandits.