WinCraps Contents

Introduction

Understanding Craps:

	Overview
	The House
	Rolling the Game
	Bets and Betting
	Putting it all Together

Menus:

	Game
	Action
	Statistics
Table of Dice Combinations

Table of Odds and House Advantages

Calculation of House Advantage on Pass Line

Registration Information

Disclaimer


Game Menu

	New
	Open
	Save / Save As
	Delete
	Configure


Action Menu

	Roll the Dice
	Dice Roll Files
	Auto-Play
	Auto-Bet
	"Buy" Bets
	Call Bets "ON"
	Call Bets "OFF"
	Remove Bets
	Key-in Bet Amounts
	Display Bets as Numbers
	Roll Your Own Numbers


Auto-Play

	Bets Auto-Work on Come-out Roll
	Auto-Arrange Chips
	Auto-Take / Lay Odds
	Auto-Remove Place Bets
	Auto-Adjust Bet Amounts
	Auto-Handle Winning Bets
	Auto-Roll Dice


Auto-Bet

	Basics
	Start Conditions: When ..., While ...
	Start Conditions: and when ..., and while ...
	Start Conditions: or when ..., or while ...
	Start Conditions: xor when ..., xor while ...
	Start Actions: then ..., else ..., Do this ...
	Conditions
	Actions
	Labels and Comments
	Flags
	Making and Editing Bets
	Checking and Running Bets
	Files
	Options
	Common Mistakes


Statistics Menu

	Summary
	Bankroll / Hyper-Drive
	Roll Totals
	Roll Frequencies
	Bets Won / Lost
	Chip-Stack Values
	Flag Values


The House

The House is another term for "The Casino".  It includes the personnel, equipment and rules used to run the game.

	Table Layout
	Crew
	Table Limits
	Odds Allowed


Rolling the Game

	Come-out Roll / Establishing a Point
	Rolling the Dice


Bets and Betting

	What bets are available?
	How much can and should I bet?
	How do I make a bet?
	How much will my bets pay?
	What happens when I win?
	Working Bets - "ON" and "OFF"


Putting it all Together

	Some Thoughts on Gambling and Craps
	Discipline and Goals - Managing your Bankroll
	Pushing the House
	Ten Tips


Introduction

WinCraps is a fully featured craps game for Windows™.

This comprehensive help file includes everything you need to know to play real casino craps.

Together with the game software, you have the necessary tools to learn and play craps with confidence.  As a beginner you'll learn the basics of the game, things to do and things to avoid.  You'll gain your experience quickly without risking any real money.  As an advanced player you can test and develop strategies, hone your skills, and with a little luck make yourself a winner!

WinCraps is chock full of features:  A Configuration screen allows you to set up the table to match your favorite casino, or just to suit yourself.  An Auto-Play screen allows you to select from a variety of automatic features.  An Auto-Bet screen allows you to program the game to make bets automatically.  A Hyper-Drive feature allows you to play the whole game hands-free for up to 2 million rolls!  And finally, numerous Statistics help you keep track of what's going on.

You can run WinCraps with as little or as much automation as you please, because you can play manually and automatically at the same time.

WinCraps is fully help context-sensitive, which means you can go directly to specific help topics by pressing the F1 key in any of the following circumstances:

  From any menu item.

  From any pop-up screen.

  While pointing at anything on the craps table with the mouse-pointer.

WinCraps' graphics were designed to fit a 640X480 resolution.  Monitors set to higher resolutions will work fine but have the effect of shrinking the game screens.  The colors utilize a 256 color palette.  Certain drivers set to numbers of colors higher that 256 have been known to display a blacked out table (consult your Windows documentation on how to select a different driver through Windows' Control Panel).  The game plays easily with a mouse and/or Keyboard and the Sounds utilize a sound card or PC speaker!

If you've never played craps before, you should begin with the Help Contents section on Understanding Craps and read through each item, from the Overview to Putting it all Together.  Then read about the most basic bet on the table, the Pass Line bet, and go back to the table to experiment with it.  Ignore everything else except for the dice and the Marker Buck (that round disc at the top of the table that says OFF or ON).  It will make more sense after you've tried it a few times.  Next read about when and how to make an Odds bet.  When you've mastered the Pass Line and Odds bets, you can already consider yourself a good craps player even if you never learn about or play any of the other bets!

Craps is an exciting, fast-paced game with lots of action taking place at once.  Just watch any full table sometime, and you can't help but marvel at the scene: hands and chips are everywhere, Dealers are taking down and paying off bets, players are collecting winnings and making new bets.  Each roll of the Dice brings a flurry of activity with only seconds to go until they come flying again.  The players seem to develop a camaraderie, and can often be heard cheering the Shooter.

To the uninitiated, the game can appear overwhelming and confusing.  But craps doesn't have to be any more complicated than you want to make it.  The craps table includes many possible wagers.  You don't have to (and shouldn't) play them all.  With some practice on WinCraps, you'll gain the knowledge to know what bets to make and how to take control of your playing.  Soon you'll have memorized the Odds Payoffs and will be craving the fast action that attracts players to craps.  Have fun!

Note:  Windows is a trademark of Microsoft Corporation.


Overview

Craps is a game where wagers are placed dependent on the outcome of the roll of two Dice.  Each die has 6 sides marked with 1 through 6 dots to represent numbers.  The face-up values of both rolled dice add together to form one number.  There are 36 possible combinations of the dice with numbers ranging from 2 to 12.  The number 7 as it turns out, can be rolled more ways than any other number.  Therefore it should come as no surprise that the game in large part hinges on the number 7.

Take a moment to look at the table of Dice Combinations.  Notice how the number 7 marks the center point of all the numbers, that it has the greatest number of combinations, and that the further away a number is from 7, the fewer combinations it has.  Also notice how the table forms a symmetrical triangle with each set of numbers on opposite sides of the 7 (such as the 6/8 or 3/11) having equal numbers of combinations.

Any number of possible wagers can be devised using this table, and certainly no craps Layout could ever include them all.  But by using the number 7 as the focal point and by basing bets and payoffs versus the 7, the symmetry of the dice combinations is put to use.  Bets that do this are called the Pass Line, Don't Pass, Come, and Don't Come bets.  They are in essence the heart of the craps game and among the best bets you can make in any casino since the House has only a very small Advantage on them.  Place, Buy, and Lay bets as you'll see also hinge on the 7 but give the House a larger advantage.  There are some bets however, which are not hinged on the 7.  They are One-Roll or Proposition bets.  They give the House the largest advantage of all, and therefore are among the worst bets you can make.  But regardless of the bet type, the game is a simple matter of comparing the number of possible winning and losing dice combinations.  These are called the Odds.

For instance, let's devise a bet where the number 8 versus the number 7, such that if an 8 is rolled the player wins, and if a 7 is rolled the player loses.  Any other roll we'll ignore.  Looking at the Dice Combinations we see that there are 5 possible ways to roll a winning 8, and 6 possible ways to roll a losing 7.  We call this the True Odds and we say they're 5 to 6 (annotated as 5:6).  Well you wouldn't want to make a wager where you have more chances of losing than winning would you?  Not unless you're offered some higher payoff to compensate you for your greater risk.  In a true system we do this by paying you what the Odds are against winning - in this case that means paying you 6 to 5 (6 won for every 5 bet).  This keeps the system in balance.  Thus, if we were to have a perfect distribution of 36 rolls of the Dice and we bet $5 on each roll, we would win $6 on 5 of the rolls (total $30) and lose $5 on 6 of the rolls (total $30).

But what are the chances of having a perfect distribution of rolls?  In the short run - very small.  And herein lies the only reason you would want to play craps at all - the hope that the distribution of rolls is unbalanced and favors your bets for the amount of time that you are playing.  Note that time is the critical element here.  For as time and the number of rolls increases, the actual ratios of numbers rolled will approach a perfect distribution.

Well, so what?  In a true system your losses equal your wins, right?  Right.  But you don't imagine that the House stays in business watching you break even do you?  The true system has been altered!  The House takes a Percentage or cut out of every bet on the table using a variety of different methods.  In some instances you are simply paid Odds that are less than true.  For example, if you make a straight wager on the number 8 (called a Place  bet), instead of paying True Odds of 6 to 5 (or 1.2 to 1), the House pays Adjusted Odds of 7 to 6 (or 1.167 to 1), for a calculated 1.52% advantage.  In other instances, the House pays True Odds but only after an up-front Commission (called Vig) has been paid.  For example, you may Buy a Bet for a 5% Vig.  In still other instances you must first make what's called a Flat Bet bet that pays Even-Money before you may place what's called an Odds bet that pays True Odds.  Rest assured that the House has figured their percentage into each bet one way or another.

The interesting thing however, is that the House Percentage is not the same on all bets  It can range from less than 1% to over 16% - a whopping difference!  Granted, you can win or lose on any bet, but when you're bucking the higher percentages it's a lot tougher to win.  So, if you're going to stand any real chance of winning, it would behoove you to learn which bets have the lowest percentages and how to play them.  Read on!


Dice Combinations

All the 36 possible combinations of 2 Dice are organized in the table below:

#	Dice Combinations (ways)	Number of ways
2	1-1	1
3	1-2,  2-1	2
4	1-3,  2-2,  3-1	3
5	1-4,  2-3,  3-2,  4-1	4
6	1-5,  2-4,  3-3,  4-2,  5-1	5
7	1-6,  2-5,  3-4,  4-3,  5-2,  6-1	6
8	2-6,  3-5,  4-4,  5-3,  6-2	5
9	3-6,  4-5,  5-4,  6-3	4
10	4-6,  5-5,  6-4	3
11	5-6,  6-5	2
12	6-6	1


Probability

The ratio of the number of ways an event can happen, to the number of all possible outcomes.  In simpler terms, it means the chance of something happening.  For instance, out of 36 possible Dice Combinations, the number 7 can be rolled 6 ways.  So the probability of rolling a 7 is 6/36 or 16.67%.  In other words, every time you Roll the Dice there's a 16.67% chance that you'll roll a 7.

#	Probability
2	1/36	2.78%
3	2/36	5.56%
4	3/36	8.33%
5	4/36	11.11%
6	5/36	13.89%
7	6/36	16.67%
8	5/36	13.89%
9	4/36	11.11%
10	3/36	8.33%
11	2/36	5.56%
12	1/36	2.78


Odds

Odds are a comparison of Probabilities, or the number of ways one event can happen versus another.   For instance, there are 6 ways to roll a 7, and 5 ways to roll an 8, so the odds of rolling a 7 versus an 8 are 6 to 5.  See the Table of Odds and House Advantages for a complete list of odds.

In craps the True Odds of a bet are figured by comparing the numbers of winning and losing Dice Combinations.  The only bets that pay True Odds are Odds Bets associated with the Pass Line, Don't Pass, Come, and Don't Come bets.  This means that the payoff ratios on these bets are a direct reflection of the actual numbers of possible dice combinations.  Lay bets, and Buy bets also pay True Odds but only after an up-front Commission (or Vig) has been paid.  The payoffs on all other bets are to Adjusted Odds.  This means that they're arbitrarily set at something less than true to maintain the House advantage.  For example, although the True Odds on a Twelve bet are 35 to 1, many casinos pay it at 30 to 1, some pay it at 29 to 1.  They could payoff at even less if they felt so inclined, but they usually don't stray too far from the norm.


Table Layout

Shown above is a full craps layout.  There are three main sections:  The two outer sections are essentially mirror images of one another and are each manned by a Dealer.  The center section is a common betting area for both ends of the table and is manned by a Stickperson.  The clear area between the wall of the table and the outlined bets is called the Apron.  Each table usually has one seated Boxperson but when action is heavier there may be two and when lighter there may be none.  The players stand anywhere around the Rails adjacent to the Pass Line.

Each outer section can be broken into two areas:

Self-Service Area

The Self-service Area includes the Pass Line, Don't Pass, Come, Don't Come, Field, and Big 6 / Big 8 bets.  These are bets that you can physically place yourself by putting your Checks directly on the appropriate part of the layout .

Dealer's Cash Register

The Dealer's Cash Register includes the six boxes numbered 4 through 10, known as Point Boxes.  These Point Boxes include Place, Buy, Lay, and established Come and Don't Come bets together with any Odds.  As the name implies, this is a hands-off area!  The Dealer is the only one who's allowed to handle these bets.  The top and bottom lines on either side of the printed Point Numbers are where Place bets are positioned, with the interior reserved for Buy, Come and Come Odds bets.  The separate area on top of each Point Box is where Lay, Don't Come and Don't Come Odds bets go.

The center section of the table contains the Proposition bets and is also a hands-off area.  The Stickperson is in charge of the bets there.

The Dealers use a system to discern whose bet is whose on the layout.  This system is fairly simple - your bets are placed in relation to where you stand at the table and how far you are from either the Stickperson or the Dealer.  For instance, let's assume that eight players are gathered around the half of the table to the Stickperson's left.  Shown here, the 1st player on the Stickperson's left has a $30 Place 8 bet, a $5 Come 8 bet, and $10 in Odds.  The 2nd player has a $30 Place 8 bet, the 3rd has no bet, and the 4th has a $25 Come 8 bet.  The 1st, 2nd, and 3rd players on the Dealer's right all have $6 Place 8 bets, and the 4th has a $5 Come 8 bet, and $10 in Odds.


Checks / Chips

Instead of playing with cash, the casino uses chips called Checks (or Cheques).  Checks generally come in $1, $5, $25, $100, and $500 denominations, and are sometimes referred to as Color.  Typical colors are $1 - white, $5 - red, $25 - green, $100 - black, and $500 - yellow or purple.

When you want some smaller denomination checks, just ask the Dealer for Check-change.  Or you can ask for a color, i.e. give the Dealer a green check and say you'd like all red - you'll get five red checks in return.  Ask for white and you'll get 25 white checks.  When you want some larger denomination checks, tell the Dealer you want to Color-up.  However, Dealers generally prefer that you hold off on Coloring-up until you're finished playing.  Then rather than juggling your hoard of checks to the cashier's cage, the Boxperson will count them out and give you back fewer checks (in larger denominations) to carry.


Dice

At the side of the table next to the Stickperson is a small bowl where a number of dice (generally from 4 to 8) are kept.  The dice are perfect cubes to within 1/10,000 of an inch with sharp edges and corners to give them more bounce and ensure random rolls.  They're made of hard, transparent plastic, usually red (but sometimes another color), and marked with a code number as well as the casino's name and logo.  The opposite sides of each die always add up to 7.  For instance, if the 5 is showing on top, you know that the 2 is on the bottom.  See also Roll the Dice.


Marker Buck
Marker Buck / Puck

During play, a Point-Marker called the Marker Buck (or Puck) is used to denote whether the Shooter is on a Come-out Roll or has established a Point.  The Marker Buck is a round disc a little less than 4" in diameter, marked on one side with the word ON and the other side with the word OFF.  In some casinos one side is marked with the word Point and the other side with the word Come-out (which are probably more descriptive markings).  It's important to remember that the Marker Buck marks the point for the Pass Line and Don't Pass bets.  The points for Come and Don't Come bets are marked by moving the wagered Checks to the appropriately numbered Point Boxes.


On / Off / Buy / Lay Buttons

ON, OFF, BUY, and LAY buttons are small chips (smaller than Checks) used to denote the status of certain wagers.  They're placed on top of the wagered checks by the Dealers.


The Crew

The typical craps table is staffed with a crew of four:  one seated Boxperson, two standing Dealers, and one standing Stickperson.

Boxperson

The Boxperson is in charge of the table.  He or she sits by the House Bankroll at the side-center of the table between the two Dealers, oversees the action, inspects Dice, settles disputes, and ensures that the game is conducted properly.  The Boxperson collects and counts all the cash presented at the table and then slips it into a narrow slot in the layout where it falls into a Drop-box - hence the name Boxperson.

StickPerson

The Stickperson controls the flow of the game.  He or she stands at the side-center of the table opposite the Boxperson, calls the rolls, handles Proposition  bets, and wields a long L-shaped stick with which to retrieve the Dice after being rolled, and to present the dice to the Shooter for the next roll.  A good Stickperson talks up the game, adding lively banter to his or her calls and peddling the Proposition bets for the House.  This position is also termed being On the Stick.

Dealers

There are two standing Dealers who handle most of the wagering at the table.  The Dealer's position is also termed On Base, and it is this person who you'll have the most contact with.  The Dealer takes down losing bets and pays off winning bets.  The Dealer will sell you Checks for your cash or make Check-Change or Color-Change when you need different denominations.

A busy table can really keep a crew hopping - sometimes you wonder how they keep all the bets and payoffs straight.  So if you're getting fast, efficient, and friendly service, you might want to reward them by putting down a Toke once in a while to show your appreciation.


Table Limits

The minimum and maximum amounts that may be wagered per bet, as well as the Odds Allowed factors, are posted on a small placard at the side of the table near each Dealer.  A typical table might have a $5 minimum, $1000 maximum, and Double Odds allowed.  The limits usually apply to all bets except the Proposition and Odds bets.

For Proposition bets the minimum is usually the smallest denomination Check in use at the table and the maximum is computed based on an arbitrary maximum payoff.  For instance, the maximum payoff might be 3 times the posted maximum bet.  So on a table with a posted $1000 maximum bet, the maximum payoff would be $3000.  Therefore on a bet like the Twelve, which pays 30 to 1, you could bet a maximum of $100.  Don't worry about figuring this out - just ask one of the Crew how much you can bet.

For Odds bets, the maximum is based on a multiple of the Flat bet.  For instance, on a $1000 limit, Double Odds table, the Flat bet would be limited to $1000, but the Odds bet could be $2000 or as much as $4000 on the Don't Pass or Don't Come bets.

The limits at casinos vary and may sometimes change in the midst of your playing - usually as a function of how many players are present.  The House would like to maximize its profits by keeping its tables full of players who bet lots of money.  When there is an abundance of players, raising the minimum bets will effectively force players with smaller Bankrolls to leave the tables and make room for the High Rollers (big bettors).  Conversely, when players are scarce, lowering the minimum bets may lure back the small fry.

In WinCraps you can set different maximum and minimum limits on the Configuration screen.


Come-Out Roll / Establishing a Point

Every game has to start somewhere.  With craps it's the Come-out Roll.

Rolling the Dice generates series of numbers that may be thought of as having beginnings and endings.  A series may begin and end on the same roll, or it may be many rolls long.  The beginning of each series is called the Come-out Roll and the end is called a Decision.  One or more decisions for a Shooter compose a Hand or a Shoot.

On the Come-out Roll the Dealer turns the Marker Buck to display OFF and usually places it to the side of the table.  The Shooter then rolls the Dice.  If the number rolled is a Natural (2, 3, 7, 11, or 12) then a decision is reached immediately and the next roll will be another Come-out Roll.  On the other hand, if the number rolled is a Point Number (4, 5, 6, 8, 9, or 10) then a Point is said to be Established.  The Dealer marks the Point by turning the Marker Buck over to display ON and placing it on or next to the appropriately numbered Point Box - this is known as the Shooter's Point.

Once the Shooter's Point has been Established, the Shooter continues rolling until the Point is rolled again or a 7 is rolled.  That is to say the Shooter either Passes or Sevens-Out.  Another way of saying it is, the Dice Pass or the Dice Don't Pass.    Rolling either one results in a Decision and the next roll will be another Come-out Roll.  Don't get confused by the term "Pass".  When the Shooter Passes, he does not pass the dice to the next player.  He retains control of them and continues his Hand until he Sevens-out.  Once his Hand is ended, then the Stickperson passes the dice clockwise to the next Shooter.  Note that a Shooter who is betting that the dice will not Pass (as with a Don't Pass bet) still retains and loses control of the Dice in the same manner even though his bets win on a Seven-Out and lose on a Pass.

Through time-honored tradition, Place, Buy, and Come Odds bets are automatically considered to be OFF during the Come-out Roll.  In other words, they are out of action and will not win or lose.  Once a Shooter's Point is Established, they are considered to be back ON again.  The reason for this is because the majority of players bet the Pass Line where a Come-out Roll of 7 is a winner.  But since 7 is a loser on these other bets, they feel that turning them OFF de-conflicts them.  However, you can call any of them ON if you'd like, especially the odds since they lower the House's Advantage.


What Bets are Available?

Most craps tables offer the following bets:

Pass Line	Place	(4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10)
Don't Pass	Buy	(4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10)
Come	Lay	(4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10)
Don't Come	Big 6 / Big 8
Odds	Hardway	(4, 6, 8, 10)
	One-Roll	(2, 3, 11, 12, Any Craps, Any Seven, C&E, Field, Hop, Horn)

All of these bets are marked on the Layout except for Odds and Hop bets (although occasionally you'll find a layout that does display Hop bets).

When you make a bet, your Checks are placed in the appropriate area on the table Layout relative to where you're standing at the table.  See How do I make a bet?.

Some bets can be put up or taken down at any time and others only at certain times.  Some can be turned OFF or ON, and some are automatically OFF or ON at certain times unless you tell the Dealer otherwise.  Some bets can be increased and some cannot.  Some can be decreased and some cannot.  Most importantly, they all have different payoffs and different House Percentages.

Moreover, bets can be thought of as falling into one of two categories: Do bets and Don't bets.  Do bets are those where you hope that a number or numbers will roll, and Don't bets are those where you hope that a number or numbers will not roll.  These categories are also known as betting either With or Against the Dice.

Seem confusing?  Well it's not really.  Actually, some of these options just make the game more fun to play.


With / Against the Dice

In general, betting With the Dice means you are betting that a number or numbers will be rolled.  Betting Against the Dice means you are betting that a number or numbers will not be rolled.

Betting on the Pass Line, Come, or Place bets is said to be betting With the Dice or Right betting.  You are betting that Point numbers will be rolled before a 7.

Betting on the Don't Pass, Don't Come, or Lay bets is said to be betting Against the Dice or Wrong betting.  You are betting that Point numbers will not be rolled before a 7.

These however, are just terms and should not be construed to indicate the correct or incorrectness of any bet.


Flat Bets / Odds Bets

The Pass Line, Don't Pass, Come, and Don't Come bets are the heart of craps and all possess some common properties.

They are Standing bets, meaning they can either win, lose, or stand (remain in play) depending on the roll of the Dice.  Unlike One-Roll bets, Standing bets may remain in play indefinitely until their particular winning or losing numbers are rolled.

Each of these bets has two components:

1)  A Flat (primary) bet - made before a Point is Established.

2)  An Odds (secondary) bet - allowed only after a Point is Established.

When you first make a Flat bet, the next roll of the Dice determines 1 of 2 things:

1)  If a Natural is rolled, the bet either wins, loses, or Stands-off.

2)  If a Point Number is rolled, a Point is Established and marked by the Dealer.

For Pass Line and Don't Pass bets, the Point is marked with the Marker Buck and is known as the Shooter's Point.   For Come and Don't Come bets, the Point is marked by picking up the bet and moving it to the appropriately numbered Point-box and is known as the Come Point or Don't Come Point.  Rolling then continues until a 7 is rolled or the Point is rolled again.

Naturals are the numbers 2, 3, 7, 11, and 12.  They only affect Flat bets before their Points are Established and are ignored afterwards.  The Do bets (Pass Line and Come), win on Naturals of 7 or 11, and lose on 2, 3, or 12.  The Don't bets (Don't Pass and Don't Come), are almost a mirror image.  They win on Naturals of 2 or 3 and lose on 7 or 11.  The difference is 12 which results in a Stand-off - neither a win nor a loss.

Point Numbers are the numbers 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, and 10.  Once a Point is Established, the fate of the wager changes into a contest between rolling the same number again and rolling a 7.  For the Do bets rolling the same number results in a win, and rolling a 7 results in a loss.  For the Don't bets the opposite is true - rolling the number again results in a loss and rolling a 7 results in a win.

Yes, that's right - all these bets can both win and lose on a roll of 7 - depending on whether it's rolled before or after a Point is Established!

On the Come-out Roll for the Pass Line, or the initial roll for a Come bet, the player enjoys a 2 to 1 advantage over the House with 8 rolls that win (six - 7's plus two - 11's) versus 4 rolls that lose (one - 2, two -3's, plus one - 12).  However, after a Point is Established, the advantage swings back to the House because now no matter what Point has been Established, there are fewer ways to repeat it and win than there are ways to roll a 7 and lose.  This means that on average you'll lose these bets whenever a Point is Established, and also explains why the House won't let you remove them once established.  If they allowed you to only make bets when you had the Advantage and then remove them when you didn't - they'd go broke in a heart beat!

For the Don't Pass and Don't Come bets nearly the reverse is true.  On the Come-out Roll for the Don't Pass, or the initial roll for the Don't Come bet, the House has the Advantage of 8 to 3.  However, after a Point has been Established, the Advantage swings to the player!  Now there are more ways to roll a 7 and win than there are ways to repeat the established number and lose.  So on average you'll win these bets whenever a Point is Established.  This explains why the House would be more than happy to let you remove them from the table.  After all they're in business to make money and have no qualms about letting you relinquish your well-earned advantage.

The House pays Flat bets at Even-Money and Odds bets at the True Odds of the Point rolled.  You don't have to Bet the Odds if you don't want to, but they're actually the best bets on the table because by themselves, they have no House Advantage.  That's not to say they swing the advantage in your favor - the House still has the edge when you combine them with the Flat bets you're obliged to make.  But since any other bet on the Layout exposes you to even more of the House advantage, a bet with no advantage is a good deal!  In essence, the larger the Odds bet is allowed to be, the smaller the House's edge becomes.  You can't eliminate the edge, but you can whittle it down.  For this reason you should always bet Full Odds when able and play at tables that offer the largest Odds Factors.  See the discussions on Some Thoughts on Craps and Gambling and Pushing the House.

Since Odds bets have no House Advantage or disadvantage, you may place or remove them at any time (or call them ON of OFF at anytime).  Additionally, Come Odds bets are automatically considered OFF (Not Working) on the Come-out Roll unless you call them ON.

Curiously, Odds bets are not depicted anywhere on the Layout.  So where do they go?

The Pass Line Odds bet is placed next to the Pass Line bet in the open area of the table (Apron).  This is called Behind the Line.  The Come Odds bets are placed on top of their Flat bets and slightly offset.  This of course is done by the Dealer.

The Don't Pass Odds, and Don't Come Odds bets are placed next to their Flat bets and either Bridged or Heeled.  If the payoff for one of these Odds bets will be the same amount as the payoff for the Flat bet, then the Odds bet is Bridged.  This means that a portion of the Odds bet, equal to the Flat bet, is placed adjacent to the Flat bet and the remainder is placed on top, bridging both of them (see the diagram below).  On the other hand, if the Odds payoff is not the same as the Flat bet then the Odds bet is Heeled.  This means that one Check is placed adjacent to the Flat bet and the remaining checks are placed on top of that check - offset and tilted.  For example, on a $10 Don't Pass bet that has been Established on the number 6, an Odds bet of $12 would have the same payoff as the Flat bet ($10) and therefore should be Bridged.  But an Odds bet of $30 would have a payoff of $25 and therefore should be Heeled.  Clear as mud?  Don't worry - the Dealer will make sure you do it right, and you'll get the hang of it quickly.

The act of making Odds bets is called either Taking or Laying Odds.


Taking and Laying Odds

When you make an Odds bet on a Pass Line or Come bet, you're said to be Taking Odds.  When you make an Odds bet on a Don't Pass or Don't Come bet, you're said to be Laying Odds.

Every bet has a payoff ratio that can be expressed as x to y (x:y) and is derived from its number of winning versus losing Dice Combinations.  For True Odds bets, the same figures are used whether the bet is For or Against a particular Point Number - the only difference being that they're reversed.  For instance, an Odds bet For the 9 pays 3 to 2, while an Odds bet Against the 9 pays 2 to 3.

On bets that are With the Dice, your chances of losing are greater than your chances of winning, because there are more ways to roll a losing 7 than there are ways to roll a winning Point Number.  Therefore, when you win - you're paid greater than Even-Money (recall the discussion about a balanced system in the Overview).  More specifically, you're paid the larger figure in the payoff ratio.

On the other hand, on bets that are Against the Dice, your chances of losing are less than your chances of winning, because there are fewer ways to roll a losing Point Number than there are ways to roll a winning 7.  Therefore, when you win - you're paid less than Even-Money.  Specifically, you're paid the smaller figure in the payoff ratio.

So Taking the Odds on bets With the Dice means that you're taking better than Even-Money - wagering a given amount to win a larger amount.  However, Laying the Odds on bets Against the Dice means that you're giving (or laying) better than Even-Money - wagering a given amount to win a smaller amount.

Whether you Take or Lay the Odds, your average chances of winning are exactly balanced with the payoff.  For instance, let's look at a $10 Odds bet For the 10.  The bet pays 2 to 1 because there are twice as many ways to roll a losing 7 as there are a winning 10.  So every $20 win is on average balanced with 2, $10 losses - a net of $0.  Similarly for a $10 Odds bet Against the 10.  The bet pays 1 to 2 because there are half as many ways to roll a losing 10 as there are a winning 7.  So every $10 loss is on average balanced with 2, $5 wins - once again a net of $0.

So the Odds bet is, on average, strictly a zero sum game.  But we're not playing craps with the hope of rolling an average game.  We already know from our discussion in the Overview that we can only win if the distribution of rolls is unbalanced in favor of our bets. If so, then Odds bets are the best deal we can get.


Odds Allowed

The House allows the maximum size of an Odds bet to be some factor of the Flat bet.  This Odds Allowed Factor is displayed on a placard mounted on the inside wall of the table.  For example, if you had established a $10 Pass Line bet then you would be allowed to take the following amount on Odds:

Odds Allowed Factor	Odds
Single	$10
Double	$20
Triple	$30
5X	$50
10X	$100
20X	$200
100X	$1000

In general you use this simple formula:

Odds bet maximum size  =  Size of Flat bet  X  Odds Allowed Factor

This formula works for the Pass Line Odds and Come Odds bets.  However, for the Don't Pass Odds and Don't Come Odds bets, the maximum size is larger still because you are Laying Odds instead of Taking Odds.  With these bets you're allowed to Lay amounts that will win the maximum Odds Allowed.  The easiest way to figure out how much you can Lay is to calculate the maximum size using the above formula and then ask yourself:  If this were a Pass Line Odds bet, how much would it pay?  The resulting figure is the amount you are allowed to Lay on the Don't Pass Odds or Don't Come Odds bets.

For instance, let's say Double Odds are being allowed and you have Established a $5 Don't Pass bet with the Point as 6.  If it were a Pass Line bet, you could make a maximum Odds bet of $10 which would pay $12.  So there's your answer - you may bet $12 on the Don't Pass Odds bet.  This concept may take a little practice to master and might partially explain why few players bet Against the Dice.

The maximum size for an Odds bet is not always a strict multiple of the Flat bet.  The House may allow a greater amount in order to make a correct payoff.  Often the method used to calculate the maximum amount is based on Single Odds.  For instance, on the Point Numbers 5 and 9 where the Odds pay 3 to 2, if an uneven Flat amount such as $3, $5, etc. were bet, then an equally sized Single Odds bet would not be fully payable (i.e. $3 x 3/2 = 4.5 which leaves .5 leftover if the smallest chip the Dealer has to pay with is $1).  Therefore, the Single Odds bet is allowed to be pushed to the next higher increment.  So a $3 bet could take $4 in Odds ($4 x 3/2 = 6 = fully payable), a $5 bet could take $6 in Odds, and so on.  Similar pushes are allowed on the Point Numbers 6 and 8 which pay 6 to 5.  For instance, Flat bets such as $3 or $4 can take Single Odds of $5.  But no pushes are allowed for Odds bets on the Point Numbers 4 and 10 because all amounts are always fully payable with a 2 to 1 payoff.

Usually these ratios hold true for all Check denominations.  So a $300 Pass Line bet on Point Number 5 would be allowed to take $400 in Odds (3 - $100 checks pushes to 4 - $100 checks).  A $75 Pass Line bet on Point Number 8 would be allowed to take $125 in Odds (3 - $25 checks pushes to 5 - $25 checks), etc.

To figure Double or Triple Odds, some casinos simply double or triple the amount that would be allowed under Single Odds.  For instance, a $15 Flat bet on the Point 6 would take $25 in Single Odds (3 checks pushes to 5) and can therefore take $50 in Double Odds.  Another method is to double or triple the Flat bet and allow an amount equal to the Single Odds for that figure.  However, many casinos now use straight multiples of 2x for the 4/10 and 5/9, and 2.5x for the 6/8 with rounding up to the nearest amount divisible by 5 for most cases.  But what a casino allows for Odds is somewhat like a personal signature, so the important thing to do is ask how much they'll allow and go with it, realizing that the next casino may allow something entirely different.  At the very least you know that your Odds bet can be as large as the size of your Flat bet times the Odds Allowed Factor.  The question then is how much are you allowed to push?  See the section titled Pushing the House.

For greater than triple odds, any links to Single Odds are severed and the Flat bet is simply multiplied with the Odds Allowed Factor.  However, pushing is still sometimes necessary and usually considers the denomination checks you're using to bet.  For instance, at a 5X table with a $15 Come 5 bet, a $75 Odds bet would need to be pushed in order to make a whole payoff.  But rather than just allow $76, a push to $80 would be allowed.


Pass Line Bet

The Pass Line bet is a Flat bet normally placed before the Come-out Roll.  (If you haven't already read about Flat bets you might want to read the section titled Flat Bets / Odds Bets first.)  On the Come-out Roll 1 of 3 things happens:

1)  A 7 or 11 is rolled and the Pass Line bet wins. (Termed a Pass)

2)  A 2, 3, or 12 is rolled and the Pass Line bet loses.  (Termed a Crap-out)

3)  A 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, or 10 is rolled and the Pass Line bet neither wins nor loses but a Shooter's Point is Established and marked with the Marker Buck.

If a Shooter's Point is Established, then on subsequent rolls 1 of 3 things can happen:

1)  The Shooter's Point is rolled again and the Pass Line bet wins. (Termed a Pass)

2)  A 7 is rolled and the Pass Line bet loses.  (Termed a Seven-Out or Miss)

3)  Any other number is rolled and the Pass Line bet neither wins nor loses but rolling continues.

The payoff on the Pass Line is Even-Money, which gives the House a 1.41% Advantage.  Once a Shooter's Point is Established, the Pass Line bet must remain on the table until a Decision is reached and cannot be removed or called OFF or ON.

Also, once a Shooter's Point is Established you are permitted to add a secondary Odds bet Behind the Line (in the unmarked area of the table, adjacent to your Pass Line bet).  This is called Taking the Odds and is one of the best bets you can make at the table because the House pays it off at True Odds.

Something many casinos allow you to do after a Shooter's Point is Established, is put a Pass Line bet on the table if you don't already have one, or increase the size of one if you already do.  This is called a Put bet.

Betting the Pass Line is also called betting the Front Line and is considered to be betting With the Dice.  Any winning roll for the Pass Line is termed a Pass - imagine that!


Put Bet

A Put bet is a Pass Line or Come bet that you put up (make) or increase without going through the Come-out Roll.  For instance, if you walked up to a table where a Shooter had already established a Point and you put a bet on the Pass Line - that would be a Put bet.  Or if you already had $5 on the Pass Line, and then after the Shooter established a Point you put another $5 on top of it - that would be a Put bet.  Or if you gave the Dealer $15 and said, "Put me up on the Come 6 for $5 Flat and $10 Odds" - that would be a Put bet.

Not all casinos allow Put bets and therefore some Dealers don't even know what they are.  But Put bets are always less advantageous for the players than properly played Pass Line or Come bets, and in most cases they're less advantageous than Place bets too.

As discussed under Flat Bets / Odds Bets, the player enjoys a 2 to 1 advantage over the House for Pass Line and Come bets during the Come-out Roll.  But once a Point is established, the Advantage swings back to the House.  So putting a bet up after the greatest chance to win has passed is generally not a good idea.  However ... because you can Take Odds together with your Put bet, there are times when Put bets are better than Place bets on the same number - it all depends on the casino's Odds Allowed.  Take a look at this table:

		House Advantage %
Put w/Odds	4/10	5/9	6/8
0X	33.33	20.00	9.09
1X	16.67	10.00	4.55
2X	11.11	6.67	3.03
3X	8.33	5.00	2.27
5X	5.56	3.33	1.52
10X	3.03	1.82	.826
20X	1.59	.952	.433
100X	.33	.198	.09

You can see that at a Double Odds table, the best Put bet, one on the Points 6 or 8 with Full Odds, has a House Advantage of 3.03%, which is still twice as bad as the comparable Place bets at 1.52%.  The worst Put bet, one on the Points 4 or 10 with no Odds, has an astounding 33.33% House Advantage!  You should be caned if you made such a bet!  You might as well just give them your money!

But if you're playing at a table that offers greater than 5X odds the story changes.  There you can take Full Odds and actually lower the House's Advantage to less than a Place bet!  The only problem is - can you stomach the size of the wager?  At a $5 table with 10X odds, a Put bet on the Point 6 with Full Odds will risk $55, whereas a Place 6 bet can be as small as $6.  (Actually, at 5X odds, Putting the 5 and 9 is worth while too, but Buying the 4 and 10 is still a better deal, and it makes no difference on the 6 and 8.)

You can Configure WinCraps to either allow or disallow the use of Put bets.


Don't Pass Bet

The Don't Pass bet is a Flat bet that's placed before the Come-out Roll.  (If you haven't already read about Flat bets you might want to read the section titled Flat Bets / Odds Bets first.)  On the Come-out Roll 1 of 4 things happens:

1)  A 7 or 11 is rolled and the Don't Pass bet loses.

2)  A 2 or 3 is rolled and the Don't Pass bet wins.

3)  A 12 is rolled and the Don't Pass bet neither wins nor loses.  This is called a Stand-off or Push, and is depicted on the Layout as Bar 12.  (Some casinos use Bar 2 instead, but the odds remain the same since both 2 and 12 can only be rolled one way.  However, some casinos have been known to use Bar 3, and that makes a big difference!  Watch out for this one because the House Advantage is 4.39% versus the normal 1.4%!)

4)  A 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, or 10 is rolled and the Don't Pass bet neither wins nor loses but a Shooter's Point is Established.

If a Shooter's Point is Established then on subsequent rolls 1 of 3 things can happen:

1)  A 7 is rolled and the Don't Pass bet wins.

2)  The Shooter's Point is rolled again and the Don't Pass bet loses.

3)  Any other number is rolled and the Don't Pass bet neither wins nor loses but rolling continues.

The payoff on the Don't Pass bet is Even-Money, which gives the House a 1.4% Advantage.  Unlike a Pass Line bet, the Don't Pass bet may be reduced or removed at any time.  However, it cannot be increased as with a Put bet, and it cannot be called OFF and ON.

Once a Shooter's Point is Established you are permitted to add a secondary Odds bet which is placed next to the Don't Pass bet either Bridged or Heeled.  (See the discussion under Flat Bets / Odds Bets.)  This is called Laying the Odds and is one of the best bets you can make at the table because the House pays it off at True Odds.

Some casinos combine the Don't Pass and Don't Come bets.  This doesn't change anything about how the Don't Pass bet works though - only where it sits.  The Dealer physically picks it up and moves it to the appropriately numbered Point Box whenever a Shooter's Point is rolled. The Pass Line bet could be combined with the Come bet in a similar manner but is never done.

Betting the Don't Pass is also called betting the Back Line and is considered to be betting Against the Dice.


Come Bet

A Come bet is a Flat bet With the Dice that is identical to the Pass Line bet.  As a matter of fact that's really what it is - another Pass Line bet!  So if you haven't already read about the Pass Line bet you might want to do that first.

The main difference between a Pass Line bet and a Come bet is that the Pass Line bet is made before the Shooter Establishes a Point, while the Come bet is made anytime after.  Whenever a Come bet is first made, the next roll is treated the same as a Come-out Roll for the Pass Line.  It wins, loses and establishes a Point in the same manner.  However, while the Shooter's Point for the Pass Line bet is marked with the Marker Buck, the Come Point for the Come bet is marked by picking it up and moving it to the appropriately numbered box Point Box.  In other words, it acts as its own Marker Buck.  Once this occurs, you are permitted to add a secondary Odds bet which is placed on top of the Come bet and slightly offset.  This is called Taking the Odds and is one of the best bets you can make at the table because the House pays it off at True Odds.

Let's see how this works:  Say you make a Come bet and the Shooter rolls a 4.  Your Come bet is picked up and moved to the 4 where you may now place an Odds bet along with it.  Now your only concern is whether the Shooter will roll a winning 4 or a losing 7 - no other numbers matter.  However, let's say that while you're waiting for your 4, you decide to make another Come bet and this time the Shooter rolls an 8.  This Come bet is picked up and moved to the 8 where you may once again place an Odds bet along with it.  Now you have two Come bets in action.  It will take at least two rolls to win both of them - a 4 and an 8, but only one roll to lose both of them - a 7.

Actually, you could continue to make Come bets and end up having seven of them on the table at once - six Established on Points and one Coming.  Each time you roll a Point Number that already has an established Come bet on it, you win the established bet and your new Come bet moves in to replace it.

If your new Come bet is the same size as the one it's replacing (the Flat portion), the Dealer will most likely leave the established Checks where they are and simply pay you your winnings.  This is termed OFF-and-ON and your winnings are placed along side the new Come bet which for this case does not get moved.  You must quickly retrieve your winnings or they will be working as a Come bet for the next roll!  This of course is to make less work for the Dealer (and thereby less delay of the game) by avoiding having to take down, pay off, and rebuild the checks for the same bet.

As discussed in the section on Come-out Roll, Come Odds bets are automatically considered to be OFF (or Not Working) during the Come-out Roll.  They are out of action and will not win or lose.  However, the Flat bet portion is always active.  So what happens if a Come Point or a 7 is rolled during this time?  Well, if a Come Point is rolled, the Dealer simply pays the Flat bet and returns the Odds.  If a 7 is rolled, then the Dealer takes the Flat bet and returns the Odds.

Of course once a Point is Established, the Come Odds are turned back ON again.  But why even let the House turn them OFF to begin with?  Didn't you bet them to get more action and lower the House's Advantage?  Well then, just tell the Dealer you want to keep them Working and he or she will place an ON button on top of them.

Additional details can be found in the section titled Flat Bets / Odds Bets.

One last thing about Come bets:  Many casinos will let you establish Come bets directly on a Point Number without going through any sort of Come-out Roll.  This is called a Put bet.


Don't Come Bet

A Don't Come bet is a Flat bet Against the Dice that is identical to the Don't Pass bet.  As a matter of fact that's really what it is - another Don't Pass bet!  So if you haven't already read about the Don't Pass bet you might want to do that first.

The main difference between a Don't Pass bet and a Don't Come bet is that the Don't Pass bet is made before the Shooter Establishes a Point, while the Don't Come bet is made anytime after.  Whenever a Don't Come bet is first made, the next roll is treated the same as a Come-out Roll for the Don't Pass bet.  It wins, loses and establishes a Point in the same manner.  However, while the Shooter's Point for the Don't Pass bet is marked with the Marker Buck, the Don't Come Point for the Don't Come bet is marked by picking it up and moving it to the appropriately numbered box Point Box.  In other words, it acts as its own Marker Buck.  Once this occurs, you are permitted to add a secondary Odds bet which is either Bridged or Heeled.  (See the discussion under Flat Bets / Odds Bets.)  This is called Laying the Odds and is one of the best bets you can make at the table because the House pays it off at True Odds.

Let's see how this works:  Say you make a Don't Come bet and the Shooter rolls a 4.  Your Don't Come bet is picked up and moved to the 4 where you may now place an Odds bet along with it.  Now your only concern is whether the Shooter will roll a winning 7 or a losing 4 - no other number matters.  However, let's say that while you're waiting for your 7, you decide to make another Don't Come bet and this time the Shooter rolls an 8.  This Don't Come bet is picked up and moved to the 8 where you may once again place an Odds bet along with it.  Now you have two Don't Come bets in action.  It will take only one roll to win both of them - a 7, but it will take two rolls to lose both of them - a 4 and an 8.

Actually, you could end up having seven total Don't Come bets all at once - six established on Points and one on the Don't Come box.  Each time you roll a Point Number that already has an established Don't Come bet on it, you lose the established bet and your new Don't Come bet moves in to replace it.

Unlike with Come bets, the Dealers do not use the OFF-and-ON method with Don't Come bets, nor are the Don't Come Odds bets automatically considered to be OFF during the Come-out Roll.  Although you could call them OFF if you wanted, nobody usually does it, so the Dealer might look at you a little funny.

Additional details can be found in the section titled Flat Bets / Odds Bets.


Place Bet

A Place bet is a Standing bet With the Dice that can be placed on any of the Point Numbers 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, or 10 at anytime.  The bet is For the chosen number and Against the 7.  1 of 3 things can happen with this bet:

1)  The Point Number is rolled and the bet wins.

2)  A 7 is rolled and the bet loses.

3)  Any other number is rolled and the bet neither wins nor loses but rolling continues.

The Checks for a Place bet are positioned by the Dealer in the Point Box, although if you bet on the Shooter's Point (the one marked with the Marker Buck) you can place your checks on the line separating the Pass Line bet and the Apron.

These bets are for players who want quick action and can't stand to see those precious Point Numbers being rolled without having them covered.  Although they're popular bets and certainly better than Proposition bets, they're not the best bets you can make.  The House exacts its Percentage on them by paying off at less than True Odds.  Here are the payoffs:

Number	Payoff	True Odds	House PC
4 & 10	9 to 5	2 to 1	6.67%
5 & 9	7 to 5	3 to 2	4.00%
6 & 8	7 to 6	6 to 5	1.52%

As you can see, the lowest House Percentage Place bets are on the 6 and 8 and are almost as good as Flat bets on the Pass Line.  The others aren't so great but you can improve them by making Buy bets instead.  In order to take advantage of the Odds you'll need to make bets on the 6 and 8 in increments of 6, and on the 4, 5, 9, and 10 in increments of 5.  See the discussion in the section titled How much should I bet?

Technically speaking, Place bets are Place to Win bets, meaning they're With the Dice.  There are also Place to Lose bets that are Against the Dice, but you'd be hard pressed to find a table that offers them.  Many Dealers don't even know what they are, but just like Place to Win bets, their Odds Payoffs have been reduced to give the House its Advantage.

Number	Payoff	True Odds	House PC
4 & 10	5 to 11	1 to 2	3.03%
5 & 9	5 to 8	2 to 3	2.50%
6 & 8	4 to 5	5 to 6	1.82%

Place bets can be put up or taken down at any time.  They're also automatically OFF (or Not Working) on the Come-out Roll, although they can be called ON or OFF at anytime if desired.

The 5, 6, 8, and 9 are referred to as the Inside Numbers, while the 4, 5, 9, and 10 are referred to as the Outside Numbers (yes, they overlap).  Someone telling the Dealer he want's "$22 Inside" means he wants $5 each on 5 & 9 and $6 each on 6 & 8.  You can probably figure out what "$20 Outside" and "$32 Across" mean for yourself.

If you play Place and Come bets at the same time, and the Shooter rolls the Point Number of one of your Place bets, you'll of course win the bet, but you'll also be asked what you'd like to do with it since your Come bet gets moved to the same Point.  You don't have to remove it if you don't want to, but doing so would be wiser since the House Advantage on Place bets is greater than on Pass Line or Come bets!  If you intend to Take Odds on your Come bet which would be smart, then you would tell the Dealer, "Down with Odds" which means: "Take down my Place bet, give me Odds on my Come bet, and return any change."


Big 6 / Big 8
Big 6 / Big 8 Bets

There are two rather strange bets called the Big 6 and Big 8 which operate similar to Place bets.  The difference is that they're not automatically OFF on the Come-out Roll and most importantly, their payoffs are reduced to Even-Money.  This is what makes them so strange:  Why would you settle for Even-Money when you can get better Odds (7 to 6) on the normal Place bets?  They're also termed Sucker Bets because of their high House Advantage, and they exist because uninformed players make bets on them!


Buy Bet

To make a Buy bet in WinCraps, you first make a Place bet and then do one of the following:

  Move the mouse-pointer over the bet and press the F5 key.

  Click the mouse-pointer on the blue BUY button and then click on the bet.

  Select "Buy" Place Bet from the Action menu, and then click on the bet.

  Log an Auto-Bet that Buys the bet.

However, if you have the "Key-in Bet Amounts" feature in use, then the mouse-pointer only works to move the Betting-window.  In that case you can:

  Move the Betting-window over the bet and press the F5 key.

  Move the Betting-window over the bet and select "Buy" Place Bet from the Action menu.

A Buy bet is a Standing bet With the Dice that can be placed on any of the Point Numbers 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, or 10 at anytime.  The bet is For the chosen number and Against the 7.  1 of 3 things can happen with this bet:

1)  The selected number is rolled and the bet wins.

2)  A 7 is rolled and the bet loses.

3)  Any other number is rolled and the bet neither wins nor loses but rolling continues.

A Buy bet is similar to a Place bet except that you pay a 5% Vig up-front in exchange for receiving a True Payoff if it wins.

Number	Payoff	House PC
4 & 10	2 to 1	4.76%
5 & 9	3 to 2	4.76%
6 & 8	6 to 5	4.76%

The Vig is figured on the amount wagered.  For example, if you wanted to make a $20 Buy bet on the number 4, you'd put down $21 in the Come area and tell the Dealer "Buy the 4".  He or she will move $20 to the number 4 Point Box and place a BUY button on top it.  The extra $1 (5% of $20) is the Vig for the House.  The result is that you'll win $40 (2 to 1) instead of $36 (9 to 5).  If you do win and want to keep your Buy bet up, you'll have to pay the Dealer another Vig.  The Vig is returned if you remove the bet before it wins or loses.

Depending on how much you want to bet, the Vig may work out to a fractional amount.  Generally, at a table where the smallest Checks are $1, the Vig will be rounded down on fractions of .50 or less and rounded up otherwise.  So you could Buy a $50 bet for $2 even though the Vig comes out to $2.50.  However, if you made two $50 Buy bets at the same time, you'd be charged $5 and not $4 for your total action.  Even if you didn't make both bets at the same time, some casinos would charge you the extra $1 whenever you made the second bet, and some would not.  Each casino handles their Vigs a little differently.  In WinCraps the Vig amount for a Buy bet is displayed on the Status-bar.

Buy bets, like Place bets, are automatically OFF on the Come-out Roll unless you call them ON.  They can be called ON or OFF, as well as  put up, taken down, increased, or decreased (with Vig adjustments) at any time.

Buy bets do not make sense for the 6 or 8, and generally not the 5 or 9 since the equivalent Place bet Percentages are already lower than 5%.  But for the 4 and the 10 they do make sense and should be utilized instead of Place bets.  See the section titled Pushing the House.

When you make a Buy bet, you're Taking Odds which is the exact opposite of a Lay bet where you're Laying Odds.


Lay Bet

A Lay bet is a Standing bet Against the Dice that can be placed on any of the Point Numbers 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, or 10 at anytime.  The bet is For the 7 and Against the chosen number.  1 of 3 things can happen with this bet:

1)  A 7 is rolled and the bet wins.

2)  The Point Number is rolled and the bet loses.

3)  Any other number is rolled and the bet neither wins nor loses but rolling continues.

This bet pays True Odds but only after you pay an up-front Vig of 5% of the potential payoff.

Number	Payoff	House PC
4 & 10	1 to 2	2.44%
5 & 9	2 to 3	3.23%
6 & 8	5 to 6	4%

That's right, the Vig is not figured on the amount bet!  For example, if you wanted to make a $40 Lay bet on the number 4, you'd put down $41 in the Come or Don't Come area and tell the Dealer, "Lay the 4".  He or she will move $40 to the number 4 Point Box and place a LAY button of top of it.  The extra $1 (5% of $20) is the Vig for the House (the potential payoff is $20 because the Odds on the Lay 4 are 1 to 2).  If you win and want to keep your Lay bet up, you'll have to pay the Dealer another Vig.  The Vig is returned if you remove the bet before it wins or loses.

Depending on how much you wish to bet, the Vig may work out to a fractional amount.  Generally, at a table where the smallest Checks are $1, the Vig will be rounded down on fractions of .50 or less and rounded up otherwise.  So on the 4 you could Lay a $100 bet for $2 even though the Vig comes out to $2.50.  However, if you made a $100 Lay 4 and a $100 Lay 10 bet at the same time, you'd be charged $5 and not $4 for your total action.  Even if you didn't make both bets at the same time, some casinos would charge you the extra $1 when you made the second bet, and some would not.  Each casino handles their Vigs a little differently.  In WinCraps the Vig amount for a Lay bet is displayed on the Status-bar.

Lay bets always Work but can be called OFF and back ON if you're so inclined.  Also they can be put up, taken down, increased, or decreased (with Vig adjustments) at any time.

Lay bets are sometimes called NO bets.  For instance you could tell the Dealer you wanted to bet a "NO 4".  The word Lay comes from the fact that you're Laying Odds which is the exact opposite of a Buy bet where you're Taking Odds.


Hardway Bet

A Hardway bet is a Standing bet that can be made at any time.  1 of 3 things can happen with the Hardway bet:

1)  The Hardway is rolled and the bet wins.

2)  A 7 or Easyway is rolled and the bet loses.

3)  Any other number is rolled and the bet stands - rolling continues.

A Hardway is one of the following unique Dice pairings that can be rolled:

2-2	(Hard 4)
3-3	(Hard 6)
4-4	(Hard 8)
5-5	(Hard 10)

Although each of the numbers 4, 6, 8, and 10 can be rolled more than one way, the listed pairings are unique.  For instance,  take a look at the possible Dice Combinations for the 4.  You'll see that there are 3 ways of rolling the 4 (1-3, 2-2, and 3-1).  The 2-2 pair is unique and therefore referred to as the Hardway or Hard 4.  The 1-3 or 3-1 pairs are identical and therefore referred to as the Easyways or Easy 4's.  A number like 12 certainly has only one unique way of being rolled (6-6), but is not called a Hardway since it has no Easyway counterpart.

Hardway bets can be put up, taken down, increased, or decreased at any time.  Additionally they can be called OFF or ON at any time if desired.  Many players like to turn them OFF on the Come-out Roll, so the Stickperson will usually remind everyone with an announcement like, "Hardways work unless you call them OFF".  These are not good bets to make since the House Percentages on them are quite high.

Hardway	Payoff	True Odds	House PC
4 & 10	7 to 1	8 to 1	11.1%
6 & 8	9 to 1	10 to 1	9.09%


Proposition Bets

Proposition bets are the One-Roll and Hardway bets found in the center of the table Layout.  Their high payoffs attract lots of action, but unfortunately their House Percentages are also quite high and don't justify the risk.  The Stickperson is often heard soliciting the players to make wagers on these bets, and to the delight of the House many oblige, but smart players know they're Sucker Bets.

You'll find there are more fancy ways with fancy names to bet these bets than a good Stickperson can shake a stick at!  You can even dream up a few of your own!  So if you hear someone call out something you don't know like, "Gimme a $10 hi-lo split and a $5 Buffalo!", don't despair, your best bet would be to avoid them altogether.  These are Sucker Bets to begin with, and fancy ways of betting them just makes them fancy Sucker Bets!


One-Roll Bets

One-Roll bets either win or lose on one roll of the Dice - that's it.  They win if their particular numbers are rolled and lose if anything else is rolled.  Therefore, their payoffs are figured against the total number of Dice Combinations and not just against the 7.  All One-Roll bets can be put up, taken down, increased, decreased, or called OFF or ON at any time.  They're not good bets to make though since the House Percentages on them are quite high.  There are many different kinds of One-Roll bets, but here are the most common ones:

	Any Craps
	Any Seven
	C and E
	Field
	Horn
	Hop
	Two / Three / Eleven / Twelve


Any Craps Bet

This One-Roll bet is a combined bet on 2, 3, and 12.  The Stickperson calls "Craps" anytime one of these numbers is rolled.  A 3-way Craps bet is actually 3 separate bets on 2, 3, and 12, so it must be made in increments of $3.


Any Seven Bet

This One-Roll bet is strictly For the 7.  It is by far the worst Proposition bet you can make with the House Advantage being over 16%!  Any Seven is sometimes referred to as Big Red.


C and E Bet

This One-Roll bet is a combined bet on Any Craps and Eleven.  In a casino the 2 circles depicting this bet are also used individually.  For instance, if you made an Any Craps bet, the Stickperson would probably place your Checks in the circle marked with a C.  However, this is identical to the normal Any Craps bet.  For the combined C and E bet, the payoff is figured as if you had made each bet separately.  Your bet amount is actually divided in two.  So if you don't bet an amount that is divisible by 2, your payoff will include a fractional amount which the House can't pay you and thus keeps for itself.


Field Bet

This is a combined One-Roll bet on 2, 3, 4, 9, 10, 11, and 12.  If the number rolled is a 2 then the payoff is doubled, and if a 12 then the payoff is tripled.  Some casinos reverse this, paying triple on the 2 and double 12, but it doesn't change the Odds any since both 2 and 12 can only be rolled one way.  Additionally, some include the number 5 in the Field instead of the 9, but it doesn't change the Odds either.  However, some casinos pay double on both the 2 and the 12 which increases the House Advantage.  On the Configuration screen you can choose which Field payoffs you'd like to play with.


Horn Bet

This One-Roll bet is a combined bet on Two, Three, Eleven, and Twelve.  However, the payoff is figured as if you had bet each number separately.  Your bet amount is actually divided equally four ways.  So if you don't bet an amount that is divisible by 4, your payoff will include a fractional amount which the House can't pay you and thus keeps for itself.  Occasionally you'll hear someone bet a Horn High 2 (3, 11, or 12).  This means they want the bet divided into 4 non-fractional parts with any remainder added to the number called.  So a $5 Horn High 12 would mean: bet $1 each on 2, 3, and 11, and $2 on 12.


Hop Bet
Hop Bets

These One-Roll bets (not presently available in WinCraps) are rarely used and usually not depicted on the Layout.  They're bets on particular Dice Combinations.  That is to say that you bet on what each separate die will show on one roll.  So if you told the Dealer you wanted a Hop 4-5, then a 4 and a 5 would have to appear on the next roll to win.  Some Hopping numbers like Hop 4-5, have two ways to be rolled (4-5 and 5-4) and others like Hop 3-3, have only one (3-3).  The ones with only one way to roll are harder to hit and therefore pay more when they do, but the House Advantage on all Hop bets is still high.  Hop 2-2, 3-3, 4-4, and 5-5 are called Hopping Hardways.


Two / Three / Eleven / Twelve Bets

These are simply One-Roll bets on one number.  Technically speaking they're Hop bets on 1-1, 1-2, 5-6, and 6-6.  For instance, if you bet on the Eleven, a 5 and a 6 would have to appear on the next roll of the Dice to win - otherwise it would lose.  The Two is sometimes referred to as aces or snake eyes, the Three as ace-deuce, the Eleven as Yo or Yo-leven, and the Twelve as box cars or midnight.


How much can and should I bet?

Well, any amount is acceptable as long as it falls between the Table maximums and minimums.  However, since the Dealer can only make payoffs with the Checks available and not any fractional amount, a wise player ensures that the amounts wagered will allow whole payoffs.

For instance, a Place bet on the 4 has a payoff of 9 to 5 (9 won for every 5 bet).  So if you only bet $1, the correct payoff should be $1.80.  But if the lowest denomination check is $1, the Dealer can't make the whole payoff - after paying a $1 check there is $.80 left over.  So rather than round the payoff up to $2 (wouldn't that be nice?), the Dealer rounds it down to $1 and keeps the fractional amount.  You have in effect given the House a gift!

If instead, you had bet any multiple of $5, the correct payoff would be a corresponding multiple of $9 which the house can easily pay in whole.  The key is to look at the payoff ratio x to y and bet in increments of y.  For a complete list of payoff ratios see Table of Odds and House Advantages.

As you can see, in craps it pays to know the Odds.  If you forget what they are, you can ask the Dealer.  But if you can remember just a few sets of odds for each of 3 pairs of numbers, you'll have all the important odds covered.  Here they are:

Numbers	Place Bets	Do Odds & Buy Bets	Don't Odds & Lay Bets
4 & 10	9 to 5	2 to 1	1 to 2
5 & 9	7 to 5	3 to 2	2 to 3
6 & 8	7 to 6	6 to 5	5 to 6

Notice that the Do and Don't odds are exact opposites, so if you can remember one set, you already know the other.


How do I make a bet?

In WinCraps:  You make bets by placing your Checks on them.  To do this, first move the mouse-pointer to the Rail and click on the denomination check you want to use.  The check you select will appear alone in the lower left-hand corner of the rail.  Next click the mouse-pointer on the bet.  One of your selected checks will be added to the bet for each click of the mouse.  If you don't have a mouse or you'd like to enter bet amounts directly, you may do so via the keyboard by selecting "Key-in Bet Amounts" from the Action Menu.  An Auto-Bet feature is also available to make bets for you.

If you bet an amount that's not within the Table Maximum and Minimum Limits, your bet will be adjusted accordingly.  Also if one of the Auto-Adjust Bet Amounts options is selected, your bet will be adjusted to an amount that ensures a whole payoff.  See How much can and should I bet?.

In a casino:  The Pass Line, Don't Pass, Come, Don't Come, Field, Big 6 and Big 8 bets are in the Self-Service Area of the Layout.  These are bets that you can physically place yourself by putting your Checks directly on the appropriate part of the layout.  So select an amount you feel comfortable with and place your checks on the closest part of the bet in front of where you're standing.

The Place, Lay, and established Come and Don't Come bets are in the Dealer's Cash Register which covers the six numbered Point Boxes labeled 4 through 10.  This is a hands-off area as anyone's cash register would be!  The Dealers are the only ones who're allowed to handle these bets.  To make a Place or Lay bet, put your Checks on an open area of the table (usually on the Come or Don't Come boxes) and announce to the Dealer what you'd like to bet.  The Dealer will move them to the appropriate spot.  For actual Come and Don't Come bets, when Point Numbers are rolled, the Dealer will pick up your checks and move them to the numbered Point Boxes.  Then if you want, you can put more checks down on the Come or Don't Come boxes and tell the Dealer whether you want to Take or Lay Odds.

The Proposition bets are in the center of the Layout which is also a hands-off area.  The Stickperson is the one who handles bets there.  To make a bet, throw your Checks in to the Stickperson and announce your desires.  (Try not to throw your checks all over the place or hit any of the other bets.)  If the Stickperson is busy, you can put your checks on the Come box or Apron and tell the Dealer what you'd like.  The Dealer will see to it that they get to where they need to be.

Lay and Don't Come bets are placed together in the same small area.  If many players are playing these bets the Point Boxes can become crowded and rather confusing.  The same is true for the Proposition bets.  Your bets can get lost in the turmoil when a number of players throw their Checks in to the Stickperson and call out their bets all at once - so watch your bets closely.

You're not allowed to hand checks or cash directly to any Dealer.  Again, just set them down on the layout and, if the bet you want is not in the Self-Service Area, announce your desires.


How much will my bets pay?

Every bet on the table has a Payoff Ratio which is expressed as either: x to y, or x for y.  Both mean that you will win x if you bet y.  Take note however, that in the case of x to y - you also get back the amount you wagered.  In the case of x for y you do not!  This is a little trick casinos sometimes employ to make payoffs appear to be larger, or even as True Odds.  For example, the True Odds for an Any Craps bet are 8 to 1, so if you walked into a casino and saw that they were paying 8 for 1 you might think that you were getting a good deal, after all the numbers look right, but in fact you're not!  You're being paid 7 to 1.  8 for 1 may appear to be larger than the equivalent 7 to 1 but is in fact the same - both will pay you 8.  A payoff ratio of 1 to 1 is termed Even-Money.

For specific payoff ratios refer to the Table of Odds and House Advantages.


What happens when I win?

Jump for joy!  The craps gods have smiled upon you.

In WinCraps:  You have the option of handling your winning bets manually or automatically.  You can choose which method you'd like from the Auto-Handle section of the Auto-Play screen.

If you choose to play manually then each time a bet wins, a pop-up box will appear to ask what you'd like to do with your winnings and/or bet.  The box details how much you won, how much you bet, and what the payoff ratio is.  If what you're paid does not correspond with the payoff ratio, then you didn't bet the correct amount.  See How much can and should I bet.

If you choose to play automatically then no visual notice will be given when you win.  However, any active winning Sounds you have selected will still play.

Whether you play manually or automatically there are five basic responses you can give:

1)  Take Bet and Winnings - remove your original bet and collect the winnings.

2)  Same Bet - Take Winnings - leave your original bet in place and collect only the winnings.

3)  Press 1 Unit - increase your original bet by "One Unit" and collect the remaining winnings.  "One Unit" means a portion of the bet considering the denomination Checks you're using and the payoff ratio of the bet.  So a bet that can be divided evenly into $5 checks and that pays 7 to 6 will have "One Unit" of $30.  However, if this amount equals or exceeds the size of the original bet, then the next lower check denomination is used.  So "One Unit" for a $30 bet that pays 7 to 6 is $6 rather than $30.

4)  Press Double - increase your original bet by doubling it, and return any remaining winnings.

5)  Parlay - increase your original bet with all your winnings.  The Dealer sometimes returns part of your winnings even though you have requested a parlay.  This is to make your wager an amount that allows for a correct or whole payoff.  (With the Auto-Adjust Bet Amounts feature turned off, the full amount is always parlayed.)

These of course are just five common responses.  You can choose any of them and then adjust the bet to any amount you wish.  However, when some bets win they must be taken down.  Therefore only the first response is given as an option.

If the winning bet was a Buy or Lay bet you'll be charged another Vig for options 2 through 5.

Your Odds bet will be returned (having neither won nor lost) if:

  It was Not Working and,

  Its underlying Flat bet wins or loses.

Note:  If the amount wagered on a Horn bet, is not evenly divisible by 4,  the pop-up screen will display the amount bet as a fraction.  This is to show what your win was calculated from - you are not paid back the fractional part.  The same is true if the C and E bet is not divisible by 2.  See What Bets are Available? or One-Roll bets.

In a casino: When you win a bet in the Self-Service Area, the Dealer places your payoff next to your bet.  It's then your responsibility to remove it.  Otherwise whatever Checks you leave on the table are considered to be active bets on the next roll of the Dice ("If it lays, it plays!", goes the saying).

When you win a bet from the Dealer's Cash Register, the Dealer will put your payoff out on the Come or Don't Come boxes or on the Apron in front of you.

When a Proposition bet wins, the Stickperson figures the payoff and tells the Dealer how much to pay you.  Then the Dealer puts your payoff on the apron in front of you.

You're not allowed to take Checks directly from any Dealer, which is why he or she will ignore your eagerly outstretched hand and instead place all your payoffs or removed bets directly on the table.

The payoff for a Proposition or Place bet is reduced by the size of your original wager since it's left on the layout as a repeat bet.  However, you can get the bet back by asking the Dealer to "Take it down", or if you'd rather, you can ask to increase it.  This is usually done with the words "Press" or "Parlay".

The word Press by itself means that you want your bet doubled, which the Dealer does using your winnings, and returns any change.  However, you can Press partial amounts if you want.  For instance, if you had a $12 Place bet on the 6 and you won, you could tell the Dealer to "Press $6" or to "Press One Unit" (see above).  In this case, $6 would be taken from your $14 payoff and added to the original wager making it $18, and the remaining $8 would be returned as change.  The word Parlay means you want all your winnings added to the bet (see above).

For a Buy or Lay bet, the Dealer will take down and pay off your bet unless you request "Same bet" and pay another Vig (Commission).


Some thoughts on Craps and Gambling
Some thoughts on Gambling and Craps

Casino gambling is a Negative Expectation activity.  This means that the odds are stacked against you from the very beginning and that on average you can expect to lose.  The longer you gamble, the more this is true because you're continually exposed to the casino's Advantage.

Also, the longer you gamble, the closer the events you're gambling on will approach their predicted Probabilities.  Take for instance the flipping of a coin.  We know that the probability of flipping heads is 1 out of 2 (or 50%).  So let's say we want to bet someone $1 that heads will appear on the next flip.  This should be an Even-Money proposition since there is only one way to win and one way to lose.  But what if that person is only willing to pay 50 cents for each winning $1 bet.  Well, we could decide to accept the risk anyway, make the bet, and hopefully win - who knows?  If we were lucky, we might even flip 10 heads in a row and be $5 richer.  But as anyone who's ever flipped a coin knows - the longer you flip it, the more the percentage of heads and tails will average toward a 50-50 split.  So if an additional 10 flips resulted in tails, we would lose $10 for a net loss of $5 - a pretty bad showing for an equal number of heads and tails.  It's easy to see why this would be a bad bet and a quick way to become a loser.   It may not be as easy to see with a pair of dice with 36 possible Combinations and when the casino's cut is not as high as our 50% example, but the principle and results are the same.

You're mistaken if you think that the casinos are in business to gamble - they're in business to make money!  And they do that quite nicely with a calculated rate of return for all their games.  When you place a wager, it is you who is doing the gambling, not the casino.  They have already figured their cut of the action.

Take live poker for instance.  Although the players bet against each other and not against the House, the House still takes a rake (percentage) out of every pot.  If a group of players with a finite amount of money plays at the same table long enough, they will all eventually lose!  Because the casino, like the tax man, keeps taking that percentage.

But people can and do win at gambling.  That's the hook that keeps gambling alive.  If no one ever won, who'd want to play?  As a matter of fact, casinos want you, or at least someone to win, and they want it advertised.  Why do you think all the bells and whistles go off when someone hits a jackpot? Why do they announce big winners at Keno?  It's to let everyone else know that someone is making money!  When someone hits it real big, it even becomes a news event - that's like free advertising for the casino.  They're happy to pay the winner because they know that for every person who goes away a winner, there are scores more who go away losers.

There's a saying: I'd rather be lucky than good, any day!  In gambling that certainly is true.  Let's define luck as the chance happening of being in the right place at the right time with the right bets.  Say you observe someone betting on the Twelve which has a 30 to 1 payoff and you know that it's a dumb bet because it's True Payoff should be 35 to 1 which gives the casino an amazing 13.89% Advantage.  Then you watch him Parlay $1 into over $900 with two hits in a row!  You may suddenly feel the urge to address him as "Professor" and sign up for his craps seminar!  But, restrain yourself!  The "Professor" was very lucky and chances are he's already paid, or will pay the casino handsomely for his short term windfall.  And at any rate, for each "Professor" there are many more would-be "Professors" who lose their shirts trying the same thing!

Well OK, are you not discouraged yet and still want to play craps?  Then at least give yourself the best chance of winning.  If it takes luck to win, then how about making sure it only takes a little luck and not a lot.  Make all your wagers on bets that have the lowest House Advantage.  The Pass Line, Don't Pass, Come, and Don't Come bets all have the lowest House Advantages at around 1.4%, and provide you with access to the Odds bets at 0% Advantage.  With Double Odds the combination brings the House edge down to around 1/2%, and greater odds bring it down even more.

There are those who claim that Odds bets do nothing to affect the outcome of the game.  That if two people bet equal amounts on the Pass Line but only one also Takes Odds, they will both on average lose the same amount.  This is a true statement as phrased but it's misleading.  On average, the Odds bet neither wins nor loses.  By itself it has neither an advantage nor disadvantage for the House or the player.  So the average loss comes from the Flat bet only, where both our players will lose 1.41 cents for every Pass Line dollar they bet.  However, consider that for the same 1.41 cents, the player Taking Odds has had the pleasure of placing much more money into play.  Certainly he stands to lose more if the dice don't roll his way, after all he's betting more.  But he stands to gain far more if the dice do roll his way, and isn't that whole reason he's gambling?  Actually, at Double Odds his total amount risked (or potential loss) goes up by a factor of 2.71, but because the House pays him True Odds on his Odds bets, his potential win goes up by a factor of 3.25!  See Calculation of House Advantage on Pass Line.

So knowing this, all our Odds player needs to do is size his Flat bets so that when he takes Full Odds, he doesn't overextend himself on the total amount risked.  In other words, if he only feels comfortable wagering $15 at a time, then he should bet $5 Flat and take $10 in Odds.  This way, instead of giving the House a 21 cent per bet Advantage (like the player who bets it all on the Flat bet would do), he gives only 7 and his potential winnings go up!

Here's another way of looking at it:  You have to make a Flat bet first - there's no getting around that.  Therefore, the House has an edge on you from the very beginning and the chances favor you losing your bet.  But now let's say you decide to put more money into play - after all you can't win what you don't bet.  The question then is, where can you put your money where it has the best advantage for you?  Do you make another Flat bet with another built-in House Advantage, or heaven forbid - a Proposition bet (ahhhhhh!), or do you Take Odds on your first bet where the House has no advantage?  The answer is obvious.

So once again, to stand the best chance of winning at craps, you should play only the Pass Line, Don't Pass, Come, or Don't Come bets and always take or lay Full Odds.  If you need to keep your total amount risked low, you can find crap tables with minimums as low as $1 or 25 cents.  Your only other alternative is to give the casino a greater shot at your Bankroll with higher House Percentage bets.  If you feel you have to play in that big fancy hotel's casino but you can't afford to take Full Odds because of their high minimums, then at least try to take as much Odds as you can, or at worst make only Flat bets and perhaps Place 6 and Place 8 bets.  But by all means, stay away from the Proposition bets.  How do you think they paid for all that fancy stuff?

There are a couple final points worth making about playing craps:

Gambler's Fallacy

The Odds of rolling any particular number remain the same regardless of what rolls have gone before it.  To some gamblers this seems to contradict the notion that the numbers rolled will in time approach their predicted Probabilities.  When too many rolls have gone by without the appearance of certain numbers, or without certain bets winning, they may feel that those numbers or bets are overdue.  On the other hand, if certain numbers have rolled quite frequently or certain bets have won a lot, they may feel they are overspent.  To conclude then that the Dice are bound for a correction constitutes the Gambler's Fallacy.  For nothing could be further from the truth.  The dice have no memory, and no obligations to fulfill!

A corollary to this is the idea that the dice will continue to run one way or another - hot or cold.  But again, the Odds never change.

Systems

There are no sure-fire guaranteed ways to win at craps.  Anyone telling you they have a cannot-lose, guaranteed, winning system is either trying to sell it to you (in which case it's only a winning system for them) or they're fooling themselves - and trying to get you to believe it too.  There are only ways to minimize the House Advantage and hope to be playing smartly when and if the Dice roll in your favor.

So are all systems bad?  Well, it kind of depends on what you define as a system.  In a sense, everyone uses some sort of a system.  Unless you're truly mindless, you must have some conscious thought in your head as to what bets you're going to make and when you're going to make them.  You must have some idea of what you're going to do when they win or lose.  Whether your intent is to make 3 consecutive Field bets and go home, or to play the Pass Line and multiple Come bets all night until you've either won $1000 or lost $500, your method could be called a system.

Usually though a system is thought of as some sort of routine that you follow without making on-the-spot decisions.  Rather than making impulsive bets, the routine tells you what to do and when to do it - over and over, with the hope that a profit can be "ground-out" over time.  However, while systematically making deposits in your bank account may be a great way to compound your money, and systematically buying stocks and bonds may be a great way to dollar-cost-average your investment, the concept doesn't carry over to craps!  In craps, given enough time, every system will lose.

This doesn't mean though that a systems player has any less chance of winning than anyone else.  If you have a system where you make Pass Line bets only after a Shooter makes the first Pass, and over the course of a playing session you make 20 bets, are you any worse off than someone else who makes 20 random Pass Line bets during the same session?  No, unless you somehow think the Dice have a memory.  The Probability of winning or losing a Pass Line bet is always the same.  So if you wanted to make bets only when someone with a red shirt was the Shooter - so what?  Your chances of winning are no worse.  The point to remember though, is that neither are your chances any better!

So the thing that matters is what you think your system will do for you.  If you think that your system cannot lose, you're sadly mistaken.  If you think that your system will beat the odds in time, you're in for a surprise.  And if you think that any combination of bets can possibly produce a Positive Expectation then you're delirious.

On the other hand, if you think your system is a fun way to play and you have no delusions about your chances of winning with it, then have at it.  Luck being what it is, you could probably win or lose with any system at some given moment.  For instance, if you have a system that bets frequently on the Eleven and you play at a table where it just happens to be the day for 11's, then who could argue with your success?  Just so you don't think that on average it will ever yield a lower House Advantage than a Don't Pass bet with Full Odds (or a Pass Line bet with Full Odds if you'd prefer to bet With the Dice).

Regardless of whether you want to play a system or just shoot from the hip, the smartest thing to do would be to make sure you utilize those bets with the lowest House Advantages and Manage your Bankroll to suit the circumstances.  In this sense, a bad system could be considered one that utilizes bets with higher House Advantages.

Many elaborate systems have been devised with the idea of protecting certain bets with other bets (called Hedge Betting).  For instance, many folks make Any Craps bets on the Come-out Roll to protect their Pass Line bets against a loss.  But remember this:  No possible combination of Negative Expectation bets can be made to produce a Positive Expectation.  Be particularly aware that using a bad bet (like a Proposition bet) to hedge a good bet (like the Pass Line) only makes the good bet a little worse.

One classic system of betting is called Progressive Betting in which the size of your wagers are increased or decreased over the course of events.  A progression can be good or bad depending on how it's played.  Perhaps the most famous example of a bad one is a simple system called the Martingale Progression, in which each time a wager is lost, the amount is doubled and bet again.  The hope is that the bet will eventually win, with the winnings covering all previous losses and showing a small profit.  This system may hold up for a while but unfortunately, it's doomed to ultimate failure and can be quite devastating to one's Bankroll.  The progression relies on the Gambler's Fallacy and typically runs into either the player's limited Bankroll or the House's Table Limit.  However, a progression of increasing wagers when you're winning can be a good thing just as long as you keep some of the profit along the way.  Remember, you haven't really won anything until it's off the table and in your hands!  (For an example of a Martingale Progression, try running the file Sample5.log from the Auto-Bet screen.)

That's one nice thing about WinCraps - you can get a feel for how different systems might work for you.  You can play manually or program your system into the Auto-Betting feature, and check the Statistics and Bankroll graph to see how you're doing.  You can even run the Hyper-Drive to compress time.

All in all, you should know that the odds are against you, but that it's still possible to win.  By making the smart bets and properly Managing your Bankroll, you'll be poised to take advantage of the situation when and if the dice roll your way.


Discipline and Goals
Discipline and Goals - Managing your Bankroll

It has been said that the best money management scheme is to have enough discretionary income from your real job to replenish your Bankroll when you lose!  (A quip well worth remembering.)  Therefore, your Bankroll should never be any larger than what you can afford to lose.

Perhaps the worst things you can do when gambling is fail to quit when you're ahead and fail to quit when you're behind.  It stands to reason then that failing both of these in the same session has got to be the worst of all!  When you're winning, the action is exciting - you're upbeat and having fun.  It seems like easy money and the urge to keep it going is very powerful - so much so that you keep going even when your winnings begin to evaporate.  But by failing to quit while you're still ahead, a strange mind-set develops.  You should reasonably be able to lose all your winnings and shrug it off, leaving the table no poorer than when you arrived.  But instead you may feel compelled to repeat your earlier performance.  After all, it was so easy wasn't it?  Perhaps you feel you made some silly mistakes or that all you need is just one more Hot roll to bring home the bank.  You might be in total disbelief that your bets could possibly lose so many times in a row (Gambler's Fallacy), so you continue on, dipping into your original Bankroll.  But if the dice don't come to your rescue, and they usually don't, you end up leaving a loser, having been a winner - what a lousy feeling.  The temptation is to dig a little deeper in your pocket and maybe even press up your bets with hopes of salvation - a vicious cycle.

One way to avoid falling into such a trap is to set yourself a Loss Limit.  Decide how much you can afford to lose before you start playing, and force yourself to stick to it.  Remember that it's a Negative Expectation game and losing can hardly be considered a personal failure.  Just leave the table and go see a show or have a drink - you've had your fun for the day.  If you can't stand to take the loss - then don't gamble to begin with.

Additionally, it's just as important to set a Win Goal.  This doesn't necessarily mean you should quit playing the moment you win a certain amount.  If you're winning, then by all means ride it out.  You're never going to hit that big payoff if you always quit at smaller amounts.  But it means that when your winning wave subsides or starts to retreat, you should have a point at which you quit a winner - don't chase your winnings down the hole.

Consider the amounts you intend to wager and be reasonable about your Win Goal.  Winning $5 Pass Line bets is not like winning the lottery!  Perhaps 10 times your average wager might be a good starting point and then you can adjust it upward if you continue on a winning streak.  But whatever you set it at, never adjust it down - have some discipline!  The easiest way to adjust up your Win Goal is to set aside checks as you're winning and play with what's left.  First set aside your original Bankroll and then set aside some percentage of checks each time you win - maybe 25% if you want to bet more aggressively and 75% if you're more conservative.

A smart player will reduce the size of his or her bets when losing (ultimately quitting at some Loss Limit) and increase the size of his or her bets while winning (keeping a good portion of the winnings along the way and ultimately quitting at some Win Goal when the tide has turned).

How big a Bankroll should you have?  Well, having already stated that it should be no larger than what you can afford to lose, it depends on the size of the bets you intend to make and how long you intend to play.  If you want to make $100 bets with a $300 Bankroll and expect to play for an hour, you're kidding yourself.  A typical table might see 80 dice rolls and 20 Decisions per hour although it varies considerably.  If you wanted to make $10 Pass Line bets (no Odds) and assumed worst case that each bet will lose while you're waiting for that Hot roll, then to last an hour you would need around $200 ($10 bets times 20 Decisions).  Well just how long do you need to last to see that hot roll?  Ah yes, the eternal quest of the craps player.  The answer is as elusive as predicting what the next roll of the dice will be!

Let's end by saying that you should manage your Bankroll by planning for the worst, hoping for the best, and taking what you get!


Pushing the House

Pushing the House means taking advantage of those things that help you reduce the House's Edge.

Pushing the Odds

By now you should know that Odds bets are the best bets you can make in craps.  Since it's in your best interest to bet as much on them as you're allowed, you'll need to find out just how far the House will really let you go.  For instance, at a Double Odds table with a $15 Pass Line bet on the Point Number 6, you might expect that a double amount of $30, would be the allowed for Odds.  But in fact some casinos will let you go $35, or $40, some even $50!  Notice that this is the same amount as would be allowed for a Flat bet of $20, so the lesson here is that $15 is a better bet, because proportionally you're getting more of your money on the Odds and less on the Flat bet.  It's a matter of finding the break points where the House rounds off amounts or adjusts for Check denominations.  For casinos that start by figuring Double Odds as 2x the Flat bet and then allow adjustments, Flat bets in increments of 2 checks will usually provide for greater Odds.  For casinos that start by using 2.5x the Flat bet for the Points 6 and 8, Flat bets in increments of 3 checks will usually provide for greater Odds - it depends on the House.

At casinos that offer very large Odds Allowed factors the added benefit of more odds is not as pronounced, and you should take care to not over-extend yourself.  For instance, the difference between no odds and double odds is about 1% worth of House Advantage, whereas the difference between 10X odds and 100X odds is about 1/10%!

Pushing the Vig

The House charges a 5% Vig to make a Buy or Lay bet.  However, there are times when the House rounds the Vig down if the 5% works out to some fractional amount.  So by taking advantage of this fact, you can lower the House Percentage enough to even make Buying the 5 and 9 more sensible than Placing them, and make Buying the 4 and 10 all the sweeter.  For example, if the House rounds down on amounts of 50 cents or less, then Buying any bet for $30 will lower the House Advantage from 4.76% to 3.23%.  This is lower than the normal House PC for Place bets on the 4, 5, 9, or 10.  However, Place bets on the 6 and 8 are still lower at 1.52% so these bets should never be bought.  If you ever find a casino that always rounds the Vig down regardless of the fraction, you could Buy a $39 bet on the 5 or 9 for $1 and effectively lower the Vig to 2.5%.  Just beware that some casinos will charge you an extra dollar on subsequent bets to make up for shortages in previous Vigs and some casinos will not.  This of course changes the picture, so once again it pays to find out.

Pushing with Puts

Many casinos allow Put bets simply because they give the House a higher Percentage than properly played Pass Line and Come bets.  Ordinarily their percentages are also higher than Place bets and are therefore not worth betting.  But at tables that offer greater than 5X Odds Allowed, they can be better than Place bets.

Put bets can also be better than Buy bets depending on the odds allowed and which number it is you want to buy.  A comparison of the table listed under Put bets with the Table of Odds and House Advantages will reveal the most advantageous situations.


Ten Tips

1)  Know the Odds Payoffs of the bets you intend to make, and wager in amounts necessary to receive whole payoffs from the House.  The Dealer will tell you the right increment amounts to wager, but might not always volunteer the information, so ask.

2)  Make bets where the House Advantage is the lowest.  Especially don't make Proposition bets.

3)  Always take or lay Full Allowable Odds.  If the resulting wagers are too big for your comfort, then make smaller Flat bets - but do it!  See also Pushing the House.

4)  If you must make Place bets on the 4 or 10 then Buy them (possibly even on the 5 and 9).  See Pushing the House.

5)  Never add to your Pass Line or Come bets after their Points have been Established.  (Unless you're doing so in lieu of a Place bet and you're playing at a casino that offers very large Odds Allowed factors.  See Put bet.)

6)  Never remove from your Don't Pass or Don't Come bets after their Points have been Established.

7)  Have a Win Goal and quit while you're still ahead.

8)  Have a Loss Limit and don't lose more than you can afford to.

9)  Increase your bets when winning, decrease them when losing.

10)  Have fun!


Odds and House Advantage
Odds and House Advantages

The average percentage that the House makes on each bet as a result of making a less than True Payoff is termed the House Advantage (Also termed the House Percentage, Edge, PC, or Vig).  The greater the House PC - the less there is for you:  (Note: expand this section to a full screen to view properly)

Bet Type	True Odds	Payoff Odds	House PC
Don't Pass / Don't Come *	1.0285:1	1:1	1.4
w/ Single odds			0.69
w/ Double odds			0.46
w/ Triple odds			0.34
w/ 5x odds			0.23
w/ 10x odds			0.124
w/ 20x odds			0.065
w/ 100x odds			0.014
w/ 3, 4, 5x odds **			0.274
odds on 4 or 10	1:2	1:2	0  (odds only)
odds on 5 or 9	2:3	2:3	0  (odds only)
odds on 6 or 8	5:6	5:6	0  (odds only)
Pass Line / Come	1.0287:1	1:1	1.41
w/ Single odds			0.85
w/ Double odds			0.61
w/ Triple odds			0.47
w/ 5x odds			0.33
w/ 10x odds			0.185
w/ 20x odds			0.099
w/ 100x odds			0.021
w/ 3, 4, 5x odds **			0.374
odds on 4 or 10	2:1	2:1	0  (odds only)
odds on 5 or 9	3:2	3:2	0  (odds only)
odds on 6 or 8	6:5	6:5	0  (odds only)
Place 6 or 8	6:5	7:6	1.52
Place 5 or 9	3:2	7:5	4
Place 4 or 10	2:1	9:5	6.67
Lay 4 or 10	1:2	1:2 (- 5% comm.)	2.44
Lay 5 or 9	2:3	2:3 (- 5% comm.)	3.23
Lay 6 or 8	5:6	5:6 (- 5% comm.)	4
Field (triple 2 or 12)	20:19	1:1 (2:1-2, 3:1-12)	2.78
Field (double 2 and 12)	10:9	1:1 (2:1-2 & 12)	5.55
Buy  4 or 10	2:1	2:1 (- 5% comm.)	4.76
Buy 5 or 9	3:2	3:2 (- 5% comm.)	4.76
Buy 6 or 8	6:5	6:5 (- 5% comm.)	4.76
Big 6 / Big 8	6:5	1:1	9.09
Hard 6 / Hard 8	10:1	9:1	9.09
Hard 4 / Hard 10	8:1	7:1	11.1
Any Craps	8:1	7:1	11.1
Three / Eleven	17:1	15:1	11.1
Two / Twelve	35:1	30:1	13.89
Any Seven	5:1	4:1	16.67

The House Advantage is calculated by taking the difference between the average loss of a bet and the average win, then dividing it by the total amount bet and expressing it as a percentage.  For example, a Place 8 bet pays 7 to 6 and on average loses 6 times to every 5 times it wins for a total of 11 Decisions.  So for a $6 wager the average loss is $6 times 6 losses ($36), and the average win is $7 times 5 wins ($35).  The difference of $1 is divided by the total amount bet which is $6 times 11 Decisions ($66), and equals 1.52%.

* Don't Pass and Don't Come bets are figured for either Bar 2 or Bar 12, and consider the Stand-off as a non-event.  Typical craps references list the House PC's for Don't bets w/ Odds as : 1X=.832, 2X=.592, 3X=.459, 5X=.317, 10X=.179, 20X=.095, 100X=.02 .  However, such figures don't account for the fact that most casinos will allow the Don't Odds bets to be larger than just a strict multiple of the Flat bet.  For example, at a Double Odds table with a $5 Flat bet and a Point of 4, you could Lay $20 odds rather than $10.  See Odds Allowed.

** Some casinos offer 3X odds on the 4/10, 4X odds on the 5/9, and 5X odds on the 6/8.


Pass Line Calculations
The average win and loss columns take into account the True Odds for each number.  For example, after the number 10 is Established as the Point, it will on average win 1 time for every 2 times it loses for 3 total Decisions.  Therefore it wins 1/3 of the potential win and loses 2/3 of the potential loss.

Try comparing the total potential wins and losses for both charts.  Notice that by Taking Odds, the potential loss goes from $140 to $380, an increase of 271%.  Well of course - you're betting more, but does the potential win go up by the same proportion?  No, it goes from $160 to $520, an increase of 325%!  At greater Odds Allowed factors, the difference is even more pronounced.

Note that many Double Odds tables actually allow 2.5x Odds on 6 and 8 which on the Pass Line lowers the House Advantage down to .57%.


Ace

A die showing one dot.


Apron

The open area on the Table Layout between the Pass Line and the wall of the craps table.


Back Line

Another term for Don't Pass and Don't Come bets.


Bankroll

The supply of money you bring to the table.  In WinCraps your starting Bankroll is not a factor - instead the Status-bar indicates your relative Bankroll by showing how much you have won or lost.  When referring to your Bankroll in an Auto-Bet, a negative amount indicates how much money you've lost and a positive amount indicates how much you've won.


Bar

A term that means the Don't Pass and Don't Come bets are Stand-offs during certain Come-out Rolls.  i.e. Bar 12 means they receive no action if a 12 is rolled.


Behind the Line

A term to indicate where the Pass Line Odds are placed.


Bet the Odds

To make an Odds bet. To Take or Lay an odds bet.


Bridged

A method of stacking Checks by placing two equal stacks of checks next to each other and capping both of them with more checks.  Used with the Odds bets for Don't Pass and Don't Come bets.


Cold Roll / Hand / Dice / Table
Cold Roll / Cold Hand / Cold Dice / Cold Table

Terms used to indicate that the Dice are Not Passing.  The Shooter is not rolling winning numbers for bets that are With the Dice.


Crap-out

Rolling a 2, 3, or 12 on the Come-out Roll.  The Shooter is not really out however, and retains the Dice.


Decision

The winning or losing outcome of a bet.  The winning or losing roll that ends the series of rolls that began with the Come-out Roll.


Deuce

Two Aces or the number 2.


Do / Don't

Do bets are those With the Dice while Don't bets are those Against the Dice.  However, a Do bet typically refers to just the Pass Line and Come bets, while Don't bet refers to just the Don't Pass and the Don't Come bets.


Down with Odds

A term used when a Come bet becomes Established on a Point Number that already has a Place bet on it.  It means: "Take down my Place bet, give me Odds on my Come bet, and return any change."


Drop-box

The box underneath the craps table that holds cash that has been exchanged for Checks.  The Boxperson accesses the Drop-box through a narrow slot in the table surface.


Easyway

A non-paired Dice Combination totaling 4, 6, 8, or 10.  See Hardway bet.


Even-Money

A payoff of 1 to 1, meaning you win one unit for every unit bet.


Free Odds Bet

The same thing as an Odds bet.  Free just emphasizes the point that the House has no Advantage on an Odds bet.


Front Line

Another term for the Pass Line.


Full Odds

The maximum amount that may be wagered on an Odds bet.


Hand / Shoot

The period of time the Shooter rolls the Dice, from the first Come-out Roll to a Seven-Out, when the Dice are passed to the next player.


Hedge Bet

Any bet that is made with the intention of protecting or insuring another bet.


Heeled

A method of stacking Checks by placing one check flat on the table surface with the remaining checks placed on top of the first but offset and tilted.  Used with Odds for Don't bets.


High Roller

A player who throws the Dice way up in the air!  No - actually it's a player who wagers large sums.


Hot Roll / Hand / Dice / Table
Hot Roll / Hot Hand / Hot Dice / Hot Table

Terms used to indicate that the Dice are Passing.  The Shooter is rolling winning numbers for bets that are With the Dice.


House Bankroll

The supply of Checks stacked at the side of the table by the Boxperson used to payoff bets and for exchange when players present cash.  The cash disappears down the narrow slot in the table never to be seen again!


Inside Numbers

Any of the Point Numbers 5, 6, 8, or 9.


Line Bet

A Pass Line or Don't Pass bet - the two most basic bets at the craps table.


Loss Limit

A limit you place on yourself to know when to stop betting and avoid heavier losses.  See Discipline and Goals - Managing your Bankroll.


Martingale Progression

A system of betting in which lost wagers are doubled and bet again.  See Systems.


Naturals

Naturals are the numbers 2, 3, 7, 11, and 12 when rolled on the Come-out Roll.  They are the center and end numbers of the Dice Combination table.  Naturals are sometimes thought of strictly as 7's and 11's with 2's, 3's, and 12's referred to as Craps.


Negative / Positive Expectation

Negative Expectation means that the Odds are against you - that on average you can expect to lose.  Conversely, Positive Expectation means that on average you can expect to win.


No Roll

A call from the Stickperson indicating that a Roll of the Dice is invalid.


Not Pass / Dice Don't Pass / Miss

A term indicating that a 2, 3, or 12 was rolled on the Come-out Roll or that a 7 was rolled before an established Point was repeated.


Off-and-On

A term used to describe the payoff action when an Established Come bet wins but is simultaneously replaced with a new Come bet.


Outside Numbers

Any of the Point Numbers 4, 5, 9, or 10.


Parlay

A term indicating a desire to use all the proceeds of a winning bet to increase the size of the original wager.  See What happens when I win?


Pass
Pass / Dice Pass

A winning roll With the Dice.  A 7 or 11 rolled on the Come-out Roll or a Point being rolled again after having first been established.


Pay the Line

A call made by the Stickperson directing the Dealers to pay off the Pass Line and Pass Line Odds bets.


Pennies / Nickels / Quarters

Slang terms for $1, $5, and $25 Checks.


Pit Boss

The casino employee in charge of a grouping of craps tables (craps pit).


Point
Point / Point Number / Shooter's Point / Come Point / Don't Come Point

One of the numbers 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, or 10 marked on the Dealer's Cash Register section of the Layout.  The Shooter's Point  is established on the Come-out Roll and marked with the Marker Buck.  It determines the fate of the Pass Line and Don't Pass bets.  Come and Don't Come Points are established on the initial roll for Come and Don't Come bets and are marked with the Checks that are wagered.


Point Box

One of the boxes marked with the Point Number 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, or 10 found on the Dealer's Cash Register section of the Layout.


Press

A term indicating a desire to increase the size of one's wager, usually by doubling.  However, a quantifier like "Press X" could be used for an amount other than double.


Progressive Betting

Making progressively increasing or decreasing bets.  See Systems.


Rail

The outside edge of the craps table where the players' Chips are placed.  The lower rail is used here as the Status-bar.


Same Dice

A request made by the Shooter to keep rolling the same Dice after accidentally throwing one or more of them off the table.


Seven-Out / Miss

A 7 that is rolled after a Point has been Established but before the Point Number is repeated.  A Decision Against the Dice.


Shooter

The player rolling the Dice.


Standing Bet

A bet that may either win, lose, or stand (neither win nor lose) depending on the roll of the Dice.  Unlike a One-Roll bet, a standing bet may remain in play indefinitely until its particular winning or losing numbers are rolled.


Stand-off / Push

Terms to indicate that a bet is active but receives no action.


Sucker Bet

A slang term for a bet with a high House Advantage.  Generally refers to Proposition and Big 6 / Big 8 bets.


Take it Down

A request you make to the Dealer to remove a particular wager from the Layout.


Take the Line
Take the Line / Line Away

A call made by the Stickperson directing the Dealers to remove all Pass Line and Pass Line Odds bets due to a losing Decision.


Toke / Tip

A gratuity for the Crew usually given in the form of a wager.


Trey

An Ace-Deuce or the number 3.


True Payoff

A payoff made according to True Odds.


Vig / Vigorish / Commission

The charge or percentage paid to the House to make a bet.  See House Advantage.


Win Goal

A limit you place on yourself to protect your winnings.  See Discipline and Goals - Managing your Bankroll.


Auto-Work on Come-Out Roll

This feature, which can be found on the Auto-Play screen, contains a list of the bets that you can choose to have Work or Not Work on the Come-out Roll.  Click on the ones you want to change and then choose either Yes, No, or Default.  Choosing Yes means your selected bets will work on the Come-out Roll, choosing No means they will not, and choosing Default will return them to their original WinCraps settings.  You can make multiple selections by holding down the Ctrl key while you click on bets with the mouse-pointer.  You can also double click on bets to switch between Yes and No.

Specifically calling a bet ON or OFF, will temporarily override this automatic feature.


Auto-Arranging chips
Auto-Arrange Chips

This feature, which can be found on the Auto-Play screen, will place wagered Chips at set locations and will Color-up the amounts.  For instance, five - $1 chips placed on the Pass Line  bet in the upper left hand corner, will be changed into one - $5 chip and placed at the bottom center of the table.

Regardless of whether or not Auto-Arrange is active, individual bets will be arranged if:

  Auto-Adjust bet amounts is active and an adjustment is made to the bet amount.

  You Remove partial amounts from the bet using a Ctrl-click.

  A bet is made or changed through Auto-Betting.

  They're located in the Dealer's Cash Register.

In a casino your chips will be placed at certain locations.  See Table Layout.


Auto-Take / Lay Full Odds

  Auto-Take Full Odds:  This feature will automatically make Odds bets for the Pass Line, and Come bets whenever their appropriate Points have been Established.  This is called Taking Odds.  The full allowable amount will be bet based on the Odds Allowed factors entered on the Configuration screen.  If an established Pass Line or Come bet is increased (see Put bet) the odds will be adjusted accordingly.  This is accomplished for all future bets as well as those already on the table.

  Auto-Lay Full Odds:  This feature will automatically make Odds bets for the Don't Pass, and Don't Come bets whenever their appropriate Points have been Established.  This is called Laying Odds.  The full allowable amount will be bet based on the Odds Allowed factors entered on the Configuration screen.  If an established Don't Pass or Don't Come bet is decreased, the odds will be adjusted accordingly.  This is accomplished for all future bets as well as those already on the table.

Both of these features can be found on the Auto-Play screen.


Auto-Remove Place Bets

This feature, which can be found on the Auto-Play screen, will automatically remove any Place bet whose Point becomes established with either a Pass Line or Come bet.

For instance, let's say you have wagers on all the Place bets and decide to make a Come bet.  The Shooter then rolls a 6 and your Come bet moves to the 6.  In a casino, the Dealer will ask what you'd like to do with your Place 6 bet.  You could move it to another bet, have it returned, or just leave it.  The best idea is to move it to the Odds bet of your newly established Pass Line or Come bet.  This is accomplished by telling the Dealer, "Down with Odds" which means, "Take down my Place bet, and give me full odds on my Pass Line or Come bet."

If Auto-Remove Place Bets were active, the Place 6 bet above would be removed from the table.  Then if Auto-Take Full Odds were also active, you'd  have the equivalent of, "Down with Odds".


Auto-Adjusting Bet Amounts
Auto-Adjust Bet Amounts

This feature, which can be found on the Auto-Play screen, provides three options for checking and correcting wagered amounts.

  Manual:  What you bet is what you get - no automatic adjustment takes place.

  Nearest Correct Amount:  What you bet is automatically adjusted to the nearest amount that ensures a whole payoff.

  Color Corrected Amount:  What you bet is automatically adjusted to the nearest amount that ensures a whole payoff and considers the denomination of the Checks you used to make the wager.  An attempt is made to keep the payoff in the highest denomination chips possible.

For instance, let's say you make a $25 Place 6 bet.  With Manual, no adjustment would take place, so to optimize the 7 to 6 payoff you'd have to further adjust it yourself or accept an incomplete payoff.  With Nearest Correct Amount, the bet would be adjusted to $24 since that's the closest amount to $25 that pays evenly.  With Color Corrected Amount, the bet would be adjusted to $30 because the $35 payoff can be made with a $25 and a $5 chip.

Selecting one of the automatic options will adjust the amounts wagered on all current as well as future bets.

Making correctly sized wagers is important - see How much can and should I bet.


Auto-Handle Winning Bets

This feature, which can be found on the Auto-Play screen, offers six options for handling winning bets.  The first option is Manual and the other five are the same options that appear when you play manually - see What happens when I win?.


Auto-Roll

This feature, which can be found on the Auto-Play screen, allows the Dice to be rolled continuously for up to 2 million rolls!  You activate Auto-Rolling by checking the Auto-Roll box, and then start or stop it the same way you normally Roll the Dice.  Additionally, you can automatically stop Auto-Rolling by highlighting one or more of the Auto-Stop events, or by logging an Auto-Bet Action that performs a Stop Auto-Roll / Hyper-Drive.

If desired, you can enter a roll count to restrict Auto-Rolling to a certain number of rolls.  If you stop Auto-Rolling, the roll count will be suspended until you start again.  Once all the rolls have finished and Auto-Rolling has stopped on its own, the roll count will be restored and you can initiate Auto-Rolling again.  If you'd like to reset the count back to the full amount at any time, go back to the Auto-play screen and recheck the Auto-Roll box.

Additionally, you can insert a time delay (in seconds) in-between rolls.  Any delay is added on after all sounds have finished playing.  Therefore, entering no time delay and turning all Sounds OFF will make for quicker Auto-Rolling.  Even quicker Auto-Rolling is obtained by using the Hyper-Drive feature.


Auto-Bet Basics

Auto-Betting is a powerful feature that allows you to:

 Set up complete betting schemes.

 Keep track of certain events or create statistics.

 Play fully automatic or manually assisted.

Auto-Betting is event-driven, which is to say that nothing happens until the Dice Roll.  After they roll, winning and losing bets are tended to first and then Auto-Betting takes place.  You Log your Auto-Bets in the Logged Bets box where they appear in colored blocks and text offsets to make them easier to read.

At the bottom of the Auto-Bet screen are five boxes that you use to create the bets you want.  The basic idea is to build bets in two parts: Conditional parts and Action parts, with the understanding that if the Conditions become true then the Actions will be carried out.  Each bet you create must be Logged before it can be used, and logged bets are only active when the Auto-Bet Active box is checked.  As you'll see, there's a lot of latitude in how you put bets together, but here's how the basic structure should look:

Basic structure:	Example:
Start Condition ...	When ...
Condition	Next roll is a Come-out roll
Start Action ...	then ...
Action	Bet $5 on Pass Line

Let's refer to the complete structure as an Auto-Bet.

The purpose for having separate Start Condition and Start Action lines is to enable you to assemble any number of Conditions and/or Actions beneath them.  In other words, they mark the beginnings of Condition Blocks and Action Blocks.  For example:

Multiple Conditions:	Multiple Actions:
While ...	When ...
Next roll is a Come-out roll	Next roll is a Come-out roll
Bankroll is greater than $50	then ...
Place 6 is greater than $6	Bet $5 on Pass Line
then ...	Bet $1 on Any Craps
Bet $5 on Pass Line	Bet $1 on Field

In the first case, there are three Condition lines that form one complete block.  Each Condition must evaluate as true for the block to be considered true and for the Action to take place.  In other words, there's an implied "and" between each of the lines in the block.  In the second case, there are three Actions that form a block.  Each one is carried out if the one Condition line is true.  Of course, Auto-Bets can include both multiple Conditions and multiple Actions.

Just as would happen in a casino, your bets are acted on in the order called - so order is important!  For example:

While ...

      Bankroll is greater than $50

then ...

      Bet $5 on Pass Line

While ...

      Pass Line has lost 3 times

then ...

      Bet $0 on Pass line

If the Conditions for both of these Auto-Bets were true then the result would be a $0 Pass Line bet.  However, if you reversed their order, the result would be a $5 Pass Line bet.  A number of Editing features makes it easy to change and move your Auto-Bets.

There are two primary Start Conditions: When and While that are used to start Auto-Bets, and there are six additional Start Conditions: and when, and while, or when, or while, and xor when, xor while that are used to modify them.

You can include as many and's, or's, and xor's as you wish, and you can build some pretty complicated bets with them.  By all rights you should be allowed to group them with parentheses to change the logic and really get complicated.  But this is craps and not math class so let's not get carried away!  (Many of you are probably groaning already!)

The logic is meant to be simple, so just remember this:  The first Condition Block that can be evaluated as true skips everything else and proceeds to the Action Block.

You should be able to build just about any betting scheme you want without resorting to overly complicated Auto-Bets.  Try loading Sample5.log from the Auto-Bet screen - it's a complete betting strategy in only six lines!  Or look at Sample1.log - most of those Auto-Bets simply provide commentary.  There are really just five lines of betting code.  Sample2.log is a complete system including Pass Line, Place, and two Come bets with just 15 lines of code.  Sample3.log and Sample4.log are a little more involved but even so the individual Auto-Bets are fairly simple.  At present Auto-Bets are limited to 300 logged lines.


Auto-Bet Start Conditions: When ..., While ...

There are two basic types of Start Conditions that you can create:  When and While.  A block that begins with When will only be acted on at the exact moment the block becomes true.  A block beginning with While will be acted on all the time the block remains true.

For instance, consider the following:

When ...	While ...
Bankroll is greater than $50	Bankroll is greater than $50
then ...	then ...
Bet $5 on Field	Bet $5 on Field

The Auto-Bet starting with When will place a $5 bet on the Field at the moment your Bankroll goes over $50, and the one starting with While will continue to place $5 bets on the Field each time you roll, as long as your Bankroll remains greater than $50.  In both cases, should your Bankroll go below (or equal to) $50 no betting will take place, and if it goes above again - the event will be re-triggered.

A Condition Block starting with When and including multiple Conditions must satisfy two requirements to be considered true.  First, each separate Condition must be currently true, and second, at least one of them must have just become true on the most recent roll.  If you want to create a Condition Block where all the Conditions must become true simultaneously, you can use the and when statement.

There are six additional Start Conditions that you can use to modify your Auto-Bets:  and when, and while, or when, or while, and xor when, xor while.


And when ..., And while ...
Auto-Bet Start Conditions: and when ..., and while ...

Two additional Start Conditions that you can use to modify your Auto-Bets are: and when and and while.  Each time you insert and when or and while into a Condition Block, you change the requirements of the Conditions that follow, but they're still considered as part of the same block.  (The and's are lined up flush with the Condition lines to remind you of this fact.)  Here's two examples:

When ...	When ...
Bankroll is greater than $50	Bankroll is greater than $50
and when ...	and while ...
Place 6 is greater than $6	Place 6 is greater then $6
then ...	then ...
Bet $1 on Hard 6	Bet $1 on Hard 6

In both examples, both Conditions must be true before any Action can take place.  However, in the first example, both Conditions must become true at the same time, whereas in the second, only the first Condition must have just become true.

Remember, there's already an implied and between multiple Condition lines, so the explicit and here is just used to change the When / While requirements.

You can mix in as many and's as you want.  If you follow a When or and when with another and when it adds the requirement that at least one more line must just have become true.  However, following While or and while with another and while is redundant and unnecessary.


Or when ..., Or while ...
Auto-Bet Start Conditions: or when ..., or while ...

Two additional Start Conditions that you can use to modify your Auto-Bets are: or when and or while.  Each time you insert or when or or while into a Condition Block, the Conditions preceding and following it are considered as separate blocks.  For example:

When ...

      Bankroll is greater than $50

   or when ...

      Place 6 is greater than $6

then ...

      Bet $1 on Hard 6

If either one or both of the blocks is true then the overall Conditions are considered to be true.  If you want to make it so that only one of them can be true then you should use an xor Start Condition.  The or when and or while lines are not flush with the Condition lines to help you remember that they're considered as separate blocks.

You can mix in as many or's as you want and you can follow each one with as many Condition lines as you want.

When ...

      Condition 1

   or when ...

      Condition 2

      Condition 3

   or while ...

      Condition 4

then ...

      Action 1


Xor when ..., Xor while ...
Auto-Bet Start Conditions: xor when ..., xor while ...

Two additional Start Conditions that you can use to modify your Auto-Bets are: xor when and xor while.  Xor is called an exclusive or and works the same as the or modifier except that only one of the Condition Blocks on either side of it can be true.  If they're both true then the overall Conditions are considered false and no Action will be taken.

When ...	When ...
Bankroll is greater than $50	Bankroll is greater than $50
xor when ...	xor while ...
Place 6 is greater than $6	Place 6 is greater then $6
then ...	then ...
Bet $1 on Hard 6	Bet $1 on Hard 6

In both examples, if only one Condition is true then the overall Conditions are considered true.  But if both Conditions are true, or both are false then the overall Conditions are false.

Multiple xor's can be tricky unless you really know what you're doing (it's probably best to avoid using more than one per Auto-Bet).  For example:

When ...

      Condition 1

   xor when ...

      Condition 2

   xor when

      Condition 3

then ...

      Action 1

If Conditions 1, 2, and 3 were all true then the overall Conditions would be true too.  How can that be?  Doesn't an xor only evaluate true if one of the blocks is false?  Well yes - for a single xor, but since an xor's value is dependent on the values of the blocks above and below it, multiple xor's become inter-dependent.  So here's what happens:  If the first and second blocks are true, then the first xor is evaluated as false.  The false result is then xor'ed with the third block which is true and hence the whole thing is evaluated as true.  Fun stuff, huh?  Really, you shouldn't have to get this fancy.


Auto-Bet Start Actions
Auto-Bet Start Actions: then ..., else ..., Do this ...

There are three Start Actions that you can use with your Auto-Bets.  The first is then.  It simply means that the Action lines that follow it are to be carried out if the Conditions were found to be true.  The second is else.  It follows a then block and means that the Action lines that follow it are to be carried out if the Conditions were found to be false.  For example:

When ...

      Next roll is a Come-out roll

then ...

      Bet $5 on Pass Line

   else ...

      Bet $5 on Come

The third Start Action is Do this.  It's actually a stand-alone Action Block and is not associated with any Condition Block.  The Actions that follow it will be carried out whenever they're encountered.


Auto-Bet Conditions

The purpose of Condition lines is to determine whether or not to do something.  Each Condition line is evaluated as either true or false and contributes to the overall decision of whether or not to perform the Actions that follow.  There are many different Conditions that you can Log in your Auto-Bets based upon the events of the game.  Most of them are fairly self-explanatory.

There are some Conditions that allow you to designate ranges, such as "All Place Bets", "Any Place Bets", or "Total Place Bets".

 Any means at least one item in the range must meet your criteria.

 All means that each item in the range must meet your criteria.

 Total means that the combined items in the range must meet your criteria.

A special note when working with ranges:  To make these functions more useful to you, any bet in the range that is zero is not considered unless you're specifically testing for zero or comparing with your Bankroll.  For example, let's say you have four Place bets and you want to test to see if any of them are less than $10.  Since there are two other Place bets with nothing on them, a statement like, "Any Place Bets less than $10" would always be evaluated as true even if each of your four Place Bets were greater than $10.  So to make this statement meaningful the bets with nothing on them are excluded.  Consider the following two Auto-Bets:

While ...	While...
Any Place Bet is less than $10	Any Place Bet is equal to $0
then ...	then ...
Display Message: "Yes"	Display Message: "Yes"

In the first example, the message "Yes" will only be displayed if you have at least one Place bet that is greater than zero and less than 10.  In the second example, the message "Yes" will be displayed if any Place bet is zero, because you're specifically testing for zero.

You can also compare the value of one bet versus another bet, or compare ranges of bets.  Once again, to make these functions more useful to you, any bet in the range that is zero is not considered unless you're specifically testing for zero or comparing with your Bankroll.

In any situation where you're evaluating your Bankroll, a negative number designates how much money has been lost.  For instance, the following Auto-Bet sets an upper and lower limit for your Bankroll and stops Auto-Rolling or Hyper-Drive (if either is active) when the limits are exceeded.

When ...

      Bankroll is more than $100

   or when ...

      Bankroll is less than $-100

then ...

      Stop Auto-Rolling / Hyper-Drive

One useful Condition is Flag (see Flags) which allows you to name a Flag and test whether it's value is either true or false.  (You set the value of a Flag with an Action line.)

If you've Logged an Action that asks the user a Yes/No question, you can log a Condition to test for the answer.  For instance:

Do this ...

      Yes/No question:  Do you want to play the Don't side now?

When ...

      Last answer was "Yes"

then ...

      Go to "Play the Don't Side"

If desired, there's a special Condition you can use called "Initializing Auto-Bet" that is only true during Initializing.  (See Checking and Running Auto-Bets).  Once Initializing has been performed or bypassed, it evaluates as false.


Auto-Bet Actions

There are many different Actions that you can Log in your Auto-Bets.  Most of them are fairly self-explanatory.

Although you can log any Action to occur at any time you want, the only Actions that will actually be carried out are those that would normally be permitted.  For example, if you tried to directly bet $10 on the Don't Come 4, you'd be denied because such a bet is not possible without first going through the Don't Come bet.  If you had the Notices turned on from the Configuration screen, then during play a message box would appear to inform you of this fact.

The word Bet at the beginning of any Action means to override any existing bet and absolutely bet the designated amount (assuming it would normally be permitted).

One of the more useful Actions available for intricate Auto-Betting systems is the Go to statement.  A Go to works in conjunction with Labels and allows you to direct the flow of betting by jumping to wherever the Label is located.  For instance:

When ...

      Pass Line has won each time

then ...

      Go to Increase Bets

...

...

...

Do this ...

      Add $5 to Pass line

In this example, all the lines between the Go to statement and the green Label will be skipped whenever the Pass Line bet wins.  You have to Log a Label first before you can use it in a Go to statement.

Another useful Action is Set flag which allows you to name a Flag and set it's value to either true or false.  (You can test the value of a Flag with a Condition line.)

Auto-Bet has its own internal counters to keep track of the number of times certain numbers are rolled and the number of times each bet has won or lost.  The won/lost counters for each bet indicate either wins or losses but not both.  (See also Bets Won/Lost.)  For instance, if the Field bet won once, lost once, and then won twice, the Field bet counter would indicate two wins and that's it.  This in essence makes the won/lost counters a short-term trend indicator.  These counters can be reset by logging a reset function or by starting a New game.  This is important if you want to build Auto-Bets that repeat.  For instance, say you log the following Auto-Bet:

While ...

      Field has lost 2 times

then ...

      Bet $0 on Field

   else ...

      Bet $5 on Field

This would allow you to make continuos $5 Field bets on each roll until they lost twice in a row.  So then what?  If you didn't reset the losses at some time, the Field would never be bet again.  So if you wanted it to repeat you could do a couple things:

 Log an Auto-Bet that performs a reset Action.

 Make a bet on the Field manually or through another Auto-Bet.  Then if it wins, it'll reset itself.

You can Log an Action that asks the user as a Yes/No question and then log a Condition that tests for the answer.  This can be quite useful if you want to manually make decisions based on what you see happening in the game.  However, because it requires a response, Hyper-Drive will not run if a Yes/No question is present, but Rolling the Dice yourself or Auto-Rolling will work fine.

You can log Actions that display messages and play sound.  For sound files just enter the drive/directory/filename of the sound you want to play, or double-click on the entry box and a dialog box will appear from which you can locate the file you want.

If you want to log a question or message that's longer than one line, then just log two or more lines next to each other and they'll be combined.

You can also create lists and retrieve the highest, lowest, and average values from them.  For instance, in the following Auto-Bet, if the current value of Place 6 and 8 were $6 each, and Pass Line were $15, then the average of $9 would be bet on the Come.

When ...
A Point is established on Any number
then ...
Bet the average of:	Place 6  on Come
	Place 8
	Pass Line

Note that a single line by itself such as: "Bet the average of: Place 6 on Come" does not figure the running average of all Place 6 bets.  In fact if you only have one item in your list, the result will always be the current value of that item.  Also note that to make these functions more useful to you, bets without money on them are ignored.

Some Actions let you take percentages of bets, including percentages that are larger than the size of the bets themselves.  i.e. If you had a $10 Pass Line bet and said, "Bet 250% of Pass Line on Come", you'd get a $25 bet on the Come.

One last Action called Invoke Show-steps is useful for debugging your Auto-Bets.  See Show Steps During Play.


Auto-Bet Labels and Comments

Labels are lines you can Log to:

 Visually divide sections of your code to make it easier to understand.

 Act as destinations for Go to Action lines.

You can give a Label any name you want, just as long as there's not already another Label with the same name (Labels are not case sensitive, i.e. "End"  and "end" would be treated the same).  When a Go to statement causes a jump to a Label, the execution of code resumes immediately following the Label.  Therefore, Labels cannot appear in-between Condition lines since errors in logic would occur.  However, they can appear anywhere else including in-between Action lines because Go to statements are Actions too.

Comments are lines you can enter to make notes in your code.  You enter comments the same way you enter Labels except that you precede a Comment with an apostrophe.  Comments cannot act as Go to destinations the way Labels can, but can appear anywhere.

You can load Sample1.log, Sample3.log, or Sample4.log from the Auto-Bet screen to see some examples of using Labels and Comments.

Note:  Labels are restricted to 80 characters in length.


Making and Editing Auto-Bets

Making an Auto-Bet is easy.  There are five boxes at the bottom of the Auto-Bet screen where you create the lines you want in your code.  To change anything in one of the boxes, just click on what it is you want to change.  In most cases a yellow box will appear with a list of alternate selections to choose from.  In some cases a blinking cursor will indicate that you can make an entry from the keyboard.  Then when you're ready to log the line, click on the adjacent command button and then click in the Logged Bets box where you want the line to appear.

For example, let's say the Condition box currently says "Initializing Auto-Bet" but you want to make a line that says "Pass Line is greater than $10".  Simply click anywhere on the words "Initializing Auto-Bet" and a list will appear from where you can locate the item "Pass Line".  Once you have selected "Pass Line" the line will change into something like, "Pass Line has won each time".  Then click on the words "has won" and a list will appear from where you can locate "is greater than $".  Finally, enter "10" to complete the line.

To make complete Auto-Bets, you should assemble your lines in the Logged Bets box as outlined in Auto-Bet Basics.

An array of editing features allows you to manipulate one or more lines of code at a time.  To select a logged line simply click on it.  The line will turn blue and a counter at the side of the table will indicate that 1 line is selected.  To select more than one line at a time use a Ctrl-Click (hold down the Ctrl key while clicking on the line with the mouse-pointer).  Or to select an entire block of lines, first click on one end of the block, then Shift-Click on the other end.  You can then choose editing options from the menu or use short-cut keys such as Ctrl-X, Ctrl-C, Del to cut, copy, or delete your selected lines.  If cut or copied, Ctrl-V will allow you to paste lines back in wherever you have the Focus set.

Another option for moving lines around in addition to cut and paste, is drag and drop.  Just click and hold the left mouse button on a line or lines and drag the mouse-pointer to where you want to drop them.  While dragging, the cursor will change and during this time you can move it above or below the Logged Bets box to scroll the lines if needed.  To delete lines you can also drag them to the trash can.

By double-clicking on a line, you can copy it into the appropriate box at the bottom of the screen where you can modify and re-log it if desired.

See Auto-Bet Files for explanations for Copy To and Paste From.


Auto-Bet Options

The following options are available from the Auto-Bet menu bar:

  Show Steps During Play:  This option allows you to step through your Auto-Bets one line at a time during play on the main game table.  The primary purpose is to assist you in debugging your Auto-Bets by showing you how your bets are being evaluated.  Each time your Auto-Bets are run, a Step-Through screen will appear to show the status of each line and allow you to view Statistics before proceeding to the next line.  By selecting Cancel from this screen, you deactivate the Step-Through option only - your Auto-Bets remain active.

You can also Log an Action line called Invoke Show-Steps which performs the same function.  The difference is that this action only starts the Step-Through process when called for.  This way you don't have to Step-Through a whole bunch of lines to get to the one you're most interested in, and even if you cancel the Step-Through, it will start again the next time.

  Show Logged Messages During Play:  This option lets you quickly turn On or Off the display of any of your Auto-Bet Messages during play.  On the Configuration screen under Notices is a check box labeled Auto-Bet Messages which duplicates this function.

  Show Line Numbers Now:  This option lets you view line numbers next to the Logged Bets box.  These line numbers are used as references during the Step-Through process (see above), and will print out if you Print your Auto-Bets.


Checking and Running Auto-Bets

In order for your Auto-Bets to run, they have to be structured properly.  (See Auto-Bet Basics.)  You can check whether or not they are by clicking on Check Bets from the Auto-Bet menu bar.  If something is missing or in error then the line in question will scroll to the top of the Logged Bets box and a message will appear to tell you what's wrong.  The same check will take place automatically if you have the Active box checked and you attempt to return to the main game table.

Although Auto-Betting is event-driven and takes place after the dice roll, there's one time when Auto-Betting takes place before the dice roll.  This is termed Initializing.  It occurs automatically whenever you start a New Game and allows you to set up the table in advance rather than waiting for something to happen.  Initializing is offered only after you return to the main game table with Active Auto-Bets and one of the following has happened:

  You've created new or opened saved Auto-Bets.

  You've edited your Auto-Bets.

  You've re-checked the Active box on the Auto-Bet screen.  (This is a way to force an Initialization if you want.)

The reason for allowing Initializing at these other times is so you can load and run as many different Auto-Bet files during the course of a game as you wish, and still let each one have it's own Initialization without resetting the whole table.

Generally speaking, you'd always want to Initialize your bets when you start a new game (automatic) or when you first load new Auto-Bets.  At other times such as when you've only done some minor editing of the bets or perhaps turned them off momentarily and then back on, you'd want to bypass initializing.

If your Auto-Bets don't seem to be doing what you want, one thing you can do is activate the Show Steps During Play option and step through them one line at a time.  It might also be useful to Print out your lines and follow along at the same time.  Also see Auto-Bet Common Mistakes.

Since you can re-direct the flow your Auto-Bets with a Go to Action statement, it's possible for you to create situations that get stuck in an infinite loop.  This would mean that Auto-Betting would never reach the end so that the game could continue.  So in order to prevent locking up the game, a message box will appear after a bit of time has passed to alert you to of this possible situation and allow you to stop Auto-Betting.  Then you can examine your Go to statements and Labels to see where the problem is.

You can play the game manually at the same time that Auto-Betting and/or Auto-rolling are active.  Just realize that the manual bets you make may be overridden by your Auto-Bets.  Turning the Notices OFF will expedite Auto-Betting.


Auto-Bet Common Mistakes

 Making assumptions!  With Auto-Betting you have to think a little more about exactly what it is you're trying to do.  i.e.  Say you want to double your Pass Line bet if it wins.  Do you mean every time it wins, just one time, just on the Come-out Roll, or what?  Additionally, remember that there are often several things that can happen to a bet, i.e. a Don't Pass bet on the Come-out Roll can win, lose, Stand-off, or become Established on a Point.

 Using When instead of While.  i.e.  Say you Log an Auto-Bet that says, "When next roll is a Come-out roll then bet $5 on Pass Line".  Since When means do something the first time it happens, back-to-back Come-out Rolls would not continue to make this bet.  Here's what would happen:  On the first Come-out Roll, $5 would be bet on the Pass Line.  Then if the Shooter rolled a 2,3,or 12, the bet would lose but would not be re-bet because the Shooter would still be on a Come-out Roll.  To re-trigger this bet you'd have to Establish a Point, reach a Decision, and then begin a new Come-out Roll.  If that's what you intended - no problem.  But if you intended to always have a $5 bet on the Pass Line then using While would be the thing to do.  So if your bets don't seem to be doing what you want, look and see if there aren't some When's that should be While's.

 Referring to a Come bet.  When you refer to the Come bet you're referring to the area on the table marked "Come" - which does not include Come bets that have already been established on Points.  To refer to established Come bets you would refer to specific bets like "Come 4", "Come 5", etc., or you could refer to a range such as Any, All, or Total Come bets".  For instance, "All Come bets" would refer to all established Come bets and not the area marked "Come".

 Referring to a Don't Come bet.  When you refer to the Don't Come you're referring to the area on the table marked "Don't Come" - which does not include Don't Come bets that have already been established on Points.  To refer to established Don't Come bets you would refer to specific bets like "Don't Come 4", "Don't Come 5", etc., or you could refer to a range such as Any, All, or Total Don't Come bets".  For instance, "All Don't Come bets" would refer to all established Don't Come bets and not the area marked "Don't Come".

 Making decisions based on wins/losses.  Remember the win/lose event for a bet only happens when you actually win or lose money on it.  If you want to refer to the win/lose event for a bet that doesn't have a wager on it, then refer to the conditions under which it would win or lose.  For instance, if you wanted to refer to the winning conditions for a Pass Line or Place 6 bet but didn't have wagers on them, you could say something like:

When ...	While ...
A point is decided "for" any number	A point is established on any number
or when ...	Any 6 has rolled each time
A 7 has rolled each time	then ...
Last roll was a Come-out roll	Display message: Place 6 has won.
or when ...
A 11 has rolled each time
Last roll was a Come-out roll
then ...
Display message: Pass Line has won.

If you want to do a similar test for the Don't Pass bet make sure you refer to the proper numbers for Bar 2 or Bar 12.

 Calling bets ON and OFF.  If a bet is Working normally, you can call it ON or OFF with one call.  However, if it's already been called ON or OFF, then the first time you call it back OFF or ON actually returns it to it's normal working status (which may be ON or OFF depending on the circumstances).  So if you want to go from ON all the way to OFF, or from OFF all the way to ON, you need to make the call twice.


Auto-Bet Flags

A Flag is simply a true/false indicator that you can use with Auto-Betting to help determine whether or not to do something.  You can use as many Flags as you want and name them whatever you want.  Flags can appear in both Condition lines (where you test their values) and Action lines (where you set their values).  Consider the following:

When ...	When ...
Bankroll is greater than $50	Flag "Winning" is True
then ...	then ...
Set Flag "Winning" to True	Bet $20 on Pass Line

In the first example, the Flag's value is set to true, and in the second example that value is used to decide whether to bet $20 on the Pass Line.  A Flag is always assumed to be false until you set it to true.  But once set, it's value always stays the same until you change it again or until you start a New game.

When you select Flags on either a Condition or Action line, a place for you to enter the Flag's name will appear.  By clicking on that spot, a list of any currently defined Flags will also appear.  You can then select one of the Flags already in use or simply enter a new name to define a new Flag.  Giving your Flags descriptive names will make your Auto-Bets much easier to read.

Try loading Sample3.log or Sample4.log on the Auto-Bet screen for examples of using Flags.


Auto-Bet Files

Working with Auto-Bet files is fairly straight forward.  You can Open, Save, Delete, and Print files just as you can with most programs.  The only requirement is that the Auto-Bet filenames use the file extension: .log .  (If you don't enter the extension, it'll be added for you.)

Auto-Bet files contain text as well as code.  Therefore, you can't create or modify an Auto-Bet file in a text editor and then load it into the game - it won't work.  However, if you need just the text for some other reason, you can copy your Auto-Bets to a text file or print them out.

Under the Edit menu are two options titled Copy To and Paste From.  Copy To allows you to copy selected lines from the Logged Bets box to either an Auto-Bet file or a text file of your choice.  Paste From allows you to paste the contents of an Auto-Bet file into your current Auto-Bets starting at the Focus point.  You can copy and paste just snippets of code or entire betting schemes.

When you exit the game any Auto-Bets you have listed will automatically be saved in a file called default.log and will reload the next time you run the game.  This is true whether you already saved them under another name or not.


Chip-Stacks

Chip-Stacks are simply areas where you can stack Chips to total any amount you wish.  Each stack can then be used in a variety of different ways, such as to make bets.  There are a total of 100 Chip-Stacks available for your use:  4 which are visible and 96 which are not.

The 4 visible Chip-Stacks are shown as blue chips numbered 1 through 4 and are located on the Rail at the side of the table.  Each blue chip is in its own box with enough space next to it to stack your chips.  You put chips on a stack the same way you would put chips on a bet (see How to make a Bet), and you can see its exact value by placing the mouse-pointer over it and looking at the Status-bar.

The 96 invisible Chip-Stacks are numbered 0 and 5 through 99.  They're available for your use in conjunction with Auto-Betting.  You can check their values by selecting Chip-Stack Values from the Statistics menu.

Here are some possible uses for Chip-Stacks:

 For making bets:  If you have certain amounts you always want to have handy, you can stack them up and use them to make bets.  For instance, let's say you frequently make $32 bets.  Instead of each time clicking on a $25 chip, then the bet, then a $5 chip, then the bet, then a $1 chip, then twice on the bet, you could stack these chips up on the Rail.  Then whenever you wanted $32 you could select the whole stack by clicking on the numbered blue chip and using it to make bets just as you would with any other selected chip.

 As counters:  Perhaps you'd like to keep track of how many times certain events have occurred.  Just add a $1 chip on a stack each time and you've got it.

 For calculations and statistics:  During Auto-Betting you can use Chip-Stack values to perform math on other Chip-Stacks or on bets.  Although the game keeps track of many statistics, there may be something not covered that you'd like to know.  For an example of this try loading the file Sample6.log or Sample7.log from the Auto-Bet screen.

 As Flags:  Auto-Betting provides for naming and using true/false Flags.  However, you can just as easily use the value of a Chip-Stack to make decisions.

Any of the invisible Chip-Stacks (0 and 5 through 99) can be set to negative values.  The primary purpose is to allow you to compare them with negative Bankroll amounts (since your Bankroll is positive when you're ahead and negative when you're behind).  However, you can use the negative amounts in any way you see fit.  Just realize that the game will not let any bet become a negative amount.


Hyper-Drive

So you want to test your betting systems over thousands or millions of rolls?  Here it is!

The Hyper-Drive is a feature that allows you to run your Auto-Bet simulations completely hands-free for up to 2 million rolls.  You can even minimize the game and let it run in the background while you do work in another application.

Running Hyper-Drive  is easy:  Just click on Bankroll / Hyper-Drive under the Statistics menu and then click on the button that says Start Hyper-Drive.  That's it.

Hyper-Drive runs with whatever game options and Auto-Bets you have selected with the following exceptions:

 If you have Auto-Handle Winning Bets selected to Manual, then Hyper-Drive will assume Same Bet - Take Winnings instead.

 If you have zero rolls selected for Auto-Roll then Hyper-Drive will enter the maximum of 2 million.  Also, if the Auto-Roll box is unchecked then Hyper-Drive will treat it as if it were checked and any time delay will be ignored.

 Any Notices you have selected from the Configuration screen are ignored.

There are only two screens you can observe while Hyper-Drive is active: the Bankroll / Hyper-Drive screen and the main game table.  The Bankroll / Hyper-Drive screen shows the graphic results of your simulation.  There's not much to see on the main game table because the updating of graphics has been suspended for speed.  However, it's from there that you can minimize the game.

There are a number of ways to stop Hyper-Drive:

 Click on Stop Hyper-Drive on the Bankroll / Hyper-Drive screen.

 Log an Auto-Bet Action that performs a Stop Auto-Roll / Hyper-Drive.

 Reach the number of rolls entered on the Auto-Roll counter.

 Break the Bank at plus or minus $2,000,000 !

 Click anywhere on the main game table (you'll be queried).

You can turn the Hyper-Drive on or off at any time.  For instance, you could load some Auto-Bets and Roll the Dice manually for a bit to see how things are going and then crank up the Hyper-Drive.  Then stop and go back to manual play again.  The only thing noteworthy in this situation is that rolling the dice manually does not decrement the roll counter on the Auto-Play screen.

The only time you can't run Hyper-Drive is when you have active Auto-Bets that include a Yes/No question in the Action lines.  This is because a Yes/No question requires your input when it arises.

You don't have to run Auto-Bets during Hyper-Drive.  If you wanted, you could just record rolls into a Dice Roll File.  Or you could use it to accumulate statistics and observe different Roll Totals or Roll Frequencies.


Game Files

Working with game files is fairly straight forward.  You can Open, Save, and Delete files just as you can with most programs.  The only requirement is that the game filenames use the file extension: .crp .  (If you don't enter the extension, it'll be added for you).

When you select New from the Game menu, the table will be cleared of all bets and all statistics including your Bankroll.  The game will be set for a new Come-out Roll and you'll also be asked if you want to keep any Auto-Bets that are present.  If so and they're active, they'll be re-initialized.

When you exit the game, all your settings, bets, statistics and Bankroll will automatically be saved in a file called default.crp and your Auto-Bets will be saved in a file called default.log .  This is true whether you've already saved them under other names or not.  The next time you run WinCraps, these default files will reload and you'll be right back where you left off.

When you save a game, a reference to your current Auto-Bet file (if any) will be included.  Then later when you re-open the saved game, the referenced Auto-Bet file will reload also.  You can use the same Auto-Bet file with as many games as you want.  However, beware that if you modify the Auto-Bet file, any saved games that reference it will resume under changed conditions.


Roll the Dice

You may cause the Dice to be rolled any of the following ways:

  Select Roll the Dice from the Action Menu

  Press the right mouse button

  Press the F2 key

  Choose Roll Your Own Numbers from the Action menu, and click on a number.

  Choose Bankroll / Hyper-Drive from the Statistics menu and start the  Hyper-Drive.

The dice are normally kept with the Stickperson, in a bowl at the side-center of the table.  When everyone is ready, the Stickperson uses a long stick to rake the dice to the Shooter.  If the Shooter is rolling for the first time, the Stickperson will offer a number of dice (generally 4 to 8) from which the Shooter selects two.  The Shooter then throws the dice at the opposite end of the table,  where they must strike the back wall to ensure a random roll (this is the reason for the cone shaped protrusions on the wall).  The Stickperson or Boxperson  will probably consider the roll valid even if the dice don't hit the wall, but will admonish the Shooter and take the dice away if he or she persists.  If the roll is unacceptable or unreadable such as when a die has gone off the table surface, the Stickperson calls "No Roll", and offers the Shooter a new selection of dice.  If desired, the Shooter (and only the Shooter), can quickly call out "Same Dice" and wait for the ejected cube to be retrieved.  Many Shooters do so because of superstition.  After a brief inspection by the Boxperson, the same dice are returned and rolling continues.  When the roll is good the Stickperson calls the number of the dice total, and adds a little banter to describe the roll, such as "4, Hard 4, in the Field, Pay the Line and Take the Don't!"

Everyone at the table has an opportunity to be the Shooter.  When one Shooter Sevens-out, the dice are passed clockwise to the next player.  A player is not required to shoot and may pass the dice.  Most casinos require the Shooter to place a Line bet thus ensuring the Shooter not only has a stake in the game, but hopefully will not leave before a Pass or Seven-Out.  However, you're not obliged to keep rolling if you don't want to - just tell the Stickperson you want to pass the dice.

There are any number of restrictions on handling the dice, and one of the Crew will surely let you know if you do something unacceptable.  Just pick up the dice with one hand, keep them over the table, and smoothly throw them to the opposite end of the table.  Showing off your "Behind-the-back and over-the-Stickperson's-head" trick-shots, or performing voodoo rituals and magic acts on the dice are not going to win you any points (pun intended)!

An Auto-Roll feature is available from the Auto-Play screen.  When activated, Auto-Rolling is initiated in the same fashion as a normal dice roll (any of the first 3 options above) and once set in motion, the same options are used to stop Auto-Rolling.


Dice Roll Files

This feature allows you to record and playback any sequence of Dice rolls.

To record just choose a name for the file.  A graphic recorder with a red light will appear on the lower portion of the table to remind you that you are recording.  Every roll is recorded, regardless of how you Roll the Dice.  To stop recording just click on the recorder or press the Esc key.  You'll be asked if you want to rewind and replay the rolls.  Whether you want to or not, the rolls have been recorded and can be retrieved for replay at any time.

To playback just enter the name of the file you want.  Once again, a graphic recorder will appear on the lower portion of the table to remind you that your rolls are coming from a recorded file (the only exception to this would be if you selected a number from the Roll Your Own Numbers pad, in which case the chosen number would be rolled).  When all the recorded rolls have been played back, you'll be asked if you'd like to rewind and play them back again.  If you answer no, the recorder will disappear and dice rolling will return to normal.  You can stop playback at any time by clicking on the recorder or pressing the Esc key.

Recorded rolls can be played back manually or automatically through the Auto-Roll or Hyper-Drive features.  One reason you might want to use the same set of recorded rolls is to compare different betting schemes especially when using the Auto-Bet feature.

Dice Roll filenames have the extension: .rol.  If you don't enter the extension for the filename, it will be added for you.


Call Bets On
Call Bets "ON"

A bet may be called ON a number of different ways:

  Move the mouse-pointer over the bet and press the F6 key.

  Click the mouse-pointer on the red ON button and then click on the bet.

  Select Call bet ON from the Action menu, and then click on the bet.

  Log an Auto-Bet that calls the bet ON.

However, if you have the "Key-in Bet Amounts" feature in use, then the mouse-pointer only works to move the Betting-window.  In that case you can:

  Move the Betting-window over the bet and press the F6 key.

  Move the Betting-window over the bet and select Call bet ON from the Action menu.

A bet that is called ON is said to be Working.  You would call a bet ON only if you had previously called it OFF and wanted to reactivate it, or if it were a bet that would otherwise have been automatically OFF.  The Dealer marks this bet with a green ON button.  During the Come-out Roll some bets are automatically OFF or ON.  See Auto-Work on Come-Out Roll.

You can call all bets ON by using the Shift-F6 keys together, or by selecting Call all bets ON from the Action menu.

Note:  If a bet has been previously called OFF, the first instance of calling it ON actually returns the bet to normal status (which may be Working or Not Working depending on the circumstances).  The second instance forces the bet to ON.


Call Bets Off
Call Bets "OFF"

A bet may be called OFF a number of different ways:

  Move the mouse-pointer over the bet and press the F7 key.

  Click the mouse-pointer on the red OFF button and then click on the bet.

  Select Call bet OFF from the Action menu, and then click on the bet.

  Log an Auto-Bet that calls the bet OFF.

However, if you have the "Key-in Bet Amounts" feature in use, then the mouse-pointer only works to move the Betting-window.  In that case you can:

  Move the Betting-window over the bet and press the F7 key.

  Move the Betting-window over the bet and select Call bet OFF from the Action menu.

A bet that is called OFF is said to be Not Working.  You would call a bet OFF if you wanted to deactivate it for a period of time with the intent of reactivating it later.  This saves everyone the effort of removing and replacing the chips.  Instead, the Dealer marks the bet with a red OFF button until you call it ON again.  During the Come-out Roll some bets are automatically OFF or ON even though they aren't marked as such.  See Auto-Work on Come-Out Roll.

You can call all bets OFF by using the Shift-F7 keys together, or by selecting Call all bets OFF from the Action menu.

Note:  If a bet has been called ON, the first instance of calling it OFF actually returns the bet to normal status (which may be Working or Not Working depending on the circumstances).  The second instance forces the bet to OFF.


Working Bets
Working / Not Working Bets - "ON" and "OFF"

A bet that is ON is active and said to be Working.  You would Call a Bet ON only if you had previously called it OFF and wanted to reactivate it, or if it would otherwise have been automatically OFF during the Come-out Roll. The Dealer marks the bet with an ON button.

A bet that is OFF is inactive and said to be Not Working.  You would Call a Bet OFF if you wanted to deactivate it for a period of time with the intent of reactivating it later.  This saves everyone the effort of removing and replacing your Checks.  Instead, the Dealer marks the bet with an OFF button until you call it ON again.

You may change the working status of any bet, at any time, for any reason with the following two exceptions:

1)  Pass Line and Come bets that have been Established on Points must always work and cannot be called OFF, reduced, or removed.  This is to maintain the House Advantage.  See the section titled Flat Bets / Odds Bets.

2)  Don't Pass and Don't Come bets that have been Established on Points must also always work and cannot be called OFF.  However, they can be reduced or removed.  By all rights, you should be able to call them ON and OFF if you wanted - it would do nothing to change the Odds.   However, the House doesn't allow it because a bet that has been called OFF is treated as though it had been removed from the table.  Therefore turning it ON again would be like putting it directly on the established position - which is not allowed.

In addition to calling bets ON or OFF, you can change whether or not certain bets are automatically ON or OFF during the Come-out Roll by using the Bets Auto-Work on Come-out Roll feature.

Chip-Stacks cannot be called ON or OFF because they're not bets.


Remove Bets

There are a number of different ways to remove bets:

  Move the mouse-pointer over the bet and press the Del key (the delete key).

  Move the mouse-pointer over the bet, then hold down the Shift key and click the left mouse button.

  Log an Auto-Bet that removes the bet.

  Move the mouse-pointer over the bet, then hold down the Alt key, click and hold the left mouse button and move the mouse-pointer to another location.  This is called dragging and is used to move your bet.  When you release the mouse button the moved value will drop (be added) onto whatever the mouse-pointer is over, and will be treated the same as if you had placed chips there normally.  If not over another bet or Chip-Stack, the value is lost - you have in effect just removed the dragged bet.

However, if you have the "Key-in Bet Amounts" feature in use, then the mouse-pointer only works to move the Betting-window.  In that case you can:

  Move the Betting-window over the bet and press the Del key.

  Move the Betting-window over the bet and select Remove bet from the Action menu.

You may remove any bet at any time except for Pass Line, and Come bets after their Points have been established.  (See Working Bets.)  If you remove a Lay or a Buy bet the commission you paid is returned.

Additionally, you can remove partial amounts by holding down the Ctrl key and clicking on the bet with the mouse-pointer.  Whatever amount you have selected in the lower left corner of the rail will be deducted from the bet for each click.  For instance, if you had the $5 chip displayed in the lower left corner and you did a Ctrl-Click on top of a $100 Field bet, $5 would be removed, leaving a $95 Field bet.

Pressing Shift-Del (the Shift key in combination with the Del key) or selecting Remove all bets from the Action menu will remove all bets except those described above.


Key-in Bet Amounts

This feature, available from the Action menu or by pressing the F9 key, allows you to use the keyboard to enter your bet amounts.  A small Betting-window appears on the table for this purpose.  The Betting-window may be moved from one bet to another by using the arrow keys or by pointing and clicking the mouse (the mouse-pointer will not place chips on bets while the Betting-window is present).  Also the following commands, normally focused on the mouse-pointer, will shift to the Betting-window:

  The Del key (Remove Bet)

  The F5 key (Buy Place Bet)

  The F6 key (Call Bet ON)

  The F7 key (Call Bet OFF)

If you're using the Roll Your Own Numbers pad, pressing the Tab key will shift the keyboard Focus off the Betting-window and onto the pad, then use any of the arrow keys to select the number you want to roll and press RETURN.  To shift the focus back to the Betting-window, press the Tab key until the text in the window is highlighted, or if the betting-window is already where you want it, just start keying in an amount.

The Betting-window must have the keyboard Focus before you can move it with the arrow keys.  When the betting-window has the focus, the numbers in the window are either highlighted or a blinking cursor is present.


Using the Keyboard

To select menu or button items, hold down the Alt key while pressing the underlined letter listed on the menu or button.  For instance, to select the Game menu, press and hold Alt while also pressing G.  Then press another underlined letter of one of the menu items, or use the arrow keys to highlight it and then press Return.

Items in the Action menu can also be accessed by using the shortcut keys listed next to each item.  For instance, the F2 key can be used to Roll the Dice.

To select an item in a list, such as those on the Auto-Play screen, first press Tab until you've shifted the Focus to the list, then use the up/down arrows until the item you want is highlighted, then press the Spacebar to select it.

You enter bets from the keyboard by activating the Key-in Bet Amounts feature.

On the Auto-Bet screen:

You can Tab through all the items used to build bets.  Pressing Spacebar while an item is highlighted will expose a list.  Then use the arrow keys to make your selection and press Spacebar again to execute.

To Log a bet, Tab to the appropriate command button (i.e. Condition) and press Return or Spacebar.  The line will highlight and focus will shift to the Logged Bets area.  Finally, use the arrow keys to select the position for the bet and press Return or Spacebar again to execute.

To select a line in the Logged Bets box, first make sure the box has the focus (press Tab if necessary until a dotted outline appears), then use the up and down arrow keys to move the Focus to a different line and press Spacebar to select it.  You can select multiple lines by using Ctrl-Spacebar and Shift-Spacebar.


Focus

The object toward which all keyboard activity is directed.  Just like you must direct the mouse-pointer to objects to click on them, you must also direct the keyboard to objects.  You change the keyboard focus to other objects by pressing the Tab key or in some cases by pressing the arrow keys.

Objects display when they have the focus in a number of different ways such as highlighted text, blinking cursors, or dotted outlines.


Display Bets as Numbers

This feature, located on the Action menu, allows you to view all bets on the table as numerical readouts.  It can be activated or de-activated by clicking on the menu item or by pressing the F11 key.  You can continue to play the game while the numbers are displayed or switch back and forth between numbers and chips.


Roll Your Own Numbers

How lucky can you get?  Needless to say, this is not an option you'll find in any casino.  But since you may be interested in trying out different bets or schemes and seeing what affects certain rolls may have on them, consider this option a learning tool.  A Roll Your Own Numbers pad appears from which you select the rolls you want.  The numbers followed by the letter H are Hardway numbers.

If you wish, you may still Roll the Dice in the normal fashion even though the Roll Your Own Numbers pad is visible.

This feature can be accessed via the Action menu or with the F12 key


Status-bar

The bottom Rail is used as the Status-bar.  It displays the following information:

  Won / Lost -  the total amount of money you have won or lost.  This is your relative Bankroll.

  Total bets - the total amount of money on all table bets.

  Individual bets - when the mouse-pointer is over a bet, the amount of money on that bet is displayed as well as its Working status.  Note:  When you have the Key-in Bet Amounts feature in use, the betting-window determines which bet is displayed.  For Lay and Buy bets, the Vig charged is shown as well.

These figures can be reset by starting a New game.


Summary

The Summary screen, which is accessed from the Statistics menu, shows general results since the beginning of the game.

There are two percentage figures given: one for the net number of bets won/lost and one for the net dollar amount of bets won/lost.  The dollar amount figure tells the real story.  It represents your actual advantage or disadvantage against the House, and you can compare it with figures from the Table of Odds and House Advantages.  For instance, start a New game and make a $6 Place bet on the 8.  Then using the Roll Your Own Numbers pad, make the Place 8 bet win five times and lose six times (obviously you'll have to replace the $6 each time it loses).  What you will have done is rolled the True Odds of the 8 versus the 7 of 6 to 5.  Now look at the Summary screen and you'll see that the dollar amount percentage shows a net loss of 1.52% (which matches the Table of Odds for the Place 8 - magic!)

These figures can be reset by starting a New game.


Bankroll / Hyper-Drive

The Bankroll / Hyper-Drive screen, which can be accessed from the Statistics menu, shows a graph of your Bankroll to help you visualize the relative success of your betting.  Each time the Dice roll, a new point is plotted on the graph.  525 such points will fit on a full graph, after which it is cleared and plotting continues.  An Auto-Adjust Graph feature will automatically adjust the Bankroll scale up, down, or increase it's spread in order to keep all the plotted points in view.  You can manually adjust the graph at any time by clicking on any of the 4 black triangles.  The 2 triangles in the upper left of the screen are used to increase and decrease the spread of the graph by factors of 2, and the 2 triangles just to the left of the graph are used to shift the graph up and down.  If the Auto-Adjust feature is on (checked) then you'll only be able to manually adjust the graph so far.  But if it's off (unchecked) then you can adjust the graph however you like.

At present, only the current graph plot is saved.  Therefore, if you'd like to save the results of previous graphs, you can print them manually before they're cleared, or you can activate the Auto-Print feature to do it for you.  Normally, three graphs are printed per page for a total of 1575 rolls.

It's from this screen that you can activate the Hyper-Drive feature.


Roll Totals

The Roll Totals screen, which can be accessed from the Statistics menu, contains two graphs.  One in blue (red for the number 7) depicts the actual data for each number rolled as a percentage of total rolls.  The other one in gray depicts the Probable data for each number to use as a comparison.  For instance, the probability of rolling the number 2 is approximately 2.78%, so if the actual % at some point is higher, then you know that a greater than average number of 2's have been rolled.

Notice how the actual percentages come closer and closer to matching the probable percentages as the number of rolls increase.  While no set of rolls can be expected to exactly match the probable values, a graph that generally conforms to the same shape is your assurance that their distribution is realistic.  When you Roll the Dice the game makes no attempt to balance the graph in any way.  For instance, if a greater than average number of 2's have been rolled, no effort is made to compensate by rolling fewer 2's.  The numbers are chosen randomly in such a way that each has number has the correct Probable chance of appearing.  The fact that the graph balances itself out over time is simply the nature of probability.  It's entirely possible to have a skewed graph and while playing to observe streaks of numbers as well as streaks of missing numbers.  Actually that's when craps really gets fun!  A long streak of numbers devoid of 7's would be viewed as a Hot roll and players betting With the Dice would be jumping with excitement!

There are also two columns of data: one containing the actual number of rolls for each number, and the other containing the number of rolls since each number was last rolled.

As an example:  If 3 Sevens were rolled and then 9 other numbers (for a total of 12 rolls)  the graph would indicate in red that the number Seven was rolled 25% of the total and in gray that the probable was 16.67% (thereby indicating that a higher than normal percentage of Sevens had been rolled).  The first column would show 3 Sevens and the second column would show 9 numbers had been rolled since the last Seven.

These figures can be reset by starting a New game.


Roll Frequencies

The Roll Frequency screen, which can be accessed from the Statistics menu, shows how often each number or group of numbers has rolled since the beginning of the game.  For instance, let's say that after Rolling the Dice a while you looked at the roll frequencies for the number 7 and saw:

1	20
2	14
3	22
4	10
5	8
-	-
-	-
-	-
35	1

This would mean that 20 times, a 7 appeared on the first roll of the dice (since the previous 7), 14 times a 7 appeared on the second roll, 22 times on the third, etc., and 1 time it took 35 rolls for the 7 to show up - now that's a Hot roll!

These figures can be reset by starting a New game.


Bets Won / lost

The Bets Won/Lost screen, which can be accessed from the Statistics menu, shows the short-term winning or losing trends for bets you actually made.  The primary purpose is to assist Auto-Betting in determining when your bets have Won/Lost and how many times they've Won/Lost  in a row.  The figures do not represent cumulative totals.  Take a look at the following example using just the Pass Line bet:

Bet	Event	Bets Won / Lost shows
$5	Pass Line wins	1
$5	Pass Line wins	2
$0	Pass Line loses	2
$0	Pass Line wins	2
$5	Pass Line loses	-1
$5	Pass Line loses	-2
$5	Pass Line wins	1

Notice that in the third and fourth steps where no bet was made, the counter did not change.  It only changes when you actually win or lose money.  Also notice how the counter resets itself when the trend goes from winning to losing or vice versa, and that losing figures are shown as negatives.

You can reset these figures to zero by starting a New game.  Or you can reset them collectively or individually by Logging an Auto-Bet reset Action.


Chip-Stack Values

The Chip-Stack Values screen, which can be accessed from the Statistics menu, displays the current value of all 100 Chip-Stacks.  The Chip-Stacks numbered 1 through 4 are visible on the game table and can be used manually or with Auto-Betting.  Chip-Stacks 0 and 5 through 99 are not visible on the game table and can only be used with Auto-Betting.

These values are reset when you start a New game.


Flag Values

The Flag Values screen, which can be accessed from the Statistics menu, is simply a place where you can monitor the true/false value of any Auto-Bet Flags that are in use.  This is most useful when you're debugging your Auto-Bets.

These values can be changed only through Auto-Betting or by starting a New game.


Configuration Screen
Configuration

The Configuration screen, which can be accessed from Game Menu, is where you customize your Table Layout.

Table Limits:  You can set the maximum and minimum betting amounts from 1 to 2,000,000!  During play, amounts greater than $3000 will be displayed with a special $ chip, with the exact amount displayed on the Status-bar.

Odds Allowed:  You can set Odds Allowed Factors for the 4/10, 5/9, and 6/8 to any amount from 0 to 999!  Fractional amounts are also allowed, i.e. many casinos allow 2.5X odds on the 6 and 8.

Odds Calculation Method:  You can select different methods to calculate how large odds bets are allowed to be.  Depending on the Odds Allowed Factors you've selected and the size of the wagers you're making, you may or may not notice a difference in the calculation methods.  For more information see Odds Allowed.

 Auto-Select - Selects one of the following methods based on the Odds Allowed Factors entered.

 X Flat w/ Minor Push - Multiply the Flat bet by the Odds Allowed Factor, then allow a push to the nearest amount that squares with the odds.

 X Flat w/ Color Push - Multiply the Flat bet by the Odds Allowed Factor, then allow a push to the nearest amount that squares with the odds and considers the denomination of the Checks used to make the wager.

 X Flat - Single Odds - Multiply the Flat bet by the Odds Allowed Factor, then allow an amount equal to the Single Odds amount for that figure.

 Flat - Single Odds X - Figure the amount of Single Odds allowed for the Flat bet amount, then multiply the result by the Odds Allowed Factor.

Notices:  You can turn notices on or off using the check boxes.

Put Bets Allowed:  Not all casinos allow Put bets, so you can allow or disallow them here.

Sound:  Each category of sound has a number of options to choose from, including one titled "none" which allows you to turn that category off.  Or you can check Disable all game sounds to turn everything off.  The check box labeled Disable Auto-Bet sounds allows you to disable any sounds called for in an Auto-Bet file.  The volume scroll bar may or may not be usable depending on your computer.  You can test each sound you select by clicking on the command button next to the selected sound.  You can also enter your own sounds in the game.  See Sound.

You can select different Checks / Chips and Dice to play with.  The chips and dice that are already on the table will be replaced with your new selections.

You can also choose between three common payoffs for the Field bet, and between Bar 2 and Bar 12 for the Don't Pass and Don't Come bets.


Notices

WinCraps will notify you when certain actions are being taken or denied.  For instance, charges imposed by the House on certain bets, or Maximum or Minimum Bet Limits reached.  You can turn these Notices On or Off with the check boxes found on the Configuration screen.  If you're a novice, you may want to leave them On until you understand the game a little better.  If you're more advanced, you may want to turn them Off so they're not a nuisance.

You may want to turn Notices Off while running Auto-Bets for two reasons.  First, your Auto-Bets will run quicker since you won't have to continually acknowledge any Notices.  And second, you may already know that some of your bets will generate Notices, so being reminded is just a bother.  However, for any Notice that appears as a result of an Auto-Bet you can click on the small dice picture in the Notice box to see which line number generated the message.

If Hyper-Drive is active, Notices are ignored regardless of their setting.

The check box labeled Auto-Bet Messages is actually a duplicate of the Show Logged Messages During Play function on the Auto-Bet screen.


Sound

You may activate or deactivate any or all game sounds and adjust the volume from the Configuration screen.  The sound quality is best  with a sound board, but the PC speaker will work fine if you have a PC Speaker Driver installed.

If you like, you can add and use your own sounds in the game!  WinCraps uses standard wave files, just with different filename extensions to categorize them.  Here's what you need to do:

 Stickperson  If you have a microphone setup on your computer or have a friend who does, just run the Windows™ sound recorder or any other sound wave recording program and create the following sound files:

PERSON01.STK - "Please keep your hands off the House money"

PERSON02.STK thru PERSON12.STK - Actual number, i.e. "Seven" for PERSON07.STK

PERSON13. STK - "Pay the Line, Take the Don't"

PERSON14. STK - "Pay the Don't, Take the Line"

PERSON15. STK - "Push the Don't, Take the Line"

PERSON16. STK - "Hard"

PERSON17. STK - "Come-out roll"

Note:  In place of PERSON, enter whatever name you'd like, i.e. GEORGE14.STK .  The name can be from 1 to 6 characters long, and you must include 2 digits after it (i.e. GEORGE01.STK not GEORGE1.STK).

 Dice sounds use any wave file (just change the extension to .DCE) and should be approximately 1/2 second in duration to synchronize with the dice rolling.

 Chip sounds use any wave file (just change the extension to .CHP) and should be as short in duration as possible so as to synchronize with the placing of chips.

 Win sounds use any wave file (just change the extension to .WIN) and may be of any duration.  They play when you win a bet.

All sound files should be placed in the same directory as WINCRAPS.EXE.

Note:  Sounds can also be played through Auto-Betting.


Speaker Driver

If you have neither a sound board nor a PC speaker driver, you can enable the game sounds by installing the Microsoft® speaker driver included with this program.  This driver is included simply for your convenience and there is no charge for its inclusion.  You could obtain this same driver freely from the Microsoft Driver Libraries through services like CompuServe.  Cloud City Software® assumes no liability for its performance.

The driver comes with 5 files:

AUDIO.TXT

LICENSE.TXT

OEMSETUP.INF

SPEAKER.DRV

SPEAKER.TXT

You should read the text (.TXT) files for information on the driver and instructions for installation.  The driver works with your whole Windows™ system and not just WinCraps!  These 5 files are packed together in one self-extracting file called SPEAK.EXE.

Caution:  With a sound board installed, you don't need the PC speaker driver.  Activating it may cause distorted sound.


Registration Info
Registration Information

WinCraps Registered Version is just $19.95 !

Registered copies:

  May be used for an unlimited period of time.

  Have unrestricted use of the Hyper-Drive.

  Are devoid of Order Form reminders.

  Are entitled to FREE upgrades.

The WinCraps Order Form is accessed from the Help menu on the WinCraps table.

Ordering Options:

1 )  Complete the WinCraps Order Form and press "Print Mail Form".  This sends the information to your printer.  Then mail to:

Cloud City Software

4639 Somerset Ave SE

Bellevue, WA  98006

2)  Complete the WinCraps Order Form and press "Save Email Form".  A dialog box will appear for you to designate where to save the information.  The default file name is WCORDER.TXT but you can change it if desired.  Then go On-line with your Email provider and send this file to one of the following:

CompuServe:  75750,1417

America Online:  CldCtySoft

Internet:  75750.1417@CompuServe.com

3)  CompuServe members (if desired) need not fill out the Order Form, but instead may register On-line by entering GO SWREG and have the registration fee conveniently added to their CompuServe bill.

Disk Option:

Registering will provide you with a registration number to convert your Shareware version of WinCraps into a Registered version.  You may also choose to have a disk mailed to you, by including Shipping & Handling in your total payment amount.

Payment Options:

1)  Enclose a check (in US dollars drawn on a US bank) together with your mailed order form.

2)  Include your VISA or MASTERCARD number on your mailed or Emailed order form.  Make sure you provide your name as it appears on the card and your card's type and expiration date.  The only payment option available when Emailing your order is VISA or MASTERCARD.


Disclaimer of Warranty

CLOUD CITY SOFTWARE DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, AS TO PERFORMANCE, OF MERCHANTABILITY, QUALITY, OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE REGARDING WINCRAPS.

BECAUSE OF THE MANY HARDWARE / SOFTWARE CONFIGURATIONS USERS MAY HAVE, THE USER MUST ASSUME THE ENTIRE RISK OF INSTALLING AND USING THE PROGRAM. ANY LIABILITY OF CLOUD CITY SOFTWARE WILL BE LIMITED EXCLUSIVELY TO PRODUCT REPLACEMENT OR REFUND OF PURCHASE PRICE TO REGISTERED USERS.