Ask The Wizard # 248 - Bingo Cards
March 5th, 2010 at 7:56:34 AM
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From Ask The Wiz 248:
Back in the good old days, bingo halls used cards that were made of heavy card material. They lasted a long time. When someone called 'bingo' a floorperson went over and called each of the numbers that comprised the winning bingo, which was verified by the caller. A problem with this was it was time consuming, and has the possibility of error and collusion.
Modern bingo halls use paper 'cards'. Players use ink daubers. The cards are used for a single game. When a player calls bingo, the floorperson does NOT announce the numbers, but only the printer's card number, printed in the free space. The caller punches that number into the computer, and a monitor displays the entire card, showing the winning bingo in one color, and the other numbers hit in another color. It makes for a very fast and accurate determination of a win.
The only way the system works is if the card manufacturer uses a limited number of different cards, with each combination stored in the computer at the bingo hall.
I'm 99% sure that the number printed in that free space is only 5 digits. I.E. 100,000 card combinations. It *MAY* be 6 digits. But I KNOW its not any larger than that.
While I don't question the Wiz's formula, obviously, using a different base number of card combinations, the result will be different.
(FYI: In many bingo halls, they also call the serial number, but that just a security device, to verify that the player purchased the cards that day, at the bingo hall.)
While I don't question the math, I'm not sure the Wiz has been in a modern bingo hall long enough to take notice of a specific detail about bingo cards.Quote:What is the probability of two bingo cards in play in the same session being identical?
It depends on how many cards there are in play. Assuming c cards in play, a good approximation for the probability for at least one set of identical cards is 1-e(-c/471,000,000). For example, with 10,000 cards in play, which I think is about right for a Vegas bingo session, the odds of at least one set of identical cards are about 1 in 47,000. To have a 50/50 chance of at least one set of identical cards, you would need to have about 330 million cards in play.
Back in the good old days, bingo halls used cards that were made of heavy card material. They lasted a long time. When someone called 'bingo' a floorperson went over and called each of the numbers that comprised the winning bingo, which was verified by the caller. A problem with this was it was time consuming, and has the possibility of error and collusion.
Modern bingo halls use paper 'cards'. Players use ink daubers. The cards are used for a single game. When a player calls bingo, the floorperson does NOT announce the numbers, but only the printer's card number, printed in the free space. The caller punches that number into the computer, and a monitor displays the entire card, showing the winning bingo in one color, and the other numbers hit in another color. It makes for a very fast and accurate determination of a win.
The only way the system works is if the card manufacturer uses a limited number of different cards, with each combination stored in the computer at the bingo hall.
I'm 99% sure that the number printed in that free space is only 5 digits. I.E. 100,000 card combinations. It *MAY* be 6 digits. But I KNOW its not any larger than that.
While I don't question the Wiz's formula, obviously, using a different base number of card combinations, the result will be different.
(FYI: In many bingo halls, they also call the serial number, but that just a security device, to verify that the player purchased the cards that day, at the bingo hall.)
I invented a few casino games. Info:
http://www.DaveMillerGaming.com/ —————————————————————————————————————
Superstitions are silly, childish, irrational rituals, born out of fear of the unknown. But how much does it cost to knock on wood? 😁
March 5th, 2010 at 2:23:34 PM
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we just got back from vegas and one of the things we did this trip was to play bingo! i got to say that i am a rookie at this game and never played it in my adulthood life and never for money or prizes. i always thought that bingo was a slow boring game and i would never win.
anyway, we entered a tournament and just before the game started my friend called and we were having a good laugh at what i was about to play. i told him i felt like a guppy in a room full of white haired little old lady killer sharks! ready to eat me up alive! not understanding the game i even called bingo and was so excited to have 'one' line filled when that game called for a 'T' shape for a bingo. that was a little embarrassing. a long story short, i got the last laugh when i hit the last 'completely filled card' game for the grand prize of 9 thousand in cash and prize, mostly cash! and to think i even thought of giving my cards to ms. nap and stay in the casino! (but i did give her a vp machine after hitting several quads and five minutes later she hit a royal!)
yes, as DJTeddyBear said, they verify each winning card by punching in the number on the card into the computer. as a side note, we played 10 games and some games had multiple winners. one game had 6 winners who had to split the prize for that game. i won by myself.
anyway, we entered a tournament and just before the game started my friend called and we were having a good laugh at what i was about to play. i told him i felt like a guppy in a room full of white haired little old lady killer sharks! ready to eat me up alive! not understanding the game i even called bingo and was so excited to have 'one' line filled when that game called for a 'T' shape for a bingo. that was a little embarrassing. a long story short, i got the last laugh when i hit the last 'completely filled card' game for the grand prize of 9 thousand in cash and prize, mostly cash! and to think i even thought of giving my cards to ms. nap and stay in the casino! (but i did give her a vp machine after hitting several quads and five minutes later she hit a royal!)
yes, as DJTeddyBear said, they verify each winning card by punching in the number on the card into the computer. as a side note, we played 10 games and some games had multiple winners. one game had 6 winners who had to split the prize for that game. i won by myself.
