Game Room & Gaming (02)
Building Your Own Bar
Bars have become the most popular remodeling project, according to designers who say that the trend is the latest reflection of today's more home-centered lifestyles. Besides providing a beverage center away from the kitchen, bars facilitate the transition between kitchen, dining room and family room in open floor plans. That means you can forget about that basement rec room with the neon signs - the latest bar designs are attractive enough to take center stage. If you plan to have a sink or dishwasher as part of your bar, you'll need to consider the location of existing plumbing lines (or prepare to pay a hefty premium to the plumber). But if the best place for your bar is nowhere near the plumbing, consider doing without a sink; you can always empty used glasses into a bus tray under the counter. Your choice of counter will do more to define the look and feel of your bar than any other component. The most economical bar top option is a laminate material, which offers durability and hundreds of color choices. Solid wood is more traditional, but it must be kept dry and requires care to prevent stains. (Byrnes seals wooden bar tops with five or six coats of urethane.) Stone surfaces like granite or slate make the most elegant bar tops, but they are expensive. Finally, metal bar tops (typically brass or zinc) evoke old-time saloons or Parisian cafés - but be prepared for lots of maintenance, because they need frequent polishing.
The History of Roulette
The history of roulette is not clear. It is known that Roman soldiers would sometimes tip a chariot on its side and spin one wheel, betting on where a mark on the wheel would stop. It is believed that French scientist and mathematician, Blaise Pascal, the inventor of probability theory, may have built a fairly modern-looking roulette wheel in the mid 1600s while experimenting with perpetual motion. By 1796 roulette wheels almost identical with modern wheels appeared in Paris casinos. This site traces the fascinating history of the roulette wheel in some detail up to modern times. In addition to the history of the roulette wheel, this site has contains articles on Roulette Strategy, How to Play Roulette, Roulette Odds, and a grounding in the language used in Roulette.
The Origins of Poker
There seem to be differences of opinion on the origin of Poker. Moreover, there seems to be no clear or direct early ancestor of the game. It is more likely that Poker derived its present day form from elements of many different games. The consensus is that because of its basic principle, its birth is a very old one. Jonathan H. Green makes one of the earliest written references to Poker in 1834. Site also includes poker strategies, card counting, famous poker players, poker news, poker tournaments, cheating in poker, poker fraud, biggest poker jackpots, shuffle tracking, betting tips and betting systems.
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