Clever Switches ...

[Arfa Daily]

I'm back ! Just got home from my latest Vegas trip. There is a whole new
generation of machines there now, many of which are updated versions of the
'traditional' Double Diamond style machines, using white LEDs for the reel
illumination, and so on. However, there are also a whole bunch of machines
now that at first glance look like a conventional one, two or three credit
per play machine, and still have traditional themes like Lucky 7s or Double
Diamond, but are actually like the 1c and 5c machines where you can play up
to 25 lines with a variable stake per line. To set that up, they usually
have two rows of very conventional internally lit buttons, but on some of
these latest machines, they have just a few buttons that at first glance
look like a standard oblong button, internally lit yellow, but on a closer
look, actually contain a miniature backlit graphical LCD panel. How cool is
that ? The legend of the button can be changed 'on the fly', and when it's
not performing any control function whilst the reels are running, it can
dance away with pretty little patterns and graphics.

I can't recall having seen buttons like this on any other equipment before,
but what an obvious idea it is. How much better for multi-level control
functions, than having to display what's going on on a separate LCD panel.
Anybody else seen them used on any other equipment ?

Arfa

 

[D Yuniskis]

Arfa Daily wrote:

I'm back ! Just got home from my latest Vegas trip. There is a whole new
generation of machines there now, many of which are updated versions of the
'traditional' Double Diamond style machines, using white LEDs for the reel
illumination, and so on. However, there are also a whole bunch of machines
now that at first glance look like a conventional one, two or three credit
per play machine, and still have traditional themes like Lucky 7s or Double
Diamond, but are actually like the 1c and 5c machines where you can play up
to 25 lines with a variable stake per line. To set that up, they usually
have two rows of very conventional internally lit buttons, but on some of
these latest machines, they have just a few buttons that at first glance
look like a standard oblong button, internally lit yellow, but on a closer
look, actually contain a miniature backlit graphical LCD panel. How cool is
that ? The legend of the button can be changed 'on the fly', and when it's
not performing any control function whilst the reels are running, it can
dance away with pretty little patterns and graphics.

I can't recall having seen buttons like this on any other equipment before,
but what an obvious idea it is. How much better for multi-level control
functions, than having to display what's going on on a separate LCD panel.
Anybody else seen them used on any other equipment ?

They have been around for a *long* time but have always been
astronomically expensive. Military applications, etc. I recall
looking at them when I was interested in a relegendable keyboard
(they are all wrong for that sort of use, though).

 

On May 13, 5:50 pm, "Arfa Daily" <arfa.da...@ntlworld.com> wrote:

I'm back ! Just got home from my latest Vegas trip. There is a whole new
generation of machines there now, many of which are updated versions of the
'traditional' Double Diamond style machines, using white LEDs for the reel
illumination, and so on. However, there are also a whole bunch of machines
now that at first glance look like a conventional one, two or three credit
per play machine, and still have traditional themes like Lucky 7s or Double
Diamond, but are actually like the 1c and 5c machines where you can play up
to 25 lines with a variable stake per line. To set that up, they usually
have two rows of very conventional internally lit buttons, but on some of
these latest machines, they have just a few buttons that at first glance
look like a standard oblong button, internally lit yellow, but on a closer
look, actually contain a miniature backlit graphical LCD panel. How cool is
that ? The legend of the button can be changed 'on the fly', and when it's
not performing any control function whilst the reels are running, it can
dance away with pretty little patterns and graphics.

I can't recall having seen buttons like this on any other equipment before,
but what an obvious idea it is. How much better for multi-level control
functions, than having to display what's going on on a separate LCD panel..
Anybody else seen them used on any other equipment ?

Arfa

The Evertz routing switcher where I work uses rows and rows of
multicolor LCD switches. We were looking into those switches 6 or 7
years (?) back for controls on a telecine (flying spot scanner) but
opted instead for a touch screen over an LCD panel.

G˛