We’ll start by giving you all of the necessary knowledge to find a secure, reputable online casino. Then we’ll help walk you through the process of joining the online casino and getting straight into the action.

Joining the Right Online Casino

The first thing you need to look for is the online casino’s responsibility. Are they licensed and regulated by an authoritative jurisdiction? If so, you know they are implementing proper security measures and data encryption technologies. You can also be sure the games are fair due to thorough, monthly testing of the RNG (Random Number Generator); a standard operative programmed into the software to guarantee unpredictable outcomes.

You’ll find the licensing and regulation information quite easily, in most cases. Scroll down to the very bottom of the online casino’s main page and look around the copyright info for “licensed in”, “licensed by” or “gaming license from”. If not offered in text, the authority may be displayed as an image. Common regulators include Malta, Alderney, Gibraltar, Kahnawake, Curacao, Netherlands Antilles, Antigua and Barbuda, Isle of Man, the United Kingdom, among others.

Proper licensing and regulation can put most of your concerns to rest alone, but there is one more way to ensure that an online casino is not going to ignore the laws of its jurisdiction. Longevity.

An online casino that has been in operation for several years or better is not going to suddenly turn around, blowing a long-standing reputation, and refuse to pay its players. A brand new online casino, however, may not be as trustworthy. An online casinos reputation goes a long way, and without longevity, there’s no way to build a reliable reputation. Simply put, try to join an online casino that has been around for at least 3 years or better.

Joining an Online Casino

Now that you feel confident you’ve made the right decision, it’s time to take the next step and join the online casino. There are three basic steps – downloading the software, registering an account, and making a deposit.

Step 1 – Downloading the Casino Software

PC users are encouraged to download the online casino’s software. If you are running a Mac or Linux operating system, you may have to choose the Flash casino. If running the Flash casino, it will load directly in your browser. Skip the download instructions and go straight to Step 2, Registration.

Once you enter the online casino, you should have no trouble finding the “Download” button. If you don’t see one, look for a “Getting Started” link. Once you click Download, a window should pop-up asking to “Run”, “Save” or “Cancel”. Click “Run”.

Your computer may ask you to confirm the decision. Once the download is complete, select to install the software. Follow the instructions and you’ll be ready in no time. Once the installation is done, click “Finish” and the online casino lobby will instantly load on your desktop.

Step 2 – Registration

This part of the isn’t nearly as daunting as you may think. A simple, one-page form requires you to offer up some personal information. Don’t worry – if you followed the first steps to ensure the integrity of the online casino, you have nothing to feel nervous about.

Make sure you give your real, accurate information when joining the online casino. Otherwise, you may not be permitted to make a deposit, or worse, withdrawal your winnings. You should not be asked for financial information at this point – just the basics… name, address, date of birth, email, etc.

Be sure to choose a username and password that you can easily remember, but not easy enough to figure out. Write them down somewhere to be safe and never give your password to anyone, no matter how much you think you can trust them. This is real money we’re going to be dealing with.

Step 3 – Depositing

Last but not least, assuming you want to play for real money, you’ll want to make a deposit. First, head over to the promotions page and find out what kind of deposit bonuses are available. If you choose to accept a welcome bonus, make sure you read the terms involved so that you know how to claim it, and how to clear it.

Head over to the cashier and choose to make a deposit. There will be a list of viable deposit options. You may have to click a drop-down menu to see them. Choose the method that best suits your situation and geographical location, then follow the instructions to complete the deposit.

For example, if depositing via credit card, you will be asked to supply the card number, expiration, name on the card, address and amount to deposit. Depending on which card you deposit with, you may be asked to supply a 3-digit security code, found on the back of your card. The name and address you enter must match the card, as well as the info your registered with (remember, we told you to use real info!)

If using an online payment processor, you should only need to enter your account name and amount to deposit. You will be directed to the payment processor’s web site, where you’ll log in and confirm the deposit.

Time to Play!

You should now be ready to play at your new online casino. Good luck, have fun and play responsibly!

Our first tip, however, has nothing to do with a winning strategy, but rather maximum entertainment value. Be sure to play an online slot machine that you genuinely enjoy. This way, if you don’t come out with a profit, you won’t be nearly as disappointed.

Online Slots Strategy Tip #1 – Bankroll Goals

First and foremost, set your goals and stick to them. Decide what you would consider to be a decent profit, and if you hit that mark, stop. Set reasonable goals. If you’re bringing $50, don’t expect to double it. A $20 profit is pretty good for online slots. When you hit it, stop. Casinos make most of their money from players who decide to keep going, even when they know they should stop. Also know how much you are willing to lose, and don’t go beyond it. If your funds get wiped, cut your losses and consider it the price you pay for entertainment – just like going to a concert or dinner and a movie.

Online Slots Strategy Tip #2 – Bonus Multipliers

Choosing an online slot machine isn’t just about finding a theme that catches your eye. You should be looking for the lost that is going to have the best payout for your wagers. There are slots machines known as “Multipliers” and “Bonus Multipliers”. You want to find the latter of the two. A multiplier slots offers evenly rising payouts for inserting no coins, therefore no advantage to the player for betting more. For example, a specific combination may pay 3x for 1 coin, 6x for 2 coins and 9x for the max 3 coins. A Bonus Multiplier slot will pay more than 9x for max coins, may 12x or even 15x. This encourages players to spend more, but if you’re going to play, you might as well increase your profit potential, not lower it.

Online Slots Strategy Tip #3 – Progressive Jackpots

Progressive Jackpots are a double edged sword; costly and rarely rewarding, but with a shiny glean that attracts so many. The truth is, progressive slots aren’t all that bad if you play for entertainment more than payouts, as there’s still the chance of taking a massive prize home for your efforts. The problem is that progressives have to take in a lot of cash in order to pay out that eventually mega-prize, therefore they don’t offer winning spins as often as regular online slots. Another problem is that the rules of progressive often state you must play max coins, in a minimum denomination, in order to release the jackpot. Hitting that perfect winning combo with a smaller wager will reward a much lower, incredibly disappointing prize, compared to what might have been.

Online Slots Strategy Tip #4 – Free Spins

Look for an online slot machine that offers free spins for achieving certain combinations. These free spin bonuses are often the most profitable way to play online slots. Free spins with multiplied winnings are even better. Make sure you have a large enough bankroll to last at least 50 spins so that you have a decent shot of hitting the free spins bonus at least once. When free spins are running, the winnings are often multiplied, and the chance of hitting a winning combo always seems to be much higher.

Online Slots Strategy Tip #5 – Slots Bonuses

Every online casino offers bonuses, but some of them present exceptionally high bonuses for slots players. Slots Bonuses must be cleared by playing online slots, but if you came to play the slots anyway, why not take some free cash to do it? If a typical bonus is 100% up to $200, a typical Slots Bonus would be more like 400% up to $1,000. That’s a lot of bang for your buck!

However, this isn’t the case. Each online casino is different its own way in terms of the games they have, the bonuses they offer, whether or not they offer a VIP program and ultimately if they are a reputable room that has a happy fan base. Furthermore, since each player is different and has different needs or wants, one room might be perfect for one player but horrible for the next.

So, how does a player go about choosing the best online casino for them?

Well, a player should factor in what he or she absolutely wants and then go about finding a room that will meet the wants as closely as possible. To help make the decision-making process that much easier for you, we have listed some factors to consider before signing up to a room.

Online Casino Factors to Consider

Casino Bonuses

Bonuses can be an important factor for some people while for others it will not make a difference. The amount of the bonuses and the clearing rates should also be factored in as well.

For example, if you are a player who only plays on the weekends or maybe one day a week, a deposit bonus may not mean as much to you. Playing so infrequently will take a player longer to clear his or her bonus and will keep a player from being able to make a withdrawal for just as long.

On the other hand, if you were someone who plays regularly, then a deposit bonus would probably then be desired. By playing regularly, you are sure to see more value out of a bonus and will be able to clear it at a much quicker rate allowing you to withdraw any winnings that were accrued.

Lastly, if you are a regular player and are considering a bonus, then it is important to also consider what games you like to play. Some online rooms do not let card or table games such as Blackjack or Craps contribute to the completion of a bonus while other rooms do, but only at small increments.

So in short, when looking for a room be sure to consider if you are going to take a room up on their deposit bonus or not. If so, be sure to factor in the size of the bonus you would like along with the requirements it will take to clear them, both the number of times it will take to clear the bonus and what game contribute to the bonus.

Casino VIP Program

VIP programs are going to be similar to bonuses; you play enough to where it is a necessity or you don’t and don’t care if you have it or not.

For the most part, all rooms offer some kind of VIP or reward program. A large majority of these programs just offer a comp points system that gives players points based on how much he or she has wagered. Once a player has earned enough points, then those points can be exchanged for cash. This type of reward system is generally found at 99% of the online casinos available and if you are just an occasional player then this will probably do just fine.

If you happen to play more often, then you will want to look at rooms that offer a more extensive VIP program. Many are on an invitation only basis with the criteria being based on a player’s activity while other casinos use points and have several different VIP statuses to work towards with each level up offering better incentives.

So, again, a VIP program and whether or not you should be looking for a room that has one will be dependent on how much you play; the more you play, the more you will want to consider signing up to a room that has an extensive program.

PC / MAC Casinos

Although it’s increasingly becoming less and less of an issue, players will want to be sure if they have a Mac that the room they’re considering has a Mac version of their software or that they have an instant play/flash version available somewhere on their site.

Also, another important factor to keep in mind is that if you are looking for tons and tons of games, most Mac instant play programs have pretty close to half or so of the available games that are available in the full download. So what this means, is that you will only get 60 or 70 games on average from a room that generally offers 100 plus in their full download.

On a side note, Ladbrokes offers tons of games in both their versions of their software. If you can play there from where you live, that would be a suggested site to check out.

Casino Games

There won’t be any huge differences in games from one site to the next besides who the software developer is. Most sites will offer all the basic slots, table games and card games.

Something to consider however, would be the limits that players can wager on each game. Two sites with identical software can have differences of upwards of $200 or more in what they allow players to bet; so be sure to check that out prior to signing up.

Other than that, players will just want to know what games they enjoy and try to find a room that offers as much of that one game or variation as possible. Some rooms focus heavily on slot machines offering hundreds of variations in number of reels and themes while other rooms prioritize table and card games and offer 10 or more variations of blackjack.

Online Casinos & US Residents

Due to various laws and the difficulty in terms of getting money on and off line, many rooms do not accept US players. So, if you are a US player this will be the first thing to check on because some rooms will not even allow you to browse their site let alone play free on their software if they’re a room that does not allow players from the States.

But don’t worry; there are still several good rooms to choose from for player from the US. They just may have to do more research to find the right one for them.

Casino Banking Options

Players will want to be sure that they have a depositing method and a withdrawal method that the casino they’re considering accepts. If not, then it may become very difficult when and if the time comes to make a withdrawal.

For the most part, many rooms offer the basic methods such as debit cards/credit cards, bank transfers and some even take checks. So a majority of players should be ok in this department but be sure to check just to be on the safe side.

Choosing the Best Online Casino

What choosing the best online casino ultimately comes down to is a player knowing him or herself and what they want, need and are looking for when they sit down to play. Do they need bonuses, a VIP program or an abundance of games ? What about the table limits; do these fit your needs?

These are all questions a player should ask and once a player has an answer to each of these questions, than comes the fun part; finding a casino that best fits the player’s needs.

How times have changed. Now, there are so many different kinds of slot machines to choose from, slot enthusiasts would have a difficult time choosing where to start first. Enthusiasts can choose from 3, 5 and 7 reel machines, video or classic slot machines and machines that offer single line or multi-line payouts. The list can simply go on and on.

How far can this list really go ? Well, much farther than what we can list within the scope of this article. However, we have listed the different types of online slots that are most common in online casinos today.

Common Online Slot Machines

Bonus Slots

Bonus slots generally offer players some type of bonus round where they can earn free spins or play in an interactive bonus round where players can attempt to win more money. Sometimes these bonus rounds even have games that allow for more player skill, giving the house slightly a lesser edge.

A few fun bonus slot machines to try out would include Achilles, King of Swing, Witch Dr., Magic Monkey and Naughty Ninja.

Progressive Slots

Progressive slot machines are some of the most popular forms of slot out there. These machines have an accumulating jackpot that increases in size every time someone plays. These jackpots can get huge, sometimes in excess of $1 million dollar or more which can become a life changing experience for one lucky winner.

There are tons of really cool progressive slot machines to play. In our opinion, some of the best progressive slot machines are from any room that harbors machines from software giant, Real Time Gaming. What is so great about these machines is that they are tied together on a huge network across all sites that use this software. So what that means is that these jackpots build much, much faster and it would be safe to assume that they’re won more often.

Some great titles would include Mid-Life Crisis, The Shark and I.R.I.S Slots.

Single Line Slots / Multi Line Slots

Single line slots are slot machines that only allow players to wager once for one winning combination of symbols, typically straight across and in the middle of the machines. Multi line machines allow players to wager once for every line that the machine has which creates multiple ways to win. Players can win diagonal, straight across, up and down and other abnormal, various ways.

For example, if a player were to wager $.10 per line on a 25 line machine, they could wager up to $2.50 per spin increasing the ways that they could win and the amount that could be won.

Most traditional 3 reel machines tend to have single line payouts while 5+ reels tend to have multi line payout with the amount of lines ranging from as little as 5 lines to as many as 25 lines.

I-Slots

I-Slot machines are one of the most entertaining slot machines out on the market today. What is so entertaining is the fact that each one of these I-Slot machines offer a fun story line with players having some say in how the story ends depending on what they do in the various ‘advance’ and ‘bonus’ rounds. Since players can choose more than one option in how each scene carries out, there will be several ways for each story to be told offering lots of replay value. That way, players will not get bored after playing the same machine for a while.

There are about 12 different I-Slot machine titles available and are exclusive to software creator, Rival Gaming. Any online casino that has software by Rival should have these interactive slot machines. A few titles to be sure to check out would include As the Reel Turns, Reel Crime and Hole in Won.

Different Kinds of Online Slots

As we mentioned above, this is by no means an exhaustive list of all the slot machines that are available online, but these are the most common. All of these machines offer a great source of entertainment through bonus rounds, interactive story lines and of course, the potential for huge jackpots to be won.