Casinos are really fascinating places. The amount of attention that goes into the smallest things is astounding and it is all for the purpose of separating you from your money. Casinos have to manage everything from large acts that perform in their buildings to food, drinks and even the gambling floor itself. They also have major security concerns such as counterfeit money, card counting and ensuring that everyone is of legal age to gamble. Cameras, monitors, paper shredders and protective document boxes are all part of a casinos security apparatus.
Casino security starts on the casino floor where staff watch patrons play. Dealers are watched closely and can quickly spot blatant cheating such as palming, marking cards or switching dice. Table managers and pit bosses have a much larger view of the tables and can spot betting patterns that may indicate cheating. There are catwalks in the ceiling where surveillance can look directly down through one way glass on a particular table or slot machine.
Most modern casinos do not allow players to use cash at the table games but rather chips. There are several reasons for this. It makes the patron feel like they are not gambling with real money and it is easier for security to detect changes in chip counts. Chips are also a lot easier for players to lose or forget to cash in and the casino gets a nice profit from those losses. It is a very well designed system.
