Slot machine operators and gaming venue owners throughout the Americas, Europe and Asia are seeking ways to enhance the gaming experiences they offer, to compete against rivals based on the internet and in other entertainment fields.

Server Based Gaming (SBG) offers a solution. Among the first SBG terminals to enter the market, the itbox developed by Revolution Entertainment is a Windows-based solution that uses built-in PC and Internet standards to deliver advanced functionality and security within a short development schedule.

SBG allows large networks of gaming terminals to be monitored and updated from a central server, without the need to physically visit numerous sites to apply upgrades or to replace terminals. This offers powerful operational and strategic benefits for the casino and slot machine industries. Rewards and stakes can be adjusted at the click of a button, games can be updated or changed more quickly, and information from each individual machine in an entire fleet can be collected and stored automatically to monitor usage and inform business decisions on a tactical or strategic level. The attendant reductions in personnel and travel expenses also enable cost-effective delivery of these advantages.

Early adopters are rolling out new networks quickly, to achieve the maximum business advantage from implementing an SBG strategy. Inspired Broadcast Networks, for example, has announced partnerships with major entertainment chains who are looking to apply SBG to networks of more than 100000 terminals, and already has over 30000 terminals on its SBG network in five countries.

However, operators have not yet explored the full potential of the concept. Hence the techniques and standard employed, as well as the demands of operators, are also likely to evolve throughout the short term. Both of these factors require developers to streamline the creation of suitable terminals, which must incorporate security and networking capabilities as well as video and graphics, high quality audio and advanced peripheral interfaces to support the latest gaming features.

Leveraging established PC industry standards offers a fast and cost-effective solution to developers seeking to meet these functional requirements as well as retaining flexibility for the future. Many of the required functions are already provided, obviating the need to develop custom modules or APIs. However, to achieve the most cost-effective and tamper-proof solution, an embedded operating system (OS) is required. Developers therefore need a suitable embedded OS supporting Internet and PC industry standards such as access controls and security groups, as well as peripheral interfaces including advanced graphics port (AGP) and universal serial bus (USB) to streamline integration of hardware such as accelerator cards or coin and note validators.

As far as security is concerned, firewall features to protect devices from common Internet attacks, as well as support for standards such as Kerberos authentication protocol, which provides secure industry-standard authentication, are important for SBG applications. Software restriction policies are also important, as a mechanism to identify software running in a domain and control its ability to execute, including identifying and blocking hostile or unwanted software. A well developed access control infrastructure is also essential for secure management of large networks of connected devices. As an example, WindowsXPEmbedded supports thousands of security-related settings, such as user access permissions, that can be implemented individually to protect selected files, applications, and other resources. These features include Access Control Lists (ACL), which make it possible to create a resource, such as a folder or file share, and either accept the default access control list settings or implement custom access control list settings. Security Groups also provide the ability to place users in the standard security groups, such as Users, Power Users, and Administrators, and accept the default ACL settings that apply to those security groups. Basic, Compatible, Secure, and Highly Secure Group Policy templates are also provided.

Large numbers of drivers, to support gaming peripherals including graphics and audio hardware as well as user controls such as such as a keyboard or game pad, are also required. Typically, these must either be written in-house or acquired from third-party developers, but the large library of industry standard device drivers included with WindowsXPEmbedded reduces development time and enhances productivity. Drivers supporting Advanced Graphics Port (AGP) technology, for example, enhance overall graphics performance and free CPU resources by providing developers with a dedicated, high speed port through which large blocks of 3D texture data can be moved between the computer's graphics controller and system memory. Other peripherals specific to gaming applications, such as a note validator or coin mechanism, can be conveniently integrated via USB interfaces.

Writing or commissioning suitable APIs is another time consuming aspect of embedded development. APIs for a gaming platform, for example, are required to support control of low-level functions including graphics memory management, rendering, or support for input devices such as a joystick or gamepad. Alternatively, the DirectX suite provides a turnkey set of APIs that are particularly suited to gaming applications. These include MicrosoftDirect3D and MicrosoftDirectSound, for example, which allow games developers to access

high-performance hardware features such as 3-D graphics accelerators and sound cards without the need for custom or third-party APIs. Windows XP Embedded includes DirectX APIs and also supports Plug and Play (PnP), allowing terminal builders to speed integration time by leveraging automatic discovery, configuration, and installation of devices with low user intervention.

Convenient support for power management features is also desirable, to simplify power supply design and help to reduce operating costs. Help to implement features such as display dimming, wake-up, and power policy for individual peripherals, allows developers to accomplish sophisticated power management features quickly and with the minimum of effort and risk. One example is the Advanced Configuration and Power Interface (ACPI). On an ACPI-compliant system, the operating system manages, directs and co-ordinates power allowing the system to be instantly accessible to users when needed, while consuming the least possible power when not actively working.

With the advent of server based gaming, operators will be required to implement backend systems and tools to monitor and manage installed terminals remotely. Popular tools will probably include Windows Management Instrumentation, Windows Scripting Host, Microsoft Management Console, and Microsoft Systems Management Server. Achieving interoperability with these tools, for example by exploiting interfaces built into WindowsXP Embedded, will be critical for a successful SBG terminal.

Revolution Entertainment, a developer of SBG terminals and also a division of Inspired Gaming Group, has used WindowsXPEmbedded to build its latest itbox multi-game skill with prizes (SWP) terminal. Since WindowsXPEmbedded allows embedded developers to include any of the services available to an Internet-ready desktop PC, engineers at Revolution Entertainment were able to achieve the required security within a smaller footprint than existing gaming platforms. The itbox is also able to respond to future changes in SBG implementation and usage, since these can be accommodated quickly and easily without having to add workarounds. Future product development is also easier and more efficient, since Revolution's developers are now in a position to build, at a component level, operating systems that are tailored to meet specific gaming environments.

Technical support factors are also frequently decisive in driving developers to choose a Windows based embedded OS. Indeed, the Revolution technical team cited the role of Abacus Embedded, in conjunction with their development partner MPC Data, to provide direct support, including advice on how to productionise development of the image. As a licensed Microsoft distributor, Abacus Embedded also connected Revolution Entertainment directly into the huge network of support available to Microsoft developers, such as the large database of certified Microsoft Network Engineers able to provide advice and support on all aspects of OS and application development.

The flexible licensing terms that accompany WindowsXPEmbedded further eased the challenges of developing and producing terminals for profitable deployment internationally. Revolution was able to complete design and development of the itbox and subsequent terminals at its UK headquarters with local support from Abacus Embedded, but retained the flexibility to perform assembly and final configuration of the terminals at its manufacturing base in Taiwan.

Server Based gaming (SBG) is changing the way operators of slot machines, skill-based games, bingo and other gaming terminals attract and excite players in increasingly diverse locations. In turn, gaming equipment developers must find rapid and reliable solutions to new networking, communication, monitoring, multimedia and security challenges.

A windows-based approach allows developers to utilise established PC and Internet standards, and has already proved successful in embedded systems development ranging from commercially sensitive retail applications to high security military equipment.

To minimise custom software development and third party involvement, developers can choose an embedded operating system that provides support for essential capabilities as configurable modules and create a tailored OS image that meets the specific requirements of the target application.

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Zul Smart is UK Manager, Abacus Embedded, Leighton Buzzard, UK. www.abacus-embedded.com and David Harris is Senior Software Engineer, MPC Data, Trowbridge, Wiltshire, UK. www.mpc-data.co.uk