Best products from r/vegas

We have a user here, u/grandissimo, who is an author of several Las Vegas books, a writer for Forbes, and is currently the Director of the Center for Gaming Research at UNLV. He has a few books that you may be interested in. My personal favorite is Grandissimo; a book about Jay Sarno, who built Caesars Palace and Circus Circus, but was a complete degenerate yet shaped how the city's casino industry is fundamentally positioned today.

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You can also check out a fantastic response he did in r/AskHistorians to the question "How much truth is there that the Mob built Las Vegas?". Super interesting thread to read through that gives great background to the history of our lil town.

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If you're looking for a more modern day history, Winner Takes All is a book on the dynamic of the top CEOs of the city and how they all have different visions for the city and their companies.

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One I have not yet read but intend to is Blood Aces. It's about Benny Binion - mob boss, casino owner, and creator of the World Series of Poker. He's another huge influence on how casinos operate today. If I remember correctly, he was the first one to put chairs in front of slot machines, offer complimentary rooms and drinks to players, and much more.

Great list! I would like to add a few more:

Stay in tune with what is actually happening downtown/on the strip. u/MsKim has a list every week. Great new restaurants open every few months - Mr. Chow at Caesars Palace will be a must and opens soon but many locals do not know about it!

Grab a Vegas Seven, Las Vegas Weekly, or any of those free local magazines when you see one.

Also, keep up with the financial news of these companies. More than 50% of the labor force in Las Vegas works for the hospitality company in someway. Being knowledgeable about your economy, I think, makes you feel more 'at home' too.

Hell - why not learn a little about the fascinating history of this city! There are a ton of great books out there on the history of Las Vegas. My favorite is Grandissimo. It's written by Dr. David Schwartz who often contributes to Vegas Seven. He's a great writer and very nice guy.

Oh, and, watch the movie Casino. It's based off a real story that's right in your backyard.

Yes, because there's no more important business than being the 101st company to sell shitty iPhone cases...

Reviewed these earbuds a few years ago - actually pretty good. But the space is so crowded, that now you can buy $130 MSRP earbuds for $8.99 on Amazon., and the company basically doesn't exist anymore.

90% of stuff there doesn't make it at all. Sure, it is a good place for business, but let's be honest - if CES was in Toledo, Ohio, there wouldn't be more than 1/10th the amount of attendees, and that would be considered great attendance. CES is in Vegas because 1) they have the convention space, 2) they have the hotel space, and most importantly 3) everyone loves a party.

I'm hoping to move to Vegas early next year, but if I was there now I would totally sign up.

w/r/t the magnet, I use something like this at work. There are bigger magnets you can roll around on wheels but for price and portability this is a good option if you can't find one to borrow. It also works better in tight spaces. You might be able to find something priced better at a local hardware store though, I dunno.

If I was there I'd bring some supplies and lend a hand, but alas.

Good luck!

I got this one for free last year when Cox was giving them out due to the contract dispute with CBS right before the Super Bowl:

https://www.amazon.com/Lava-HD-600-Electronics-Outdoor-Antenna/dp/B00317IIT4/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1484365915&sr=8-4&keywords=lava+tv+antenna

It works really well, probably because it has an in-line amplifier. It works much better than then non amplified one I have. Gotta make sure you put it in a window sill or something that has best line of sight to the signals in town. Check out tvfool.com

Also, Cox usually has some deal where you can get internet + local cable channels via a small box for cheaper than just internet itself. Myself and several co-workers got that deal when we cut the cord the past year.

If you need a good digital tuner option try http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00IYETYX8 -- I bought this and am very happy with it. You'll need an antenna to hook up to it -- usually a good idea to get one you can put on a window like http://www.amazon.com/Antenna-1byone-Super-Digital-Indoor/dp/B00IF70QCW -- and you're good to go. One nice thing about the tuner I got is you can hook an external USB hard drive or USB flash drive up to it and get DVR capabilities.

Ok, so this is highly subjective, but a few things that I would do. Also a few questions.

Are you looking to overclock the system?

The drives are you going to want them setup in Raid0? If so I highly recommend against that.

Do you use a wired network at your home/office?

What is the reason for ASUS MB's? I have never had great luck with them, and usually only use Gigabyte.

If you weren't going to over clock it, I would do something like this also I think that you are going to find the extra money spent to over clock just isn't worth it.

https://www.amazon.com/Gigabyte-2-Way-CrossFire-Motherboards-GA-Z170-HD3/dp/B012AQGKXC
32GB of Standard DDR4 RAM if you really can use 64, that is easy enough to upgrade to.
A single new version of the TitanX(This performs much better than the SLI of 1070's on most configurations for about the same price)
Three or four fast SSD's in a smaller GB using RAID5 or RAID10 depending on three or four SSD's

The biggest departure and what we do for pretty much everything is use a FreeNAS system with 6 drive configuration using RaidZ-2. I have used these systems for years and they are bullet proof, I have some systems that run a huge number of drives and very mission critical software. There are some very cool things you can do with them, here is one of the biggest that we have found, you can go from 1TB to 2TB even to 10TB drives and make your effective storage space go from 4TB to 40TB with never having to "copy" a file between servers and you also have the added benefit of built in media servers and that you have two drives that can fail at any one time with no data loss. I have a coupe of these that are in advanced configurations running 30GB/second over 10GB links and each system complete is over 500TB(not GB) they run 24/27/365 with no downtime serving files to the internet at all times.

Go get a blackjack strategy card, bring it to the table, and use it. The players with you will roll their eyes but it's perfectly fine to do and it will get you nearly the best house edge you can ask for (without counting cards).

Keep in mind, I purchased the modem two years ago. It has never failed me once, but I'm sure they have improved on it since then:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00AJHDZSI/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

And I bought the router from Best Buy:

https://www.amazon.com/NETGEAR-Nighthawk-X4S-R7800-100NAS-Compatible/dp/B0192911RA/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1497650111&sr=1-1&keywords=netgear+r7800

Amazon is pretty good for bulk stuff

Donovan Standard Twin Blade Face Razor, Pack of 100 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B001ANOP48/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_eMIjybZBVMRZ0

Travel Size Men's Shave Cream - 15 Single Use Pods - Leak Proof, TSA Approved & Filled with Premium Natural Ingredients. Protects Sensitive Skin. Concentrated Formula. Easy to Pack. (SPSCC05FPB) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00K1I4RRS/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_2lJjybQXHSAHN

Not at all a speak easy but Frankie's Tiki Room is a very small tiki dive bar that has some of the best handmade drinks(there's over 70 drinks but only a few actually on the menu. The owner released a book that has all of them - book- ) . Best part about it besides the rum is that it isn't full of typical Vegasians.

Be warned there is smoking allowed in there and your clothes will be fully saturated in the smell when you leave.

https://www.amazon.com/Nest-Cam-Outdoor-Security-Camera/dp/B01I3I9L8M

Super easy to install and use, and their cloud recording is the best on the market.

my wife just bought it all off Amazon to do at home. It was easy when she did it. We bought it all on my last Amazon order so I have links to the important stuff below, she just said that she would avoid the glitter at first because it was a bit of a pain but if you are used to doing your own like she is just make sure you use gel nail polish with the base and top coat.

[The home UV light] (https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B00NPW16QW/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o08_s00?ie=UTF8&th=1)

The base and top coat

Edward Plastichands thing to remove the polish when its time

Glittery polish she bought

It's not old, but still something to understand about Vegas in the modern day. Beneath the Neon is a great story about our less than glamorous side.

Here's the book I was talking about, by the way: http://www.amazon.com/Beneath-Neon-Death-Tunnels-Vegas/dp/0929712390

My friends and I used to hang out in one of the ditches and tunnel entrances when I was in middle school, never went inside really but we met some of the people that live in there. Good luck!

Check out The Mob Museum gift shop, they have tons of selections. I picked up When The Mob Ran Vegas (https://www.amazon.com/When-Mob-Ran-Vegas-Stories/dp/0977065804) there and it was a really interesting read.

Winner Takes All is good if you want to learn about the corporations took over.

I enjoyed Grandissimo which tells the story of Jay Sarno, who originally built Caesars Palace and Circus Circus. I think the author may lurk around here.

Beneath the Neon

http://www.amazon.com/Beneath-Neon-Death-Tunnels-Vegas/dp/0929712390

For those who haven't read it, Matthew O'Brien's book "Beneath the Neon: Life and Death in the Tunnels of Las Vegas" is an excellent read exploring the lives of some of the "homeless" inhabitants of said tunnels.

https://www.amazon.com/Beneath-Neon-Death-Tunnels-Vegas/dp/0929712390/