How bad is it to play less than max coins on a video poker game? Sometimes I don’t want to play $1.25 a hand (maybe because I don’t want to lose too much that day). Is it really a sin to play $1 or 75¢ or even just a quarter per play?

Who is responsible for the upkeep of the escalators to and from the pedestrian bridges along the Strip? Is it the casinos' responsibility? The one at the Tropicana always seems to be broken or roped off, slowing me down and making it harder to dodge those people trying to sell timeshares.

What information, if any, can you give of former Frontier and new TI owner, Kansas businessman Phil Ruffin? Does he have a long background in casinos or is he some Johnny-come-lately?

What's the deal with the government tracking cashout amounts at casino cages when above a certain amount?

While checking out the video poker schedules at one of the bars at the Encore, I asked the bartender what the play was to get comped for a drink. He said they don't comp drinks at the bars. I can get a comp drink when I play video poker on the floor, why not at the bar? Wynn allowed it at his other properties, what's the deal with the Wynn/Encore?

Just returned from a successful (won a little and used LVA coupons) trip to Vegas and was driving on Paradise between Flamingo and Tropicana and saw the Thomas and Mack center. Who are (were) Thomas and Mack? Hope I got the two names right.

As a resident of Chicago and a regular at Majestic Star riverboat casinos in Gary, Indiana, I was particularly interested in your QoD about Don Barden. Since the Horseshoe casino's grand reopening in neighboring Hammond, Indiana, speculation has swirled whether the two Majestic Star riverboat casinos would be similarly scrapped into one large barge casino or limp along as is or be sold. Chatter among employees and gamblers alike speculates all sorts of options for the future of Barden's Majestic Star riverboat casinos. Got any information about its future?

I see the term "corkage fee" on several of the restaurants info pages. What is this, and what does it apply to?

I know that if a person wins a jackpot of $1,200 or more, he/she would have to claim it on their IRS. My question is: Would a person still have to file a claim with the IRS if that person won several $500 jackpots, totaling more than a couple thousand dollars, either at the same or several casinos in a weekend?

I have a question for your office golf expert. For the first time in all of our trips to Vegas, we are looking at playing golf. We will be in town for the NASCAR race last of February. Can you recommend a nice golf course that is not too expensive, decent conditions this time of year, somewhat close to the Strip, and caters to the average golfer?