If you are reading this from Florida, you may be breaking the law. Recently the governor of Florida signed a bill into law aimed at shutting down so called internet cafes. The term internet cafe here is a bit of a misnomer, and a a better description of what they really were is a small time casino. The proponents of the new law hoped it would make these gaming machines illegal, which it does do. However, due to the way these machines are defined in the law, lawmakers may have inadvertently banned anything capable of accessing the internet.
The bill basically defines "any machine or device by which someone can play a game of chance" as a slot machine. While online gambling has been banned in the US for quite some time, those who are determined enough can find offshore sites that they can connect to over the net from the comfort of their own homes. And since you can do this on your home PC, possibly even on your smart phone, your computer or phone could technically be called a slot machine, which would make it illegal in the state of Florida.
While the bill was signed into law, this doesn't mean the matter is settled. A company that owned several of these establishments is fighting back and has filed suit hoping in the very least to get some clarification on the law. Hopefully some clarification will be provided, but with this being Florida, who knows when or if that will happen. Plus even if the definition is changed, chances are your TV remote could be the next thing they accidentally outlaw.
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