In less than a decade, bingo has gone from being the pasttime of little old ladies to the mainstream with hundreds of online bingo sites available.  The age of bingo players has gone down to where the majority of players are younger than 45 so so much for the grandmotherly image.  Prizes have gone from the low end of the scale to the recent Mecca Bingo record-breaking jackpot of over 1.2 million pounds.  It’s no longer just a woman’s game, either.  More and more men are taking up the game these days and sites are starting to realize that with marketing geared towards males.  A lot has changed for bingo!

1.    Social Interaction – That is one factor that has made the transition from land based bingo hall to the online environment, alive and thriving.  With online live chat facilities and even virtual rooms with avatars, online bingo players can make new friends or catch up with old in the bingo rooms just as many did for years in the bingo halls.
2.    Huge Selection of Games – With the advent of software advances, online bingo games come in a lot more variety than they did at one time.  75 ball, 80 ball and 90 ball are three of the most popular forms of online bingo and even within those three categories, there is an almost infinite variety of ways to play.  With the latest bingo technologies, the patterns available are seemingly endless.  With the large networks forming, new progressive games have been possible which lead to some of the fantastic jackpots we keep hearing about.
3.    Convenience – Gone are the days where you have to get all dressed, do your makeup, carry your bingo supplies or drive to the bingo hall an hour early so you can get a good seat.  You don’t have to breathe in second hand smoke or listen to the old lady hacking at the end of the table.  You don’t even have to leave the house!  Simply fire up the computer and sign in to your favorite online bingo site and you’re playing in minutes.

The really great thing is that advances are being made in computing and technology every day.  That means that you can expect to see more ways for interactivity with the games and with the other players.  You can also expect to keep seeing new games and new jackpots being developed.  The convenience even keeps growing with the new technologies being developed like the mobile applications that let you play online bingo wherever you are.  This is just the beginning for online bingo – watch what happens in the next ten years!

There are very few people alive who haven’t at least heard of the game of bingo and almost everyone has played some form of the game in their lives.  Variations on the game of bingo are used in classrooms to teach children anything from math to history.  There is even a popular baby shower bingo that is fun to play.

The game itself stems back to the 1500s as a lottery type game in Italy.  That game evolved as it traveled to France and Germany and through the years became widespread throughout Europe.  In the early days of the 1900s, the game made its way to America where it became the familiar 75 ball design still popular today.

It’s one of the easiest games in the world to play.  The game card consists of a grid of 25 squares with the columns headed by the letters B-I-N-G-O.  Each square has a number in it.  B numbers are from 1-15, I numbers are 16-30, N numbers are 31-45, G numbers are 46-60 and O numbers are 61-75.  The numbers appear randomly so each card will be different other than the traditional free space found in the center of the card.  The free space is kind of like a wild card in that it counts as a filled square for any winning combination that it’s in.

With traditional bingo games, you needed some sort of marker if the bingo cards were made of wood or a dauber (sort of a magic marker) if the bingo cards are made of paper as most are these days.  With online bingo, you simply click your mouse on the square to “daub” the number.

The basic bingo game is won when you get all the numbers in a row (across, up and down or diagonally).  There are many patterns that can also be played like the coverall game (all squares must be covered), the X pattern (both diagonal lines) or the four corner pattern (all four corners plus free space).  With the advent of online bingo software, the patterns available can be more complex and more fun.

It may be the recession or it could be summer madness but more and more online bingo sites are climbing on the free bingo bandwagon these days.  Just about every day I read about yet another site offering a free bingo game.  Even the big online bingo sites are getting in the action, like Tombola and Sun Bingo.  How do they keep making money when they give us sign up bonuses, deposit bonuses and now all these completely free games?

Don’t worry, folks.  The companies are not losing out on the deal or they would not be doing it, believe me.  They know that free bingo is a big attraction to new members.  They, of course, hope that if the new members win a small prize or two playing the free bingo games, that it just might tempt them into trying a cash game to win a much bigger prize.

Free bingo games also keeps older customers coming back to the site when their budgets may be tight or they need to wait until next payday to be able to deposit more.  Rather than having them wander off to play flash games somewhere, they want to stay tops in the memory by keeping them onsite as much as possible.

Grocery stores have long been known for advertising loss leaders to draw the customers in.  They know you will spend more on the other items in the store while your are there.  Those deals are called loss leaders because the store may take no profit or even a loss on those products but that leads you into the store to buy other things.  Think of free bingo games as the loss leaders of the online bingo industry.

One of the hallmarks of bingo has always been the social interactions with other players.  Friends meet at the bingo hall every week for an evening of fun and excitement, catching up with each other while trying for a big prize.  The same thing applies to online bingo except the interaction is all through text and emoticons in the online chat feature.

One site is taking this social aspect and carrying it a step further.  Wink Bingo has already created a new social network called “Wink Me”.  While they don’t bill it as a dating site, apparently people are already meeting through online bingo sites so the niche social network makes it even easier.

Many online dating sites offer chat rooms where you can “meet” other people and potential partners.  There is little difference between those chat rooms and the online bingo chats.  In fact, you already know that you have something in common with anyone that interests you as you are both online bingo fans.

Imagine if the online bingo sites decide to encourage and facilitate the ability to get a date through their sites?  Some sites already have software that operates rooms as simulation with avatars that you can create to resemble yourself.  Many sites have a gallery now where you can post your picture so others will even be able to see what you look like.

Guys especially should think about this idea.  After all, according to the statistics, online bingo is played predominantly by women so there is little competition.  Of course, you would have to eliminate the married or wrong age groups but there are still more eligible women than men in the online bingo sites.

Playing the same game all the time not only ends up getting rather boring, it also can lead to mistakes while playing because your attention will wander.  That is one of the reasons that people get so creative with the bingo patterns and rules while creating online bingo games.  There is an almost endless variation to the patterns that can be made but there are several that are quite popular and widespread.

Blackout or Coverall is when you must cover every single space on the bingo card in order to win.  This is usually one of the games that take the most time to play.

Top and Bottom is when you must cover the top line and also the bottom line on the bingo card in order to win.

Dotted Picture Frame is interesting.  In this one you need to get every other square around the outer edge of the bingo card.

Postage Stamp is when you need to fill in the four squares in the corner of the card.  Typically this will be the upper right corner as that is where a postage stamp goes.

Eight States is when you fill in all the numbers that encircle your free space.

When it comes to where the pattern is on the card, that could depend on the rules of the online bingo site.  Patterns can be static, crazy or wild.  Static means it doesn’t move.  If the pattern is the postage stamp in right hand corner, then that is exactly what you must get.  Crazy patterns will allow them to more around 90 degrees at a time.  That postage stamp could be in any corner if you were playing crazy patterns.  Wild will allow the pattern to be met anywhere on the board.  That means the postage stamp pattern could be attained by filling any four squares that fit the pattern.

Someone mentioned to me today that they had been playing three-eyed bingo and I was clueless.  I thought I knew most of the variations of bingo, both online and offline, but this was a new one on me.  So being as curious as the proverbial cat, I had to go trooping off to Google to find out more about this online bingo game with the intriguing name.  Was I ever surprised to learn that this three-eyed bingo is a free online bingo game that featured cash prizes of up to $4,000!

You can find Three-Eyed Bingo at a site called Lycos Gamesville which has a huge variety of free online games, many of which have real cash prizes.  It is run by javascript so your computer must be Java enabled with at least an 800 x 600 screen resolution.  The site itself is easy to navigate and fun to be in.  They have an online chat feature just as in regular online bingo sites so you can talk to all the other players while you play or between games.

To win three-eyed bingo, you have to check off the particular pattern on all three of the bingo cards you will get.  That is where the name comes from, by the way, as all three cards have a big old eye in the center looking up at you.  Each card will have the pattern of a different letter so in the end it will spell a three-letter word but each game could have a different word you’re going for.  New bingo ball numbers are shown every 7 second, given ample time to check all three cards.  After 60 balls, the game ends whether someone wins or not.

When you use your mouse to click the called number, it will daub it for you.  Should you ever daub the wrong number by accident, simply click it again to remove it.  If you get the numbers shown on the gold bingo balls, you win a bonus.  When you have the entire pattern covered (all three cards), you use your mouse again to quickly click the bingo button.

Of course, I had to give this unique game a try and it was loads of fun.  The players in the room with me were friendly and chatty.  You could tell that several were regulars and that they knew each other but everyone made sure to make me feel welcome.  I didn’t win anything playing three-eyed bingo but it was a fun hour where I didn’t have to spend a dime to play bingo.  That’s always a great thing!

I’m sure you have all heard of the woman who recently won a massive ￡1.2 million jackpot over at Mecca Bingo.  Reports from interviews given to press the next morning said the winner was still stunned and unsure of what they were going to do with the money.  I can only imagine the effect of such a life-changing sum on a person’s mind.  Shock would likely last a few days before the good fortune could truly sink in.

We all can easily think of what we’d do with winning a few hundred quid, right?  Paying a bill or perhaps putting some in our savings account, those would be common.  But have you ever truly thought about what you would do should you ever win such a large sum?  Most people do end up pretty overwhelmed as that kind of sum is outside of our experiences.

With the growing popularity of progressive jackpots and the fact that more and more online bingo sites are part of bigger networks, the huge amounts are not nearly so farfetched as they may have once seemed.  People can and do win life-changing amounts of money with online bingo these days and its seems to be growing more frequent as the time goes on.

There have always been a few online bingo sites that host free bingo games but lately there has been a virtual explosion in the number of sites with free bingo.  This could be a sign of the economy in that the online bingo sites want to make sure everyone can still play some bingo.  It could also be strictly as a result of the extreme competition for customers these days as more and more online bingo sites show up on the internet.  Whatever the reason, bingo fans certainly appreciate it.

I scouted around today and found several sites offering free bingo so I thought I’d share them with all of you.  Even if you play for larger stakes and make frequent deposits, the added pleasure of being able to play free bingo doesn’t hurt.  Some sites have particular rooms that are always free to play while others host special games at certain times.

888 Ladies Bingo now offers free bingo (check sites for times and rooms) with the largest prize pool we’ve found for a free bingo game.  They have games with guaranteed prize pots of ￡300 with weekend games reaching ￡500 in prize money.

Mirror Bingo just started offering free bingo games in special bingo room set aside for this purpose.  Free bingo games are scheduled every 30 minutes from noon to 10 pm.  To find the free game room, click on the free bingo banner you will see in the games lobby.

King Jackpot Bingo has just opened a free bingo room they call the Royal Chambers.  It’s all 75 ball bingo games in there but it’s all free for four hours every days.  From 11 am to 1 pm is the first session while there is a 11 pm to 1 am session for all those who are stuck at work during the day.

So no matter what your budget looks like right now, there is no reason in the world to lack on the entertainment front.  These are just three of the many sites offering completely free bingo but still having cash prizes.  The prizes are usually smaller with free bingo but as you can see with 888 Ladies Bingo, some of the prizes aren’t anything to sneeze at either.

Almost all online bingo sites reward their members for referring others to the site.  In some cases, it’s a cash amount added to your account balance.  Most of the time, it is bingo cash or loyalty points if the site has a loyalty scheme.  Most online bingo players are just as happy, if not more so, to be able to get the free bingo than to get cash.  So wouldn’t it be cool to earn enough to fund your own bingo habit?

Start by actually telling all your friends about how much fun you have playing and give them your referral link or follow the instructions at each site if they don’t give you a link.  Don’t hold back from sharing your love of the game even when you don’t think a person is interested.  They may have never mentioned it to you but could be harboring a secret love for bingo just waiting for a recommendation on where to play.

Once you’ve finished with your offline friends and family, start letting your online friends know about the best places to play online bingo.  Most of us have some friends online that we interact with daily on various sites.  Social networking sites are a great way to share your love of bingo.  All of your friends or followers will see your recommendation and sometimes even their friends will be able to see it, too.

If you truly love online bingo, why not start your own website or blog that shares your love with others?  You can blog about what you really like about an online bingo site and what your experiences are.  Brag about your wins when they happen in a blog post or about new promotions.  You don’t have to do a hard sell to gain referrals – just let your enthusiasm for the game flow into your blog posts.

I’m sure there are many other ways that you can spread the word about your favorite sites.  Just be creative and let your passion for the game shine through.

One of the newer innovations in online bingo is speed bingo.  Seems an odd choice considering that most online bingo games only last 5 or 6 minutes but apparently for some, that is too slow in the computer age.  Regular bingo has numbers called every 2 or 3 seconds but speed bingo is like a clock, with a number called every single second.  Most speed bingo games last less than a minute!

Most speed bingo games don’t have the autodaub feature so you’ll have to make sure you have what it takes to keep up.  If you normally take a second or two to find your numbers, you will fall behind quickly trying to play speed bingo.  This becomes even worse should you attempt to play several cards at once!  If you usually find yourself waiting for the next number in regular bingo then you will probably not have a hard time keeping up in speed bingo game but don’t get carried away with your ticket purchase.

Speed bingo is perfect for those who usually have to wait for numbers as it satisfies that need to keep going.  We are becoming so used to everything moving at a much faster pace so speed bingo could satisfy that urge for instant gratification.  And hey, for those of you who have ADHD like I do, speed bingo sounds perfect.

The new lightning fast version of bingo will let you play roughly double the number of games in the same amount of time.  This could be ideal if you are running short of time but still want to be able to take a chance on winning some lovely prize.  Who doesn’t wish to be able to do more in the same amount of time?