Early blackjack counting systems development
In the early 70th, Dr. Keith Taft began developing the first concealed blackjack computer, and soon, he had started using a computer in the Nevada casinos to play “unique” blackjack. He went on to develop dozens of concealable computers and other electronic devices over the next two decades, ever smaller and more powerful. Nevada had no laws at that time prohibiting the use of devices at their tables. Keith’s first computer weighed fifteen pounds.
Here’s how it worked on his blackjack strategies
This computer communicated its decisions to the player with buzzes and taps on the sole of the player’s foot. Using each of these devices wasn’t very easy task. It essentially entailed learning to “type” with your big toes. Even once you had memorized the codes, inputting them via the toe switches was a chore.
In the front side of each shoe there were two “switches”, or buttons - one above each big toe and one beneath - for a total of four switches. The computer itself was about the size of a pack of cigarettes, but thinner. Each switch conveyed a different code to the computer, which was a small epoxy-encased device that was strapped to the calf beneath the trousers. By using a series of toe taps, kind of like Morse code, the player could relay to the computer everything it needed to know in order to make a decision in a game of blackjack: which cards had already been dealt, what cards the player held, and the dealer’s upcard.