Let us get some terms straight from the get-go. The shooter is the person rolling the dice and will either make a point or lose on a point. The come out roll is the first roll the new shooter rolls and this roll can be a point, craps or a seven or eleven. The point numbers are four, five, six, eight, nine and ten. Craps rolls are two, three and twelve.

If the shooter is betting on the come line, they are betting that if they roll a point, they will repeat it before rolling a seven to win the bet. If they are betting on the don’t come line, they are wagering that if they roll a point number they will roll a seven before they repeat the number on subsequent rolls.

Taking the odds or giving the odds is a behind the line bet that is a multiple of the line bet on the come line or the don't come line. If a player's bet is on the don’t come line, they will give the odds that a seven will show before the point number rolls. In some casinos the odds bet on a come line bet can be as high as nine to one for every unit bet on the line.

The house edge is a little lower on don't come bets and taking or giving the odds is the best way to play craps or shoot dice. The dice table is a maze of possible bets to a new and uninformed player. There are good bets that should be made and there are sucker bets that should never be taken. Big six and big eight are sucker bets as you can play for a six or eight to roll and get the correct odds on the bet. All you need do is to place the six or the eight. The field bet is a real sucker bet, as it looks so easy to win on since all of those numbers are winners if rolled after you make your bet. Place the point numbers and the only way you will lose the bet is if a seven rolls before the number shows. The craps numbers do not pay the correct odds.

If the table gets hot and many numbers are running before the dreaded seven, then the astute players will bet all of the point numbers by buying them or placing them. The only good buy-numbers are the four and the ten. If you do this you get the correct odds. The good bets on the craps table are those that get the winner the correct payoffs for taking the risk of the bets. The hardways are a poor bet except when the table is hot and the player has a very strong hunch. A gambler that has a history of solid hunches would be a fool not to bet them every now and then. The craps bet, the seven bet and the eleven and twelve bet are worse than the hardways, but again a hunch player can make a great deal of money by making these bets every now and then.

The rules for playing craps are simple, push the rush and back off on a cold table. Do not play the field or the big six or eight at all. There are far better wagers involving these numbers available to the player. This is the first rule of shooting dice and that is never take bad bets and always take the bets that offer the best odds available. Push the rush and back off when the table cools down. The game is worth learning to play correctly as it is one of the lowest house edge games offered by casinos.