Mechanical hands

The removal of actual people from our transactions continues:

PokerTek Inc. says the Indiana Gaming Commission has approved a field trial for its tables at the state's 11 riverboat casinos.

[. . .]

Its PokerPro electronic system deals cards, displays them on private screens to the players and displays general information on a large screen in the center of the table. It also allows customers to set up accounts for betting and keeps statistical information on the games.

The system is designed to boost casino revenue by increasing the number of hands per hour and reducing labor costs.

I haven't minded the removal of most people.  Thanks to things like automated tellers and online shopping, I can go days without seeing anybody (except the kids, of course; get off my lawn, you!), which is just fine with me. But poker is a social occasion, and I want to look into the eyes of the person who is taking my money. And what are they going to do with all those dealers? Let them supervise the electronics the way Vanna White does the turning of the letters? (Talk about the most useless well-paying job in America.)