Self checkout lanes at the supermarket seem like a good idea. They should save shoppers from waiting in lines, enhance convenience and save the store money. ATMs at the banks are great. So why do they suck so bad? Every time I try them the experience is terrible. It feels like there is some set of secret rules that the machine is trying to enforce, but no where is the shopper clued in to what these are. They are only revealed when the machine admonished you for not placing items exactly where it wants them. What makes matters worse is that the stores do seem to have cut back on human check-out personnel, often leaving the options to wait in a long line, brave the horrible machine, or storm out in frustration (as I did last night.)
I’m sure the store is doing it for economics, and feels they have no choice. And as long as all the supermarkets have the same crappy technology shoppers really don’t have any option. In fact I’m sure the store executives blame the customers for not understanding how the self-checkout lanes work, but believes they’ll adapt over time. From my experiences many of the problems with the machines seems to stem from a lack of trust in the shopper, and an attempt to prevent shoplifters. Bad technology, poorly implemented and forced on users you don’t really trust is never a good idea. People can always find an alternative and you probably won’t like what they find.
Attention Teenage Beer Buyers « pseudostoops
The machine kept rejecting my attempts to place the produce on the scale, requesting that I “reposition your item so it is centered on the scale.” It was taking so long that I started to sweat from the stress…the mere act of purchasing Triscuits and milk and bananas is enough to cause me to break out in an actual panicky sweat.
“Unexpected Item in Bagging Area” – the Refrain of Self Checkout at Lucky « San Francisco Citizen
See for yourself here on the YouTube, where you can see otherwise-competent Kurenai the Red Ninja getting pwned by an SCO machine which indicates there’s something extra in the bagging area:
Self checkout sucks | Frum Satire | Jewish Comedy
Self checkout lanes were created to make shoppers look like idiots in front of grocery store employees.
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Randall Rode's online home for thoughts, notes, and experiments with a wide range of technology topics. Visit the about page for info on my recent projects and professional background. I welcome your comments!
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