Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

U-scan blues

Collapse
This topic is closed.
X
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

  • U-scan blues

    Most of my gripes have been about customers that I have had to deal with, but this is about one that I have to stand behind.

    At most stores now they have a small section in the express area for U-scan. U scan is the wonderfully amazing system that removes the cashier and instead trusts you to scan things and place them in your bag. I have wanted to write a “how too” and post it on a sign hanging over the U-scan for some time now.


    1) If you are technologically illiterate then perhaps U-scan is not for you. Anyone that can read and follow simple instructions can do it, but if you are afraid of technology then you should probably leave scanning items up to a trained professional.

    2) If you think you already know more than the machine then perhaps U-scan is not for you. There are some little rules that if you ignore will slow your entire process down.

    3) If you buy a lot of produce then perhaps U-scan is not for you. Unless there are really good item code stickers on everything, you are probably going to be stuck no knowing what to enter. This is best left to a professional.

    4) If you are paying with a gift card, some cash, and a credit card then perhaps U-scan is not for you. Paying with a credit card is Uber fast. Paying with cash that is close to exact (i.e. your bill comes to $18, you pop in a $20) is good and fast. If you have an $42 bill and plan on paying with quarters and dollars that you found on the street….please find a tall building, climb to the top, and do a concrete swan dive.

    5) I don’t really have a point 5, but a list with only four points looks silly. I guess this would be a good time to point out that this is an EXPRESS lane. That whole 15 items or less applies here more than anywhere. 20 is not 15. In fact, as much as I like the u-scan, I don’t go there with more than about 10 items, or 2 bags worth of stuff. More than that clogs up the bagging shelf I will discuss later.

    Now, if you are not one of the 4 people listed above, then please continue.

    Ok, first off, there are some things to know. Some things are hard to enter into the register. Fresh veggies and bulk food for example require a code. If you don’t have that code, it is very difficult to enter. Make sure all clothes and other strange items have a tag on them. It is safe to assume that every box of cereal has a bar code, but watch out for hardware and other items that you don’t buy as regularly. It is all about comfort. I use the u-scan all the time, so I have no fear of fresh fruit, because I put the forethought into making sure that there is a sticker on my bananas (it’s #4011 in case you were wondering). At first I would suggest buying only a few items and paying with a credit card, as that is a simple transaction and can help you learn the process.

    The process:
    1) Touch the screen anywhere to begin. I suggest a random corner to avoid the middle of the screen getting worn out as fast.

    2) It may ask you to select a language.

    3) Scan an item.

    4) put the item in the bag. Please note, there is a scale under the shelf where the bags are. The system has an assigned weight for everything. If you scan a koolaid and then drop a frozen turkey into the bag it will know, and stop you. If you don’t put an item in the bag it will know and stop you. And MOST importantly, if you take an item off the shelf before everything is paid for, it will stop you. This rule is the bane of the people from category 1 and 2 above. They don’t READ THE FREKIN SCREEN when it tells them to put the item in the bag. Then, when the first bag gets full, they don’t read the screen when they take the bag and put it in their cart, and wonder why the “dumb machine” is not letting them keep going. It is stopping you because you can’t read. READ THE SCREEN, READ THE SCREEN, READ THE SCREEN!!!

    5) Once you have bagged the item, then scan the next item and bag it. Repeat as necessary.

    6) Hit the “end order” button. The machine is not magical, it can not see that your cart is empty.

    7) Pay the machine. I don’t suggest a check unless you have it already filled out for everything but the amount. I don’t even suggest cash unless you just got your money from the bank. This thing scans in the money like a vending machine. If you carry your money balled up in little wads stuffed in your sweaty cleavage it will not take it. I would 100% support making these machines credit / ATM only.

    8) NOW (an at no other time previous to now) you can remove your groceries from the little shelf. If you ignored my advice prevous to this, and have more items that will fit inside two bags, you will have to use a third bag. To do this, remove a full bag from the holder, sit it next to the holder on the shelf, begin filling the third bag. If you have filled the fourth bag, and there is no more room on the shelf, then please seriously consider employing Jack Kevorkian, as you are terminally stupid.

    In fact, not only do I support a Credit card / ATM only, I have a better idea. If the sign says “15 items or less”, the moment you scan the 16th item it adds a $20 “stupid tax”. If you scan a 20th item it will add a $50 “pain in the ass tax”. For every item over 20 it adds a $10 “I’m an ass, and I have no concern for the people behind me that have a legitimate right to use this machine, so I’m going to help lower their bill” tax. The $10 from that last tax is deducted from the people behind them in line. So, if SC scans 24 items, they are charged that $10 tax 4 times, so the next 4 people in line get $10 deducted from their bill. I think that would make the U-scan a lot more friendly place to visit.

    I hope this helped.

  • #2
    You know the first people who went through the line and that happened to would come up screaming and raging to the nearest employee they could find. Upon being informed of the $10 non-refundable idiot tax, they would scream more and perhaps become violent.

    Even if there were prominent signs warning of the tax, it wouldn't make a bit of difference.

    Comment


    • #3
      I take full cart loads of groceries through the U-scan all the time. I've never really thought of it as express-only. Am I wrong? There are no signs telling me there's a limit on the number of items. Or is it just more of a generally accepted rule of thumb?

      In my defense, I can scan and bag my groceries almost as fast as the cashiers, and I've got every item code for the produce I buy memorized. I always pay with credit card. So I'm out the door with my thirty items faster than most people are with their ten.

      If you have to ask, it's probably better posted at www.fratching.com

      Comment


      • #4
        Actually, I was speaking in general terms. Most stores have them in express only. I would LOVE to have them for full orders, but I think that there should be some certification process or training that one would have to go throught to be able to access those lanes.

        Comment


        • #5
          Quoth Boozy View Post
          I've never really thought of it as express-only. Am I wrong? There are no signs telling me there's a limit on the number of items.

          That's odd. There were signs at the store I worked at. 25 Items or Less.

          This one woman yelled at me because I wouldn't let her take her overflowing cart through U-Scan. She argued that it was "close enough" or something. No, I'm sorry - 50 items is close to 25 items in the same way that Houston is close to Pluto.
          ~*~"If your gift is that of serving others, serve them well. If you are a teacher, do a good job of teaching." -Romans 12:7~*~

          Comment


          • #6
            Quoth Boozy View Post
            I take full cart loads of groceries through the U-scan all the time. I've never really thought of it as express-only. Am I wrong? There are no signs telling me there's a limit on the number of items. Or is it just more of a generally accepted rule of thumb?

            In my defense, I can scan and bag my groceries almost as fast as the cashiers, and I've got every item code for the produce I buy memorized. I always pay with credit card. So I'm out the door with my thirty items faster than most people are with their ten.
            Some Grocery stores around me have full lane U-Scan checkouts for large orders. But the number of dummies who use them confound me. The people with huge orders who take forever to scan through them! Then they need to go to the end of the belt and bag their groceries to. (Opposed to the ones where you scan then directly bag) Of course bagging takes forever as well. And then some people have a hissy fit when the next person in line with 3 items tries to scan out. Wanting everyone to wait until they are done, and not using the separator to contain their items at the end.

            I cant wait for RFID checkouts. Scan everything at one time, done! Pay then go to another area to bag. Oh and with RFID you can inventory a store in 10 minutes (even a super wal-mart.) Tell if an item is out of place. Or if an item walks trough the door without being scanned. And if it disappears, someone is going to be alerted. To bad its about 15-20 years down the road.

            Comment


            • #7
              Ive seen both express lane ones with two scale baging areas but no sign, and non express u-scans with 4 scale baging area that say express.... it confuses me to tell the truth....

              But i normally oly go through if i only have abot 16 item or less.

              But i love your rules!!!

              Comment


              • #8
                I've never used a u-scan. I usually have something odd that I don't want to try to wrangle, or the regular line is really short.

                Quoth Daskinor View Post
                I cant wait for RFID checkouts. Scan everything at one time, done! Pay then go to another area to bag. Oh and with RFID you can inventory a store in 10 minutes (even a super wal-mart.) Tell if an item is out of place. Or if an item walks trough the door without being scanned. And if it disappears, someone is going to be alerted. To bad its about 15-20 years down the road.
                By the time RFID is really ready for prime time, it's likely it'll also be obsolete.

                ^-.-^
                Faith is about what you do. It's about aspiring to be better and nobler and kinder than you are. It's about making sacrifices for the good of others. - Dresden

                Comment


                • #9
                  This may be a stupid question, or else one I already know the answer to, but do you suppose the advent of these self-check lanes will give customers (SC or otherwise) any insight as to how difficult/complicated/frustrating a cashier's job can be? Of course, they won't have to deal with SCs, but it might make them just a tiny bit "S" themselves.

                  Then again, monkeys might fly out of my...
                  He loves the world...except for all the people.
                  --Men at Work

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    I always bring my whole cartloads of shit to the self checkouts.

                    The Wal-Mart cashiers around here are too inept to bag properly, and 9 times out of 10 they'd forget a bag and I'd get home, see I was missing something, and have to go back. I know we have some WM cashiers on this site, and I am not bashing them, I'm just saying that I hate having produce bagged with boxed food and I hate having to go back because the cashier forgot to load a bag.

                    I cashiered for almost 5 years at various stores. I know where all the barcodes are, I know how to swipe my card, and I can bag properly and load my cart up in record time.
                    You really need to see a neurologist. - Wagegoth

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Quoth blas87 View Post
                      The Wal-Mart cashiers around here are too inept to bag properly, and 9 times out of 10 they'd forget a bag and I'd get home, see I was missing something, and have to go back. I know we have some WM cashiers on this site, and I am not bashing them, I'm just saying that I hate having produce bagged with boxed food and I hate having to go back because the cashier forgot to load a bag.
                      Unfortunately, they don't have self-check lanes at our local WM. And I wonder if they teach even the rudiments of how to bag anymore? Because I've had cleaning chemicals (409 and the like) bagged with food in porous packaging before when I got home from shopping at that WM.
                      He loves the world...except for all the people.
                      --Men at Work

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        3.5) If you have items that are likely not going to register on the scale, take a pass.

                        The first time I ever used one of these was at a Home Depot. All I had was a couple of those stick-on mailbox numbers. They scanned fine, but the scale couldn't detect them. ^_^'

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          U really need a degree to check yourself out...

                          my 5 would be:

                          1. If you cannot comphrend visual and verbal prompts, then U-scan / self-checkout is not for you.

                          2. If you have children who decide the scale is a jungle gym, then U-scan / self-checkout is not for you.

                          3. If you have the patience of a 6-year-old, then U-scan / self-checkout is not for you.

                          4. If typing in a couple PLU's and UPC's annoy you, then U-scan / self-checkout is not for you.

                          5. If you believe you can push through a $300 order in 5 minutes or less, and have no knowledge of self-checkouts...well, you're just a moron.
                          HI, I'M NEW TO ALL OF THIS wave of approval ™©®

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            I think the self-checkout idea is great. They're very easy for me to use, because I have quite a bit of cashiering experience. My boyfriend was trying to use one in Meijer one day and he was having trouble with it because he's never done any cashiering before.. he got pissed off when I tried to help him.. you know how guys are.

                            But.. judging from the amount of people who don't even know how to use the credit/debit card terminals.. I can definately see a problem with self-checkouts. Some people should probably just stay away from them all together, and leave the scanning merchandise to the professionals!
                            My Myspace, add me!

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              We almost always bag our own stuff anyway, even at clerk checkout lanes. The one place we go, now, doesn't have baggers at all, and the other place we regularly go seems to be chronically understaffed. And they use too many bags and put things together that have no right sharing a bag.

                              ^-.-^
                              Faith is about what you do. It's about aspiring to be better and nobler and kinder than you are. It's about making sacrifices for the good of others. - Dresden

                              Comment

                              Working...
                              X