You're ripping me off!

[Racket_Man]

What's a pay phone?

This times 1 million.

I am a pizza delivery driver and know my delivery area rather well. I USED to know where all of the payphone were in my area.

Starting about 6 or 7 years ago most places that had a pay phone had them removed for whatever reason. I personally can not tell you where a single payphone is in my delivery are is anymore as they are nonexistant as far as I know.

The only places I know that has payphone anymore is maybe rest areas along the interstate.

[PepperElf]

I suspect it's because it wasn't making them any money. most people have cell phones these days.

only a few places have pay phones… when my car broke down i was lucky that the gas station i pulled into was next to another gas station with a pay phone. otherwise i'd have been having a hard time getting ahold of my bf

[MadMike]

I suspect it's because it wasn't making them any money. most people have cell phones these days.

I think what did them in was when they jacked up the price right when cell phone service was becoming cheap. When the price went up to 35 cents, I said "Fuck this, I'm getting a cell phone!" Haven't used a pay phone since.

[Alpha Strike]

...
Although personally I don't entirely trust biometric locks. Mainly because … well if someone cuts off my thumb and keeps it warm wouldn't it still activate the lock?

If someone is cutting off body parts to get into your house, I think you have bigger problems then whether or not your biometric lock is reliable.

[suburbandecay]

I've seen what happens when there's no mechanical override to those electric-only locks and the power is out long enough to kill the batteries.

IIRC they actually had to dismantle the door itself. (let's just say it wasn't your average house lock )

Weird. All the electronic locks I have encountered default to "unlocked" when power is lost. Granted, all of them have been at businesses I have worked at.

Although personally I don't entirely trust biometric locks. Mainly because … well if someone cuts off my thumb and keeps it warm wouldn't it still activate the lock?

Eh, at that point it's easier to defeat the lock (or door) than it is to remove a thumb and keep it in a state where it will open the lock.

[kpzra]

Weird. All the electronic locks I have encountered default to "unlocked" when power is lost. Granted, all of them have been at businesses I have worked at.

My last job they stayed locked when power was lost, they were one of the only things on the backup generator along with the hanger doors. This was at the airport though where security is VERY important. It just depends on how the system is set up and backed up.

[Lady_Foxfire]

When I was about 4, my uncle locked us out of the house while babysitting me. He pried one of the basement windows open and lowered me in so I could unlock the door.

[Mytical]

I've actually got two 'locked out' stories. One I had to crawl through a small window we thankfully had not locked. It was over a sink, and it was a feat of acrobatics not to kill myself. This was when I was a kid and very small and wiry.

The second time, I locked my keys inside my truck..with the truck running. . Yeah I was brilliant there. Luckily there was a very small person that was able to get inside the vehicle through a very small window. I couldn't even reach it from the window with my long arms, and no way anybody over 5'3" (and skinny) was getting through that window.

[aulocksmith]

Wow! This thread has really been a read for me.

RE: Biometric locks.

I f***ing hate them with a passion. I find them extremely unreliable due to the fact that when I try to teach someone how to use them, they will still manage to f*** it up. Nowadays, if I get asked to recommend an electric lock some sort, I'll recommend a codepad type, or fob-reader type instead if they don't want to be entering codes all the time.

Personally, I prefer the fob types. Yes, you still have to carry a "key" around, but you can record the different IDs and usually get an audit trail in the case of unauthorised access.

In regards to electric locks letting go when power is lost, really depends on how they're setup. Most places that have hardwired locks are required (where I am, at least) to release if power is lost due to fire safety regulations. But that is only applicable to electric locks and strikes. Maglocks will let go anyway, as they require power all the time. But, the locks and strikes can also be set to power-to-open as well, which means if they lose power, then you need a mechanical way to open the lock such as a key.

I've actually got two 'locked out' stories. One I had to crawl through a small window we thankfully had not locked. It was over a sink, and it was a feat of acrobatics not to kill myself. This was when I was a kid and very small and wiry.

The second time, I locked my keys inside my truck..with the truck running. . Yeah I was brilliant there. Luckily there was a very small person that was able to get inside the vehicle through a very small window. I couldn't even reach it from the window with my long arms, and no way anybody over 5'3" (and skinny) was getting through that window.

I actually got pulled up in a service station because a lady had done exactly the same as your second story. I had pulled in to fill up, and she came screaming over to me from her car. She'd pulled over on the side of a busy highway next to a mailbox to mail some things, left the car running, and managed to lock it. Was the easiest money I made that day.

And I've done the same as your first story as well. Aussies on this forum might remember Russell Gilbert. When my father was first starting out with the business I now own, he used to live around the corner from us. One night, he managed to lock himself out, and my father just was not able to open the door. So out comes 5yo me, and shoved in through the toilet window to go open the front door. Was a fun night that.

[Gizmo]

I have a locking in story: when we were decorating we removed one of the handles from a door... which managed to close itself and lock us in the front room whilst the kettle (on a cooker stove, not a electric one) was boiling over in the kitchen! We nearly got a locksmith out but were saved by the step-sister who had a spare key.

[suburbandecay]

One night, he managed to lock himself out, and my father just was not able to open the door. So out comes 5yo me, and shoved in through the toilet window to go open the front door. Was a fun night that.

Here's the million dollar question: did he still charge him to open the lock?

[MadMike]

The second time, I locked my keys inside my truck..with the truck running.

I did that once. I don't know where my head was. I parked my car, jumped out, locked the door, and pushed it shut, and stood there looking stupid while my car was still running. Luckily, after I had locked myself out the previous time (not with the engine running), I had started carrying a spare key in my wallet.

The car I have now will not let you lock the door from the outside if the keys are in the ignition. And years ago, I had another car that you had to use the key to lock the driver door.

[PepperElf]

well if you're locking the door from the outside wouldn't you therefore have a key or access-tool?

i've always locked mine from the inside myself… mainly as a security issue etc.

[dalesys]

... pushed it shut, and stood there looking stupid while my car was still running...

It was starting to rain and the top was down!

[wolfie]

Eh, at that point it's easier to defeat the lock (or door) than it is to remove a thumb and keep it in a state where it will open the lock.

Electronic locks can be configured in one of two configurations:

Fail Safe (unlocks if power fails). The conventional maglocks, and striker locks where the electromagnet holds the striker in the "locked" position, fall into this category.

Fail secure (locks if power fails). Striker locks where the electromagnet releases the striker fall into this category. There are also some maglocks which have both a permanent magnet and an electromagnet. The permanent magnet holds the door closed, while the electromagnet creates an opposing magnetic field to release the door. These have their own problems, such as installations where the doors are left unlocked for an extended period of time (instead of for a few seconds when someone swipes their access card) having the permanent magnet, over time, being reduced in strength from the effect of the electromagnet "fighting" it, so that eventually it becomes possible to force the door when it's supposed to be locked.