Front Desk Rant Notes. (:D) (long >>)

[mathnerd]

I think I'd go nuts in a complete quiet environment. While my house itself is in the middle of a commercial plant nursery thus no neighbors to bother me at night, it is also a quarter mile away from a major trucking route and a LOT of freight gets moved at night. I think I'd go crazy if I didn't hear the constant noise of trucks heading north all night long. The fan would probably be a good thing for me.

[Fudgethatkay]

Haha, yeah. Had that. Didn't you know, as a front desk clerk, you are simultaneously, house keeping, maintenance, a weather man, a travel agent, a mind reader, and probably a wizard too (I've had people mad at me because I couldn't get the cloud cover that blocked our satellite reception to move).

I'm not a magical witch...yet.

But everything else fits.

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU ARE THE ONLY ONE DOWN THERE. COME UP AND CLEAN MY ROOM NOW. I DON'T CARE IF OTHERS ARE STILL CHECKING IN I TOOK OFF MY DND AT 8 THE HOUSEKEEPING SHOULD HAVE KNOWN THAT!1!"

*Housekeeping always leaves by 5:30 at the latest, and if you have your DND sign up after 2-3, they won't clean it*

[Skarredmind]

Yes, I don't know where this misinformation comes from. Maybe that's why we lose keys so fast.

There's an urban legend that trolls its way around the internets occasionally.

It might come from places like Disney, or Cruise Ships where your room key can be used as a credit card while on site... though I suspect that's less it being programmed with your information and more a more advanced form of room charge.

[Skarredmind]

I'm not a magical witch...yet.

But everything else fits.

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU ARE THE ONLY ONE DOWN THERE. COME UP AND CLEAN MY ROOM NOW. I DON'T CARE IF OTHERS ARE STILL CHECKING IN I TOOK OFF MY DND AT 8 THE HOUSEKEEPING SHOULD HAVE KNOWN THAT!1!"

*Housekeeping always leaves by 5:30 at the latest, and if you have your DND sign up after 2-3, they won't clean it*

Hahaha, been there, fortunately my property has HK on until the bar and restaurant close at night (since HK takes care of them too) so I have someone for room runs and such until after midnight most nights, and tonight she is still here now at 3:15am (because the wedding parties destroy the place)

If you figure out the control of the mystical forces let me know... I need all the help I can get here! :-)

[wolfie]

There's an urban legend that trolls its way around the internets occasionally.

It might come from places like Disney, or Cruise Ships where your room key can be used as a credit card while on site... though I suspect that's less it being programmed with your information and more a more advanced form of room charge.

Of course, all that the concession booths at Disney/bars on a cruise ship need to have encoded on the room key to make the charge is "Monorail station hotel room 1234"/"Cabin Aloha 567" to send the purchase information to the hotel computer/main ship computer. This computer can then add the purchase to the bill, which is charged to the credit card used to pay for the trip.

[BroSCFischer]

Yes, I don't know where this misinformation comes from. Maybe that's why we lose keys so fast.

I saw it on an episode of the first season of "Shark" (James Woods, CBS, lawyer series). I guess some hotels may have done it in the past, but I can't name any names, as I don't know of any that do it currently.

SC

[PepperElf]

Same here on the fan -- partly because I like the "white noise", partly because I like a bit of a breeze ^_^

same here. or headphones. sometimes even if they're not playing anything.

[Chromatix]

How does putting the key next to a credit card wipe it? The mobile phone I can understand, but a credit card is entirely passive.

[Fudgethatkay]

How does putting the key next to a credit card wipe it? The mobile phone I can understand, but a credit card is entirely passive.

From what I was told by my supervisor, the magnetic strips.

[Moirae]

lol. My husband and I sleep with a fan every night. Can't sleep without the white noise.

I suggest that you talk to the managers about getting a quarter dispenser for the laundry area. Then, once it's out it's out. Safer for you than being robbed for $100 worth of quarters late at night.

I love the ving cards. That being said, they always drove me nuts. Anything at all can decode the suckers. At my current hotel, we use physical keys. Honestly, I hate the physical keys worse. I wash them every day because we have no way of knowing what was on the guests hands. Not to mention, it's not nearly as safe as ving cards whose codes change constantly.

[Skarredmind]

From what I was told by my supervisor, the magnetic strips.

It takes (or should take) more than the minor EM field around those cards. Usually its because the guest puts it with their credit cards in their magnetic bill clip. (I usually keep my keys with my credit cards and never had an issue... That said, I do tell guests that thinking about the card too hard will do it.

[EricKei]

I have heard stories that claim that certain wallet materials (esp. leather) can affect magstripes. Anyone have anything concrete on that theory?

[Fudgethatkay]

It takes (or should take) more than the minor EM field around those cards. Usually its because the guest puts it with their credit cards in their magnetic bill clip. (I usually keep my keys with my credit cards and never had an issue... That said, I do tell guests that thinking about the card too hard will do it.

I don't know then. I think our keys are weak as well..

[Teskeria]

I know that if I put two credit cards with the strips facing the same way (ie both up?) then one usually becomes demagnitized. However it isn't all cards, just certain ones. like a Citizen's Bank card (used to have one) WOULD always have that problem. I never get it anymore as I alternate the strips in my case, up down up down. works for me

[wolfie]

I have heard stories that claim that certain wallet materials (esp. leather) can affect magstripes. Anyone have anything concrete on that theory?

I heard that story many years ago, with eelskin being the culprit. From other stuff I heard at the same time, this is my understanding of the story:

- Before the incident, eelskin was not a common material for purses.
- Also before the incident, purses were held closed by mechanical clasps.
- Many stores (probably buying from the same supplier) got in a whole load of eelskin purses with magnetic clasps.
- Shortly afterward, there was an epidemic of credit card magnetic stripes getting erased accidentally.
- People experiencing this erasure compared the new to the old, and blamed the eelskin, since "this never happened with my old purse that was made out of $other_kind_of_leather", ignoring the OTHER change (i.e. "this never happened with my old purse that had a mechanical clasp").

From my viewpoint, it looks like the general public doesn't shave with Occam's Razor.