Problem deduced to be 100% user error.

[MinimaMagistra]

The dreaded preface. I love it, it's so dramatic, really. "Young lady, I worked in the airlines for thirty-eight years. I have been all over the country and the world, stayed at countless hotels. And I'm telling you: This key does not work."

Same lady who, a little bit before, had told me that she'd been trying the key card forwards, backwards, upside down, nearly sideways, and it still wouldn't work. ...A reason, I assume, having something to do with her attempt to use the card in every way possible besides the one and only direction in which it'll work.

The way she was describing it, I thought the battery might be winding down, so I sent the hard key with her. She couldn't get that one to work either, so I got the boss to come out and look at it. He predicted user error and was perfectly on the mark. Not only was he on the mark and immediately got the door open with each and every method she failed at (I'd given her several different types of keys, throughout this), she FOUGHT him about it. Claiming that the hard key he was using looked nothing like the duplicate copy of it that I'd lent her. Bossman was hardpressed not to snark off to her as he so desperately wanted to.

Last I heard from her before going off shift: "I'd like a second key. Not that it'll work, of course."

Give up, lady. Good God.

[powerboy]

I had a couple of problems with the Card keys before. But I would eventually figure it out. She was probably doing to fast

[Shangri-laschild]

I love it when after they've been proven wrong they still fight it and try to act like it didn't happen. Sounds like you've got a nice boss.

[Apathy]

"I'm sorry ma'am, but you're far too stupid to stay at our establishment. I'm afraid I must ask you to leave."

[digilight]

We used to have a saying for "People" like that when they pull a stupid....

"The User has stopped responding".

[Soulstealer]

We ran across the same type of problem at the library. We rent out lockers to students who want to store their stuff. One girl came in and kept insisting the key we gave her wasn't working.

We exchanged it twice before I went down there with her to see what the problem was.

She was at the wrong set of lockers. we have two types one for undergrads which are short term and one for graduate students with last the entire semester. She's the first person I've come across who's ever mixed them up, and it's April she's had all year to learn.

It didn't end there though, once I showed her the correct locker I headed back to the desk and has I reached the stairs she called me back to say the key wasn't working. So I go back and see what she's doing with the key, somehow she messed that up too. After eventually getting her sorted out and noting there was nothing wrong with the key or lock on the locker I went back to the desk where we all had a laugh.

[Difdi]

I had a couple of problems with the Card keys before. But I would eventually figure it out. She was probably doing to fast

Card keys can be fun. I used to work at a place where you had to swipe the key slooooowly or it wouldn't read. Then one of the key readers broke, and they replaced it. That one door had to be swiped fast, but the three other doors still required slow swipes. The fast swipe door wouldn't read the key at all if you swiped it slowly.

About half the day shift couldn't seem to remember about that one door, and kept getting "locked out" from it...

[Boochan]

Main reason why I generally swipe customers Debit/Credit/Gift Cards myself, as well as press the button corresponding to what account they are using. Most of them are too used to the Cashiers at Supermarkets doing all the work for them, so when they're left to their own devices many of them never get it right.

Our pin-pads are only about a year and a half old now though, and have withstood quite a bit. They integrate with our POS Software well surprisingly, and not of the lettering/numbering has rubbed off yet, surprisingly. The readers are starting to get a lot of wear though (We tend to get a lot of failed reads, which gives us a very loud irritating beep), and many cards will need two or three swipes (some need a very slow swipe, some need a very fast one) to actually go through..

[wanderingjoe72]

I am amazed that people have the hardest time with swipe locks.

I have had a couple of times after a good night out, staggering back to the hotel and still being able to get in to my room. And there are still people that can't do it sober in ful light with someone showing them how to do it.

Is there any hope?

[JLRodgers]

I've noticed that almost every time I've tried to open a key-card door when carrying luggage (or anything else for that matter) it always seems to not work. The second I put the stuff down it works great.

Except for a few times like once I was given a card that somehow had a missing mag-strip! (it was that worn that most-all was missing), I don't have problems. Although I did once accidently lock my room key in the room... three times... in a single hour period of time (I locked the replacement in the room 2 minutes after getting it).