Hammer time

[Jet]

So in the store I work out we have the little machines you have to sign when you make a credit card purchase. During the check out process there could be various reasons why they need to select "Yes, No" on the screen or "Correct, Incorrect". Now granted these machines aren't the greatest of our technological glory, but if I tell you to "Tap the box once" it does not mean HAMMER the box repeatedly with the small plastic pen! Oh and why does everyone always pull those pens off the cords and try to take them

[batmoody]

I like when people try to write their check with those pens.

Silly customer!

[icia]

they probably do that for the same reason their personal belongings break and they don't understand "why" a computer would stop working if they beat it to death with impatience

[Dragon_Dreamer]

I *hate* the people who pull that! I'm waiting for the day someone actually breaks the screen, so we can make them pay for it. :P

We already have to replace two pens... I superglued the tip back onto one (Someone had hammered so hard the tip flew off and went past my ear), and pretty much mounded the glue on. Within two days, it was broken worse.

*bangbangbang!*
SC: "Why won't this work?!"
Me: *realizing what's happening, cause I can't see the screen from behind the register* "Uh, ma'am, you *really* don't need to hit it so hard, it works much better if you're gentle. Try using the side of the tip?"
SC: *bangbangbangbang* "It won't accept my signature! I'm trying to hit accept!"
Me: *gives up, reaches over, presses thumb where accept button should be, and customer finishes the transaction without even a thank you*

[Becks]

A tie in promotion-- Every time a customer beats on the poor machine, hand them a little toy squeaky mallet. Seconds of fun for all!!!!!!!!!

[lordlundar]

just do What I did when whe had those. Explain how you keep them.

"Excuse me, please don't hammer on that."
"Why not?"
"Because if you damage it, it is vandilasim, which means we have legal authority to hold you here until the police arrive and make you pay for it. The pens are $30 each and the pad itself is $3000."

Worked very well.

[we'vegotawinner]

i like when people use regular pens to sign on the machines. lots of fun.

[AFpheonix]

We have those digital machines, but they have to sign paper reciepts. That throws so many people off.

We haven't had any styluses (stylii?) break yet, but god, some people tap entirely too hard. I can't see very well where they're trying to tap, but it must not be on the sweet spot over the button.

[Ryu]

the annoying thing is when people do that it no longer works when you just tap it normally so everyone has to tap it hard and more than once until it just totally stops working

[JustAGirl]

i like when people use regular pens to sign on the machines. lots of fun.

me too LOL. Several times I had to use regular pens since our other one was missing/stolen.

They'd click the pen and sign! THEN they would get their receipt and leave and the customer after them would laugh and say "they signed the screen in pen" and we'd have a laugh.

SO I got to taking out the ink in the pen.

Go figure, someone would say "this pen doesn't have ink".

Me: That's fine as you'd be signing the screen in ink when its a pressure pad (or something a lot easier for them to understand)

They'd look sheepish after I say that though I'm not being mean lol.

Or like others have said, they'd hammer on the screen and it wouldn't work. "touch the screen lightly, no need to punch it"

Or, they'd touch it lightly. "try it again ma'am/sir, it didn't recognize that" then they'd hammer it "now a little lighter ma'am/sir that was too hard"

OR, better yet, they'd use their fingers. *mash* *mash* " why isn't this working?!?" "ma'am/sir use the pen, lot less painful when you use that" then they either look sheepish or get pissed that I pointed out the pen right under their nose.

*sigh*

[karma_gypsy]

Oh and why does everyone always pull those pens off the cords and try to take them

People try and take the pen? Why . . .? I think the pen would outlive it's usefullness once it leaves the store . . . I've never had to deal with machines like that, just the one where the person hands me their card and I have to slide it through myself - the machine lasts a lot longer that way too

[repsac]

One thing I noticed at Lowe's (and maybe someone can back me up on this) is that half of those machines are designed so you can't scratch them with the regular stylus. Oddly enough, it seemed that one out of every three machines we had; were SO scratched in the face that you couldn't see the signature line.


Oh, and here's one that's always fun. You know that most of them are designed to pull off and hand to the customer so they can sign? Yeah, well most of the employees at my store didn't know that. Customers either. I always had a bit of fun when I'd see someone in a wheelchair that needed to use it. Being the nice guy, I'd pull the thing off, hand it to the customer (it's on a six to seven foot cord) let them sign, and then put it back.

I did this once only to have the ZM look at me with astonishment. "I never knew they did that." he said. I belived him.

[MadMike]

I like when people try to write their check with those pens.

Silly customer!

I've seen ink on those screens once or twice, so apparently people are also doing the opposite of that.

[Kogarashi]

I've had customers try to write their checks with those pens (before I hand them one of my cheapos), but never try to sign the screen with an ink pen. I've also had customers attempt to press the touch-screen buttons with the corner of their credit cards, which doesn't work at all.

What boggles me is that, on the three pinpads in the store with actual physical buttons on the machine for entering numbers, lots of customers will pick up the pen and use that to push the buttons, despite the fact that those three machines can take fingers just as easily. And then they try to use their fingers on the "OK" button (touch-screen button) after signing or the "NO" button (again, touch-screen) to decline cashback. ::shakes head::

[phillippbo]

I think all of these problems go back to my theory about people and technology: they are afraid. Very afraid. Agonizingly afraid. So afraid of technology that when confronted with something they've never seen before, or something that they don't immediately understand, they revert to a "caveman" mindset of either avoiding said technology, touching it very lightly so as not to arouse the demons inside which would steal their souls, or bludgeon it into submission to appease the gods. The technology gods grant bonus points if the person grunts while pounding the demons out of the technology in front of them.

<=== fleeing technology demons