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Originally Posted by shesus
I will say though that those self-checkouts can cause problems. I worked at as a cashier for about 8 years so I know how to scan and bag and all that jazz. However, the scales or something at the self-checkouts get messed up sometimes because I'll scan and bag and then the screen will scream at me, "Remove last item and ring it up" like I was shoplifting it our something.
Then the lady has to come over and turn a key and push a couple buttons while I stand there feeling like an idiot.
So while I agree that some people truly are idiots and don't understand how the whole system works, don't be hard on everyone because they may just be the unlucky person at a fucked up register.
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I've found that it can work both ways, myself, depending on the system that the individual store has installed. Home Depot's scales used to be not nearly sensitive enough, so that unless you were buying cans of paint or something, there's no way they'd register that you had actually put an item in your bag. Now they pick up most items, although I tend to have problems if I try to buy something super-light, like some washers. Even then, though, if you do a bit of a slam-dunk into the bag, that's usually enough to get the scale to register.
Most of the grocery stores around here use some sort of scale system, but one chain (Super Fresh) uses what I can only guess is some sort of optical recognition system. Their self-checks are set up like a regular register, but in reverse. There's the scanner at the beginning, and then you put your stuff on a conveyor belt that dumps it off at the bagging area. Along the way, it passes under this little arch that (I'm guessing) makes sure that the item passing under it is around the same size as the thing that was scanned.
The big problem with this system happens when you've got a big order, and you're by yourself. Since the bagging area is around ten feet away from the scanner, you can't bag as you scan. This leads to the bagging area filling up pretty quickly, and tripping a scanner that tells the machine that the bagging area is full, which then stops the whole process until you go clear the bagging area. It works great if you've got someone there with you to bag as you go, but otherwise, you end up looking like an idiot by running back and forth to clear the mess (I usually just pile my stuff up so it isn't tripping the scanner any more.
Either way, it seems that the benefit to using the self-check drops exponentially the more people are in line. This is especially true if they've got a lot of produce, which is always required to be manually looked up for every item. I look at it the same way I look at deciding between the express lane and the regular. The express lane isn't going to be faster if there's five people in line with their small transactions versus one person with a larger transaction in the regular line.
Of course, if it's a grocery store you go to regularly, then you can also take into account how fast the varying checkers are. I go to the same Safeway every time I shop, so not only do I tend to know who's the fastest there, but I can also recognize new people and avoid their lanes.
Man, I need to get out more....