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Elf Sternberg
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Date: 2007-12-10 08:25 am (UTC)1) They exist in the sort of place that wouldn't bag your groceries for you, even if it meant a sixfold reduction in the length of lineups. Which, typically, are very long at these places because they're cheap. Their prices might also be cheap. At least at first glance anyway.
2) Because these machines exist solely to reduce the number of staff available at the store, the number of staff will be reduced. In which case, in the event of some unexpected (and actually highly likely - you should know as a programmer) behaviour which the program can't handle, you must wait many, many times longer than you would have to if that same behaviour were handled by a human being. First, you must wait for someone to actually help you out - because they're horribly understaffed already. Then you get to wait as they "find a manager" or some such, because they're not authorized to deal with credit card errors, for instance. I've not bothered to wait long enough for the manager yet. I recall waiting some 15 minutes before giving up.
I've developed this dislike at the only store I've seen that uses these blasted things - the Real Canadian Superstore at Metrotown mall. RCS is not exactly well known for their customer service to begin with. In fact, they have the single worst customer service of any grocery store I've ever visited, hands down. It's more like customer disservice than anything. They treat you like a criminal the moment you come in - and not in that friendly Wal-Mart way with the greeters that secretly are on the lookout for people who look like they might steal, but with greeters that demand that everyone rent a locker for their backpacks. You also *pay* for shopping bags (which exists, as one teller once told me, "because otherwise you'd see it in the prices on the shelves"), and they make you pack them yourself. Let's just say that not many arthritic old ladies go there, even if it's their only choice for miles around.
But the worst part of this particular store is the crowds. Their no-name brand (literally called "No Name") is the cheapest around, and this is an insanely busy mall to begin with. It's literally difficult to get around the store even if you don't have a buggy. With a stroller, it's often next to impossible without a cutlass and a pistol. And then you get to the front of the store. There's supposed to be something resembling an aisle for about oh, 10 to 15 feet behind the tills. Possibly even more. But thanks to the dead-slow lineups, it's always wall-to-wall people. You're supposed to use this aisle to turn down the next one, but you can't. At least not without a cutlass and a pistol.
Oy. This seems to have turned into a rant. Oh well. A shrill for a shrill I guess. ;)