# Self Check Out Lanes Love them or hate them? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [July 24, 2011, 2:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-check-out-lanes-love-them-or-hate-them/590140 "2011-07-24T02:57:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2011, 11:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-check-out-lanes-love-them-or-hate-them/590140/81 "2011-07-25T11:52:10Z")
I tried one once, and I never got it to work properly, so I gave up and have never tried again. It may have been faulty, or I may have just been a doofus and doing it wrong. I have no problem with waiting in line. ---
**Author:** ![EvilTOJ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ee59a6/32.png) [@EvilTOJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EvilTOJ)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2011, 12:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-check-out-lanes-love-them-or-hate-them/590140/82 "2011-07-25T12:23:46Z")
You put exactly zero cashiers out of work when you use the uscans. Let me rephrase that; YOU AREN’T STEALING AWAY JOBS WHEN YOU USE THE SELF CHECKOUT MACHINES. Those people that would be running the cash registers are off in the store doing other things. They do the shelf restocking, aisle cleanup, cart collection, inventory taking, bottle return maintenance, product facing, finding things for customers, bookkeeping, and so on. Even if they were stealing jobs away, you think all those customers would each be at a cashier? No. They’d all be standing in line at one cashier, possibly two. Have you ever been in the store and you’ll hear them page for someone to check? That means that someone’s regular job is being interrupted to go run the cash registers for the impatient customers because there’s not enough cashiers to get everyone out of the store quickly. They make the store run more efficiently, not taking away labor. The machines are better than they used to be. Nowadays they use this palmpad like device to do the overrides from afar. The older models it used to be the attendant would have to watch an old DOS based application that would watch the machines, and they’d have to watch it like a hawk. Now the palmpad buzzes, they press the button, it’s way faster. The software has been upgraded a few times so it’s not as finicky, although it’s still slower than I’d like. My cite is I worked in the corporate office of a grocery chain for 5 years and we collected the data on the self checkout lanes. I know I hated them at first. They were new and confusing, and there’s the social pressure of people behind you staring at you flub up the machine. That’s why I practiced when no one was there, they do become easier to use. ---
**Author:** ![Lamar\_Mundane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lamar\_Mundane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamar_Mundane)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2011, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-check-out-lanes-love-them-or-hate-them/590140/83 "2011-07-25T21:54:51Z")
> [@JoelUpchurch](#): > > I think a lot of people’s reaction to self checkout may vary by how recent a model they are dealing with or how recently the software was updated. I remember when they first came out. The Winn-Dixie models. I adjusted to fairly quickly, but the Home Depot ones would drive me up the wall. I noticed that the Home Depot models are easier now. Of course, I know not to take the big stuff through self check out and check for bar codes on everything. > > Of course, it would be nice if they would add a sign that said, "If you can’t program your DVR, don’t stand in this line. That’s what I used to think as well, but then I realized that at the same machines that I never, ever have a problem with, people all around me are screwing up constantly. Just like there are some people who will never understand how to use a computer or drive a car, there is a large group of people for whom self-checkouts will always be a problem. ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2011, 10:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-check-out-lanes-love-them-or-hate-them/590140/84 "2011-07-25T22:33:01Z")
> [@GuanoLad](#): > > I tried one once, and I never got it to work properly, so I gave up and have never tried again. It may have been faulty, or I may have just been a doofus and doing it wrong. > > I have no problem with waiting in line. You’re waiting in line for the self serve. The difference is that you do it in a queue line. What the stores should do is set up all the checkouts on a queue line so we can get to the next available checkout. ---
**Author:** ![thelabdude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/dc4da7/32.png) [@thelabdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelabdude)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2011, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-check-out-lanes-love-them-or-hate-them/590140/85 "2011-07-25T23:47:38Z")
One problem I had a Home Depot was small things. I would scan them, place in the bag, and get told to bag it. I found less and less I wanted to buy there. They closed the store. ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2011, 12:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-check-out-lanes-love-them-or-hate-them/590140/86 "2011-07-26T00:17:03Z")
> [@Brown\_Eyed\_Girl](#): > > I’m pretty anal about how my bags are packed, so I frequent the self-checkout to save myself the frustration of baggers who forget to use my reusable bags or filling them 1/4 full so they end up giving me umpteen extra plastic bags that I don’t want. Seriously. The other day the bagger actually put only one item in each plastic bag, so hubby rebagged them all before he walked away from the register. They are insistent on bagging for us even when we offer to bag them ourselves. I like humans but despise baggers. I don’t despise baggers, but with reusable bags I have to supervise them carefully to make sure they don’t cram as much stuff as possible into the smallest bag and leave the others nearly empty. When you walk to the market you like to have a balanced load. Also, I have to make sure I don’t give them the ape-handle tote that I can’t carry without it scraping on the ground. Obviously the thing to do here seems to be simply not to bring that bag, but an extra bag or two is always useful for cushioning more fragile items. It’s a tightrope walk every time I go to the market, I tell you! ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2011, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-check-out-lanes-love-them-or-hate-them/590140/87 "2011-07-26T01:06:55Z")
> [@Lamar\_Mundane](#): > > That’s what I used to think as well, but then I realized that at the same machines that I never, ever have a problem with, people all around me are screwing up constantly. Just like there are some people who will never understand how to use a computer or drive a car, there is a large group of people for whom self-checkouts will always be a problem. Do you seriously think those of us here who have complained about this lack the common sense to understand what “unexpected item in the baggage area” means and just don’t happen to notice that we’ve actually put an unexpected item in the baggage area? Or when an item doesn’t register in the baggage area, we somehow didn’t actually put it in the baggage area and just imagined we did? Listen, these machines screw up. Not all the time, but enough that they’ve instilled in me the hatred of a thousand fiery suns. ---
**Author:** ![Lamar\_Mundane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lamar\_Mundane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamar_Mundane)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2011, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-check-out-lanes-love-them-or-hate-them/590140/88 "2011-07-26T03:27:50Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > Do you seriously think those of us here who have complained about this lack the common sense to understand what “unexpected item in the baggage area” means and just don’t happen to notice that we’ve actually put an unexpected item in the baggage area? Yes, because I’ve personally witnessed it dozens of times. Just a few hours ago I saw a woman with a small basket of stuff require the attendant to come over three times to help her. The register next to her opened up and I completed my transaction with no trouble and as I left she was still not finished and looking around helplessly once again. She was about thirty years old, so she must be familiar with technology. ---
**Author:** ![rowrrbazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rowrrbazzle/32/414_2.png) [@rowrrbazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rowrrbazzle)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2011, 4:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-check-out-lanes-love-them-or-hate-them/590140/89 "2011-07-26T04:17:16Z")
> [@EvilTOJ](#): > > You put exactly zero cashiers out of work when you use the uscans. Let me rephrase that; > > YOU AREN’T STEALING AWAY JOBS WHEN YOU USE THE SELF CHECKOUT MACHINES. You’re contradicting the left’s narrative with facts! Stop it! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2011, 4:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-check-out-lanes-love-them-or-hate-them/590140/90 "2011-07-26T04:35:58Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > I hate them. > [ul][li]There isn’t enough room in the bagging area for a week’s worth of groceries.[_]There aren’t any paper bags. I use the paper bags for my recycling, and they hold a lot more than the plastic ones and are easier to carry.[_]I do not want to put the groceries in the bagging area. I want to put them into a paper bag in the cart, so I don’t have to lift them again until I get them out to the car. [/ul]Forget it. Besides, some of the cashiers are cute, and will flirt with the old guy.[/li] > Regards, > Shodan I get the impression they weren’t aimed at people who buy a week’s supplies all at once, but that’s probably something they should work on. Maybe they could design a bagging scale that you could roll the cart onto, and then the bagging validation would work. ---
**Author:** ![Lamar\_Mundane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lamar\_Mundane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamar_Mundane)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2011, 4:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-check-out-lanes-love-them-or-hate-them/590140/91 "2011-07-26T04:46:42Z")
> [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](#): > > I get the impression they weren’t aimed at people who buy a week’s supplies all at once, but that’s probably something they should work on. Maybe they could design a bagging scale that you could roll the cart onto, and then the bagging validation would work. With [RFID](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radio-frequency_identification), soon enough you’ll be able to roll your cart through a scanner and it’ll total up your purchases with one scan, with the exception of some produce. I’d say that by 2020 it will be in use in grocery stores. Wal-Mart is pushing hard for it already and they are very influential. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2011, 4:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-check-out-lanes-love-them-or-hate-them/590140/93 "2011-07-26T04:58:37Z")
> [@Lamar\_Mundane](#): > > Yes, because I’ve personally witnessed it dozens of times. Just a few hours ago I saw a woman with a small basket of stuff require the attendant to come over three times to help her. The register next to her opened up and I completed my transaction with no trouble and as I left she was still not finished and looking around helplessly once again. She was about thirty years old, so she must be familiar with technology. OK, well, as soon as I figure out what I’m doing wrong, I’ll let you know. I’ve eliminated “unexpected baggage in the baggage area” and not putting the item in the bag such that it registers on the scale. Usually, I fix the problem myself without calling over an attendent by repeatedly adding and removing the item until the damned machine figures out what’s going on. Or I just remove a random item that I’ve already scanned if it’s “unexpected item in baggage area.” ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2011, 5:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-check-out-lanes-love-them-or-hate-them/590140/94 "2011-07-26T05:03:44Z")
> [@EmAnJ](#): > > I’ll use them is the line is shorter. I rarely have problems, but if I do, the person in charge of them is usually quick and on the ball. > > I have to say I’m a bit surprised at some of the comments in the thread. It seems like in many areas, people use them for carts full of groceries. No wonder you get pissed off, both with the lack of room for bags on the scale, and with the slowness of it. Here, they are essentially express lanes, and you only use them is you’ve got an arm basket full of groceries or less. It’s way quicker to take a cart through the regular checkout, plus, you won’t piss off the people behind you. After the New Year’s Day debacle at our local Superstore where at one point no one could physically move in the checkout area, it was so incredibly crowded, they put up a sign saying no more than 20 items (I think it is) in the self-checkout lanes. > [@JoelUpchurch](#): > > \ > Of course, it would be nice if they would add a sign that said, "If you can’t program your DVR, don’t stand in this line. \ That works for me. 🙂 I love self-checkouts because I can do them quickly and load things up just the way I like them, but I also have no problems programming my DVR. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2011, 5:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-check-out-lanes-love-them-or-hate-them/590140/95 "2011-07-26T05:05:08Z")
They are good at the Safeway across the street from my work, where I buy 3 items at most. I never use them at the Safeway where we do our real shopping, because we have tons of produce, complex coupons, and we bring our own bags. Plus, most of the checkers have been there for years and are really nice people, and we want to support them. Safeway keeps their real lines open, at least. The Lucky’s I sometimes go to has used them as excuse to make their already terrible service even worse. ---
**Author:** ![Double\_Foolscap](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/85e7bf/32.png) [@Double\_Foolscap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Double_Foolscap)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2011, 11:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-check-out-lanes-love-them-or-hate-them/590140/96 "2011-07-26T11:13:40Z")
I can see how they would suck if you’re doing a week’s worth of shopping and there’s no other option. When I’m on my own doing a small shop I like them, because I don’t have to pause my iPod to speak to anyone. The wait is also shorter, because the only store I use that has them asks that you only use them for baskets, and they have enough cashiers for shoppers with full trolleys. There’s a convenience store nearby with two self-checkouts and two human cashiers, and you just go to whoever’s free. They work quickly, nobody’s ever buying more than 20 items, and it means you aren’t limited by the small amount of staff who tend to be working there. ---
**Author:** ![EvilTOJ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ee59a6/32.png) [@EvilTOJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EvilTOJ)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2011, 11:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-check-out-lanes-love-them-or-hate-them/590140/97 "2011-07-26T11:39:03Z")
> [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](#): > > I get the impression they weren’t aimed at people who buy a week’s supplies all at once, but that’s probably something they should work on. Maybe they could design a bagging scale that you could roll the cart onto, and then the bagging validation would work. Some Fred Meyer locations have bagging carousels, where 6 open bags are waiting to be filled. When one bag is full, turn it and fill another. It works pretty well, and they leave lots of room for the cart so you can reload all your groceries back into it. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2011, 11:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-check-out-lanes-love-them-or-hate-them/590140/98 "2011-07-26T11:54:31Z")
> [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](#): > > I get the impression they weren’t aimed at people who buy a week’s supplies all at once, but that’s probably something they should work on. Maybe they could design a bagging scale that you could roll the cart onto, and then the bagging validation would work. My local Meijer’s has several self-check lanes with a full conveyor belt (no “bagging area”) where you just put the item on the belt and it carries it to a holding area. Plastic AND paper bags are available. There’s even a divider you can put between your stuff and the next guy’s so he doesn’t have to wait for you to finish bagging, he can check his stuff while you’re bagging. So you can do a week’s worth at the big self-check and just a few items at the small one. Seems to work OK. ---
**Author:** ![shiftless](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9c0ed/32.png) [@shiftless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shiftless)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2011, 12:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-check-out-lanes-love-them-or-hate-them/590140/99 "2011-07-26T12:58:04Z")
Hate 'em. Not only do I not use them, I avoid stores that emplyee them. Customer service already sucks and now they want me to check myself out? I would be glad to pay a few cents extra to support someone doing that job for me. My local Safeway has employeed some of the same people for years, including a young freind of one of my kids who has used the money to get an education. I like seeing them, they do a good job, they handle unexpected situations quickly, why should we pitch them out and make me learn to do that that crap? Then, when something goes wrong, I have to stand around with my dick in my hand while the single clerk runs around trying to fix things. Create a job. Use the human casher. ---
**Author:** ![Rachellelogram](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rachellelogram/32/8689_2.png) [@Rachellelogram](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rachellelogram)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2011, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-check-out-lanes-love-them-or-hate-them/590140/100 "2011-07-26T15:18:29Z")
Love 'em. I hate interacting with retail workers. I feel bad for them because I used to work in retail and I know how much their jobs suck and the shit they get paid, so I bother them as little as possible. I’ve only used them at Meijer, and have had wonderful experiences. I’m not sure if the quality of the terminals varies from store to store, or if the people who have problems using them are just tech-stupid, or what. The registers don’t yell at me about weight, because I use the provided plastic bags and know to scan one item-bag one item, etc. They also let you pay the machine in cash or coin or debit or food stamps (not that I have them, but if I did it’d be a nice option for privacy). And if you want to pay by check, the person overseeing the registers can take that, too. BTW, if an item won’t scan, you hit the “manual entry” button on the machine and type in the upc code yourself. Pretty simple. I haven’t had to get help from a cashier, except for approval of alcohol, in the last year+ using them. And I’ve never been a cashier before in my life. ---
**Author:** ![hogarth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hogarth/32/1773_2.png) [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2011, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-check-out-lanes-love-them-or-hate-them/590140/101 "2011-07-26T15:43:19Z")
I like them if and when they’re faster (e.g. no line-up and I only have a couple of bog-standard items). Otherwise, I prefer a person. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-check-out-lanes-love-them-or-hate-them/590140.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-check-out-lanes-love-them-or-hate-them/590140.md?page=6)