Originally published at: Walmart self-checkout mistake destroys Olympic athlete's career - Boing Boing
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There is some serious misinformation going on here.
Quick facts:
- Brand Name: Zofran
- Generic Name: Ondansetron
- Uses: Treatment for nausea and vomiting caused by chemotherapy, radiation therapy, and surgery
- Drug Class: Serotonin 5-HT3 receptor antagonist
- Availability: Prescription only
- Generic Status: Yes
- Controlled Substance: No
Ondansetron is not a controlled substance (other than the restrictions of any prescription drug), it has no potential for abuse, and should not form the basis for any charges here. IOW, this whole thing was BS from the start, and should form the core of a pretty good case for damages against Wallyworld.
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From the customer’s POV is there any value associated with the use of self checkouts?
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Lack of other options?
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I assiduously avoid self-checkout on principle. Now I will do so out of necessity.
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I quite like the ones where they give me a scanner to go around the shop with. The advantages I experience:
- save time by packing shopping straight into my bags, rather than trolley → checkout → bags.
- check that multibuy offers have scanned properly as I go along.
- check my running total.
In general, self-checkout, even without a scan as you go, tends to have less of a queue. My dyspraxic ass feels less rushed to get everything on the checkout, then to pack it ASAP. The machine tells me several times to collect my shopping, but I can tell the machine to shut up.
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Arrested for having Ondasetron? Only in corporate-owned United States of America dude.
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Another reason I don’t go out much.
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This article doesn’t dissuade me from using self-check out. Going through the regular check out sucks, and often i don’t have enough items to justify waiting in a long line when i can scan my items myself and be out quicker. But if i do have a cart full of stuff i am using the regular check out.
If anything this is more of a reminder for me to make sure to properly scan everything and make sure it is scanning/ringing up correctly.
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She was obviously keeping someone else’s anti-nausea medication in preparation for her feast of $67 worth of ham and asparagus, until it all went awry.
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I used them at first, for the novelty, but now I refuse. Too many compromises.
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The supermarket I usually go to has good checkout clerks who pack, and I find I can keep track of the specials, etc. while still having a pleasant exchange with the host. They often will suggest a better deal on a multiple unit item and go get it. In spite of all this, their self check outs are often packed. It suggests to me some shoppers prefer to limit human interactions, but I dunno . In any case, my motivation includes a lot of "the savings are never passed along to you " 
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I try to avoid them, for many reasons, but I frequently end up critiquing the interface and UX. “What? You have two screens, this was the active one, but now it’s waiting for input on this one without an obvious cue to the user? Who designed this POS?!*”
* Point Of Sale.
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Unrelated, but I spent many years in tech support and never failed to appreciate that joke. Also never in all those years did I inappropriately respond to hearing “the computer just went down on them”
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I use my local supermarket’s self-checkout lines, because they’ve never been a problem, and they’re faster than the alternative. This seems to be more a Wal-Mart issue, not a self-checkout issue. Which isn’t a problem, because I don’t patronize Wal-Mart. Ever.
I will say that recently, the self-checkouts have become more annoying. You’ll never guess what changed. That’s right - it’s AI! There are cameras guessing about what’s going on, and they’re very good at seeing things that aren’t there. Like assuming the wallet I’m holding is an item I haven’t scanned. Can’t escape the scourge.
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I haven’t used a giant supermarket in decades.
The Co-Op (UK thing) in our town has about a dozen staff, and I know all of them by name, and they me.
They do have four self-checkout lanes, and usually only one member of staff at the line of three regular checkout stations.
But I love the fact that I can greet them by name, and the fact that they enjoy the interaction (they have to put up with quite a bit, so I never give them a hard time).
And they are so bloody helpful, which you’re not gonna get from a frickin’ AI.
Choose the short queue to happiness, everyone!
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Hey, maybe I am a happy mutant! I have a bottle of Zofran in my cabinet!
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- I don’t have to talk to anyone if I don’t want to do so.
- No one else is touching my groceries.
- I don’t even have to take off my headphones, often the reason I can be in a semi-crowded store without running out screaming.
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I don’t have to suddenly find myself stuck behind a shopper due to coupons, something not ringing up, etc. Also don’t have to politely decline upselling tactics from the person at the register, or open a store card, etc.
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