Re: Hotel room keys

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From: Abigail
Subject: Re: Hotel room keys
Date: 10:31 on 02 Sep 2005
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On Tue, Aug 30, 2005 at 05:36:05PM +0100, Nicholas Clark wrote:
> So I'm attending a conference, and I'm staying in a room in a hotel (as y=
ou
> do) and I'm sharing a twin room with a friend (as is not unknown) and we =
both
> know a lot of other people attending and might actually have two separate
> lives (shock horror).
>=20
> The room has a swipe card lock. Moreover, you need the swipe card to make=
 the
> lights work inside. So with one key you generally have to stick together.=
..
>=20
> Us:           Can we have a second key for room [XXX] please?
> Receptionist: Sure. But when I make the second key the first will stop wo=
rking.
> Us:           Oh. But we haven't lost the first key.
> Receptionist: But you can only have one key for the room.
> Us:           Oh, why?
> Receptionist: Security, you see
>=20
> We politely say that we understand and thank him and decline the new key.
>=20
>=20
>=20
> Hateful hotel software. Nasty evil thing. Security be bollocks. Given that
> we needed no proof that we were the legitimate residents of room XXX, it's
> because the sub-muppet software is too damn stoooopid to write two keys to
> have the same magnetic strip. Or if the keys have fixed stripes, then it's
> the firmware in the door is tooooo damn stupid to be programmable to acce=
pt
> more than one guest-issue key.


We have a cheaper hotel, and there having two hotel keys for the same
room isn't a problem. That of course doesn't mean the keys don't suck.
It's one of those locks where you insert the key, then remove the key,
and then you get either a green light (and you can open the door), or
a red light, and the door stays locked.

But it's set up real tricky. Moving the card quickly in and out gives
you a red light -- apparently, you did it too quickly. But if you leave
the card for a second, you get a red light as well. It takes too long.
Every time I enter the room, I have to try the card several times.
If you have Parkinson desease you better find a different hotel.



Abigail

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