History of the Automatic Teller 473
XopherMV writes "The line was long and slow, and he became increasingly irritated as his lunch hour dribbled away. All at once, he had a flash of inspiration. 'Golly, all the teller does is cash checks, take deposits, answer questions like "What's my balance?" and transfer money between accounts,' recalls Wetzel, now 75 and still living in Dallas with his wife. 'Wow, I think we could build a machine that could do that!' And with a $4 million go-ahead from Docutel's parent company, that's exactly what he and his engineers did. Read more about the story of the ATM."
It is just stupid (Score:3, Insightful)
These are the secret heroes of the world (Score:5, Insightful)
Actor. Actor. Actor. Actor. Actor. Actor. Actor. Jock. Actor. Actor. Jock. Actor. Actor. Jock.
I've heard they have a busniessman once in a while, but only the billionaire figurehead type.
Think they'd ever do a biography of the guy who invented one of best convenience devices ever created? No. I guess that's boring compared to Dubiously-Talented-Generic-Actress-Bint fretting over how hard it is to find a good sitter for her children's cat as they go on vacation to the South of France.
And people wonder why I'm a misanthrope.
The follow-on devices are interesting... (Score:5, Insightful)
From the article:
The success of the ATM inspired similar innovations (some more frustrating than others) in a number of nonfinancial industries as well. Full-service gas stations have all but given way to credit card-primed gas pumps. Delta Air Lines has 846 do-it-yourself check-in terminals in 83 U.S. cities. Kroger has self-check-out lanes in more than 1,400 supermarkets. And you can find similar aisles in 850 Home Depot stores.
Pay-at-the-pump stations are so convenient I will not use a traditional pay-inside gas pump unless absolutely necessary, even if it means going a bit out of my way. The self-service check-in option at the airport is a $DEITYsend, too: not checking any bags? Why muck around behind people who have never before seen the inside of an airport? Identify yourself to the kiosk with a credit card or frequent flyer card, get the boarding pass and go.
I find the self-serve lanes at store rather less useful, but am amazed at how quickly the ATM model has become both widespread and nearly indispensable.
An American invention? (Score:4, Insightful)
Would it be outrageous to supose that this spin might be because the inventor of the machine in Enfield was not American? Not that I would suggest Americans ever revise history...
Loss Leader? (Score:2, Insightful)
Re:Sexist comment (Score:3, Insightful)
You know the feeling - wallet full of notes, let's go and spend some!
Re:Text here (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:It is just stupid (Score:2, Insightful)
After all, if the computers are claimed to be correct in tabulating votes then the same can be said about totaling ones food bill.
Besides, what's a few cents here and there when calculating the price of a box of dried macaroni?
Re:A great, but ultimately dated, revolution (Score:2, Insightful)
2) If a parent wants to allow a teenager to have their allowance on a debit card, it's easier to control the amount that's available to spend.
Re:These are the secret heroes of the world (Score:2, Insightful)
I find biographies about historical figures much more interesting than celebrities, even if they are so-called icons. I wouldn't find a biography of Elvis Presley, Greta Garbo or Fred Astaire any more interesting than one of Jennifer Lopez, which is to say I wouldn't find it interesting at all.
I think that the life story of the guy who invented the ATM would probably be pretty dry. I work with a lot of bright Engineers, and they're good, decent, intelligent people, but hardly subjects for interesting biographies.
Plus, hey, it wouldn't sell commercial time.
Re:other denoms (Score:2, Insightful)
I've seen some around here start showing up at my bank, M&T Bank [mandtbank.com], that will let you input any amount for a withdrawal and it will give you exactly that. I remember first noticing the machines and tested it with $24.99... which, unfortunately, it gave me, down to the last penny :) - the technology is there, although these ATMs take up a decent amount of space, and I've only seen them at branches of the banks themselves. These are the same machines that have the aforementioned full-color video screens and all that.
Re:Text here (Score:3, Insightful)
I got to speak to the technician who services them a few weeks back, and he said each position on average dealt with 150% more traffic during a day than the cashier it replaced. They are doing so well, he said they are looking at putting in more positions. Oh, and they run on WindowsNT4
Decline of bank machines - rise of ATM? (Score:2, Insightful)
(The gov reasoned that since the banks were laying off all the tellers, they couldn't then charge customers to use the machines when the machines were saving the banks money, logically enough. And later, through the 90s, when the banks were selling off prime real estate in city centre's, which bank machines had made redundant, it seemed even less justifiable to charge customers.)
In the late 90s, I moved to the UK and realized
a) I had taken bank machines for granted (I hadn't even been to a bank since I was a kid!),
b) there weren't very many bank machines around,
c) making deposits was no longer possible, and
d) I was either going to walk miles and miles or pay a fee.
So it was a shock. To make matters worse, it seemed there were more generic "ATM" machines which charged £1.50 ($2.77US), than branded machines which could conceivably be free.
I mentioned this to a relative in Canada, who complained that the same thing was happening there. It seems that the banks have got around the charging restrictions in many countries by forming a kind of 3rd party consortium to provide generic "ATM" machines. Once established, the banks can then phase out the free machines, and ensure that everybody pays for every single transaction.
It's inconceivable that the banks could lose money from bank machines. No real estate, no buildings, no employees... how does one lose money? It's like claiming that electronic distrubution costs more than shipping physical product.
In any case, I think bank machines are in decline. There are fewer of them. The charges are rising. Rather than using a machine a few times a day, we now use it once once every two weeks, and then stuff the money under the mattress. That's not progress. In fact, one might be tempted to go back to using a teller and avoiding the charges - but of course, you'd need to find an actual, physical bank with actual, physical tellers.
Is this generic ATM scheme kicking in all over the world?
Is anyone doing anything to stop it?
Barclay