Unexpected item in Windows' bagging area

BORK!BORK!BORK! Things must be tough for UK grocery retailer Sainsbury's, judging by the state of Windows Activation on one of its self-service kiosks. "Unexpected item in the bagging area" are words to strike fear into any shopper. After all, the flashing red light atop the kiosk is not always enough to attract the attention of …

[Paul Herber]

"Both offenses are punishable by a stern talking to or a weary tsk here in the UK."

Has a good finger-wagging now been removed from the list of options? You see, this has always been my favourite. They never listen to we us users!

Tsk.

[Gavsky]

I believe that finger-wagging was removed some years ago; it was felt that it was unnecessarily physical & intimidating, & was scaring some - who believed it was a pre-cursor to physical violence.

I'm old school: 'Tsk' > Stern T-t > Finger W > Death. Never did me any harm etc.

[milliemoo83]

I've seen the same watermark at a local Burger King on one of their displays. Always good for a giggle.

[Bebu sa Ware]

Make the background a slightly darker gray…

and the licence watermark will disappear ?

40p per bag seems a bit steep - about AUD1.00; the local grocers charge AUD 0.15 for the brown paper bags with handles… if their staff can be arsed. But I suppose with the cost of living being what it is, a single bag or two hands might be all you would these days to carry off your purchases.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: 40p per bag seems a bit steep

AFAIK, that is for a 'Bag for Life'. Stronger than a single use bag and when it wears out, you can exchange it for free.

[Caver_Dave]

Re: 40p per bag seems a bit steep

Tried the exchange for a broken bag twice, once at Tescos and once at Sainsburys. Refused both times due to "misuse". Maybe they were detected in another store? I can't think of another valid reason and on both occasions the manager concurred with the staff member, but know one would tell me what had been misconstrued as misuse.

[snowpages]

Re: 40p per bag seems a bit steep

I've successfully done an exchange - when asked what I had been doing with it to wear it out, the answer is "buying lots of stuff in Sainsbury's". No problems.

[Gavsky]

Re: 40p per bag seems a bit steep

Ah, when refused - immediately raise your voice so lots of other shoppers can hear. "Your company PROMISED me an exchange! Are you renaging on that?! I'm trying to save the dolphins & polar bears, you're intent on stopping me! It's against my 'UMAN RIGHTS!"

If that doesn't work: throw yourself to the floor & start screaming like a toddler...

[Paul Herber]

Re: 40p per bag seems a bit steep

Toddler sees adult throwing a tantrum, thinks, ah, that's the way to do it in the future.

[Phil O'Sophical]

Re: 40p per bag seems a bit steep

And you too could be president of the USA...

[David Hicklin]

Re: 40p per bag seems a bit steep

Yeah, now define "Life" in this context.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: 40p per bag seems a bit steep

Life of the bag, clearly - which the supermarkets can choose to set as whatever they like!

Not sure how you 'misuse' a plastic carrier bag? Drag it along the ground? Cut holes in it with scissors?

[The Organ Grinder's Monkey]

Re: 40p per bag seems a bit steep

For carmakers inflicting subscriptions on their customers to allow use of hardware extant on the vehicle, heated seats being the infamous one, but anything requiring a working network & server to implement, life presumably means "as long as we can be bothered / as long as it's worth our while".

"oh, where did all the customers go..."

[scotty86]

not all use Windows

"It's something PC enthusiasts are all too familiar with after swapping out one component too many."

Nope, not I.

I run Arch, by the way ;)

[Gavsky]

Re: not all use Windows

YOU are Ronald McDonald & I claim my £5!

[xyz123]

"Unexpected Item in the bagging area" - Are sainsburys self-service now x-raying my testicles checking for lumps?

[phuzz]

My nearest pharmacy is inside a supermarket, so honestly it probably won't be too long before they start offering testicle chekups.

Privatising the NHS seems to be a cross-party goal these days.

[Anonymous Coward]

re: Privatising the NHS

In the case of the Pharmacy, they are offering services to bolster their income. Like Pubs, many are going out of business. My local one is owned by the Pharmacist. He has a real problem with the supply of prescrtiption items so any increase in revenue is welcome.

TBH, walking down the road past the now underutilised Doctors surgery (most moved to a new 'Health Centre' 2+ miles away and 2 busses each way or £1.50/hour to park) and getting my COVID jab in a few minutes is great.

[Anonymous Coward]

A coffee while you wait for that scan?

One lump or two?

[Benegesserict Cumbersomberbatch]

If they are, they're exposing you to ionising radiation to a radiation-sensitive area.

Next time insist on an ultrasound. Just make sure they use enough gel.

[The Organ Grinder's Monkey]

Ideally gel that doesn't feel like it's been stored in a freezer if they don't want the "wrinkled retainer" to shrink.

[Excused Boots]

I’ve encountered this a few time, take my own (plastic) bag to the supermarket, get my shopping, go to the self-service checkout, select the option to ‘use your own bag’; put said bag on the scale.

UNEXPECTED ITEM IN BAGGING AREA. PLEASE REMOVE THIS ITEM......

OK fine, maybe it’s all a bit too sensitive, I remove the (empty) plastic bag and try again.

UNEXPECTED ITEM IN BAGGING AREA. PLEASE REMOVE THIS ITEM......

What? It’s a fucking bag, what are you expecting to be in the bagging area? A stellar core, the complete works of Shakespeare, the original Declaration of Independence?

Right we’ll try one more time, pick up the bag, wait and then return it.

UNEXPECTED ITEM IN BAGGING AREA. PLEASE REMOVE THIS ITEM......

Fucking fucking, fuck, fuck fuck.

OK a couple of options here, I pick up my basket and move to a hopefully less brain-dead terminal and hope it works, or abandon the whole lot and walk out, although I then have to go to another supermarket. The terminal is flashing a red light, which is supposed to summon an actual human able to override the fault condition. Ten minutes later, I am still waiting. I start to wonder if only I had picked up a lump-hammer as part of my purchases, then maybe I could have used it to ‘encourage’ the terminal to be a bit more cooperative.

Eventually after a degree of ’tutting’ and basically holding everyone else up, a member of staff pitches up, flashes a piece of paper with a bar code and enters a four digit code, alas too quick for me to memorise - next time, and suddenly I am graciously allowed to give the supermarket some money for their comestibles.

While offering my phone to the sensor to pay, I inadvertently nudge the bag,

UNEXPECTED ITEM IN BAGGING AREA. PLEASE REMOVE THIS ITEM......

I don’t think I am ever shopping there again.

[segfault188]

unexpected item

The question is: what was the "unexpected item" that upset Windows so much? A new motherboard? Some speedier storage?

In these days of AI-induced price rises, it's more likely that someone removed a memory or storage component for resale elsewhere. More profitable, I would imagine, than trying to smuggle out a <insert favourite legume here> without paying at the self-service checkout.

Icon: legume smuggling in coat pocket

[Gavsky]

Re: unexpected item

'legume smuggling in coat pocket' - it's filth like you that have ruined this country! No wonder my dear, old Gran can't walk to the Bingo of a night! Too scared, see?! Legume smugglers - I'd hang the lot...

[Benegesserict Cumbersomberbatch]

Re: unexpected item

I'm sure your dear old Gran has needed a pea now and again just like the rest of us.

[Luiz Abdala]

Subtitles that change colors automatically given background? Activate windows disappears?

If I recall correctly, that Windows warning will never change color, regardless if the background matches its tone.

On the other hand, changing the background to that boring gray means you have a registered copy, so a catch-22 scenario ensues.

[Gavsky]

On the few occasions I have used Sainsbury's self-service facilities, it has always turned into a right-old, carry-on; I've always had to ask staff for help.

I've used their app on my phone to scan items; getting that information to the till is pretty opaque, let alone my Nectar-whatsits. It's just not obvious - which QR code to scan, & with what, where? I hold my phone to anything on the till that looks like it might scan a code & feel like a moron...

[First Light]

Their apps, (regular and Chop Chop) and website are troubled. Hard to find items on Chop Chop, slow to load on apps and website. I tried both approaches when ill and at home recently and gave up. Their IT incompetence must be costing them.

[Ken Hagan]

"The watermark of shame is likely an indicator that someone has fitted a new component to the PC running the show, and the back-office team has yet to catch up."

I would hope that these tills aren't connected to the internet, so perhaps the back-office team need to make an in-person visit to each and every one. Does anyone here know?

[David Hicklin]

You don't need to change anything

I had one of my Windows 10 machines decide on a whim to be "deactivated" - and no nothing had changed.

OK it was a VM version but it was using a legit purchased key which it refused to accept, so decided **** you Micro$lop and replaced it with a Linux Mint VM and am much happier.

[Anonymous Coward]

I’ll use a self-serve scanner when

Either:

A: Hell opens a ski resort.

OR

B: Supermarkets offer a 15% discount for doing their job.