dg comments

please empty your brain below

I fear I may lose contact! 😉

Jo W | 17.09.15 - 7:19 a.m. | #

I am out of touch, clearly and literally, and happy to remain that way.

Waterhouse | 17.09.15 - 7:38 a.m. | #

A Magic antenna , I did not realize magic was involved.
"Waving your card"...."jiggling it about a bit". The best practice to use a contact less card is to hold it flat over the reader for a few moments, No need for jiggling or waving. Make sure no other cards I within reading range.

John | 17.09.15 - 7:54 a.m. | #

My bank got in touch the other day to tell me the contactless limit had gone up. Shame my card is not compatible...

Thankfully my credit card is.

Andrew Bowden | Homepage | 17.09.15 - 8:01 a.m. | #

Are you experimenting with your blog's appearance again? I'm getting a single entry on a white background on my work pc. Don't like!

Sarah | Homepage | 17.09.15 - 8:15 a.m. | #

Nice lighter background but I'm not a fan of the single post display. iPhone 6 small

The man | 17.09.15 - 8:48 a.m. | #

Just wave your contactless card at the site and you'll get the normal one!

Andrew Bowden | Homepage | 17.09.15 - 8:58 a.m. | #

...find a way to wave the device across its own screen. Well, I couldn't snap my device in two so I got my brother's iPhone and contactlessly waved them face to face in a desperate effort to pay DG for continued access to this wonderful blog. The two phones made an excited jingly noise together and then both went into sleep mode and we couldn't wake them. To our utter amazement, later this morning we found two tiny little iPhones nestled between our two phones. A contactless miracle! Maybe DG will pay for the upkeep out our little phonelets. Contactlessly.

Herbof | 17.09.15 - 9:20 a.m. | #

I didn't realise I had a contactless hat but waved it at your site and jiggled it about a bit and was instantly able to read the text. However, I don't know how to pay my hat as I cannot find a sort code or account number on it. Does this mean I am commiting a fraud ? I also have a packet of paracetamol. Do I need to remove a single tablet to avoid them clashing ?

kev | 17.09.15 - 9:21 a.m. | #

Reminds me of a man I saw recently on TV who said with a laugh that no one has a landline phone any more. Well, I've got news for him...

Great Aunt Annie | 17.09.15 - 9:31 a.m. | #

We've had the terminal thingies at stations locally for a long time now - way out in the area not called Greater London. Still waiting for them to be put into operation. Perhaps 'they' are waiting to see how it goes in TfL land?

BTW - if I wave my card at your current site, do I get the grey background back? Please?

Bronchitikat | Homepage | 17.09.15 - 9:44 a.m. | #

Please bring back the multiple postings in a single view. Don't mind the background change but preferred the grey - b/w looks so 'official', like a (skies above forbid!) a 'press release'.

I too am contactless and every intention of staying that way. Dinosaurs rool.

Joel | 17.09.15 - 9:47 a.m. | #

Don't like your 1 day per page layout. I liked scrolling down.

But who am I? I'll be in charge one day!

Agent Z | 17.09.15 - 9:52 a.m. | #

With the new layout, I momentarily feared all the previous posts had been deleted from public domain and were only accessible through a paywall via a hefty conctactless payment.

Jack | 17.09.15 - 10:16 a.m. | #

I touched my Oyster card on my laptop, and it told me I've bought an Annual Geezer Ticket.

Unfortunately my card no longer works the Underground gates, and if the gates have been left open they all shut simultaneously whenever I approach them.

Worst of all, on the Jube Tube there's always an unexpected door in the boarding area between the train and the platform...

Gerry | 17.09.15 - 10:43 a.m. | #

for those who don't like the single view, you merely need to <fraudulent access protocol deleted>. This provides the view as before. dg might restore the original version tomorrow if we all ask nicely.

amber | 17.09.15 - 10:45 a.m. | #

Please please pretty please can we have the old layout back - so we can see a number of days entries all at once.
As for contactless. Despite being near "old git" age I love it - there's more than 20% of us using it on tfl and I'm one of them.

IslandGardens | 17.09.15 - 11:01 a.m. | #

Any issues with the site should be resolved through correct contactless activation.

diamond geezer | Homepage | 17.09.15 - 11:05 a.m. | #

'John
"A Magic antenna , I did not realize magic was involved. "

Arthur C Clarke's Third Law
"Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic"

timbo | 17.09.15 - 11:17 a.m. | #

@ Joel

Don't you mean that you are still non-contactless? But before long, you may find that your bank arrogantly insists that your replacement cards must be contactless.

However, the good news is that a paper punch will happily convert a contactless card back to plain Chip & Spin only.

Just make a hole on the centre line above the last digit of the long number and you'll never have to worry that a thief will go on a spree at £30 a time.

Gerry | 17.09.15 - 11:21 a.m. | #

@ DG

> "Please swipe your contactless card below to access the site."

Please touch your contactless card below to access the site.

FTFY !

Gerry | 17.09.15 - 11:28 a.m. | #

IIRC we didn't get April 1st this year.

I suppose five and a half months late is better than not at all...

Gerry - does that defintiely work on all cards? How? I've nearly given up arguing with banks about not wanting contactless cards and I do have a leather punch.

Blue Witch | Homepage | 17.09.15 - 4:20 p.m. | #

Before people get too paranoid about thieves, your bank will refund fraudulent transactions - in the same way it would refund a fraudulent chip and pin transaction or even (for old skool users) a double swipe of the card.

And card providers do have sophisticated systems to detect fraud. Barclaycard spotted and prevented one fraudulent transaction before I even knew about it. Somehow someone had got my card details. No idea how but they didn't get to buy what they wanted to. This was pre-contactless. With contacless if they see something suspicious, they will prompt for a PIN.

Andrew Bowden | Homepage | 17.09.15 - 4:30 p.m. | #

@ Blue Witch

Don't forget that DG uses the Geezorian Calendar !

I can't guarantee it, but punching a hole worked on all the cards I've tried. If you look very closely afterwards, you should be able to see the four flat copper wires that formed part of the aerial loop. The Chip & Spin facility shouldn't be affected.

Good luck - tell us whether it works for you...

| 17.09.15 - 4:31 p.m. | #

I note that my earlier post, where I was only trying to be helpful, has been censored by dg or one of his staff in the interests of national security, and no doubt for health and safety reasons too.
I hope this doesn't mean he cancels my subscription.

amber | 17.09.15 - 4:49 p.m. | #

@ Andrew Bowden

Contactless is fine for those who choose to have it, but why should it be forced on everyone, as more and more banks are now doing?

When no signature or PIN is required, the onus is on you to spot and argue about the transactions you haven't made. It's very unlikely that occasional 'borrowing' by a dodgy office colleague, house cleaner or carer would be detected automatically.

Banks love contactless because they get a cut on every transaction you make, and they can flog your shopping habits to the highest bidder. Governments love it because they can snoop on you to their heart's content. In the ultimate cashless society they're dreaming of, step out of line and they could instantly switch you off or restrict your spending to pocket money.

Just look beyond the spin.

Gerry | 17.09.15 - 4:51 p.m. | #

Gerry - the onus is on you to check EVERY transaction and spot dodgy ones. That's contactless, chip and PIN, phone, online, whatever. Your bank can only do so much as you say, and - to be blunt - no system is 100% secure. Even Chip and PIN can be got round if someone really tries. I always check my credit card and bank statements for that reason, in the same way that I check all my Contactless usage on TfL to check something hasn't gone wrong.

But if you're worried about snooping by governments and card companies, the answer is simple: pay in cash. The chances of cash disappearing are pretty slim. The companies may be dreaming, but it's extremely difficult to do.

Andrew Bowden | Homepage | 17.09.15 - 5:00 p.m. | #

I don't have contactless

Rachel | 17.09.15 - 6:01 p.m. | #

I don't mind the white background! Looks quite nice, if you ask me.

anon | 17.09.15 - 7:18 p.m. | #

But Grandad don't like the program!

| 17.09.15 - 8:21 p.m. | #

Surely it not the person but the bank that behind "with the times". One has to ask oneself why said bank does not issue a contactless card...saving on costs? What other little gems are they using to save on costs? Is this the same bank that said "oh no" to internet banking only to have to play catch-up after? Is the same bank that fails to "upgrade" ones account when interest rates go up...thus "short-changing" their "customer"? Is this the same bank that will take a year to accept a set of transactions was done by someone else...after threating legal action? Is this the same bank that one must wonder why you can't be bothered to change from?

Grumpy Anon | 17.09.15 - 9:54 p.m. | #

Your new background is too, well, white. It's hurting my eyes. I wasn't a huge fan of the grey, but at least that's softer to read against.

SJM | 17.09.15 - 11:54 p.m. | #

Am I right in reading into this that DG has now received his first contactless card?
Mine came a few months ago and I've been avoiding using it contactless after hearing how my husband has been having problems with his not connecting properly with the barriers on his commute at least twice a week, and TfL only issuing one refund a month! He's gone back to using his Oyster now.

But my local chemist did a payment contactlessly (without asking) the other day and without me even seeing the transaction, as she normally turns her back on the customer to set up the card reader then turns to hand it to you to put in your pin, and of course, that latter step wasn't asked for. :(

Cornish Cockney | 18.09.15 - 9:17 a.m. | #

I got my contactles debit card over a year (2?) ago. Told the bank (HSBC) I didn't want it and they said "no problem, we'll send you a new one"

I have no use for one - it's either cash or debit card. Whether or not the bank refund any problem payments, I'm certainly not going to have all the risk involved of unauthorised payments being taken from my card and then spending time and energy trying to get the bank to refund me if and when they seem fit!

Rogmi | 18.09.15 - 11:58 a.m. | #

@Cornish Cockney
"Invisiple payments" is another reason I don't want to use it. As you say, at least with having to enter a pin number it means that you have to make a specific effort during the transaction and you also know that there has been a transaction. It also gives a chance to check the amount.

I also like a paper card transaction receipt which is also a reminder to me of how much I've spent when totalling up my payments. (It's annoying how many places don't give any form of receipt (till or card) these days unless specifically asked. I can only assume that it's to save them the price of a till roll now and again!)

Rogmi | 18.09.15 - 12:05 p.m. | #

I'm with the Luddites on this one. Do the banks foist contactless cards on to you because it suits you, or them?
When it comes to electronic banking there will always be glitches. Keep some cash on you, even though the buses wont take it.

Chris | 18.09.15 - 7:51 p.m. | #

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