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McDonald’s, Meet McPathogens

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Re: McDonald’s, Meet McPathogens

#11

Post by AstralStorm »

vortico wrote: post #4

There's a probability for picking up infections for every object you touch, which is proportional to the number of hands that touched it prior to your operation. If this is a significant problem compared to human cashiers, there's an easy fix that is the same with bathrooms and tables: require that janitors on duty sanitize them every X hours. Also, I've used automatic ordering touch screens before and didn't have an…

The second solution is to use an antibacterial surface. Nanoparticle silver or copper are a good choice.

Of course such a screen would have to be specially made.

Re: McDonald’s, Meet McPathogens

#12

Post by Retra »

zck wrote: post #5

> It’s so much easier to order my Egg McMuffin and black coffee from a human behind the counter than to poke my index finger through a decision tree on the self-order kiosk. I disagree. When I've been to McDonald's (a few times a year), I find the kiosks easier. 1. There's rarely a line, even when there's a line to order at the counter. 2. Things are more discoverable. If you already know exactly what you want, it is…

If you took ten seconds before you placed your order, you could instead realize that the vast majority of these decisions you're making our irrelevant to your life and you could spend your time doing more enjoyable and worthwhile things instead, without driving yourself to decision fatigue over a pickle.

Re: McDonald’s, Meet McPathogens

#14

Post by AstralStorm »

badminton1 wrote: post #9

Have people use an app instead, problem solved. The same people touched the entrance door handle anyways. And if you use cash you are exposed to the same germs.

Actually worse. Cash is porous giving a nice surface for bacteria to hold and is rarely if ever washed.

Re: McDonald’s, Meet McPathogens

#15

Post by vortico »

AstralStorm wrote: post #11
vortico wrote: post #4

There's a probability for picking up infections for every object you touch, which is proportional to the number of hands that touched it prior to your operation. If this is a significant problem compared to human cashiers, there's an easy fix that is the same with bathrooms and tables: require that janitors on duty sanitize them every X hours. Also, I've used automatic ordering touch screens before and didn't have an…

The second solution is to use an antibacterial surface. Nanoparticle silver or copper are a good choice. Of course such a screen would have to be specially made.

How much are these? (USD ea for 100,000 volume, say)

Re: McDonald’s, Meet McPathogens

#16

Post by AstralStorm »

vortico wrote: post #15
AstralStorm wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The second solution is to use an antibacterial surface. Nanoparticle silver or copper are a good choice. Of course such a screen would have to be specially made.

How much are these? (USD ea for 100,000 volume, say)

No idea, I'd need a Chinese contract, but cheap enough that Apple considered getting these in iPads. Instead of ITO (indium tin oxide) coating you use AgNW (silver nanowire) coating. Unlike ITO this can be painted onto more substrates instead of vapor depletion. Useful for more flexible touchscreens.

Re: McDonald’s, Meet McPathogens

#17

Post by chaoticmass »

vortico wrote: post #4

There's a probability for picking up infections for every object you touch, which is proportional to the number of hands that touched it prior to your operation. If this is a significant problem compared to human cashiers, there's an easy fix that is the same with bathrooms and tables: require that janitors on duty sanitize them every X hours. Also, I've used automatic ordering touch screens before and didn't have an…

I've used the Kiosks at McD's and it really was baffling trying to figure out how to order a combo meal. I figured I could just go to [Combo Meals] -> [#X Quarter Pounder]

Instead you have to pick the burger, then way down on the bottom (where you're not looking because the screens are vertical and huge) there is a button to make it a combo. I never found the combo button on my own and had to ask. You'd think since most people order combos they would make it more intuitive to order those. Finally, there are some combo meals (two cheese burger meal) that you can't get as a combo from the kiosk. You'd have to order single cheese burger combo, customize it, add to order, then select a 2nd cheese burger and customize it-- except you can't because the single patty cheese burger can't be made into a combo meal (the combo button doesn't appear). So then you have to just pick the burger, add fries, drink, etc and presumably pay more. To a human I can just say "number X with ketchup and mayo only" and they have it rung up in seconds where it takes much longer on the kiosk.

Re: McDonald’s, Meet McPathogens

#18

Post by vortico »

chaoticmass wrote: post #17
vortico wrote: post #4

There's a probability for picking up infections for every object you touch, which is proportional to the number of hands that touched it prior to your operation. If this is a significant problem compared to human cashiers, there's an easy fix that is the same with bathrooms and tables: require that janitors on duty sanitize them every X hours. Also, I've used automatic ordering touch screens before and didn't have an…

I've used the Kiosks at McD's and it really was baffling trying to figure out how to order a combo meal. I figured I could just go to [Combo Meals] -> [#X Quarter Pounder] Instead you have to pick the burger, then way down on the bottom (where you're not looking because the screens are vertical and huge) there is a button to make it a combo. I never found the combo button on my own and had to ask. You'd think since m…

I haven't tried ordering combos (don't really like sodas), so I haven't had this experience. I feel it would be fun to be on the team to test and design revisions to the touch screen menu.

Re: McDonald’s, Meet McPathogens

#19

Post by cma »

AstralStorm wrote: post #11
vortico wrote: post #4

There's a probability for picking up infections for every object you touch, which is proportional to the number of hands that touched it prior to your operation. If this is a significant problem compared to human cashiers, there's an easy fix that is the same with bathrooms and tables: require that janitors on duty sanitize them every X hours. Also, I've used automatic ordering touch screens before and didn't have an…

The second solution is to use an antibacterial surface. Nanoparticle silver or copper are a good choice. Of course such a screen would have to be specially made.

Another option is to use a touchless approach with something like leap motion.

Re: McDonald’s, Meet McPathogens

#20

Post by StrictDabbler »

zck wrote: post #5

> It’s so much easier to order my Egg McMuffin and black coffee from a human behind the counter than to poke my index finger through a decision tree on the self-order kiosk. I disagree. When I've been to McDonald's (a few times a year), I find the kiosks easier. 1. There's rarely a line, even when there's a line to order at the counter. 2. Things are more discoverable. If you already know exactly what you want, it is…

Absolutely. I have two further points:

5. Once you've learned the idiosyncrasies of the kiosk it is the same on every visit.

Human cashiers vary in their understanding of the menu, the McDonald's system, and the local language. The human cashiers are also just poking their index fingers through a decision tree, though it's broader and less deep than self-serve kiosks often offer us.

If I'm ordering hamburgers for a road-trip I know my wife wants tartar sauce on hers, I want no ketchup on mine but I want extra mustard, and my cousin wants neither.

Trying to convey such a simple order (6Hamburgers)=(2TarterAdded+2(KetchupRemoved+ExtraMustard)+2(no sauce)) is an infuriating exercise in implicit closures.

"So you want extra mustard on the ones without ketchup?"

"On two of the ones without ketchup, yes. Two of the burgers are without any sauce at all."

Try ordering the sandwiches one-by-one and you'll discover that any two identical sandwiches in a row are treated as a mistaken repetition. Etc, etc.

6. The mobile apps allow parallelism. You don't have to wait to get to the counter or even the restaurant to make your order.

While I'm driving my wife can order our food. It's not exactly ready when we arrive but it's a lot sooner than if we'd waited in line.

At Disneyland, we often walked right by dozens of families to pick up our mobile orders because nobody had bothered to understand the app. We saved hours of waiting and given the price we were paying Disney to be in the park that was a huge savings.

The fundamental practical advantages of mobile ordering are so great that the back-end side will never be abandoned. So why not have a giant tablet in the restaurant running the front-end?

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