[HN Gopher] Self-pay gas station pumps break across NZ as softwa...
___________________________________________________________________
Self-pay gas station pumps break across NZ as software can't handle
Leap Day
Author : ooboe
Score : 9 points
Date : 2024-02-29 19:18 UTC (3 hours ago)
(HTM) web link (arstechnica.com)
(TXT) w3m dump (arstechnica.com)
| pants2 wrote:
| Gas stations in New Zealand are interesting because for the
| majority of them you fill up before paying inside. They trust you
| not to drive away with their gas. Self-pay gas stations are
| relatively new.
| wtk wrote:
| I don't think it's uncommon in Europe. I've never had to pay
| upfront here in Poland. CCTV will record your plates if you
| drive away without paying.
| chimpansteve wrote:
| I've had a driving licence in the UK for 26 years, and have
| never once paid for my fuel before filling up. This is normal
| everywhere in Europe at least, to the point where I suspect the
| US is the outlier
| someotherperson wrote:
| It's not uncommon in Latin America, too, at least.
| theultdev wrote:
| That used to be normal in the US, nowadays most pumps are
| automated.
|
| You can fill up 24/7, even if the store is closed.
| vinay427 wrote:
| I've driven in the US and the UK (among other countries) and
| haven't paid before filling up in either. Is this a result of
| paying with cash or other non-card methods, as pumps in the
| US seem to require inserting the card first probably as an
| authorisation?
|
| I also don't drive that much these days so may be
| misremembering things. The only issue I had with payments was
| in a station in a small town in Italy which refused to accept
| most foreign cards (ant least based on other people around me
| also struggling) and was the automated no-human type of
| station so there wasn't an easy solution.
| throwaway11460 wrote:
| I drive all around Europe and if they asked me to pay first I'd
| suspect it's some kind of a scam.
|
| I used an unattended gas station for the first time few weeks
| ago and it took me 10 minutes to figure out why the diesel
| isn't flowing... Though I didn't even notice it's unattended at
| first.
| dang wrote:
| Related ongoing thread:
|
| _Ask HN: Did you encounter any leap year bugs today?_ -
| https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=39554539 - Feb 2024 (85
| comments)
| sonicanatidae wrote:
| I'm sure leap year didn't exist when that code was written, or
| something.
|
| smfh.
___________________________________________________________________
(page generated 2024-02-29 23:01 UTC)