Arlo and Janis by Jimmy Johnson for August 06, 2020

And a generation later, kids have no idea what carbon paper is (was)….

I’m old enough to remember carbon copies of credit card receipts. I’m old enough to remember the three options were Diners Club, Master Charge and BankAmeriCard.

Click-Clack!

I had accounts at different stores. No cards needed, Just my signature,

The first time Ineeded a credit card, all I had was a Gulf Oil. I was able to rent a car with a somehow.

For a while a credit card had to be checked to see if it was good by looking it up in the book of bad numbers. It sure seems tedious today but to approve a charge a clerk had to write on the slip the place indicator where the number was skipped. Buying gas one morning the young lady was getting frantic. It dawned on me to inform her it is a good thing if my card wasn’t in the bad number book. I still wonder if I was her first customer.

I remember when you could call to order something and they would write your card number on a credit card receipt since you weren’t there in person to have the machine imprint the card on the receipt. Looks like Arlo was shrewd enough to ask for the carbons instead of letting the clerk discard them (as was my practice). And possibly having someone transcribe you card number onto another charge receipt.

That’s what inspired plans for hand sanitizer by Purell?

Jimmy, it doesn’t scan!! Oy . .

I worked in retail before college, and we used to have the credit card slider, the little box with a digital display and phone pad, and stacks of these carbons. And yes, many people would take the carbons (women would stuff them into their purses; men? Not sure where they put them).

I do remember that MasterCard and VISA used the same carbons (that would tear in half by design), but American Express had their own “carbonless” receipts. And yep: it WAS 1986 when I did all of that! ;-)

From 1990 to early ’93, I managed a small store in another town.,

We still used a “sllde” to imprint carbon credit card receipts… and yes, I was grateful for the AmEx carbonless ones.

We still had to call a dedicated number for approvals… and make separate bank deposits for each kind.

Sometime not long before the store closed in 1993, we’d finally gotten an electronic “swipe” instead

Meanwhile, I opened an account at a small bank in the same mall, and they issued me a debit card,… I’d never seen one.

It was separate from my ATM card, and bore only the bank’s logo.

I’ve read that debit cards started in the 70’s…

but in 1991, most cashiers didn’t even know what mine was.

Nor did the tellers at my other bank, when I asked about getting one there,

Only a few stores accepted it… like major supermarkets…. and certainly not the store where I worked.

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One night after working very late, I stopped on my way home at Safeway (supermarket) and charged a few dollars worth of groceries.

When I got my statement (remember those days?) I discovered a separate $50 debit from them, a few hours later.

It was a “mistake”, and was refunded… but I stopped using the card… and warned everybody about debit cards.

That bank closed… and it was several more years before my other bank offered a debit card.

Of course I couldn’t resist the “new” technology.

More stores put in card readers for them… handled by the cashier, of course.

They belonged to linked systems, like “Star system” and “Interbank”… that determined where they were accepted.

But soon they acquired Visa or Master Card logos, so most places that accepted credit cards would take them.

Then of course, banking, sales and bill-paying moved online.

The other day I had to send someone a check.

I took out my almost-dusty checkbook… and noticed that the last one I’d written was in July … of 2019.

CC companies didn’t worry about the card numbers being stolen (even if the cardholders did). I had a rental car stolen in the mid-80s—the rental contract with all the info was in the glove box. American Express was puzzled as to why I called them to report it.

" … of the way we were … "

My newest Visa doesn’t even have raised lettering, it’s swipe, chip or tap.

I had forgotten all about carbon charge slips. Seems like a hundred years ago.

The old ones are SO different, though, and not in a better way…I’m looking forward to getting this back to 2020.

i guess its true your nose gets bigger as u grow older

When i was working a register back then we would keep one of those carbons to check coin rolls to see if they had any slugs in them without busting open the roll.

You put the paper carbon side down on a piece of white paper and slap the roll lengthwise on the carbon paper. That shows the ridges on the sides of the coins in the roll of Dimes or Quarters. A slug is instantly noticeable.

Oh man, I remember the teller saying…“Do you want the carbons?” after each charge card purchase. I’ll bet if I look around long enough, I’ll find a box of those carbons around here. No one had paper shredders at home back then.

Carbon slips? Holy cow, how old is this one?

I remember seeing and using those old “knuckle busters”

The one at our store makes me mad; it always plays a fanfare when my credit card clears…

I remember having to call the credit card company to get the purchase approved and having to write down the approval number while the customer glared at you

I often wonder about those carbons. They had copies of the card number, expiry date and even the customer’s signature and we’d throw them in the trash because there was no way for crooks to use the information. Haven’t we done a marvelous job of increasing security? s/

How times have changed. Now, if I use my bank cards, either my debit or credit, I get notice of the charge from my bank almost instantly.

That was also when the cashier would count the change back to you. The register didn’t give the amount to give back to the customer so you needed to be able to figure it out. Now the younger generation will get confused if you give them change after they put in the dollar amount. The can’t understand that when the amount to return is $4.95 and you give them a nickle, the amount to give back to the customer is five dollars.