Shop the future!

April 6, 2003 1:29 PM

Re-Code - the revolutionary new way to shop where You Choose The Price! I don't know why it's taken this long, I really don't.
posted by Pretty_Generic (21 comments total)

Wow.
You're full of good links these days, PG.
posted by Espoo2 at 1:35 PM on April 6, 2003

Yes, and I have a great social life too!
posted by Pretty_Generic at 1:38 PM on April 6, 2003

Re-code.com:
* We in no way endorse the theft of products or services. Re-code.com was created as satire. We intend only to make aware the prevelance of barcodes and begin a critical discussion about what their pervasiveness means. This is not a product designed to be used in any malicious or illegal manner. Any such use is strictly prohibited. You should not use any of the barcodes available from this site for any illegal activity. They are here for your amusement only.

Crossing Over With John Edward:
"The producer has relied heavily on the contributions of John Edward and other third parties in the creation of this program, which has been produced for entertainment purposes only. Materials and opinions presented in this program by John Edward and other third parties, including statements, predictions, documents, photos, and video footage come solely from the respective third party sources and are not the views, opinions, and the responsibility of the producer and, are not meant or intended to be a form of advice, instruction, suggestion, counsel or factual statement in any way whatsoever."

Compare and contrast.
This post has been provided for entertainment purposes only.
Doobeedooboppop-wah!
posted by wendell at 1:44 PM on April 6, 2003

This Service Is A Disgrace
Just Wait For The Lawsuits

hehe... these were next to a couple barcodes. Another said "theft is fun, so is jail." :)
posted by LouReedsSon at 1:44 PM on April 6, 2003

i'm sure people who steal don't care, but think of the headaches for the poor workers doing inventory. those barcodes aren't just for price... bleh.
posted by rhyax at 1:47 PM on April 6, 2003

British barcodes appear to have one digit too many. Why is that?
posted by Pretty_Generic at 1:48 PM on April 6, 2003

Brilliant! Now that I see this I wonder why no one has thought of it before. This is like the next step up from "mislabeling" the PLU #s in the bulk nut section.

The problem here is that often the cash register's reader displays the item on a screen as the item is scanned. When the bread goes over the laser, the display should show "Orowheat 2.99" or something similar. If someone tries this just follow a couple common sense rules I learned as a shoplifting teenager.

•Mix and match: Actually buy a few items in order to create a cover. Pretend to be a lifeless, mindless, sheep-like consumer. In other words: Buy the velveta, steal the parmigiano-reggiano.

•Act natural: If an employee approaches you and wants to help you're shopping experience along, tell them something like "Mom just can't get enough bananas in her since the cancer and all" or "I got this, uh, er, rash and uh, where is the pharmacy? Is it near the bathroom?" Speak calmly while holding steady eye-contact.

•Social engineer: If act natural doesn't work, try the opposite tact and act un-natural. People try hard to ignore things they find unpleasant and this can be a useful tool. Try shaking your head, waving your hands around and muttering the the same thing over and over and over. If you can mime a proper off-the-meds-schizophrenic you will be practically invisible.

•Play dumb. "I have no idea how the wild salmon filet inserted itself in the partially ripped seam of my jacket liner!" or in this case "Sticker? What sticker?" Try to blame it on those Adbusters people.
posted by elwoodwiles at 2:01 PM on April 6, 2003

It just wouldn't be cricket PG. If we're going to steal we should do it "properly".
posted by squealy at 2:06 PM on April 6, 2003

Turn this on it's head: bored people with too much time and/or money re-label low-price items with pricy tags and then bitch at the poor clerks about trying to rip them off, and so on.
posted by cortex at 2:18 PM on April 6, 2003

Pretty_Generic, a while ago, there was a switch to 13 digit from 12 digit UPCs in a lot of areas. It has been a painful transition for some small companies to purchase the +-digit compatible scanners... (Information on standards and conversion)
posted by whatzit at 2:21 PM on April 6, 2003

what's the point? automated price scanning is bad somehow? it's dehumanising to the check-out clerks, who should have to type each value in by hand after reading the ticket?

oh it's satire. ha ha. look, here are some cripples. tee hee.

i mean wasn't satire meant to be pointed? do these people really have nothing better worth attacking? i bet they drive SUVs.
posted by andrew cooke at 2:24 PM on April 6, 2003

``We only endorse FRAUD not theft!''
posted by abez at 2:29 PM on April 6, 2003

Everything you ever wanted to know
posted by Pretty_Generic at 2:29 PM on April 6, 2003

Now that I see this I wonder why no one has thought of it before.

People have been doing this for a long time. But usually most scams (or the methods behind them) aren't made into big flashy web sites. Doing so tends to make the scams less do-able in the long run.
posted by gluechunk at 2:33 PM on April 6, 2003

That site I linked to has all the "number system" codes, and they mostly seem to work... but why do my British "Sopranos" DVDs have the code for Sweden? And why does my British-produced vodka have the code for Belgium? Maybe it's an EU thing. I'd better stop before I start revealing my lifestyle to the world.
posted by Pretty_Generic at 2:43 PM on April 6, 2003

in my youth, i worked at a large toronto sporting goods store (no names, but it was for people who enjoyed the sporting life). i was a stock boy. the other stock boys (not me!) would go upstairs (to the stock room) and redo the price tags on some of the items and then their friends would come in and buy them.

$150 tennis racquet... now $15! etc. the tags would have the correct product name, just not the right price, so nothing would seem amiss. i don't think management ever figured it out.

it was a dreadful place to work (probably still is). i think this is how those lowly stock boys got their revenge.
posted by dobbs at 3:49 PM on April 6, 2003

"oh it's satire. ha ha. look, here are some cripples. tee hee."

Whoa. Someone's funny bone seems to be on vacation.

Cripples? SUVs?
posted by y6y6y6 at 7:56 PM on April 6, 2003

hmm. i fail to see how this will work. the price isn't contained in the barcode. when the barcode is scanned, the product number is obtained and then used to search a database for the price of the product. my company is developing a point of sales application, and that's how we do it.
posted by xmattxfx at 12:14 PM on April 7, 2003

Yeah, so you print out the barcode for a can of generic tomato soup, and you stick it over the barcode for the can of Brand Name tomato soup. Save $2.

Or... Get the barcode for a $9 impulse-aisle demo of Adobe Photoshop and stick it over the barcode of the full version. I wonder...
posted by ringmaster at 1:46 PM on April 7, 2003

Must have been a legitimate threat. Wal-Mart shut 'em down.
posted by TuffAustin at 6:23 AM on April 11, 2003

Indeed, they did.
posted by mr_crash_davis at 9:47 PM on April 17, 2003