Charge, charge, charge!

Do you still remember the time when you made credit card payments buying some item from a department store, and the cashier would take out this huge contraption wherein they will put your card, some-kind of carbonated receipt and run through a little device that would capture the embossed card number and your name? We called this "plantsa". Back in those days, to check if yours is a "hot" card - reported stolen or missing by the cardholder - the cashier will bring out a list and check the numbers. The cashier would then call the card issuer (bank) to get authorization for the transaction and jot down the authorization number in the receipt. Gone are those days.

Counters now have this little device connected to a network through a leased line; the card's magnetic strip will be swiped in this device's reader and the stored info such as the card number, expiry date and cardholder's name. The info from this little black strip would then be sent over to the network and routed to the card issuer for authorization. The card issuer would then send a response whether to approve the transaction or reject it; all of these is done in a matter of seconds. After approval and printing of the receipt through the thermal printer, the cardholder would just need to sign it. If the cashier is so diligent, she would check the signature against what's on the back of the card, but then again they are no signature experts.

With the fast evolution of technology, credit cards payments are again changing. We now have this so called "Pay by Touch". With this new technology, your fingerprint acts as a means of biometric authentication when you make purchases, so you no longer need to swipe your card. All you need to do is place you finger on a sensor at the point of payment, and the electronic wallet that stores your personal information and credit card details will retrieved and evaluated. Of course, you need to enrol for biometric payment to enjoy this new convenience as your bank doesn't ask for fingerprints when you applied for a card. This facility is quite secured - even better than just comparing signatures - as your fingerprint is unique, which meant only you can access your credit card. Unless, of course, somebody cuts off your finger and uses it to make purchases. That is such a disturbing sight!

Aside from the "Pay by Touch," VISA introduced the payWave facility. No signature, no swipe, no fingers to put into a device, all you need to do is wave your card on the new reader and your good to go. This isn't the safest facility as the person standing next to you on the payment queue could just grabbed your arm carrying your wallet and wave it on the reader to pay for his purchases.

With so many fraudulent transactions done everyday with the use of credit cards, I guess the best thing to impede such scams is with the use of "Pay by Touch". Because aside from your fingerprint you also need to key-in a personal search number, which is also unique. So if somebody really did cut off your right finger, he still couldn't continue with the transaction if he doesn't know your personal search number. What happens if you no longer have your right index finger? There's still your left to use. But if you lost all your digits, I'm not sure if you could use your toes.

Road to Deathly Hallows

16/Jul - five days to go before the release of the last Harry Potter book and I still haven't finished re-reading the Half-Blood Prince. Herman is too busy looking for places we could visit over the weekend. He kept on asking me for ideas, but I wouldn't give any for I wasn't interested on going to some trip on a Harry Potter book weekend release. I just kept on telling him that I have to get my book first before we can go.

17/Jul - Herman still can't find any good place to go, so he finally gave in and decided that it is indeed going to be a Harry Potter weekend. I searched the net and found news that some prat scanned the actual book and posted it online. And so, I have seen the complete-chapter title list and the first chapter.

19/Jul - I went to Borders and bought a big red book. After paying up, I asked the cashier what time they're going to open up on Saturday (21st Jul); I knew about the 5am affair they have planned and sent out invitations with. She replied that they'll only open at 5, and I asked further whether they are going to close up Friday night. She gave me a surprised looked and said, "Of course, we have to prepare for the 5am Harry Potter release." I hated to prod some more for there's quite a lot on queue; but previously for the Half-Blood Prince release, they didn't closed up Friday night and they showed HP movies and people could browse through their stock of books.

21/Jul 4:30am - my alarm clock chimed and I'm didn't even pressed the snooze button. I washed up and put on my Slytherin shirt
4:45am - there's some early showers as I hailed the cab
5:00am - I arrived at Wheelock Place and found that there's a long queue already. I joined the end of the line, far from the main entrance, actually I'm quite near the back entrance.
5:05am - people wearing black robes, witch's hat on their head walked up and down the line
5:30am - the line is moving and Luna Lovegood passed by
6:10am - I'm near the main entrance and I could see what's going on inside but can't hear anything for Borders didn't sent up speakers outside the Wheelock Place.
6:20am - Is that Hagrid? He looks so small
6:22am - Oh, a Ringwraight! Wait! That's Lord of the Rings; it's a Dementor.
6:35am - contestants for the dress-up contest were presented. The guy who pretends to be Snape really looks like a slimy git.
6:40am - somebody received a big cheque for $10,000. Dang! I didn't win.
6:45am - Mad-Eye Moody is using a camera taking a picture of someone who looked like Harry; that looked hilarious.
6:50am - people just little outside the main entrance have already stood-up and prepared for the actual release time.
6:58am - Border's staff are already waiting for their cue at the cashier's counter those inside the stock room are ready to open the boxes
7:00am - the host said to the microphone that only 1 minute is left
10 seconds before 7:01am – the crowd began the countdown
7:01am - the crowd cheered as they finally showed the very first book coming out to the counter
7:30am - I'm inside the Wheelock Place but still far from the bookstore. Some pompous kids who got their books early, stopped in front of those still on queue and read the epilogue a little bit loud. I'm glad that I couldn't hear them; others had to resort to covering their ears
7:55am - what a long wait on the queue that is barely moving. I have finally stepped into the Border's main door
8:05am - it's my turn to the cashier to FINALLY get my copy!
8:15am - I hailed a cab carrying my Border's bag and breakfast from Burger King. I opened the book and read the first few pages.
8:40am - I've finally changed and went to one corner in the house to start my marathon read.

22/Jul 1:00am - I'm almost at the end but it took me quite a long time to finish for I was bawling at almost every end of a paragraph – at every sad or beautiful line.
2:00 - I have finally read the very last line of the book and cried some more.
10:30am - after a long sleep, I got up to give myself a bath. Yes, I didn't go to the shower the previous day. When I need to go to the toilet, I brought the book with me. And there, just as the water kissed my face, I broke down; things that happened to the characters flashed before my eyes and tears joined the showers cleansing me off my grime.

Going Potty over Potter

July 2007 is Harry Potter month. Why? Because I said so. Actually, it's because Warner Bros and JK Rowling decided it to be. Order of the Phoenix (the fifth Harry Potter film) was released last July 11, and the very last book, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, will be released on July 21st. You could hardly imagine the mania this is causing the Potterworld; me included.

I have booked my movie tickets more than a week before the film release, and, yes, I watched it on its first day. As for the book, I pre-ordered three months in advance, winning over much zealousness and praying hard for the virtue of restraint. I don't want to appear too loony and pre-order even before the book title was released. Yes, pre-ordering at Amazon.com started one year ago. Even after Jo Rowling announced the book title over at her site last December, I still kept my patience, telling myself to wait for the announcement of the release date. February arrived together with a simple and subtle news at jkrowling.com that it's coming out on the morning of July 21. Now I wouldn't look like such an eager-beaver loony fan ordering a book without a title or a release date hankering at the Borders counter.

I've seen the fifth movie and I'm still one-third through the sixth book (Half-Blood Prince). I only got three days left! I'm in a state of panic and excitement. I want to search the internet for more news that usually crop-up preceding the release but I have to finish my re-reads. Oh don't ask me how many times I've read Philosopher's Stone (the first book); it's lots.