OT. New online postage stamps?

I'm the other way around - book of stamps in the wallet, whereas if I go near a computer it invariably doesn't work, or the printer's out of paper, or the printer's out of ink, or communiation between printer and computer is broken... :-)

Reply to
Jules
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They have...there's a date embedded in there. As you said yourself.

Reply to
Bob Eager

Or buy them from the website! :-) [mail order]

Reply to
Bob Eager

The data's unique within RM's system; there's nothing stopping the user from making multiple copies, but the data still only permits a single

*valid* entity.
Reply to
Jules

Even if it did stop you printing it twice, what's to stop someone photocopying it?

tim

Reply to
tim(yet another new home)

Never heard of photocopiers? Scanners? Screenshot buttons?

Reply to
Richard Kettlewell

Why? It doesn't matter if you print 100 copies. Only one parcel with that bar code will get through the PO system.

Reply to
CWatters

You have a package - a present maybe. It's getting close to the last collection for the day. You have a book of first class stamps, but the postage value required for your package isn't an integral number of

32p multiples.

You can:

- use yout first class stamps and subsidise Royal Mail the difference - take a trip to your local post office and queue - print your own stamp to the correct value

I know which I will do when this happens (and it does).

Reply to
Mark

I wonder if the system copes with someone scanning the same parcel twice by mistake.

Reply to
CWatters

It's not a new system. Post offices have been using a similar system for a long time for parcels.

Reply to
CWatters

They can refuse to accept it.

That is true, but it's true of all franked (as opposed to stamped) mail. All this service is is one-off franking - making available to the individual consumer a service that has been available to business customers for a long time. Calling it "online stamps" is a misnomer, it isn't a stamp at all in the usual sense (and hence complaints[1] about it not having the Queen's head on, or being bad for philatelists, are entirely missing the point).

[1] See
formatting link
- the Daily Mail declined to approve my comment!

Mark

Reply to
Mark Goodge

All our local post offices have been closed.

Reply to
Tim Ward

Hopefully, as the barcode seems to incorporate both the date of posting (+ 1 day) and the recipient address, if the barcode detail agrees with the physical packet they would let it through, on the assumption it's a scanning error.

If the system stores all the scans it should pick up patterns of fraudulent use such as companies using one low value stamp to send lots of items every day to head office - which is about the only worthwhile fraud opportunity I can think of, given the stamps are restricted by date and recipient.

Owain

Reply to
Owain

However, having looked at it, I can say that Fedex and DHL have nothing to worry about.

With these companies I can arrange the pickups, print the airwaybills and even commercial invoices, all correct and on line.

I can see the stage of the items at all times.

When there's a problem I can call someone to get it fixed.

In comparison, Royal Mail is still titting around with Penny Blacks. Time for an open market.

Reply to
Andy Hall

Because this way they get to collect an extra pound for every failure.

Remember that inkjet printer ink is far from waterproof too.

Reply to
dingbat

Shirly all you need to do today to get the same effect is to post things without stamps on.

A computer that stops stamps being repeatly printed does not stop attempted fraud, it makes the user pay for valid mistakes.

The risk is in the algorytham being worked out and items being posted using 'stamps' that had been purchased but not used yet, but I expect the cost of doing this would be to high to make it a worthwhile fraud unless bulk mailing, and then there would be a large number of hits in one batch (you couln't be sure to beat the post at the real end all the time) probebly enough to make the PO invistage the batch and work out what you were doing.

And in response to your other post, you already have one of those everlasting books of stamps, 6 stamps which are valid and an infinate number of 'not stamps' which you can 'not peel' and 'not stick' to you envolopes leaving them with 'no postage'.

Reply to
William Munns

I doubt that the RM have a list of invalid stamps they test against, much more lightly that the hold a list of valid stamps which age out or are canceled by the letter arriving at the sorting office.

Anything else would be madness

Reply to
William Munns

OTOH RM can actually find my house reliably, unlike couriers :-(

(and the sorting office is a mile from my house, rather than 30+ like a lot of the couriers).

cheers, clive

Reply to
Clive George

Is the recipient address definitely coded into the barcode? It isn't on the similar SmartStamp product which has been available to businesses for a while.

Mark

Reply to
Mark Goodge

...or for the non-technical user possibly require a number of extra steps that means they get bored/scared/out of their depth and don't use the system.

Tim

-- When playing rugby, its not the winning that counts, but the taking apart ICQ: 5178568

Reply to
Tim Fitzmaurice

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