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#11
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4 days in Zermatt
In message , mike
writes Yes, chairlift not working on Saturday due to "software problems" so I was Software? Does a chairlift really need a bl**dy computer nowadays? informed but OK on other days ; incidently the new 6 seater high speed chair on the Gornergrat (Gifthittli) has the lift pass readers on the exit, after the lift, so will be interesting to watch the chaos at peak times... Hails of derisive laughter, Bruce! Someone's card won't open the gate, the person tries to climb over and gets stuck, his mates try to help and block the ones either side, the queue backs up onto the lift ramp, someone falls over, and where do the people getting off go? We didn't go up the Gornergrat because there was so little open, but I reckon that's a must-see for next time! and "only" 35 minutes queuing because we were a lot more determined than the Italians and other people faffing about... but would have been quicker using the T-bars though Did you see the queue for the draglift? Add a quarter of an hour to however many hours the ride takes. -- Sue ];( |
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#12
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4 days in Zermatt
In article ,
mike wrote: More crowded than this time last year possibly due to other resorts' poor conditions and what appeared to be Italian and Swiss public holidays over the weekend and Monday - can anyone shed light on this? Immaculate Conception day. |
#13
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4 days in Zermatt
In article ,
Sue wrote: In message , mike writes Yes, chairlift not working on Saturday due to "software problems" so I was Software? Does a chairlift really need a bl**dy computer nowadays? Have you not used the magnetic card lift tickets which you can keep for as a souvenir for 5 SF extra? A proximity card. Or some of the insert slider tickets used in other regions? I gave samples of my cards to our computer museum. |
#14
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4 days in Zermatt
On Thu, 11 Dec 2003, Paul Schofield wrote:
"Ian Spare" wrote in message ... On Thu, 11 Dec 2003 00:27:17 +0000, Sue wrote: Apparently 8th December is some saint's day and is always a local public holiday, but when it's on Friday or Monday people get a long weekend and go skiing. It's the day of Immaculate Conception actually :-) So Christmas Day is really the day of superfast gestation? IANARC but the Immaculate Conception marks the conception of Mary and not Jesus Robert -- La grenouille songe..dans son château d'eau |
#15
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4 days in Zermatt
In message , BrritSki
writes Paul Schofield wrote: So Christmas Day is really the day of superfast gestation? Is that a new quad lift ? In Zermatt? I doubt it. More likely the rate you can eat lunch on a restaurant terrace where the froth on your beer has actually frozen into icebergs! -- Sue ];( |
#16
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4 days in Zermatt
In message 3fd9284a$1@darkstar, Eugene Miya
writes Software? Does a chairlift really need a bl**dy computer nowadays? Have you not used the magnetic card lift tickets which you can keep for as a souvenir for 5 SF extra? A proximity card. Or some of the insert slider tickets used in other regions? It's not really clear why that lift even needs a pass check, since anyone coming from Zermatt has been through at least two already, and anyone from Cervinia without a Zermatt pass can't get home. You'd think they could run the lift with the gates open if they weren't working (also, the card readers aren't really sophisticated enough to have software problems.) I gave samples of my cards to our computer museum. It's certainly prettier than my employer's door card, but I claimed my five francs. -- Sue ]|( |
#17
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4 days in Zermatt
In article ,
Sue wrote: In message 3fd9284a$1@darkstar, Eugene Miya writes Software? Does a chairlift really need a bl**dy computer nowadays? Have you not used the magnetic card lift tickets which you can keep for as a souvenir for 5 SF extra? A proximity card. Or some of the insert slider tickets used in other regions? It's not really clear why that lift even needs a pass check, since anyone coming from Zermatt has been through at least two already, and anyone from Cervinia without a Zermatt pass can't get home. You'd think they could run the lift with the gates open if they weren't working (also, the card readers aren't really sophisticated enough to have software problems.) I have no working knowledge of the firm which makes the cards readers used in Zermatt. I had a summer job in college which I helped to design a credit card reader (my second test card was my student Visa card, and I could read it) so they should not be too different. I merely gave the gates as one example of embedded processors, and I suspect the lifts and trams themselves might have some sort of computer tensioning on cabling. And there are all kinds of other microprocessors used everywhere. But I suspect one could ask (maybe even get a consulting job [I work with one Swiss consulate]). The lifts need a pass check, because as I witnessed, I think it was Sunniga (sp) down valley a bit, that a fair number of locals did place climbing skins on their skis and skied locally up and down hills. What surprised me were the number of women who skinned, in some cases alone, up hills to ski. The US needs more women like that. To a degree. I've spent enough money in the Mattertal, and I want to visit other parts of the Alps now. I gave samples of my cards to our computer museum. It's certainly prettier than my employer's door card, but I claimed my five francs. The first time I claimed my 5 SFs, but the second time I kept it. The British Museum has a collection of money and the most recent entries are sample Euros and various kinds of credit and debit cards. |
#18
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4 days in Zermatt
In message 3fda41c5$1@darkstar, Eugene Miya
writes I have no working knowledge of the firm which makes the cards readers used in Zermatt. I had a summer job in college which I helped to design a credit card reader (my second test card was my student Visa card, and I could read it) so they should not be too different. They're not like credit cards, which have a good deal of information in the chip. The gate access cards only know their own serial number. The gate has a modest local processor and a downloaded list of cards currently valid for its location. (The alternative of a central list accessed by optical cable is good for a building but too slow for a ski resort.) Security is quite good as the serial number of a card can't be changed and the status information isn't accessible to customers (though one of our party had hacked his employer's access controls by connecting a laptop to cabling hidden above a false ceiling!) The main fraud issue seems to be customers who pass the card back over the gate for someone else to use. I merely gave the gates as one example of embedded processors, and I suspect the lifts and trams themselves might have some sort of computer tensioning on cabling. And there are all kinds of other microprocessors That particular lift has the pylons on pivots, held upright by a length of car-cable to which their tops are clamped, like a gigantic draglift. However, the arrangements for checking how much it's moved seemed to be simple mechanical ones (glaciers aren't noted for anything sudden.) Maybe the software's to stop the lift if it gets too windy, or to detect chairs arriving with the lid down. The lifts need a pass check, because as I witnessed, I think it was Sunniga (sp) down valley a bit, that a fair number of locals did place climbing skins on their skis and skied locally up and down hills. Yeeerrss, though whenever there's no snow at resort level they'd need a pass for the first stage. Even if it was possible to skin all the way up to Trockener Steg it'd take so much of your day that you'd hardly be a major problem for the lift company! What surprised me were the number of women who skinned, in some cases alone, up hills to ski. The US needs more women like that. To a degree. The US has lots of them, the small size of their lift systems compared with the amount of mountains tends to encourage it. Of course they're mainly among the one-third of the US population that isn't medically overweight! -- Sue ];( |
#19
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4 days in Zermatt
In article ,
Sue wrote: In message 3fda41c5$1@darkstar, Eugene Miya writes I have no working knowledge of the firm which makes the cards readers used in Zermatt. I had a summer job in college which I helped to design a credit card reader (my second test card was my student Visa card, and I could read it) so they should not be too different. They're not like credit cards, which have a good deal of information in the chip. The older dumb American credit cards are 210 BPI lacking chips. The gate access cards only know their own serial number. The I've seen this. The Trockener Steg tram station CRT is visible to watch this operation. Security is quite good as the serial number of a card can't be changed and the status information isn't accessible to customers (though one of our party had hacked his employer's access controls by connecting a laptop to cabling hidden above a false ceiling!) Big topic. The main fraud issue seems to be customers who pass the card back over the gate for someone else to use. Yes, I have noted that. I merely gave the gates as one example of embedded processors, Maybe the software's to stop the lift if it gets too windy, or to detect chairs arriving with the lid down. Well I have known them to stop service when too cold. Again, I suggest asking them if you really want to know. There are colleges in the US which give degrees in ski resort management. The lifts need a pass check, because as I witnessed, I think it was Sunniga (sp) down valley a bit, that a fair number of locals did place climbing skins on their skis and skied locally up and down hills. Yeeerrss, though whenever there's no snow at resort level they'd need a pass for the first stage. Even if it was possible to skin all the way up to Trockener Steg it'd take so much of your day that you'd hardly be a major problem for the lift company! They start early. I think it's the principle behind it. What surprised me were the number of women who skinned, in some cases alone, up hills to ski. The US needs more women like that. To a degree. The US has lots of them, the small size of their lift systems compared with the amount of mountains tends to encourage it. Of course they're mainly among the one-third of the US population that isn't medically overweight! Naw, the US has comparatively few women who stick which it. They complain about the cold more and assert their non-skiing choices. The heavier women would not really even consider starting. The vast majority of women would rather do lift service skiing. The heavier men think they could do it, but they become good targets to pick up gear used once or twice and discarded. European women are easy a factor of 4 or more into outdoor activities like hiking and skiing than American women. It didn't seem to matter whether it was Switzerland, Freance, Germany and there might be slighty variance with Italy. The fine US women who would can be found in Alaska and to a lesser extent in the mountainous areas of the West, but their M:F ratio is easily 10:1. |
#20
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4 days in Zermatt
I too skied for four days last weekend (6th onwards). The resort was quiet
for the time of year but there were many Swiss skiers because Monday was a bank holiday 3-day weekend. I therefore skied Sunnega on Sunday and Gornergrat on Monday : everyone else only skied Kl Matterhorn which therefore became busy. I skied Kl Matterhorn on Tuesday when all the weekenders had gone home: hence I had zero queues on the Matterhorn Express! For the time of year the pistes were in good condition and I saw no bare spots anywhere. Both new chairs were fully operational. I did not ski any of the closed runs (e.g. Furgg to Furri) because I was holding on to my young daughter (almost three) who was directly skiing in front of me. OK it is a barren start to the season but the altitude of Zermatt made my stay very enjoyable. The only bad (open) piste was the one through Findeln below Sunnega. I put up with it because of the excellent food at Chez Vrony! Paul Smith "Sue" wrote in message ... In message , mike writes Queued for Klein Matterhorn cable car for 35 minutes on Saturday midday. On That was because Switzerland's First Chairlift on a Glacier wasn't working, again, Bruce. You were lucky to get away with 35 minutes. -- Sue ];( |
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