to think that this is NOT woeful queue etiquette?

[ChaosTrulyReigns]

DH and I escaped to the cunema today.

As we were quite late we arrived after the showing had started, but still in tine for the Main Feature.

There were 2 queues to the 2 ticket sellers, so I joined one and DH joined the other, to maximise our chances of actually getting in there in time.

It became obvious that DH was going to reach the counter beforr me, so I newly sidestepped to join him.

Cue disgusted looks from the people behind him and the people who were behind me actually started saying that it was rude and selfish ti join 2 queues when we were obviously together. (I paraphrase )

So AIBU?

The couple behind me actually got to the front quicker than they had anticipated, and the couple behind DH were no more inconvenienced at all.

Fecking Logic Bypass at its best.

[grr]

We are Official Cinema Abstainers, Trills.

Tickets only for the geown up Chaotics.

Cheers, Mimsy.

Chaos - believe it or not there is an entire academic discipline called Queueing Theory and it is about the organisation of queues especially in customer service operations.

Your example is a fascinating kind of problem that people like me who study queuing theory would enjoy tackling.

The dilemma of which queue to join where you have a multiple queues causes major disatisfaction for cutomers and was resolved by the brilliant invention of the 'single queue' system where you snake around in a long single queue usually roped off by barriers until you reach the front and then you go to whichever server/till comes available first.

In your case, the unhappiness of the other customers was entirely the fault of the cinema for not installing a single queue system and hence causing the multiple queue dilemma.

On average, if you are a repeat cinema going customer you will spend exactly the same time on average queuing in a multiple queue system as a single queue system.

However, your unhapiness will be much much higher in a multiple queue system because you will always feel the pain of regret when you accidentally pick the 'slow' queue. Picking the slow queue is far more disatisfying than the pleasure of picking the quicker queue. Single queues are no quicker on average- just prevent lots of unhappiness.

In summary YANBU and there are formulas to prove it.

Hmm...

In summary then, is RealActualScience saying I am vorrect?

MoreBeta

I get it ! Kind of like the 'optical illusion' thing when you are in traffic or stuck in a jam on the motorway and think the lanes next to you are moving faster ?

I must admit, I am calmer in a 1 l o n g queue system, I don't like waiting in general but in one l o n g queue it never seems so bad.

morebeta that truly was interesting but when I am in the single queue I have to stop myself from shouting at the dozy prats (hee hee,that autocorrected to foxy parts) at the front that are in la la land and don't notice the available cashiers.
Very stressful for me (impatient cow)

Single queues are no quicker on average, but a large proportion of the time they are quicker than the queue you would have chosen... unless you are an exceptionally good queue-picker.

Blimey chaos you had a few cocktails in star city?

Formulæ

cheeky

If only I had the nerve to shout out loud "FFS, NEXT" ! I scream it inwardly on a regular basis !

'Good queue picker' - I can only conclude that I must not be.

Single queues are often slower on average because of longer dead time for the teller as the person walks the longer distance from the head of the queue to the station.

You'll see passport control in busy places do a hybrid with a single queue that has people to push you into traditional queues at the end to minimise the problem.

FredFred -ooooh a compound queue - now you are talking.

Another fascinating fact about queues is the 'British' attitude to queuing is often at odds with the scrum, barging and queue jumping that occurs in 'non-British' countries.

A scrum or General Queue as it is formally known is equally good as a proper formal queue where everyone waits their turn as you wait on average just as long in either system. However, culturally we Brits just hate a 'scrum' (except in rugby) and 'non-Brits' think we are just bonkers for standing around instead of barging in.

Its cultural is queuing.

MoreBeta you're forgetting the pub, in which case the scrum is the correct form of queue too for Brits at the bar.

Can you imagine if we all just barged in to the front of the queue ?

Might be worth a try....although I suppose it could be muted with a few "excuse me's" while you are barging ? Start slowly. So that by the time the queue realises you have actually 'queue jumped' the realisation dawns that actually, they let you, because you excused them ?!

Although maybe we could start a 'flash mob' of queues by getting your required purchases, then running to the checkout/s yelling "I'M FIRST I'M FIRST, I WIN NA NA NA NA NA".

Could become the latest craze.

Now that would be amusing.

Very good point indeed about pub bars.

I sense we may agree that once one starts looking at the world through the lens of queuing theory - its just gets so much more fascinating.

Ah but there's this book, see, called 'Watching the English' by Kate Fox where she experiments in pubs, and she finds out that there is actually an in invisible queue at a bar, and that us Brits are extremely good at working out our place in this queue and who's next in it.

It's a brilliant book. Totally reccommend it.

Ever read Watching the English? Great bits on pub etiquette. There's a definite queuing system goin on there too. You just KNOW when someone has been served before you. Waving a note helps and annoys when delves into pocket for small change when actually served

X-post with Permanently!

I do that with queues at the cinema. Not sure what I do at the cunema though.

And another excellent experiment to see what happens when you deliberately bump into someone on the street. The English bumped person apologies to the bumper, and that Japanese people are very difficult to bump into are the two things I recall from that experiment.

Very good book, very funny but not as funny as Chaos threads