Max was tapping “Get a Ticket” on his phone when the app started adding him to the queue over and over. He was at a repair centre to drop off his headphones. Three customers sat along the wall, and the current ticket number glowed above the counter. Max wanted to register on his phone rather than wait at the ticket machine behind a man searching for his glasses. A little circle kept spinning on the app, so Max tapped the button a few more times. He disliked waiting even when signing up to wait.

When the circle finally disappeared, eight consecutive numbers appeared under “My Tickets.” The app had processed every tap but displayed the results all at once. Max opened the first ticket: only two people ahead of him. That would have been excellent if his other seven tickets weren’t taking up places behind him. The display now showed a queue of ten customers. The man at the machine found his glasses, looked at the number, and slowly sat down without even taking a ticket.

Max decided to keep his first number and cancel the extras. Each had a “Leave Queue” button, but tapping it opened a compulsory questionnaire: a reason for leaving and a comment of at least twenty characters. “Your app registered me eight times” was not an option. Max selected “Other” and typed an explanation. After he confirmed, the phone returned him to the home screen. To cancel the second ticket, he had to reopen the section, find the number, and fill out the same questionnaire. By the third, he had copied his comment.

While the display called the two actual customers, Max stood there cancelling his remaining extra tickets, pasting his explanation into each form. By the final confirmation, his thumb was ready for a break. One ticket remained, and its number lit up above the counter. Max walked over, set his headphones in front of the employee, and locked his phone. He had avoided the queue at the ticket machine. Granted, it had required seven written explanations of why he wouldn’t be standing in a queue.