Access slips/"hall passes"

[Nnystyxx]

So I was writing   about access and IDs and the HoP and I had an idea: what if you could get into a place with written permission of a sort?

Thus comes the idea of "access slips"/"access passes". Essentially, these would function as name-less, bank-less, access-only ID cards that a given department (perhaps a head, perhaps just someone with access to the printer) could print and give to a person, allowing them access into that department/possibly certain machines without having to fuck with their ID. In turn, you could, say:

• Give someone preferential healthcare treatment in return for their donations to Medbay
  
• Sell someone preferential healthcare treatment in return for their "donations" to Medbay
  
• Allow test subjects & research assistants in without having to open the doors for them all the time
  
• Distribute access passes to able-bodied crewmembers in order for them to access valuable station-repair elements, without some jackoff running in and stealing it all because you bolted the doors open instead
  
• Be a jerk and toss out free cards to assistants so they crowd your department as a traitor so as to distract from the evil things you're doing
  

Possible variations on the concept:
- Area access could be programmed room-by-room for a department (think the HoP console but limited to the responsible computer's area)
- Access passes clip on to your ID to grant extra access (some electromagnetic stuff) and can then be removed; beat someone up and steal all their hall passes

This wouldn't completely invalidate the HoP, since you'd still need area power to the machines, some small amount of resources, ID permission to use the fabricators, and at the end of the day an ID with all the stuff baked in is more space- and time-efficient than carrying around a wallet full of hall passes. But, it provides a way for spacemen to do something nice for each other and help promote cross-interaction between departments without relying on the HoP/tabling someone and using his computer since he left the card in it*

(*If you do this while I am HoP & at the computer I will personally put your ID in the garbage)

[ZeWaka]

Hmm. Maybe have passes with either a limited amount of uses or a time-based use as well?

[Frank_Stein]

I imagine consoles like the ones in qm and mining that print off those barcode stickers. 

Swipe an id to print off passes with that IDs access. Set how many uses/mintutes one is good for before printing. 

Maybe they could be like stickers and have a visible sprite? You could just slap them directly on your uniform

[Erik]

Hmm. Maybe have passes with either a limited amount of uses or a time-based use as well?

Yes! BayStation, Polaris and a few other places have guest pass terminals allowing heads and other people to issue guest passes based on their access.

[Nnystyxx]

To quote the Bay wiki:

"A terminal that allows crew members to issue guest passes to areas of the station that they have access to. Guest passes expire automatically after a set amount of time. For example, a medical doctor would be able to issue a guest pass with Medbay access (but not Brig or Security Office access) that is valid for 30 minutes."

This seems like a pretty acceptable implementation, although I'd like the idea of a non-expiring one being available -somehow-. You never know how long a round will last. So, basically: your access == their potential access with a pass, possible time or use limit, addable as a sticker or item or something (stickers still seem a bit annoying to use though).

[Frank_Stein]

One advantage of stickers would be you could revoke someone's hall pass by setting them on fire

[Nnystyxx]

I still can't figure out how to even remove stickers, I tried showering and it didn't do it
I'm sure not gonna set myself on fire to do it though
Also there's a line between "revoking access" and "setting a person on fire" and one is way more acceptable without an antag involved somewhere in the dynamic

[Frank_Stein]

I still can't figure out how to even remove stickers, I tried showering and it didn't do it
I'm sure not gonna set myself on fire to do it though
Also there's a line between "revoking access" and "setting a person on fire" and one is way more acceptable without an antag involved somewhere in the dynamic

I meant that more as a joke, but acetone will also remove stickers.

I usually just burn them off myself though using a paper cup filled with welding fuel and a heat source while keeping an extinguisher nearby

[Vitatroll]

I'd like for them to dissolve after the use period is up. This would keep people from littering the hallways with useless access passes. Stickers sorta do this too, depending on how their timing system is worked out.

I've always wanted to give somebody access to my work area without having to babysit them.

Spitballing: PDAs have printers. Request access via PDA > department head okays it > pass gets printed from PDA. Requests limited for sanity.

[Erik]

Spitballing: PDAs have printers. Request access via PDA > department head okays it > pass gets printed from PDA. Requests limited for sanity.

Yes, and then if we have this have it use the wireless network so that you can intercept it and print your own, harr harr

[The Grim Sleeper]

Spitballing: PDAs have printers. Request access via PDA > department head okays it > pass gets printed from PDA. Requests limited for sanity.

If we are going to use PDA's and request-per-mail, why not make this a fixed job for he 'Head of Personnel'? It's not like he is so busy with his normal job. While the Heads of departments should be very busy checking their staff is doing their jobs, and not join them in goofing off like the lazy bastards they are.

Speaking of the HoP, you could field-test this idea by having the HoP use his spare ID-cards to print limited access cards (rather then just assigning the access to the person's own ID-card) and mailing those to the relevant location, similar to how the QM should be shipping to people (but doesn't cause he too is a lazy bastard). They do not have a timer, but with suggested time being 30 minutes, and the average round lasting for about 40, I doubt the time-limit would expire within the round anyway.

[Vitatroll]

It was just spitballing. All I thought was 'It'd be nice if I didn't have to walk all the way around cog2 to give these to people'. This could be of great annoyance when there's multiple hull breaches and a secoff needs immediate access to the kitchen to cook the murderous chef.

I deffo didn't think of it being properly emulated though, harr. It could be like the securitron app.