Some of the commonplace complaints about the ATM: ATM down; out of cash; no deposit envelopes; complicated directions; bad notes; door to ATM counter too difficult to open even after several swipes of the card; lack of space...

Take, for instance, the experience of a working woman, Swati Mridul, with an extension counter ATM of a private bank in Delhi. She had just opened an account at this bank, hoping that the ATM facility would save her a lot of time. But it turned out just the opposite for her.

Firstshe tried to open the door of the ATM counter by swiping her card. It wouldn't open. She was in the midst of trying for the nth time when another customer came and helped her open the door. It took over 15 minutes to just open the door.

Next Swati walked inside the ATM, the size of which was just enough to fit her. And worried that the door would close again, she had to try really hard to keep the door open while she was in. It was night and the neon light in the ATM had gathered a lot of insects. Obviously, the people who had come before her would have gone through a similar process. They too seemed to have kept the door open--the only explanation as to why the neon light had so many insects around it.

By the time Swati finished taking the deposit envelope out of the machine, a queue had started forming outside. She still had to fill up the deposit form before finishing the transaction. Feeling guilty that so many people were waiting outside (remember there was just about enough space for one person inthe ATM room), Swati beat a hasty retreat with the deposit envelope.

The next morning, she visited the ATM again. This time, the door opened easily, thanks to the expertise she had gathered the previous night. But depositing a cheque turned out to be equally tricky. The instructions on the screen and the keys were not properly aligned and Swati was pressing the wrong keys in one of the steps, a fact she discovered only later.

Too angry with the entire sequence of events, she stormed into the bank and told an official about the ``terrible'' experience she had had and that she was ready to close her account. Without wasting even a second, the official guided Swati to the ATM counter. Inside the ATM counter, another person was also struggling to make a deposit. The bank official demonstrated with a lot of patience how a deposit was to be made. She agreed that the instructions weren't always accurate, but she helped. That gesture was enough for Swati to continue her account with the bank.

No wonder regularATM users maintain that human interface can help save a situation a number of times. For instance, Vanita Motwani, a regular with ATMs in Mumbai, says: ``I do miss the personal aspect of old-fashioned banking. The very act of waiting in a queue to withdraw money seems romantic now.''

But customers are worried that ATM banking is not a zero-wait exercise any more. Rabia Shaikh, who uses the service in Mumbai, says: ``Customers do get delayed by a few minutes when the cash in the ATM machine empties. Then you are taken aside into the reception area while they replenish it.'' But bank authorities like to call it a ``minor irritant''.

Also, every ATM has a ``down period'' for about 15 minutes each day. During this time, transactions are discontinued to facilitate the updating of the main network. But bank representatives stress that this is done at a lean hour, maybe late at night, so that the least number of people are inconvenienced.

Another limitation faced by ATM users is that they cannot withdraw moneyin odd figures, it has to be in multiples of 100 or 500. But Malini Thadani, manager, public affairs, Hongkong & Shanghai Banking Corporation, has an answer to that. ``Some customers prefer 500-rupee notes,'' she says. ``They are lighter on the wallet and easier to carry. Why would someone who wants to draw Rs 1,000 want to carry the sum in denominations of Rs 10? He'd definitely be happier to get it in two notes of Rs 500 each. You see, the cash in an ATM is placed on a tray, and the tray can accommodate a given number of notes. So more use is possible if you put in notes of a higher denomination.'' Makes sense.

But customers need to be educated on a number of aspects in ATM banking. For example, many people are not aware that certain ATM cards can be used at banks other than the issuing bank. Which means although your card may have been issued by HongKong Bank, you could withdraw money on it from a Stanchart ATM, too. Customers vouch that a greater shared network of ATMs would be a boon. It is also apractical step for the banks. Not only would the use increase, banks could save on the installation cost of more ATM machines, which come for a cool Rs 14-15 lakh each.