Clubbing in Fortress Amerika (fwd)

[Roy M. Silvernail]

On 20 Oct 2001, at 22:09, Dr. Evil wrote:

> Carry your passport, which doesn't have a mag strip
> (last time I checked).  

My US passport does have a magstrip.  It's embedded in the front 
cover, and must be read by a special device.  I've seen it scanned 
only once, when leaving Montreal to return home.  (point being, a 
driver's licence reader can't read passport magstrips)

At least one club in Minneapolis has a prominent sign stating they 
will not accept a US passport as ID unless it's accompanied by a 
"yellow slip", that being the document indicating that the person 
has applied for a state-issued ID card.  I've never taken the time to 
ask the reasoning behind this policy.

> > Do different states use different formats for the data on the
> > magstrip?
> 
> Do all states even have magstrips?

It's probably reasonable to assume the formats differ.  I haven't yet 
had the time to build up a magstripe reader and check mine, but 
Minnesota also puts a high-density barcode on the front of the 
license.  I have read that out, and it's name, address, DOB, licence 
class, a couple of fields I can't figure out and a final field that says 
"20 EXTRA BYTES HERE".  (yes, really)
--
           Roy M. Silvernail     [ ]     roy at scytale.com
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