This has to be a joke... right?
I mean honestly:
1. You don't need a GUI look for an ATM. I mean, honestly: do they expect people to start surfing the web at the ATM? An ATM only requires limited uses to be available to its users, and a simple text menu attached to the function keys is all that's needed.
2. Even if you're planning for the future... think about the reliability. There's a reason why Windows-based machines are known for being unreliable. And I'm sorry, but I've gone too many times to
current ATM's only to find them out of service (either because of lack of cash or because it actually crashed). If I find my bank switching to Windows-based ATM's, I may just decide to switch banks.
3. No Internet connection? So what? Do they really think that viruses are only spread over the Internet? When I worked at Qwest a few years back, we had a literal handful of individuals who, after receiving a virus from the Internet, spread it to the rest of the company through the
corporate Intranet -- you know, the internal Qwest employees-only network that is
not part of the Internet at large? Network multiple computers together, and 1 infected computer will infect the rest, even if the other computers never connect to the Internet, because of the LAN connections they have.
And what does an ATM need? A LAN/WAN connection to the bank to:
-- send deposit transactions in to the main database
-- send withdrawal transactions in to the main database
-- send account transfer transactions in to the main database
all of which involves connecting to the corporate intranet, and allowing for the possibility of a virus.
Even worse, if they
do add in the functionality of purchasing tickets, what kind of tickets are they talking about? Movie tickets? You'll need an Internet connection to make sure that accurate seating numbers are kept to prevent overselling (some people take very poorly to paying money for standing-room-only at the local AMC multiplex). And even worse, consider concerts or other special events, where you have assigned seating, and it becomes
critical to maintain up-to-the-minute updates on ticket sales to prevent the sale of the same seat to multiple individuals?
I think this is another instance of corporate leaders being blinded by the shiny buttons and bright lights of Technology, without thinking of all the potential repercussions of their decisions...