[Doug_F]

Wouldn't it be alot easier then searching for your keys every time you walked in the door, then to just scan a little plastic card w/ a bar code on it to open up?
Just been thinking about it, and keys seem to be a somewhat clunky solution to something as simple as unlocking a door. My guess is you could just get a scanner that went through the door so you would have an interface on both sides of the door, then your family can just each get their own card, think like one of the cards you scan at your gym, with a bar code to open up the lock. It would be quicker by far, easy to replace, and make it alot easier to get in the house while your hands might be full.

[Steve]

This already exists in hotels, where the main advantages is that they "key" needn't be replaced because the management simply reprograms the code for each guest. Why did the technology never make it to regular homes? I'd assume that it's either too expensive, or the good old mechanical key is simply safer.