Queue management glossary
The words used around virtual queues and in QR Wait, explained in plain language.
- Appointment
- A booked time next to walk-ins. Checked in on time, it goes ahead of the walk-ins who joined after that time.
- Arrival time limit
- How long a called group has to show up, 3 to 30 minutes, counted down on the visitor's screen.
- Attendant panel
- The browser screen staff use to call, seat and mark visitors. Each attendant can have their own link, so the action log shows who did what.
- Counters mode
- One queue served by several counters or desks: each attendant taps "Call next" and the visitor learns which counter to go to.
- Estimated wait
- How long a newcomer can expect to wait, from the recent call rate. The page says what the estimate rests on, or why there is none yet.
- Fair start
- An opening window of 30 seconds to 5 minutes whose joins are put in random order when it ends, so being fastest at the gate doesn't help.
- Home screen app
- QR Wait added to the phone's home screen from the browser. It lists the device's tickets and scans queue QR codes.
- Kiosk
- A tablet at the entrance that gives visitors without a phone a number, optionally printed on a receipt.
- Location check
- A check that the visitor's phone is near the queue when joining: at a fixed point, at the attendant's live location, or off. Only the distance is kept, never the location.
- No-show
- A called group that doesn't come. The attendant marks it, or it drops out when the arrival time runs out, and the place goes to the next group.
- Printed QR code
- A fixed QR code for posters, flyers and table tents. It doesn't change, so joining through it is limited by the location check only.
- Random draw
- Picking a number of waiting groups at random on the server and moving them to the front, for limited places such as a ferry or a pop-up.
- Rotating QR code
- A QR code on the attendant's screen that changes every 15 to 75 seconds; each code is valid for 1 to 5 minutes, so a photo shared elsewhere soon stops working.
- Seats mode
- A queue for a pool of places such as sunbeds or bus seats: the attendant enters how many opened up and the next groups that fit are called.
- Service
- In a counters queue, what the visitor comes for, such as payments or permits. Each counter serves some or all services; a priority service is called first.
- Tables mode
- A queue for restaurants: the attendant frees a table of a given size and the first waiting group that fits it is called.
- Ticket
- One entry in a queue, with its number. Each new entry uses one ticket from the account's balance, whatever the size of the group.
- Ticket pack
- A one-time purchase of tickets for an account. Packs don't expire and add up on the balance.
- Transfer
- Moving a ticket to another service or another queue of the same account. It keeps its join time, so the visitor doesn't start again at the end.
- TV display
- A "now serving" screen on a TV or monitor that shows the numbers being called and reads each call aloud.
- Virtual queue
- A queue where people hold their place on their phone instead of standing in line. They wait nearby and come back when they are called.
- Waitlist
- The list of groups waiting for a table or a place, in order. A restaurant waitlist is a queue that calls groups by table size.
- Walk-in
- A visitor who joins on the day, at the venue, without an appointment. In QR Wait, walk-ins scan the QR code or are added by the attendant.
- Web Push
- Notifications sent to a phone's browser or home screen app, without an app from an app store. QR Wait uses them for "your turn is coming up" and "it's your turn".
See the words in action
The demo shows a ticket, the attendant panel, a call and a no-show in a minute.
Try the demo