What does it mean when a french machine where your using your debit card says "lecture piste" on the screen?

Question

I know what the literal translation of the french words is, but I do not understand what it means in the context of making a transaction.

Also what to the different colored buttons with letters on them (for example I think the red one has an A on it) mean? There usually next to the pin-pad numbers. Theres a red, yellow, green, and then a symbol.

Anyone who can help me with any or all of these questions it will be greatly appreciated! Thanks!

Answer 1

The message means that the information to do the transaction is from the tape in the back of your credit card and not from the microchip as they usually do.

After you enter your personal code if it's correct you had to press the green one, the yellow one if you made a mistake, the red one if you want to quit.

Answer 2

I don't have the slightest idea how these machines work but "lecture piste" only means it is reading the info from your card.

I don't remember exactly what a French ATM keypad looks like but A stands for "annuler" = cancel. Usually the green button has a V for "valider" = enter/OK. If you made a mistake you can correct it by pressing the yellow C key.

All ATMS in Paris, major cities and touristic regions are now multi-lingual. Just select your language on the main screen when available.