FARMINGTON — Home entertainment systems might consider taking a cue from electronic voting machines.

The machines, which were used for the first time during a Utah election in Farmington's primaries on Tuesday, received glowing reviews from midday voters and seasoned election workers. Overall, there were no complaints, and many of the voters said that the electronic machines were an improvement over punch-card ballots.

Alan Call said that his wife, Rowene, proved the simplicity of the machines with her highly efficient voting.

"She can't run the remote control, but she finished before I did," Call said. "I felt more comfortable on them than with the punch card, especially after all of the problems in Florida," in the 2000 election.

Voters seemed to take to the machines, even those who struggle with programming a VCR, operating a computer, or — like the Calls — running a remote control. The polling manager for Farmington City Hall's voting machines, Diane Wheeler, said that even those most nervous about the machines were comforted after a short tutorial, and that there was generally less confusion than with the old ballot system.

Truth be told, Wheeler was one of the most nervous people over the machines and "didn't sleep a wink" Monday night because she was worried about something going wrong. Luckily, her fears were unnecessary.

"Some people are surprised by the machines, and some of the older ones need a little hands-on help to accomplish the learning curve," she said. "But once they understand it, the machines are working very well."

Farmington is the first in the state to use the machines, although Brigham City will join the test during the general election on Nov. 8. The city had five polling locations set up for the primary election, all of which had the machines and none of which experienced any major problems.

The only mishap reported was a machine that was knocked over after a person tripped on its cord, Davis County Clerk Steve Rawlings said. The machine's hardware was not damaged, however, and no votes were lost.

Overall, he was excited about the results, especially considering the amount of media attention garnered by the technology.

"There's been nothing but positive feedback," Rawlings said.

Another comfort for voters was the obvious redundancy of the machines, including a paper receipt they can review. Stephanie Wilcox, who voted with a toddler in tow, said that although the machines "looked intimidating," they were really very simple to use and, most important, she knows she voted correctly.

"You see the screen, and review your vote there, but then you also see a paper receipt," she said. "It's nice because you know (your vote) isn't just disappearing some place."

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E-mail: jloftin@desnews.com