Really? I guess the people you passed were not paying much attention. Inkjet prints flat money - US currency is intaglio printed which makes the print raised.
Plus you can't duplicate the micro printing, the security thread or the color changing ink.
I guess for 5's maybe but 20's? Everyone should take a quick look at those.
This was 2001 remember, and all the "p-notes", as they were called, I created were the old-school bills with few security measures.
Yes I passed them at fast-food places and, to be honest, for drug deals, which perhaps doesn't count as much to some, but I do remember a McDonalds where the drive-thru person said "sorry we can't take this" and I just feigned surprise and handed them a real note.
Also, I used a linen paper from office depot that gave the notes a decent feel.
Those features are fairly recent. In a high-volume cash business like fast food or a truck stop 20s will almost never get scrutiny unless the reflectivity or the feel of the paper are off. I used to process $8,000 to $12,000 an hour on a busy day, usually almost half of that in cash.
Plus you can't duplicate the micro printing, the security thread or the color changing ink.
I guess for 5's maybe but 20's? Everyone should take a quick look at those.