software for OAP's

[sellickbhoy]

hi guys

i'm actually looking for a christmas present for my future in laws but i reckon if this doesn't exist, there is great potential for it to be developed - so i'd be willing to invest some cash in someone who has the skills to do it

my in laws are both 70

never used a computer in their life

i found one computer that was designed for new users with no skill or experience - but it was a basic spec PC with a premium price tag - a rip off IMO. But people will buy it

so, i'm actually looking for some software that will talk a complete novice user through how to use email, the internet, store files, create basic word docs and how search engines and the like work

anyone know of such interactive idiot proof software suitable for oap's?

tia

[KM-Tiger]

It doesn't really exist. You'll have to support whatever it is, so you might be better with something you are familiar with.

Don't patronise, but there are issues with eyesight and manual dexterity not being as good as when they were younger.

Discussed at some length in this thread:

http://www.ukbusinessforums.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=130036

and there was another thread started by Dawg (in General IIRC) if you care to search.

[sellickbhoy]

i didn't think anything existed

i think the plan will be for me to buy a laptop and clean the desktop up so that it just has INTERNET and EMAIL

I doubt i'll bother teaching them about downloading stuff using torrents, internet banking or the likes - just how to search using google, how to send and read emails

then take it from there

maybe it's not an OAP angle i should be looking at it from, but a pooter noobie angle

kinda like a computers for dummies interactive DVD

[Tej]

There are adult classes available .. evening or day classes.. once a week.. 3 hours.. really good value.

Know ppl there who are in their 70's.. and loving every minute. Learn how to email.. how to surf the net.. etc.and.. they got the latest programs!!

Just a thought

[Tej]

sorry.. should have added.. local adult colleges run by the Borough!

[paultnl]

Just make sure it is set up to allow you to remote into it to solve any issues that they have. My mother is nearly 80 and can do all the basics with no problems but I do get a call a couple of times a week when something unexpected pops up.

[sellickbhoy]

we thought about classes for them, but father in law isn't interested and mother in law won't go on her own.

the problem with showing them anything is one disrupts/interupts/distracts the other!! leading to confusion and no progress. so thought something interactive might allow them to learn on their own - plus if there was something that hid all the features of Windows and just let them access the web, it would be a lot less complex /daunting.

though, i'm just thinking a netbook might be an easier step

If my other half was still living near them (they are in ireland, we are in scotland) she would gladly spend several hours a week teaching them and that would be fine. However, her sister - who lives with them, has no patience and won't show them anything. But at least she could provide real time support once they got going!!

[sirearl]

It doesn't really exist. You'll have to support whatever it is, so you might be better with something you are familiar with.

Don't patronise, but there are issues with eyesight and manual dexterity not being as good as when they were younger.

Discussed at some length in this thread:

http://www.ukbusinessforums.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=130036

and there was another thread started by Dawg (in General IIRC) if you care to search.


Bleeding cheek there 70 not dead.

many of my friends are well past 70 and manage computers with no problem.

Not to mention that the worlds greatest SEO expert is not far off that age.;)

A stupid person is a stupid person no matter what age.:)

Earl

[sellickbhoy]

ah sir earl, i do so love your repostes!! (and i do mean that genuinely)

so, are you saying they are stupid just because they are lacking in confidence?

If i was to ask him to build me a house, he would do it without batting an eye. He's been a builder since he was 15 and he built the house he raised his family in without another man lifting a stick to help him

some people pick up some things easier than others.

[sirearl]

ah sir earl, i do so love your repostes!! (and i do mean that genuinely)

so, are you saying they are stupid just because they are lacking in confidence?


Not at all I am saying there are 70 year olds and there are 70 year olds as there are 21 year olds and 21 year olds.

My friend Peter is 72 and whizz's round europe with a bleeding great propellor stuck on his back ,and a parachute seperating him from his maker.

I prefer tiddlywinks.:)

Earl

[Dawg]

Load whatever you get with stuff that will interest them, and be really easily accessible. But if they can log on and find something that interests them, every day, the machine will be used. One neighbour in his 70s uses his lappy to place bets on the nags, every day, world wide.
I helped someone of that age recently and we ended up going for an all in one desktop with a nice big screen but smallish footprint in the house. I upped the default font sizes to make it slightly easier to use: Firefox loaded up with Speed dial as the home screen, with connections to things he was interested in, (Norwegian vivisection, mostly), and he's storming. He rang yesterday to tell me how he'd found a good bit of freeware online.
But, he is still wedded to book learning: he likes to read off paper rather than a screen. There is a reasonably good and clear Dummies Guide for Silver surfers/computer users which he bought and uses. (It's just a guide with a cover to reassure older people who don't feel comfortable because they think it will be harder than it actually is.) Might be worth a look.

[Cornish Steve]

Older people I know are just as proficient at using the Internet as younger people and tend to enjoy the same sites. The only difference is that font sizes can be a little small.

[DataWise]

When an old codger like sirearl says something like: "Eee by gum, you should see our little Jonny go on that there computer thingy. How does he do it? It's completely beyond me!", don't believe it, he's just saying things like that for two reasons:

(1) To impress upon his friends that his little Jonny is more of a genius than any of their little Jonnies.

(2) To flatter little Jonny so that he can turn him into a handy little information and calculation slave machine!

"Jonny! Jonny! Have you made it any further back than 3400 BC with our family tree yet?"! :)

Paul Reed