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Computer Resources for Older People?
Your_Mom asks: "My mother has recently become involved in computing. She has familiarized herself with many of the basics like: going to certain web sites, typing out simple Word documents, and so forth. However, she has recently expressed interest in learning more. Where can I find resources for older computer users, teaching simple things like word processing, spreadsheets, searching the web, etc.?"
Why don't you just look for information for people NEW to computers.
Older people don't have any handicaps that keep them from using computers, bud.
Simple: google.com
Not so simple: Having her understand what she's reading.
-- There is no spoon. Only fork.
There is the idiot's and dummies guides.
Have her tune into TechTV for the Call for Help show.
Get her the "professor" CD self study guides.
Have her use what knowledge she has about writing documents in Word (write, notepad, whatever) to generate a list of the things she has questions about, that you then turn around into a Wiki to explain those concepts. Show her how to edit and add more questions to the Wiki, and see where things go from there.
Check with the community education people in your area to see if they have courses that would interest her.
If you have gone through all of that, and still have nothing that works, spend some time, sitting with her and asking her what she is doing. Also ask her if there is something she would like to do, but doesn't know how to do that.
Different people learn in different ways, at different speeds, and with different intentions. If she is already getting as much out of the computer as she is interested in, be comfortable with that, and let her do her thing.
-Rusty
You never know...
AFAIK the 'for dummies' series of computer books are a quite good start for beginners - easy to understand (but just the basics).
Take a look here
Would you like it in a new, simpler language that even old people and women can understand? Frankly Im disapointed. 9 years after getting our first computer mom plays solitaire and goes to the New York Times Crossword puzzle page where she manages to loose her password on a regular basis. She doesnt surf the web, and still doesnt understand cut, copy and paste...
Believe it or not, unless you are specially trained in training people (and even then it's "iffy"), you can actually make it worse for them.
Many times people (and more frequently older people) equate quality, value, and cost. and since you (the good child that you are) are only going to provide assistance non-gratis, your help will be considered the same value as your commensuration.
The person (parent) eventually figures this out on their own and finds someone else to help them. Now they've come to their own (cold) conclusion that you just aren't up to the task. Thanks, Mom!
I'm all for free (libre) software and information, but sometimes people have to pay good money before they learn anything. To quote an episode of Matlock: "I charge my clients a lot of money so they'll do what I tell them."
I'm not suggesting you charge your Mother. I'm suggesting you find someone who will.
Then stay out of it. Make up some excuse about how your employer made you sign a non-compete contract that prohibits you from showing even relatives how to use a computer. Whatever it takes!
Ultimately, your mother will find what she needs on her own, and you'll gain valuable insite into what it's like to "let go" too. ;.)
As people have mentioned, the Idiot guides etc can make a useful starting point in learning things like spreadsheets or slightly more advanced wordprocessing and another useful avenue can be community learning classes, but ultimately if they don't have a reason to make use of what they've learned (and I mean at least weekly use, preferably daily), they simply won't retain the knowledge.
If you can come up with something they could do that would a) make their life easier than it presently is and b) makes use of spreadsheets or advanced wordprocessing or whatever, then thats the way to do it.
When it comes to improving their browsing/web searching skills, I recommend setting up their browser with a default page of a random Wikipedia search. The layout is simple, there's interesting information to take in and there is plenty of opportunity for them to click-through to other pages. I find its a great way to teach beginners about the weblike nature of the web now that most commercial site are so flash-heavy or with more complex navigation systems.
So the long and the short is that they have to make use of the skills they learn and to make use of the skills, there has to be a reason to do so, not simply a desire to 'learn more'.
"I'm tired of all this 'Aren't humanity great' bullshit. We're a virus with shoes" - Bill Hicks
In the interests of reclaiming your free time, and no longer being ad-hoc tech support, I recommend you immediately:
a) install some custom software that will intermittently close random programs
b) reset the web-browser home page to goatse (or some distasteful alternative)
and
c) install windows XP
(j/k... installing XP would be mean)
Gentlemen....BEHOLD!
Yeah I had the idea (or probably not, since we're seldom original)
...
I can't program kernels specially.
Of making a Granny OS - very simple safe - cute and secure.
There is one slightest problem
Maybe in 5 years time!
Here in the Netherlands, there is a special series "$FOO$ for senior citizens". There are books on every major home application, like Windows, web browsing and Office. If you can find such books in your bookstore, you mat give these a try.
der Joachim
Geek runner, motorcyclist and professional know-it-all
I've always thought this guys (The Video Professor) videos would be a good way for a "newbie" to learn the basics of Windows computing. I've thought about getting them more my Mom who's kind of in the same boat.
Co-founder and designer at Music Nearby: http://musicnearby.com
Set up an old box with no net access and an unused/unneeded hard drive. Show them how to boot from the Knoppix CD. Show them point and click, copy/paste, where different program types are etc..
Tell them they cant hurt anything because:
A. Everything in this box is getting scrapped or is going to gather dust for 5 years.
B. It isnt connected to the network.
C. Everything they do ( except messing with the hard drive - formatting writing something to it etc.. HD is surplus etc..) will dissapear the next time it is shutdown.
Then ask what they wants to start doing, point the way, and stand back.
Encourage them to explore, and get them to laugh when something doesnt work. Then they will become a lot more comfortable with strange and cryptic programs and commands and not fear the computer.
( Yes, treat them like a small child learning something new. Basically, that is what is happening. )
If they do something they want to save, use a floppy or a USB key to save it.
One of the biggest problems I have found while teaching/interacting with older people, especially related to IT, is the lack of visualization. :-)
This is not to say they dont have the cerebral matter, but the simple fact that they have not been as exposed to technology and technology-related products as we have been since childhood. Point in case: How many of mothers (and I mean in their fifties and later) have you seen taking a go at X-box or playstation? Or trying to figure out the controls of the new DVD player/home entertainment system, etc? At least I havent seen too many.
So, the biggest hinderance is the apathy/fear towards all things "geek" or "advanced" (as my mother calls them). Reminds me of "Zen and the art of motorcycle maintenance"
Try giving her the CD-ROMs/online material from www.howstuffworks.com [howstuffworks] - which I have found to be great resource for starters.
http://efil.blogspot.com/
Check out the local community college or university senior ed. offerings.
We have a very large contingent of the blue haired that meet weekly at the college I attend to study everything from basic office productivity packages to advanced digital scanning and photography.
Going this route has several benefits:
* Money is involved, creating a sense of "buy in".
* What is being studied is used regularly, so that even if she goes home and gets hooked into NeverWinter Nights or Yahoo games, she'll use what she learns at least once a week.
* She'll be with a group of like minded people, so there's a chance that one or more of them will serve as fuel to further explore ways to use what she's learning.
Some days it's just not worth
chewing through my restraints.
Many community/junior colleges offer basic computer classes for just this reason. While many 'older' users may be embarassed to take a public class, it would put her in touch with similar people and may even help her learn to boot...
...we are from the government - we are here to help...
I have been thru this scenario. My Mother-in-law is now 76 years old. I originally bought her a used laptop to use e-mail, due to certain phone bills that were killing us. (The laptop was 1/2 the cost of a particular month's phone bill.)
She is interested in the machine, but due to her lack of formal education, afraid of looking foolish because she doesn't know how to do something on the computer.
Find a particular program that she doesn't already use that interests her, and you can add to what she knows how to do.
Whatever machine you get her or help her to get, make sure you can support it over the phone, because you will.
Every time I am over there now, I run utilities to defrag the disk and so forth, because I do not expect to teach her that stuff.
Talk to her, and show her that she can not hurt the machine with software. Then get her to experiment.
But, whatever you do, suppport her. If you don't it is a no win situation.
Try searching Amazon.com for used college text books. Some of the intro level class textbooks for non CS majors might be usefull. Of course a lot of this depends on what exactly she wants to learn (ie. more advanced use of word, does she want to learn how to make a website, etc).
Another good idea is to teach her how to use to web to learn more about topics. If her google-fu is strong then the rest will follow.
There are also a number of newgroups and mailing lists that are available for people who don't know a lot about computers but are interesting in learning various topics, she if she might be interested in taking those routes as well.
The most important thing though is to teach her to teach herself. If you don't then none of these things will work, spend some time teaching her more advanced concepts that will server as a usefull base for what she specifically desires to learn, then leave the rest up to her. In the end this way she will have a better understanding and you will avoid having to spend all of your spare time teaching her.
Famous Last Words: "hmm...wikipedia says it's edible"
Your mom is gonna be scared away from all forms of computer use when she has her first pop-up barrage with stretched bumholes and whatnot. So, get Mozilla.
Just something to consider...
The challenges can be special. First, vision. Many seniors have bifocal reading glasses and/or varifocal near-far glasses. Neither is great for reading a computer screen. If they don't have good computer glasses, it is quite normal for them to
- not even see a dialog box right in front of them
- not read the screen
- tilt their head upward whenever they need to read the screen
- be unable to read the smaller print
A large (19 or 21 inch) screen with moderate resolution (less than 1024 X 768) helps a lot. Lowering resolution can improve readability tremendously.Next, arthritis. Mousing and keyboard use can be quite challenging for some seniors. I've seen right-handed people use the mouse in the left hand and refuse to let me switch the buttons because it would be too confusing. Head and neck angle ergonomics matter more for arthritics.
Memory. It's tough for them to learn and use the keyboard shortcuts, since there is no visual prompt, so don't teach them. Rely on things with a visual prompt like menus. Even the edit menu. I've given up on teaching windows seniors the alt-tab switcher numerous times. Finger pain from arthritis plays a role here too.
New abstractions. It's tough to teach a tree control directory structure to someone whose life experience has been raising children. The difference between main memory and the disk escapes them.
Rigorous maintainance. Visiting a senior relative after an absence of a few years, I found that 19 Critical Updates from Windows Updates were pending and had not been installed. Likewise for backups, defrag, anti-virus... If a TV doesn't require it, they won't remember it.
The computer will often not get the priority that it would get in a work or student situation. The computer table will be used for other things, such as board games, eating, putting on makeup, writing checks, and so on. The computer books and the installation disks get lost. There may not be any organization to the place where the computer is. The chair so carefully selected may be in another room.
Opportunities
Seniors like games more than I thought they would. Card games, backgammon, and computerized versions of board and table-top games go over well. Shooter games are less interesting than to the younger crowd, but ymmv.
Human communication. Email, voice over ip, photos by mail, and all that are all very interesting to seniors. Especially women.
Persistance. They will keep at it for a decade or more, learning as they go.
Gizmophilia. Back-to-nature, home-cooking, earth mothers eventually succumb to a fascination with the latest gizmos and start exploring.
Finally, be warned that some seniors like porn and aren't sophisticated enough to hide it well. Don't go exploring in their hard drive unless you're ready to deal with the consequences. If the old man is having computer trouble but won't accept help, it might be pride, but it might be an attempt to prevent grossing out the youngsters!
I18N == Intergalacticization
The public library where I work, for example, offers introductory classes, as well as books and instructional videos. Some of my course materiels are available here. A public library where your mom lives might have similar programs; it's worth checking. Also, school districts sometimes offer adult-ed programs that might prove interesting. Then there's usenet...
Cut that out, or I will ship you to Norilsk in a box.