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Forcing the Internet on the elderly. Anyone done this?
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I said all that because you didn't mention a father.. and my web-tv aunt is a widow and managed to take over the forwarding of all stupid jokes on the internet all by herself.
my mom is pretty good at email now but it took her a long time and she had my father (who is, if nothing else, the king of the spreadsheet.. he was doin' spreadsheets on his compac portable with the drop down screen when I was still playin' atari.. took some kicking and screaming to get him on aol and he hasn't even considered migrating in those 11 years or so) to help her. first time I IM'd her she replied in email. next time I had an IM conversation with her she called me by some name which is not my own.. case of mistaken identity.. she perhaps is more IM savvy than I give her credit for now, I just don't go there anymore, e-mail works! first couple years dad sent me a packet of stray notes he found on his hard drive every 6 months or so but he hasn't done that in a while so I guess she's quit sending stuff to no man's land. she can do email and surf a bit and play solitaire now without much trouble. she's kinda addicted to solitaire.. she comes to visit she doesn't need to check her mail but she does need a couple times a day at her game.
my husband's parents are hopeless, though. she wants email bad (81), but he (77) is convinced he'll never use a computer, web tv will ruin his tv (one of those widescreen format things, I'm clueless about tv's..but it's fat and not tall and he won't watch anything in normal ratio because he's convinced it'll ruin the screen.. so everything on tv there is way short and way fat..), and the goofy thing that hooks up to the phone and only does email (that's what the MIL wants.. she saw it in parade magazine a couple years ago and is convinced it's perfect.. sigh) is stupid. so.. they're still whining that everybody else in the family hears from us regularly but they don't. I would have given him old computer, perfectly perfect for email and web, if not very satisfactory anymore for anything else, 'cept he's the kind of guy that if it's not newest and best it's not welcome in the house, so there wasn't any point.. it does my son more good playing with linux than it would do in their garage sale. I think I'll force the issue come christmas and get her (mil) a webtv thing.. they have a tv in their bedroom that he's probably less anal about..
anno
my mom is pretty good at email now but it took her a long time and she had my father (who is, if nothing else, the king of the spreadsheet.. he was doin' spreadsheets on his compac portable with the drop down screen when I was still playin' atari.. took some kicking and screaming to get him on aol and he hasn't even considered migrating in those 11 years or so) to help her. first time I IM'd her she replied in email. next time I had an IM conversation with her she called me by some name which is not my own.. case of mistaken identity.. she perhaps is more IM savvy than I give her credit for now, I just don't go there anymore, e-mail works! first couple years dad sent me a packet of stray notes he found on his hard drive every 6 months or so but he hasn't done that in a while so I guess she's quit sending stuff to no man's land. she can do email and surf a bit and play solitaire now without much trouble. she's kinda addicted to solitaire.. she comes to visit she doesn't need to check her mail but she does need a couple times a day at her game.
my husband's parents are hopeless, though. she wants email bad (81), but he (77) is convinced he'll never use a computer, web tv will ruin his tv (one of those widescreen format things, I'm clueless about tv's..but it's fat and not tall and he won't watch anything in normal ratio because he's convinced it'll ruin the screen.. so everything on tv there is way short and way fat..), and the goofy thing that hooks up to the phone and only does email (that's what the MIL wants.. she saw it in parade magazine a couple years ago and is convinced it's perfect.. sigh) is stupid. so.. they're still whining that everybody else in the family hears from us regularly but they don't. I would have given him old computer, perfectly perfect for email and web, if not very satisfactory anymore for anything else, 'cept he's the kind of guy that if it's not newest and best it's not welcome in the house, so there wasn't any point.. it does my son more good playing with linux than it would do in their garage sale. I think I'll force the issue come christmas and get her (mil) a webtv thing.. they have a tv in their bedroom that he's probably less anal about..
anno
PowerMacG5
Diamond Member
I've gotten my grandparents on the computer. One set 3 years before the other set.
Fritzo
Lifer
FOR THE LOVE OF GOD DON'T DO THIS!!!!!!!!!!
I'm the tech support guy these people call when it doesn't work 🙁
Here's an example of the dreaded old person calling me:
Me: Hi...can I help you?
Old Person: Yes....this thing won't hook up.
M: Pardon
OP: I'm not very computer illiterate (wouldn't that mean you're computer literate?) so I don't know the terminology...it won't get on the Internet.
Then it goes down hill from there. I usually have to teach them how to use a mouse over the phone and explain that the Start button is actually a thing on the monitor...not the power button on the computer. By the time I'm done I want to blow up a retirement home :|
I'm the tech support guy these people call when it doesn't work 🙁
Here's an example of the dreaded old person calling me:
Me: Hi...can I help you?
Old Person: Yes....this thing won't hook up.
M: Pardon
OP: I'm not very computer illiterate (wouldn't that mean you're computer literate?) so I don't know the terminology...it won't get on the Internet.
Then it goes down hill from there. I usually have to teach them how to use a mouse over the phone and explain that the Start button is actually a thing on the monitor...not the power button on the computer. By the time I'm done I want to blow up a retirement home :|
MichaelD
Lifer
ROFL! Yes, older folks can be a bit thick-headed...I agree with you on that.
They grew up in a "tangible world" where they could see and understand the results of what was happening. They understand that pictures and sound comes over the "cable TV cable" but they don't understand how the same thing happens over the telephone wire that connects the computer to the wall. 🙂
My grandmother is 88, and has been using email and browsing the web for four years. All of her siblings (ranging in age from 81 to 90) are connected as well, and now that they're all used to it, I doubt any of them could live without an Internet connection. I actually just put together a slick new system for my grandmother a few months ago (the old one was too slow 😀) and she's been wowing her friends in the retirement home with it.
It's definitely possible to get the elderly hooked on the 'net, but I think it depends on the person.
I would definitely recommend against WebTV, unless your mother still has excellent eyesight, or a huge TV. The television display is not as bright or crisp as a monitor, the text and pictures look like garbage, and it's stuck with the crappy TV resolution. My grandmother found the Internet to be far more enjoyable after my aunts and uncles bought her a new 17" monitor for Christmas two years ago (and now I'm actually wishing I'd pushed them to get a 19" or larger; her eyesight limits her to running only 800 x 600 which is still too low for many of the websites she frequents).
I'd suggest starting her off with whatever you can throw together, with a nice, large monitor. Set everything up to be as easy as possible, and delete all of the icons off of the desktop but My Computer, the Recycle Bin, My Documents, and the internet shortcuts. Make sure there is a shortcut for the dialup connection, and teach her to use that to connect and disconnect (it's far easier than trying to explain how to right click on the little computers down by the clock). Change the mouse settings so that she can easily double-click; trust me, you'll regret it if you don't 😉
Start slow, and teach her one thing at a time. With my grandmother, we started with email. I walked her through the basics of Outlook Express; sending and receiving messages first, and then forwarding and replying to other messages. Once she got the hang of it a little, my mother taught her how to use the address book and how to move messages into different folders. Make sure the preview pane is turned on (sure it's a slight security risk, but it's much easier to clean up a virus than it is to teach an old person how to open individual emails) and make sure OE opens to the Inbox.
Once my grandmother was comfortable with email, we taught her the basics of browsing the Internet (entering addresses, clicking on links, and later how to use a search engine). From there she's learned a lot of it on her own, and now helps the other people in her retirement community if they have questions.
If possible, teach her how to take a screenshot once she starts getting the hang of things. My grandmother now just emails me a picture of the "strange things the computer does" instead of trying to explain it in an email or over the phone. It's saved me time and probably a great many headaches 😉
It's definitely possible to get the elderly hooked on the 'net, but I think it depends on the person.
I would definitely recommend against WebTV, unless your mother still has excellent eyesight, or a huge TV. The television display is not as bright or crisp as a monitor, the text and pictures look like garbage, and it's stuck with the crappy TV resolution. My grandmother found the Internet to be far more enjoyable after my aunts and uncles bought her a new 17" monitor for Christmas two years ago (and now I'm actually wishing I'd pushed them to get a 19" or larger; her eyesight limits her to running only 800 x 600 which is still too low for many of the websites she frequents).
I'd suggest starting her off with whatever you can throw together, with a nice, large monitor. Set everything up to be as easy as possible, and delete all of the icons off of the desktop but My Computer, the Recycle Bin, My Documents, and the internet shortcuts. Make sure there is a shortcut for the dialup connection, and teach her to use that to connect and disconnect (it's far easier than trying to explain how to right click on the little computers down by the clock). Change the mouse settings so that she can easily double-click; trust me, you'll regret it if you don't 😉
Start slow, and teach her one thing at a time. With my grandmother, we started with email. I walked her through the basics of Outlook Express; sending and receiving messages first, and then forwarding and replying to other messages. Once she got the hang of it a little, my mother taught her how to use the address book and how to move messages into different folders. Make sure the preview pane is turned on (sure it's a slight security risk, but it's much easier to clean up a virus than it is to teach an old person how to open individual emails) and make sure OE opens to the Inbox.
Once my grandmother was comfortable with email, we taught her the basics of browsing the Internet (entering addresses, clicking on links, and later how to use a search engine). From there she's learned a lot of it on her own, and now helps the other people in her retirement community if they have questions.
If possible, teach her how to take a screenshot once she starts getting the hang of things. My grandmother now just emails me a picture of the "strange things the computer does" instead of trying to explain it in an email or over the phone. It's saved me time and probably a great many headaches 😉
thomsbrain
Lifer
I got my grandpa using email, but the internet is still too scary for him. besides, he clicks on all those fake windows ads and gets himself into trouble.
my other grandparents are a lost cause. we bought them a VCR once and they put it in the back bedroom because even looking at it made them nervous.
my other grandparents are a lost cause. we bought them a VCR once and they put it in the back bedroom because even looking at it made them nervous.
Fritzo
Lifer
Yeah...my grandma takes the batteries out of her remote control snd won't use it because she thinks it might start a fire (true story! Grandma! It's not a phaser! It's not going to blow a hole in the wall if you miss the TV! Sheesh!!!)
Anyway, it definately depends on the person. I taught a few classes for senior centers where the people were fine, but my mother in law forgets everything I taught her within five minutes.
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