Why I’m not holding my breath.
I have good news, and I have bad news.
The good news is that you are absolutely right. Seniors — or, since it’s not really an age thing, those with different priorities than the more technologically inclined — are underserved. I totally agree.
The bad news is that it’s extremely unlikely to change.
But I do have a couple of options to share.
In search of a simple computer
Big tech doesn’t always care about making computers easier for people who struggle, especially older folks. But that doesn’t mean all hope is lost. With the right tools, a little help, and a good attitude, it’s still possible to make technology work.
Ageism, internal and external
From a tech company’s cold, bottom-line perspective, addressing an older audience is by definition a shrinking market. It’s certainly less lucrative than the next shiny thing they want to invest in.
From my perspective, it’s not an age thing as much as an interest or ability thing, and those things cross all ages. In my recent article, Too Old for Tech? Nonsense, I address my feelings on the matter. There are many legitimate reasons to be overwhelmed by or have difficulty with technology, and most of them are unrelated to age.
Nonetheless, most big tech companies seem indifferent to the issues regardless of their origin.
That means it’s up to us.
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Attitude is everything
I am in no way criticizing your question or your approach. Your frustration is completely warranted and quite common — as are bad and even sometimes embarrassing past experiences.
But the reality is that the only thing we have true control over is our willingness to adapt and cope.
From my perspective, this isn’t just Stoic platitudes or theory; I see it play out all the time: people with even a slightly more positive attitude have better luck overall. They experience fewer problems than their less positive counterparts.
It’s not that the problems are easier or harder; it’s that there are fewer problems. It’s the weirdest thing, and I’m sure there’s some deep psychological reason for it all, but that doesn’t matter. I can confirm that a better attitude leads to fewer problems.
The good news? Our attitude is within our control.
Related
The Plight of the Average User
Most techies don’t get it, but I’ve spent 20 years learning what “average computer users” really need. (Spoiler: it’s not more features.) I'll shine a light on what the industry still gets wrong, and what needs to change if we’re ever going to make tech truly user-friendly.#3378
About that Jitterbug
Jitterbug is a mobile phone designed for and marketed as “simple cell phones for seniors”. Their smartphone has a larger, simplified display and applications customized for its target audience. They also have a bigger-button flip phone.
Even with the aggressive marketing to seniors, the phones might make great devices for anyone who struggles with technology, regardless of age.
So far, there is no Jitterbig laptop, but I do have three products you can investigate.
The Chromebook. I think of Chromebooks as an Android phone with a real screen and keyboard (or larger touchpad) and no phone. It’s a fine solution for people who just want to surf, email, watch YouTube videos (or even stream), and more. Many of the apps in the Android Play Store are available, or there’s an equivalent. I find it much less complex than Windows or macOS.
The iPad and other tablets. I know several people who use tablets almost exclusively. This can be a comfortable middle ground. They’re very smartphone-like (iPads run iOS, the same as iPhones, and most other tablets run a version of Android, the OS on most non-Apple mobile phones), and can run a wide variety of available applications — or not, if you want to keep things simple. You can add a keyboard, if you prefer, and make use of voice-to-text to dictate email or documents.
The GrandPad. I have an 84-year-old relative using one of these, and it’s been a good experience. It’s limited, simple, and designed to be administered by a more tech-savvy family member to gate what the user can and can’t do for their safety. It includes email, YouTube, and the like, but not, say, completely open web surfing. I never expected my relative to do email, for example, and yet they’ve been communicating with my wife regularly that way for a couple of years now. The GrandPad has been a great, if somewhat limited, solution for them.
I think of Jitterbug as being somewhere between these options. I don’t know of a more comparable computer equivalent.
It’s also about support
Whether a device is useful to tech-challenged users also depends on what kind of support is available. I mean support in two ways: from the manufacturer and from your personal network.
Jitterbug phones, for example, have a variety of support options, some of which include direct, personal contact with an individual to help you. Grandpad includes similar levels of support. The support for more generic devices, like iPads, tablets, and ChromeBooks, varies based on where you purchase them.
That next level of support, though, is all about who you can reach out to for help within what I’ll call your personal network. That can include anyone from your more technically inclined family members to support options at local senior centers and libraries.
How you will get help using the device can sometimes be even more important than which device you use. In fact, one piece of advice I often give is to factor in who can help you into your initial purchase decision. If you have several iPad owners in your circle of friends, for example, that might tip the scales a little towards buying the same device.
Do this
Consider the alternatives I’ve mentioned above. Even if they’re not right for you, do what you can to “keep on keeping on” anyway. Technology opens doors. Some doors are heavier than others, but almost all are worth a look inside.
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I’m not sure if tablets are a good alternative.I have several computers and a couple of tablets. I prefer the computers because of the keyboard. I hate typing more than a few words on my tablets or phone. There are Bluetooth keyboards that make it easier, but that might be complicated for some.
I got my 72-year-old younger bother a Chromebook and it does everything he needs without complication. The only learning curve is learning to use the Chrome browser. It seems to be the easiest OS out there. I’d guess that well over 90% of people can use a Chromebook as their personal computer.
It would be good to hear some comments here on how readers use their computers. If you use a Windows or Mac computer, do use do everything on a browser on your home computer. (I’m excluding work computers, because those require a full OS.)
As both a senior and a business owner, my problem isn’t lack of tech savvy — 25 years ago I was a MCSE and still do some ColdFusion programming — but the utter and complete waste of time and unnecessary complexity of most devices today. I have no interest in biometrics, voice or AI “assistance” (read interference), or the memory-intensive and largely useless “upgrades” being provided today. Productivity is routinely lost by using a Microsoft machine that constantly interferes with one’s ability to work and manage one’s own security.
As a senior, I am less concerned with watching cat videos on YouTube or web surfing than with getting work done in a timely fashion — and, yes, e-mailing my personal social network, participating in forums, and online learning.
Yes, though it requires more tech knowledge, we are considering a migration into Linux and the open source world to avoid the lost productivity and unnecessary complexity.
As an 83 year-old retired MCSE, I agree with your thoughts on Chromebook. I don’t own one, but my wife does (now using her second Chromebook). It does everything she needs and has me as a backup if she has problems.
I ‘ve been using Linux Mint exclusively for the last 15 years, so Windows technology has passed me by (no regrets – This means I’m no longer the neighborhood free “Guru” for Windows problems). I feel there are Linux distros that could easily be used by the non-tech savvy, especially if they have a friend or relative that could set it up and help them over any rough spots. The various Linux distros like Mint have come a very long way in making it more user-friendly for the everyday user, making necessary resort to the dreaded ‘Command Line’ a rare occurrence.
As an IT professional, I found that AI usually produces easy-to-read and understand instructions for the most common computer tasks with greater than 95% accuracy. In fact, I often cut and paste AI answers to help desk tickets.
Prompt Suggestion: “Write instructions for a computer novice on how to…..”
I do the same sometimes, but what is critical is that someone knowledgeable vet the answer before sending it on. For me it’s a time saver, but not a replacement for experience.
I occasionally do the same. I rarely ask it to answer a question, but I check my answers with an AI chat. I don’t use it so much to check if it’s correct, but I ask it to check for readability. It sometimes adds a detail I left out. I have to change the language to sound less “perfect”. AI photos and video have a certain plastic look. The same seems to apply to AI text.
I do the same, using Duck.ai. Its advantage beside being free is, like Duck search, it doesn’t keep any record of your interactions. Everything is kept on your own computer and you have the option of erasing it at any time.
Back in the days of antiquity, when I was but a young college student, It was suggested always write documentation for any application so that your Grandmother could use it.
I like the expression that a picture says a thousand words, so I like to load up documentation with illustrations and diagrams rather than huge heavy blocks of copy.
When I worked at Wang, the documentation writer for our department had a masters degree in medieval English literature. I had to get him to understand it. His documentation was in the style of Beowulf. 😉 (Just kidding)
I include screenshots with circles and arrows whenever it would clarify things when I answer questions that come in.
I love your blog content, and have purchased a few of your publications. I hope you don’t mind my posting this on Facebook. If you do let me know. I sing your praises whenever I have the chance and inspiration to do so.
Feel free to post a link. It can help your friends and it helps us.
The Apple iPads are generally more expensive that Android tablets, but (at least in the UK – and I think in most of the world) Apple does offer free support and training on using your device in their shops, and I think remotely.
I can’t help but think that in respect to an aging computer using demographic, may the much maligned Windows 8 “Metro” interface would be a benefit here. Which in hind-sight, I find rather ironic.
I thought the interface was ugly, painful, and counter-productive. And I avoided Metro like “the Plague”, and stuck to Win 7 til Win 10 arrived.
Read your article, it’s good. One thing that is constantly not addressed by government agencies, banks, insurance companies, utility companies and probably even more organisation. Here in Australia our internet is sometimes not available in rural areas, so how do people get in touch with organisations. I believe that these organisations fail to recognise that not all people have access to the internet or electronic devices or are not “tech savvy”. Unfortunately if you don’t have a mobile phone or a computer, it is extremely difficult to contact government agencies and banks etc.
I’m 5 weeks shy of being 88 and do find it difficult of keep up with the “daily” changes in technology. To be truthful, to me it’s the new “acronyms” that keep popping up, trying to figure out their meaning. It seems (probably just me) that by the time I (sort of) understand the new tech info, something new is already out there. Maybe if there was a “dictionary of sorts” of these acronyms and maybe there is one, perhaps AI (ChatGPT) could help with that??? (I’m really trying to learn to us AI correctly). I’m (almost) exclusively using Apple products now (iPhone, iPad, iWatch & a Mac desktop (mini-mac to be exact with an M1 chip). Again, maybe it’s just me, but it seems easier to use and with fewer major user changes. Although I keep a low end windows laptop to occasionally help my wife with problems (she’s has to use windows in her work), but again, for the most part, I’m totally lost with windows. I really do miss Windows XP when trying to use a windows computer.
There are many acronyms I don’t know, literally thousands. I use a search engine to look up acronyms and have always fond an answer. An AI chatbot wiill also work.
I switched to “Ask Leo!” When I stopped subscribing to “Computer Active” in the UK. The article on making computers simpler for elderly people is the first one which has rung a bell with me. I am two months short of my 88th birthday but my age is not my problem. I have a mathematical and scientific background. As you touch on in your article, I am just not interested in apps which deal with problems I have no wish to solve. I get fed up with computers and mobile phones always wanting to direct me where I don’t want to go. I don’t need to be told, “We think you’ll be interested in …” I am quite capable of thinking for myself, thank you.
Like others, I have found Linux (Ubuntu) less intrusive than Windows and it takes up far less computer resources. I have used it to rescue several computers which I would have had to write off when Windows told me they did not have high enough specifications to handle the latest upgrade. The main computer I am using now is a cast off from my son’s company which is incapable of running Windows 11. I do have a computer running Window’s 11 in another room which I use occasionally when it suits me to work in the other room.
In the UK, some enterprising person or company about 15 years ago did attempt to simplify computing by producing Simplicity Homekey, a plug-in usb stick operating system based on Linux Mint, but they went bust for want of take up of the idea. I think they hit a barrier which I have come up against: if someone is convinced that IT is beyond them they will never be won over however much they are assured, “We can make it simpler for you”. It is even more difficult if someone has to ask you to pay for their “simpler” product.
Finally, I agree with the comment about tablets. I much prefer using a mouse and keyboard to a touch screen.