In which I repeat myself wholesale.

[hirez]

There must be some magic switch inside computers that makes them utterly incapable of doing whatever it is that your parent(s) require.

There must be some magic switch inside me that makes me utterly incapable of making a computer do whatever it is that my parent(s) require.

Actually, if you've difficulty making out squitty icons and nasty fonts on a screen, and you've got the hand/eye co-ordination required to use a mouse, because, well, why would you, then modern computing really isn't for you.

Christ, but my industry's run by and for a complete shower of smug, ableist tossers.

Comments

[chiller.livejournal.com]

My Dad 100% survives on cursor keys. I was hoping the whole thing would be voice recognition by now, but my phone still can't tell "Mum" from "Katy". Feck.

[quercus.livejournal.com]

Can't you outsource to Small Bruv?

What are Android tablets (or that religious device) like for what you need here? Many of those (if big enough) seem to have a more approachable UI for the non-power-user.

[jarkman.livejournal.com]

I think tablets aren't quite there yet, but their descendants are definitely the future for the less-technical user. There's just so much less to go wrong, and so much less interface cruft to deal with.

My folks would probably want this kind of a thing:
http://www.intomobile.com/2011/01/04/asus-transformer-android-tablet-keyboard-dock/
just so they could type emails.

[hirez.livejournal.com]

We-ell, his 'help' is why the current box runs linux. (Yes, I know. Rod/own back, but less of a rod than Winders)

On the up-side, I have a Wacom tablet that apparently understands multi-touch and allegedly is more or less in-kernel (for values of 'in-kernel' that involve 'download newer drivers from sourceforge and follow incomplete documentation and of X doesn't spot it you'll have to remember how to hack an X config, which I've not done for a half-decade'.)

Computers will be lovely when they're finished.

[drumiller.livejournal.com]

Would love it if anything came with instructions and helpful 'help' files for the parentals as well. No, just because the device is hip and cool and has pretty icons and you have a HI specification does NOT mean that people inherently understand how the fuck it works. And 'Google will know the answer' isn't true... dammit.