My father is in his seventies and has spent little time on computers. When he was a banker, he did spreadsheets the old-fashioned way. On paper with a pencil.
II have to admit it shocked me when I saw him doing one of those paper spreadsheets in the mid-90’s. By then, I had been using a computer since college. I’d learned spreadsheets on the computer, so I didn’tt even know HOW to do them on paper. I’m sure I could figure it out, but seriously? Why bother?
So you see how little my father does on computers. He did learn to do a basic spreadsheet to track their Knife & Fork Club treasury a few years ago. He also uses his computer to find football scores, Nebraska sports information, and play solitaire. He manages email, just barely. I know if I’m emailing him, I need to email Mom, too, so she can tell him to look at his email.
This is a man who doesn’t really need a computer given how little he does on one.
My brother recently got an iPad, so I decided to show him and the others the game Angry Birds over Thanksgiving. I briefly showed my parents Angry Birds and other things when I saw them in August, but they seemed uninterested. However, when my brother, sister-in-law, and older niece and nephew all got hooked on playing Angry Birds on the iPad, Dad became curious. He asked me to show him the iPad and the game, then he got busy. I was beyond surprised when he asked me if anyone was using my iPad the next day. He wanted to play with it again. Pretty soon, I’d given him my password and he was having the time of his life on the iPad.
I was surprised, but perhaps I shouldn’t have been. Dad has big hands, has never learned to type, and, as I’ve already said, does little on a computer. The iPad is likely PERFECT for him because of all the things it DOESN’T do, as well as what it does well. I showed him how to pull up the on-screen keypad for typing notes in one program. That keyboard is perfect for a man with big fingers who ONLY knows how to hunt-and-peck type. That onscreen keyboard drives me crazy because it is not made for fast typing; I have an external keypad if I need to touch type something on my ipad. For Dad, that keypad is almost perfect — easy to see and press with his big fingers.
So, Dad has asked for an iPad for Christmas, somewhat hesitantly. I think the hesitation is more related to his total lack of technical expertise, but I strongly suspect he’ll end up using the iPad and stop playing with his laptop altogether after this Christmas.
And no, Dad doesn’t read my blog. I’m not even sure he knows I have one. So, the secret is safe.
