I've been thinking about getting an iPad for my father. He has always been interested in computers, but a keyboard and mouse are just a bit much for him. I got him going on a TomTom GPS with touch screen, which, after a shaky start and fat fingers, he got going on and is confident with. I've recently set them up with a Tivo, and again, after a shaky start, is building confidence with the menu system.
I've talked to him about an iPad, told him it is touch screen just like his TomTom. He understands a touch screen interface - you point at something and you get it.
Those wondering what the big deal with a mouse, keyboard and everything else - older people have less flexible hands, someone who has worked hard all their life don't have the fine motor skils to move a mouse around and click and double click. A keyboad is an abstraction away from the 'thing' - which is the screen. Old people also have bad eyesight and often wear bifocal lenses for reading, and looking up and down constantly between a keyboard and a screen is taxing and frustrating. If you think a keyboard is simple, ask 10 non-tech friends what the 'scroll lock' key does, and see if you get 10 answers that match.
Traditional computer devices haven't moved on much from the hobbyist days of the Apple 1 where you plugged the box into a TV screen. The iPad is a genuine step forwards in design for people who don't want to learn a complicated control interface. At the same time old people know the future is online, and their children and grandchildren work, play and communicate online. They know they are missing out, but it's hard for them to undertake the near-vertical learning curve of learning how to start, work and run a traditional personal computer.
I'll take my Dad into the store and give him a play with one, see what he thinks. I'm pretty sure he'll be nervous and anxious not to look silly but will gain confidence quickly.
That is exactly our story. My grandfather also has very strong hands due to having worked a lifetime. But clicking (especially double clicking) never came easy to him. His Navi did, however (after a stumbling start as you mentioned).
I did show my grandfather the iPad ads on my Macbook and he instantly liked the idea. I'm sure yours will, too. I would be glad to hear about his impressions when the time comes^
Well it's my Dad, not my Grandfather, but, well, he is a grandfather and he is in his '70s. ;)
The guy can still drive a 3 inch nail in with 3 hits of his hammer but has real trouble with the end of his finger, of which the last 1/4 inch is missing, courtesy of a saw blade. He also has trouble grasping a mouse due to tendon damage in his right hand caused by a nylon rope, a flooded creek and a rescue attempt - well, you get the picture. Old guys who have worked hard have the money to spend, and the interest, but just aren't a use-case for product designers. I've long argued that a phone company who brings out a simple, affordable phone with a long-lasting battery, large buttons, easy to read simple screen and ear-shatteringly loud ringers would clean up the seniors market.
I've talked to him about an iPad, told him it is touch screen just like his TomTom. He understands a touch screen interface - you point at something and you get it.
Those wondering what the big deal with a mouse, keyboard and everything else - older people have less flexible hands, someone who has worked hard all their life don't have the fine motor skils to move a mouse around and click and double click. A keyboad is an abstraction away from the 'thing' - which is the screen. Old people also have bad eyesight and often wear bifocal lenses for reading, and looking up and down constantly between a keyboard and a screen is taxing and frustrating. If you think a keyboard is simple, ask 10 non-tech friends what the 'scroll lock' key does, and see if you get 10 answers that match.
Traditional computer devices haven't moved on much from the hobbyist days of the Apple 1 where you plugged the box into a TV screen. The iPad is a genuine step forwards in design for people who don't want to learn a complicated control interface. At the same time old people know the future is online, and their children and grandchildren work, play and communicate online. They know they are missing out, but it's hard for them to undertake the near-vertical learning curve of learning how to start, work and run a traditional personal computer.
I'll take my Dad into the store and give him a play with one, see what he thinks. I'm pretty sure he'll be nervous and anxious not to look silly but will gain confidence quickly.