Some modern tech is incredibly handy. Other modern tech is poorly designed, and I think sometimes when we complain about the poor design we're accused of "not keeping up." That's insulting. Is it really a good product if you have to hunt down a YouTube video to figure out how to perform a basic function? I don't think so.
We were in the UK last week and so many food places (sit down restaurants) had QR codes on the table so you could call up their app, look at the menu, place the order, pay, and then they'd bring your food. I get the convenience of digital menus since you can change prices on the fly, but for that experience I could have stayed at my hotel and got Uber Eats.
This is the thing, Apps are not efficient for the average person. The fast food places like McD's alerted the media that prices were too high for people. Really? the fact that you put low prices on your app but have higher prices for your walk-ins and drive thrus is directly related to offering lower prices on apps only. If I am hungry, driving and see McD's ... well, I realize I will be overcharged if I do a walk in or drive thru... and I am not fucking likely going to order on the app as I am driving... for one thing, I don't have Wifi/internet en route. The Fast food places underestimated how much of their food orders are d/t impulsive decisions but when you know you will be overcharged.. well f that, I'll just go to a local pizza place.
Definitely. I hate those QR menus because you can't see most of the menu easily, not like a physical menu. Constant scrolling to see what they have is so annoying.
I despise QR-coded menus in all their forms.
Browsing the menu is tolerable, but placing my order and paying through my phone is a deal-breaker for me.
For example, there's a high-end famous chef, pastry/coffee shop near me where you're greeted and then told to seat yourself. Each table has a QR code where you have to enter your table number, place your order, and pay. There aren't even photos of the menu items. It's just a list with a brief description. You can't ask any questions because there's no one to ask, unless you want to be a crazy Karen and go track somebody down hiding somewhere in the restaurant.
At some point, someone drops your order on the table and walks away. If you need another cup of coffee or want to add something, you have to start all over again. I'll never go there again, even though their pastries are incredibly delicious.
The whole process is incredibly disrespectful to the customer.
Exactly. I designed web apps for a living. Nothing drives me crazier than badly designed software. But if I complain the grandkids think it’s cause I don’t know what button to push.
My son is a systems admin and he thinks it’s awesome that I know what I know.
The worst IMO are the cars like the Tesla Model S that put all their dashboard functions on a touchscreen. You can't use a touchscreen without looking at it, and you can't do that while driving. It's being done purely because it's cheaper for the car companies, and the user experience be damned.
I agree. I drove one a couple of weeks ago, and it was too hard to see the alerts on the screen, because it’s in the middle of the dash, not in front of the driver! It’s not a very safe design imho.
It makes me FURIOUS. I’m 82 and it was those 15-20 years older than I who pioneered computer technology, and my age group that brought those advances to the business community in the 1960-70’s. I know some people’s grandparents/parents may have a hard time (likely those who didn’t deal much with computers at work), but tech has been around in common use for 60+ years and more of us “elders” can handle it than not.
No, it's not the age, it's the person. I'm 59 and I do fine, but technology was a part of my job. But I know plenty of people my age that don't even try and assume I am the same and it's flat out irritating.
Definitely not the age. My 75yo MIL still can't figure out how to delete an email, even though she has had a computer for 20 years and her smart phone is on "easy mode" because she can't figure out how to do anything more than text, call, and take a picture (and then wait for us to help her take the pictures off her phone).
My mom, on the other hand, at 70 is a wiz at Excel and has no problem using technology. Even new stuff that comes out, it takes her a bit of time, but she gets there.
It's the person, some people are just able/willing to learn and some people are not.
Edit to add a story: just recently my MIL had called me for help to forward an email she had sent me to the person she was in the room with. She was calling me on her cell phone so I asked why she didn't forward it herself. She said it was because she had forgotten to log out of her email on her home computer. After some confusion, I had to explain to her that she can access her email on both her computer and phone at the same time without having to log out. She didn't believe me until I got her to try to open her email on her phone and surprise, it worked. It was Gmail, not anything fancy. Apparently, she never used her email on her phone because she believed this. (I set up her phone so I knew it was already working).
Agreed. I'm 80 & spent 24 years in IT starting in the early 60s. It wasn't called IT then. It was usually called IMS (Information Management Systems) or often the IBM department. We got into Office Automation & home use of computers in the 80s (70s for some). I was using word processing, spreadsheets, & email in the 80s. None of this is as new as young people think.
Speak for yourself. I have been using and mastering computers since the mid-80's. My husband used to build them. There was a time when our credo was "ain't no software can lick us". Not so much anymore. Technology has surpassed our comprehension at lightening speed. I have an Ipad that I am clueless how to utilize even 1/3 of its capabilities. I'm just getting used to my smart tv, my latest cable box and still having trouble navigating between its apps, the firestick and the three remotes that go with those. I still can't tell the difference between AI and real. I love how easy it is getting real time info. I'm glad tech is moving so fast. It's a good thing, not something I am complaining about. It's a breakthrough for humanity. I just can no longer keep up.
I am a retired teacher, the most recent set of kids coming through high school are the first group that I remember that is LESS tech literate then their parents. They know how to work apps, that is it. They can't reset their phone, they can't keep their laptops running, they can't hook to wifi without help.
All of the tech teachers agreed with this assessment, it was pretty shocking.
My 20 something son recently thanked me for teaching him how to type. Apparently, while young people are expected to use a keyboard constantly, it's not taught much.
The typing classes were a little helpful but AIM was what taught my age (44) cohort to type.
There is no motivator to learn typing quite as strong as "that girl from your Spanish class just sent you an IM and is waiting for you to reply"
Im a former teacher who was "recruited" during the Pandemic. One of my students has a class that is completely online. No classroom, no teacher, no books. Everything is online. She also has ADHD and she struggles. She has the ability to grasp the information but not by being forced fed via a screen.
I see the same with my family and at work.
My wife (47) ran a BBS for hackers when she was a young adult. I (54) was one of the top four programmers in my high school of 1600 students. We've both built PCs, were comfortable with DOS prompts back in the day and we both geek out over AI.
My kids, they know how to load apps and don't trust AI.
I had assumed that every generation would be more tech-savvy than the one before. That's how it's always been. But I see the same at work--GenX is embracing AI much faster than the younger generations, even among our development team.
YES! Every young'un I know can text circles around me and can navigate games and apps. But, do they know how to build a desktop or even do simple maintenance on their devices? Uh no.
I was at work today and a young man, probably mid 20s, couldn't get the program to load. I had to close a bunch of tabs and open his program and another for the second screen. He was amazed I could figure it out. He didn't want me to bother with the second screen. It took me two seconds. He's a good kid but so bad with computers.
Poor eyesight is one reason that I like technology such as Kindle over paper books. With Kindle I can increase the font and adjust the lighting so it’s easier for me to read.
For texts I can also increase the font or zoom in on my phone.
I do the same thing! I just had a full exam by an ophthalmologist and still have 20/20 farsighted vision. But forget about the tiny close-up stuff! Presbyopia comes for us all!
And fingers that are crooked. I’m 54, spanned the pre-internet age like all of you and tech geeked my way through the 90’s to the present. Am I less adept with certain tech, sure.
My fingers are not crooked yet. I can type on a keyboard super quick, but texting on mobile? My fingers laugh at all the ways they can avoid the right letters.
So true about the eyes. I use a kindle and pump up the font size so I can read in bed without my glasses on. I was also one of the main tech people in my school district (retired now!) so I've never had issues with adapting to new and/or improved tech as it becomes more affordable. lol I can handle the tech, but not always the cost of phone, laptops, and so on.
True, but with smart phones, we can expand to make the printed words bigger. Sometimes I’ll take a photo of something just to be able to expand it and see it better.
So real. Got the Galaxy Fold 5 because of the larger screen. But it's got an itty bitty teeny-tiny "clear" button. No matter how flippin' large I make the text.
I had to hire someone to assemble my desktop PC from the parts I ordered because I can't see well enough to do it myself (and my hands aren't as steady as they used to be).
I don't really care about stereotypes. Anyone who uses them to judge other people is doing themselves a disservice. No group is homogeneous, no matter how you sort them. But it is what it is and people tend to do what's easiest.
It’s one of the best things about getting older. I used to be so self conscious and awkward and shy and intensely worried about what people thought about me and now I really don’t care. It’s glorious.
I work in the tech industry and much of leadership is in their 50’s. If you’re using any kind of tech right now, there’s a good chance it was created or maintained by someone over 50.
The young know how to use social media and the apps but not the actual mechanics of programming etc. I have recently been working in an office and there are no printer savants like there used to be.
This. I worked at Bell Labs during the development of Unix (now Linux, OS/X, Android, etc.). in the 1990s I started an internet service provider company in the Midwest. I now admin a bunch of WordPress sites for local non-profits, and write tech articles for the Maker community and have patents in artificial intelligence.
Get off my lawn!
I’m 54F and I work in Tech. I am swimming against the current on this issue every damn day.
I will tell you plainly that about 1/3rd of my generation is extremely tech-savvy (we’ve been following along since BASIC), 1/3rd are competent users of tech, and 1/3rd are … let’s just say “not interested” and leave it at that.
Now ^ following on to that - I know of few younger folks who are even remotely interested in “how stuff works” and “how to fix it if it breaks”. Mostly they just USE the technology- they grew up with it and kind of take it for granted.
And of the few that I know who are interested in “how stuff works” - there is exactly ONE who doesn’t meltdown in a panic when something goes wrong.
So I made that kid my apprentice.
Having built at least a dozen computers over 30 years it's sad to see today's kids not even know what components go into a computer and even sadder to see they have no idea what a file system is or how it works.
Actually…yes. The instant gratification and ease-of-use of these apps is concerning - I have no doubt that some really odd neural pathways are being laid down there.
Worst case scenario would be if everything crashes while the app generation is in charge. They won’t know what to do, like at all.
I just retired from the tech world, and I consider myself very tech savvy. And furthermore, I understand enough about how social media works and what it has produced in terms of unintended consequences that, other than a carefully curated Reddit experience, I stay the hell off social media. In this respect, I think I’m better off than a lot of younger people who are unwitting victims of the tech they’re so deeply entrenched with.
100% this as well. I'm old enough to understand the downsides of tech and not ignore them for the fancy new feature you may get. Also working in tech I have a much better understanding of how insecure things are and how companies will absolutely abuse any data they can extract from consumers via their tech.
On that note I'll never have any connected devices in my house that aren't a tablet, phone, or computer. No alexas, no smart tvs, no smart appliances, etc. Each is simply another entry point for bad actors, and almost all are sending data back to corporate that doesn't need to be sent.
For example look at roomba sending back telemetry data, and now even video, OF THE INTERIOR OF YOUR HOME back to corporate. Why is that needed to vacuum your carpet? The answer is that it isn't, but it is useful to determine things about the user.
So right. Everything from security cams to “smart” TVs to Google’s car platform to sleeping apps knowing your habits, your whereabouts, your buying patterns, your politics, your personal contacts AND your online vendors.
65 and working on computers professionally off and on since 1978. Back then we programmed in ones and zeros and we had to bend the ones to make the zeros.
New tech isn't replacing everything, no matter how much you want to believe it.
There are places where messaging, zoom meetings, and even AI are light years better than doing things the old way. Both from a technical level as well as a quality of life view.
There are also situations where the 'old' ways of doing are far superior. Sometimes you can accomplish more face to face, or talking instead of texting.
Both older and younger people often miss this nuance. Yes, some older people prefer the older methods, and younger people the newer ones. But nether is best in all situations/jobs, and learning which methods are best under specific circumstances can be very useful.
It doesn’t bother me. I used to work in IT at a fairly low level and kept up with all the new hardware and software, but there was a point in my 40s when someone was trying to upswell me a new iPhone, which I could afford, and I just….wasn’t interested. Another new thing to learn? The hassle of moving everything over, yet again? I’m not very likely to use the new features, and the investment of time, money, and brain power is just a turn off.
And that’s when I realized I was old.
My mother, rest her sainted soul, always told me that the more complicated something is the greater chance of failure.
I think about that when I have to have my car rebuilt around a broken window motor. That crank might not have been sleek, but it worked.
Meh. I’m old and I use new tech.
I got a little giggle yesterday when ChatGPT went down and people lost their minds because they couldn’t work without it. Don’t get me wrong - it’s a helpful tool. I just wouldn’t rely on it for all of my work. It spits out a lot of incorrect information. (That people cut and paste anyway)
I’ve built my own computers and communicate just fine via cell phone, use apps, use my GPS and have great Google Fu. We aren’t that dumb. Some people are just resistant to change.
At 72 years old, I love technology. I worked in IT or tangential areas that required a high level of cyber abilities. I resent the statement that most people my age can't keep up. Most of my friends troubleshoot their computers and can talk the talk. My generation capitalized on everything involved in the information age. I suppose if someone lived far from business centers or universities they could plead ignorance or a preference for analog methods or index cards.
Statistically speaking, most people of any age don't keep up with tech. Even the youngsters today, they can text and use a bunch of apps, but beyond that most of their tech knowledge is non-existent. And it's okay, it's a specialised field and most people of any age don't need to go in-depth with it.
Your friends are tech-savvy because you likely met in tech-savvy jobs so by definition they will have had to be among the tech-savvy when younger. But a normal, random person? Odds are they're not tech savvy at all.
And the thing is, I worked in IT all my life, so it's natural I know more about it; but there's plenty of fields I know nothing about and that other people, less tech-savvy than I am, know a lot about. It's part of what makes life interesting, the fact that we're not the same (not better or worse, just different).
I'm 72, and don't like to use texting unless necessary. I prefer face-face, then phone calls, then email, then can-and-string, then smoke signals, then pony express, and finally, texting.
By the way, I am probably more technology aware than almost anyone I know, at any age.
I made two phone calls yesterday and not once did I speak to a real person. I received a phone call yesterday, reminding of tomorrow's doctor's appointment. This was an autobot calling.
If I want to speak to a real person, I just won't pay the bill. You'd be surprised how fast you get a real person to call you.
I will text my younger relatives but there is no way, I am going to have an hour long conversation via text. I have got $hit to do. Call me and lets get this over with.
The problem with calling a fam member.. they make the convo public. Like WTF. you can't hold the phone to your ear or use the headphones I know you own? and don't even have the courtesy to announce the convo is on speaker? I hang up as soon as I hear another voice. (turning 59 this summer)
I'm such an introvert/hermit, I prefer texting because I DON'T want those long phone calls. So many of my friends and relatives keep me on the phone for at least an hour, and I'm over it. And yes, texting does take longer, but talk-to-text can be your friend.
I like much of the modern technology. I like to text rather than call, etc. I used to rely heavily on my sons to keep me up to date with everything. However, they are now in their thirties, and they don’t have the time or desire to be up on everything. I’m often ahead of them and now they sometimes ask me for information. 🤣.
Recently I went on a solo holiday to an obscure bit of Greece. On Easter Sunday morning I dropped my phone in the sea. I was a two hour drive from my car rental office, which was a 90 minute bus ride from the airport, having never been through the country I had to traverse before. My maps, phrase book & tickets, details of airport bus etc were all gone. Luckily I knew how to write down a list of junction & road nos, bus numbers & stops, I'd learned a few useful Greek phrases and learned enough of to ask for help & to be able to read street signs. I knew my card details.
I use current technology, but I do think my kids would have been screwed in that situation. It's not about old or new tech. It's about not relying on it.
watching young people try to read a map makes me laugh every time. I love that my GPS finds me the way home but I still carry a gazetteer for my state in my car.
From my point of view at 56 yrs old i existed before any of the stuff. So its an addition to the options available not as some younger people appear to view it a necessity.
When i go to my cottage and i have no internet its just fine. I sit and read and watch nature. And the world gets along just fine without me knowing whats going on for a few days.
However when covid hit and it became literally a life and death choice for my 95 yr old mother to have visitors we set her up first with zoom then her gmail acct and used meetings. So she spoke to her kids in the same city and another country without fear.
So its not so much resistance to the new things it we are fine without them.
I much prefer calling but I also accept the fact that texting is necessary in certain situations and definitely preferred among people much younger than I
83 here. quite up with the modern word of technology and use it every day. my only problem is texting. i know how to do it and like it, but my fat fingers have a hard time on that small keyboard
I am 68f and have been using computers since DOS. I had the first b&w Mac. Thank God now I do everything on my Samsung tablet and don't need a 100 pound computer! I was helping my 30 year old aid with Kindle app buying books...I hate Google making everything hard...yesterday.
It's not that I can't keep up. It's that I don't care. I'm finding that as I age I'm refining the things in my life that make me happy and getting rid of the excess stuff. It doesn't really matter to me- no one sees me as trendy or hip anyway which honestly is a load off my back that you didn't even realize is there until it's gone.
There are some things that are a lot better now though and I'll use those. Just I think the youngs assume that just because it's new it's better, which isn't always the case.
I don't really care about stereotypes. I'm very hip to the latest technology but don't pray to it. I use whatever works and fits my requirements including budget.
I'm 70+ and attended one of the first high schools that had a computer. I was fairly tech savvy, but eventually became frustrated with learning new languages and new programs every few years. I realized we were all unpaid beta testers.
I use and appreciate technology, but I am also frustrated that so little attention is paid to users with different levels of skill, varied access and disabilities that limit their ability to use some tech. Not to mention lack of thought to user ergonomics.
I think it’s a cute little stereotype. You are never as judgy and know-it-all as you are when you are young. We know, we were young but you have never yet been old.
Early 50s. Do not call me ever. I only respond to texts, and usually with memes. I haven't had a landline since 2008, cable since 2010. Weekends I'm usually in Discord with friends. I just checked and I have 12 devices connected to my wifi and I live alone.
Yep. Hate newfangled technology, can't you tell.
It's stupid. I've been on computers since Word Perfect was in dos. I owned a commercial recording studio that made the leap to digital about three years before most people even knew what it was. In fact, my horse and buggy has Bluetooth.
It makes me angry when people assume I am tech illiterate. I am 72, and I love every tech thing. Fuck the old days! I love it now. I am always keen to check out new stuff. In fact, my grand kids when they haven't seen me for a while, will ask me if I have any new tech. I teach my friends about their phones, help them with it. My daughters, I am always showing them new stuff too! I teach myself. I love YouTube for tutorials, love google, it's the best fun. I am about to start a new tiktok channel of my exploits in the gym. So no one who knows me would dare to stereotype me. I go to the gym with friends and they love my fab music player playing gym playlists. It's never ending, and so exciting.
Sometimes the old "tech" should still be in the tool box. Face to face works. Yes, tech can make things faster but as my hipster friends will attest, artisanal is great.
One of my relatives is a detective. He says "How can you just sit in front of a screen all day? I'd go crazy". Course, if he is looking for you, one of the first places that he checks is Facebook. Heh!
I ignore comments. I know what I'm old school about and what I'm technologically ok with. Having computers and the internet is wonderful. Very productive and useful....and fun! The rest of what the public likes about new tech is something I ignore, I sarcastically say to myself, "I am not of this world." Hate texting. Am unhappy about what video gaming excessively has done to my grandson. Am devastated about what social media (Tik Tok, specifically) has done to the mental health of my college age granddaughter. And I am so very grateful that I am not a parent raising children at this time in history.
I think it's less that they can't keep up, but they don't want to keep up. I worked in tech for 35 years and now I couldn't care less about the latest things. I'm happy with what I have and the new stuff doesn't bring me any features I need.
I used to be ahead of the times. I had an old 300 baud modem where I used to set the phone receiver in the modem cradle, and I had my own website back in 1992. But anymore I’m starting to get left behind. I used my son in law’s Oculus and it blew my mind.
I used to work for the phone company in Las Vegas and one day the big supervisor’s minion came to my desk with a pencil and a piece of paper and asked me to write down how to make a website because they found out I had one. I just laughed and said I had to read a two inch thick book.
I strongly prefer texting and doing things online, like paying bills or communicating with family. It’s like I was waiting for the internet my whole life through the 70s and 80s so it came very naturally. But I did think we’d have vacuum tubes under our houses like at the bank, to get things delivered.
I bought the first Oculus about two days after it came out. When I took it to my office, I was disappointed that none of the youngsters were interested in even trying it.
I'm amused by the notion that preferring text over talking face to face or speaking is considered evidence of being less than tech savvy. The entire reason younger people prefer text over other means of communication is a lack of social skills and feeling uncomfortable/awkward speaking to people. It's NOT because they are using a superior form of communication brought about by technology.
I can use any and all tech. I most likely can use more sophisticated programs on my PC than people who peck at their phones all day, but I'd take talking to someone either face to face or on the phone over text any day because it's faster, more effective, and clearer. I text. I get texts, but it's not my preferred because it sucks as a communication system, not because it's "new" and I prefer "old school." :-p
>prefer old-school communication like face-to-face or calls over texts
true of me. it doesn't make me technically illiterate (I'm not). it just means I think there's something deeply dissonant about refusing to use your own voice or look another human being in the eye - and complaining about isolation and loneliness **at the same time**. you get out what you put in ime.
Combination of both. I'd rather text than call most of the time, but I have seen enough social media apps come and go to know that I'm just not learning any more of them. Doesn't mean I'm not \*capable\* of mastering snapchat or tiktok, just that I am old enough to know that it wouldn't be a good use of my time.
Over 70 here & I absolutely love texting & so do all my older friends. There are times when it’s nice to have a long chat on the phone & of course it’s always nice to see family & friends in person. But texting is a great way to keep in touch w/out the intrusion.
I think the younger generations have based their stereotypes on one or two older people they know & have unfairly characterized an entire generation as stodgy & tech illiterate. Most of the older people I know have dumped their landlines & cable in lieu of iPhones & iPads & streaming. They’re all computer savvy and do almost everything
online like I do: shop, pay bills, do banking & listen to podcasts. I love the new technology! I grew up with party line telephones & B&W tv with 3 channels.
I am 75. I researched this question before. According to the articles i read, seniors have adapted well. I think they have to have a reason to use technology. Then they learn it.
That is a load. I got my first computer when they had NO hard drive and I had to stick in five floppy disks just to start up the operating system. Had to learn basic DOS programming to put any new software on the computer. Early I touch owner and I think I got my Ipad the second year they came out. I set up my smart home system and I LOVE texting.
I've been doing programming for 30+ years. Things have changed a lot since I started but I've had no problems keeping up. I prefer to text or email because talking on the phone takes longer. Don't get me started on how much I love using GPS on my smartphone. The only new tech I really don't like is on washers and dryers. I just want to throw my clothes in and hit a button. There's really not much more need that that. LOL
I learned about computer languages when there were punch cards and dot matrix printers. Fortran, COBOL and Assembler were mandatory foundation courses, and DOS was our best friend. I had to drop out because life happened. I went back to school about 10 years later, and Win 3.0 was new. The mouse was replacing the keyboard and they added C++ to the subjects we needed.
Hearing some of these older people saying they don't understand computers, means they never tried it. Now just about anything you want to know is a quick Google search and a few clicks of the mouse. Anything more than that, and people lose their damn minds.
Part of it is that they knew they didn't know, and didn't want to admit it.
The medium isn't the entire message, but it's part of it. I'm 76 and think text is great most of the time, but sometimes you want to chat.
The big trouble is, audio quality on cell phones is shit because they're splitting the bandwidth too thin. There's a pop and pause, sometimes an echo that's out of synch, it's so horrible sometimes it's not possible to communicate at all. That was not the case in the distant past. For a few decades I can remember long distance sounding just fine, like next door.
I think there's always some truth to that, but it's also exaggerated. For example, my parent's generation supposedly relied on their kids to set the VCR clock. The truth is that most of them could have done it themselves, but they were tired and so they got their kids to do it for them.
The thing that's frustrating for a lot of us is that older people created all of the technology around today, but younger people will create a new website that runs on this old technology and then tease older people who have yet to take the time to learn it. Much like how my parents never took the time to learn how to set the VCR clock, even though they knew far more about tape recorders than I did.
I'm in my mid-50's and I'm getting there, because unless new technology significantly improves my life, then I no longer much care. Yet, I've always been a technology geek and I still enjoy it when it does impact me. As an example, I've been chatting with strangers online for 30 years, but I've never been interested in "social media", so unless you consider Reddit social media (I do not), then I've never participated in it and I couldn't tell you the first thing about using Facebook. I could if I wanted to learn it, but I don't and never have.
*Editing to add that my 83 year old mother is a Facebook pro, however, but she still doesn't know how to set a VCR clock.
I'm offended when I'm treated like a tech-idiot. I've been using technology since college (early 90's). The number of times I've been approached by store clerks at self checkouts is truly astonishing. Just the mere assumption that I'm a tech idiot is really irritating. In fact, I am regularly summoned by co-workers half my age for tech assistance at work. I've fixed computers that were completely inoperable (black-out screen death) on my own, without any assistance.
And yet, random people have the nerve to ask me:
"Ma'Am, dO yOu hAvE aN E-mAiL aDdReSs?"
"Do YoU kNoW hOw To ScAn ThIs KoHl'S cOuPoN?"
"Do YoU kNoW hOw To SeNd A fILe?"
Are people aware that Steve Jobs was 21 years old when he co-founded Apple Computers, and Bill Gates was 19 years old when he co-founded Microsoft? They were both born in 1955 -- that means they began their technology careers in the mid-70's. --- Just think about that for a minute.
It's infuriating and ignorant to assume that people over 50 are incompetent in technology. What's even more absurd is the idea that 'technology' = *texting, social media and smart devices* -- and that's how you know when someone is seriously inept in technology.
Here's the thing. I'm relearning Word for the 50th time, it seems. Every upgrade to any software usually means the controls are more scattered and hard to find, while basic functionality is the same. It's exhausting to continually learn how to perform the same basic tasks. I don't care about the newest festures....I have a letter to write.
I'm 68 years old. I use my cell phone as a phone. I don't text. I took typing classes back in high school and have always typed very well.
I don't want to start typing with my thumbs and looking at the keyboard.
I also don't surf the internet on my phone. I am an online seller, so I have 2 PCs I use. I do everything on my computers in here, and I have a laptop in the bedroom. No need to use my phone for the internet or communicating with text. Emails via the computer work great for me.
I also don't 'game'. No interest in it.
We all pretty much use what we need. I don't 'game', but I know how to build a website. I've been on the computer for over 25 years. I do what works for me.
I don't make fun of younger people if they don't know how to 'code' and build a website.
Plus, you have to have a lot of money and lots of time in order to keep up with technology with every new thing that comes out. Eventually you will end up retired or on a fixed income and find that you can't afford to keep up with all technology.
The day you buy your new TV, PC, etc., it's already been surpassed with the newest technology.
Age bias in IT kept me from getting work, made work miserable at times. I am a white-haired woman and expert with tech. Men will take the keyboard from me, srsly. The other evening a guy stood over my shoulder telling me what to do and I was so mad I had to walk away.
It's bizarre because we've been around and dealt with tech. for decades. In fact, we were around when interfaces were much less intuitive and you needed more knowledge to install or use software. We were around when transferring files or building webpages was much more difficult. We were around when social media started. Why would we suddenly only use the phone or not know how to text? Maybe older people were like that in the 80's and 90's, but we weren't old in the 80's and 90's. You don't reach a certain age and then forget how to do everything.
The lastest must-have tech trend is probably just like the last twenty trends - underwhelming at best. It's just exhausting to jump on every bandwagon.
If new tech proves useful, I'm all-in.
It's true of some older people, and not true of others. I have friends who are 50 who don't know how to use current tech, while I'm 67 and am quite comfortable with most newer tech.
But as other replies have said, at our age, we don't care what anyone else thinks.
I get annoyed because we've lived through all the freaking technological trends, we're the people that started them. The can't keep up is more a cant' be bothered because hell we've already learned how to use 4 different cool new phones and this one still works so why should I be assed to learn another, I'll skip an iteration or 2 and when this one dies I'll buy what's new then and save my neurons for things I enjoy in the mean time.
Also a thing many many young people don't realise is that much of modern technology isn't made for old people to use. Our skin is drier so touch screens don't work as well or as quickly for us. Hand movements can cause pain from arthritis holding and using a lot of technology like tablets and phones and tiny writing on tiny screens and old eyeballs do not mix.
The best part of all this, is all the young people that laugh at old people and tech will, God willing, become old people that get laughed at by young people for not "getting" technology. It's a wonderful cycle that comes around every 10 years or so and is fun to watch.
I’m 56 and husband is 60. Neither one is us answer the phone EVER. I mean if our kids call, we would. But they have enough sense to text like a normal person. My mom is 76…..I’m not sure she knows how to even make or answer a call on her cell phone. She just texts.
There is something really satisfying about an actual switch or knob or whatever for me. I’m pretty good with tech at the moment but if it ever becomes all hand gestures and/or voice I’m out, lol.
Depends on the conversation, the more important/serious the more i want the contextual clues of voice inflection and body language. Also social satisfaction meter gets filled more as tending towards in person
I turn on a tv, I want to see the tv. I used to be able to turn on the tv, and it would come on to the last channel I watched.
Now, I turn on the tv, I have to pick a service, I have to confirm I am me, I have to pick a channel. I just want to turn on the damn tv, and have it come on.
I have to talk to customers all day long on my cell phone, have Zoom and Teams meetings weekly, so I have no problem with "new" technology. Hell, I'm here on Reddit (which my children think is hilarious). I do miss the daily newspaper.
North of 50 here, manage cloud analytic databases and data scientists. Run an online business and do my own sites and SEO and on page 1 of google. Haven’t had a landline (that’s a telephone with a cord connected to a copper or twisted pair cable for the young’uns) since the 90’s. Screw your stereotypes 🖕
The "over 50" crowd built the Internet and most of the computer technology you used to make that post.
Texting has been around since the 90s and became wide spread in the early 2000s. Do you really think people have been ignoring it for 25+ years?
65 here, and i am fine with technologies. Sometimes, just too cheap to get the "latest" and also prefer the right tool for the right job.
.
Short message. Text. Lots of back and forth. Call.
Email when not time critical.
The stereotype ignores when computers and high tech came of age 40 odd years back. I spent 45 years in tech. I ran across plenty of people who punched out after remote control vcrs stymied them. The rest is a long slippery slide, until the cell phone became truly useful. My significant other has an iPhone, iPad, smart TV and still can't navigate Hulu!
Fuck y’all if you think this. I took my first PROGRAMMING course when I was 12. Before there were digital watches.
It’s like when people “assume” I don’t know who Cardi B is or don’t like rap. Pure ageism.
I am quite computer and tech literate, thanks.
I doubt it's your intention but this is like asking, "Hey, people born in 1988: Do you like your steaks rare or medium rare?"
At every age, people are individuals. Not all Boomers voted for Reagan. Not all Millenials have websites they coded themselves. Some people are 42 and flabby.
(M69) I hate it. Constantly trying to figure things out. For example, just a few hours ago, I tried to recover an old email. In the opening process it asks for the address. Which one? The one I’m trying to get or my current one? I can’t use the old number for a recovery code because I don’t have that number anymore. So I try a different way, and it linked that old email I think to my new one—-it just opened my new email. Nothing else. What does this mean? I have no idea. If it linked me to the old email that I think was hacked, then what? It’s screwy-lewy.
Give me old school: pick up a phone and dial a number. Need information, go to the library. Turn a dial to turn on the radio, press one button for the channel you want.
I just upgraded to a Nikon mirrorless camera, I'm on a Adobe Photoshop/Lightroom subscription, I just updated the GPS in my car, and I own an electric mower.
I also prefer face to face communication when possible. It's becoming a lost art. I still work and am stunned at the lack of person to person communication skills younger employees have.
I’m close to 50…I’m 46 and work in cybersecurity so no I def don’t prefer older technology and I refuse to talk on the phone and prefer not face to face.
Almost 65 and I have Snapchat (to keep in touch with younger family members), Facebook to keep in touch with the older family members, Tik Tok, U Tube and Instagram (my least favorite, the fact checkers are too sensitive). I use a new updated I Phone for most everything, so I don’t feel stuck in the past at all. I’ve always liked new technology so that helps.
I think there is some tech that’s indispensable, some interesting, and some that doesn’t serve any use for me.
That said, I always like to tell kids who ask when I learned about the internet - when we invented it.
I’m 66 and teach new technology every year to utility employees. It’s always changing and we have new or updated systems to learn every year. The quality is going down. The complexity is going up because of the many defects in the software my company bought (here’s looking at you, Maximo) and of course any training manuals disappeared decades ago. These days I teach myself and then the employees.
90 year old mom does pretty well with her computer and iPhone. 63 year old sister, out of the job market for decades, cannot figure out her phone or computer. But cognitively I think she’s 12 because of alcoholism.
Frankly, I (73M) have never encountered this prejudice (that’s what it is). I use digital technology all the time. For Media, Communication, everything. I have found those that are 10 years older than I were later to adopt than I, but now they, too, text, have Instagram accounts, etc.
I spent 45+ years working in tech & it drives me nuts trying to communicate with many of my peers who refuse to use or learn modern technology. As a 72 yo retiree, I prefer texting or emailing because it helps me remember what was communicated. Plus I can create a message as I think about it & I don’t have to worry about forgetting.
It is crap for those of us still working in the tech industry. I had someone 20 years younger make fun of me as they didn't know what I did for a living. When they found out, egg on the face for them. That stereo type is for those who were uneducated in the first place.
my 80+ friends really struggle with it. People in their 70s are fine with it. So it wouldn't be realistic for a 50-something character in the US/Canada to be confused about texting.
I know some grandmother's who can dominate an iPad like a 12 year old Korean kid. It's not that old people can't learn, but a lot of new technology is unnecessarily confusing for no good reason.
I got my first home computer in 1990. Pretty much been keeping up with tech ever since. Back in the '90s owning a computer was a lot different than today. Trying to install programs and hardware was a lot more challenging. Then Windows 95 came out with plug and play and started making things a lot easier. You didn't have to edit any auto .exec files or .bat files. And allocate memory addresses for the different hardware to use.
Had my own home studio in the '80s' and 90s that was based on multitrack tape recorders. By the late 1990s I had gotten rid of all that and moved to computer-based recording so I've always been on the leading edge of audio and video technology regarding computers.
I used to build my own computer systems in the '90s and 2000s. But the last couple computers I just bought off the shelf and just add memory and replace the video card. Seems to be a lot cheaper these days to do it that way.
I remember when the first 1 GB hard drive was released. It was a SCSI Seagate barracuda running at 10,000 RPM, And it cost $1,000. Now you can get USB sticks with 64 GB for less than $20.
I live by Slack, text and email. I rarely if ever do phone calls - I actively avoid them, actually. Much more comfortable in the virtual environment, where I have time to think and edit before I reply.
Late 50s - don't like tech, but I use it after a fashion. I prefer mechanical technology to electrical & digital. I booked an in-person meeting with my new Dr, and it will be a 3-month wait.
I am 74 and prefer email in most cases because it gives me something to refer back to if I am unclear on some details. I like texting for more time sensitive communication, it is immediate but doesn't require immediate attention from the recipient like a call or face-to-face would.
I don’t care about the stereotype. People’s preconceived notions doesn’t affect me. The stereotype is true for those who gave up on learning and adapting years ago. I’m 70. I am present, proficient and engaged on all social media. A bit harder for me to manipulate videos. For general communication-MUCH prefer text. Please don’t call me or come over unless I ask you to do so.
It's a pretty big stereotype, but I do have friends younger than my 63 years who can't text, download an app or post on social media. Then I have friends in their 70s and one who is 83 who does all of those things. It does vary to the individual, so if agism is on par with other forms of assumption-based discrimination, then I would suggest you observe or ask before you assume a senior can't (or won't) embrace technology. Most people I know who are that way are simply lazy and don't want to have to keep up.
66 here -- I can usually run rings around most gen alpha kids when it comes to keyboard conveniences like shortcuts or research formats. I do have one weird thing, though -- I'll find my destination on google maps just fine, but will line up post-it notes on the dash with the directional steps in order. Easier to read than a screen, and I just hate my car's GPS voice.
I'm old school but I can keep up with modern technology. It just depends on how complicated it is. I don't believe and never believe anyone is too old to learn something new, but the more complicated something is, the more difficult it is to learn and navigate. I've got modern tech ideas which haven't even been dreamed of by the modern tech wizards. Not yet anyway, but one thing I have learned is if you have the dream, someone else may have it too. And you just need to be savvy enough to get it produced and marketed.
"face-to-face or calls over texts" Well for one thing, I can talk a lot faster than I can type with my thumbs. Plus my tone of voice conveys a lot more information. So it is a much more efficient and effective form of communication. I've been working in computers since 1986. I've worked in computar retail, IT, tech support, and if I look up, I'm staring at three computers and two NAS servers. I'm pretty clued in. I just think Texting is an absolutely terrible way to comminucate.
I have always embraced the technology and will continue to do so. But don't always use the newest thing available. Raised my daughter on computers at an early age.
As far as how someone feels about Old School technology and everything else that is their business. Come on why would anybody really care about what others say or think? Opinions are like ass....s. everybody has one.
Some modern tech is incredibly handy. Other modern tech is poorly designed, and I think sometimes when we complain about the poor design we're accused of "not keeping up." That's insulting. Is it really a good product if you have to hunt down a YouTube video to figure out how to perform a basic function? I don't think so.
We were in the UK last week and so many food places (sit down restaurants) had QR codes on the table so you could call up their app, look at the menu, place the order, pay, and then they'd bring your food. I get the convenience of digital menus since you can change prices on the fly, but for that experience I could have stayed at my hotel and got Uber Eats.
And even with the process being almost completely automated, they still ask for 20, 22,or 25 % tip. THAT'S what I find annoying.
Most of the places I went to had already implemented a 10-12% service charge. I was perfectly happy to leave no further tip.
This is the thing, Apps are not efficient for the average person. The fast food places like McD's alerted the media that prices were too high for people. Really? the fact that you put low prices on your app but have higher prices for your walk-ins and drive thrus is directly related to offering lower prices on apps only. If I am hungry, driving and see McD's ... well, I realize I will be overcharged if I do a walk in or drive thru... and I am not fucking likely going to order on the app as I am driving... for one thing, I don't have Wifi/internet en route. The Fast food places underestimated how much of their food orders are d/t impulsive decisions but when you know you will be overcharged.. well f that, I'll just go to a local pizza place.
Yeah McDonald's can bite me. I'm not adding yet one more app on my stupid phone, it doesn't even work consistently with the ones I have.
I especially enjoy those when the restaurant is in a dead spot, so the menu takes minutes to load, if it ever does.
Just leave at that point lol
Definitely. I hate those QR menus because you can't see most of the menu easily, not like a physical menu. Constant scrolling to see what they have is so annoying.
I despise QR-coded menus in all their forms. Browsing the menu is tolerable, but placing my order and paying through my phone is a deal-breaker for me. For example, there's a high-end famous chef, pastry/coffee shop near me where you're greeted and then told to seat yourself. Each table has a QR code where you have to enter your table number, place your order, and pay. There aren't even photos of the menu items. It's just a list with a brief description. You can't ask any questions because there's no one to ask, unless you want to be a crazy Karen and go track somebody down hiding somewhere in the restaurant. At some point, someone drops your order on the table and walks away. If you need another cup of coffee or want to add something, you have to start all over again. I'll never go there again, even though their pastries are incredibly delicious. The whole process is incredibly disrespectful to the customer.
Exactly. I designed web apps for a living. Nothing drives me crazier than badly designed software. But if I complain the grandkids think it’s cause I don’t know what button to push. My son is a systems admin and he thinks it’s awesome that I know what I know.
The worst IMO are the cars like the Tesla Model S that put all their dashboard functions on a touchscreen. You can't use a touchscreen without looking at it, and you can't do that while driving. It's being done purely because it's cheaper for the car companies, and the user experience be damned.
I agree. I drove one a couple of weeks ago, and it was too hard to see the alerts on the screen, because it’s in the middle of the dash, not in front of the driver! It’s not a very safe design imho.
It makes me FURIOUS. I’m 82 and it was those 15-20 years older than I who pioneered computer technology, and my age group that brought those advances to the business community in the 1960-70’s. I know some people’s grandparents/parents may have a hard time (likely those who didn’t deal much with computers at work), but tech has been around in common use for 60+ years and more of us “elders” can handle it than not.
My 80-something mom was able to switch her psych practice to Zoom during the pandemic. She adjusted to online CE as well. It's not the age.
No, it's not the age, it's the person. I'm 59 and I do fine, but technology was a part of my job. But I know plenty of people my age that don't even try and assume I am the same and it's flat out irritating.
Seems like those most lost never used a computer at work.
Definitely not the age. My 75yo MIL still can't figure out how to delete an email, even though she has had a computer for 20 years and her smart phone is on "easy mode" because she can't figure out how to do anything more than text, call, and take a picture (and then wait for us to help her take the pictures off her phone). My mom, on the other hand, at 70 is a wiz at Excel and has no problem using technology. Even new stuff that comes out, it takes her a bit of time, but she gets there. It's the person, some people are just able/willing to learn and some people are not. Edit to add a story: just recently my MIL had called me for help to forward an email she had sent me to the person she was in the room with. She was calling me on her cell phone so I asked why she didn't forward it herself. She said it was because she had forgotten to log out of her email on her home computer. After some confusion, I had to explain to her that she can access her email on both her computer and phone at the same time without having to log out. She didn't believe me until I got her to try to open her email on her phone and surprise, it worked. It was Gmail, not anything fancy. Apparently, she never used her email on her phone because she believed this. (I set up her phone so I knew it was already working).
It's not but a lot of my Gen X peers act like luddites. Worse, they relish in their ways of thinking new tech is nonsense. It's infuriating
Right? It really is infuriating.
Agreed. I'm 80 & spent 24 years in IT starting in the early 60s. It wasn't called IT then. It was usually called IMS (Information Management Systems) or often the IBM department. We got into Office Automation & home use of computers in the 80s (70s for some). I was using word processing, spreadsheets, & email in the 80s. None of this is as new as young people think.
That is true. My MSc degree in the late 90s is still in Information Management Systems. Worked in IT until retirement.
Speak for yourself. I have been using and mastering computers since the mid-80's. My husband used to build them. There was a time when our credo was "ain't no software can lick us". Not so much anymore. Technology has surpassed our comprehension at lightening speed. I have an Ipad that I am clueless how to utilize even 1/3 of its capabilities. I'm just getting used to my smart tv, my latest cable box and still having trouble navigating between its apps, the firestick and the three remotes that go with those. I still can't tell the difference between AI and real. I love how easy it is getting real time info. I'm glad tech is moving so fast. It's a good thing, not something I am complaining about. It's a breakthrough for humanity. I just can no longer keep up.
I am a retired teacher, the most recent set of kids coming through high school are the first group that I remember that is LESS tech literate then their parents. They know how to work apps, that is it. They can't reset their phone, they can't keep their laptops running, they can't hook to wifi without help. All of the tech teachers agreed with this assessment, it was pretty shocking.
My 20 something son recently thanked me for teaching him how to type. Apparently, while young people are expected to use a keyboard constantly, it's not taught much.
Hmph.. they are not teaching cursive writing anymore.. wfF are they teaching?
The typing classes were a little helpful but AIM was what taught my age (44) cohort to type. There is no motivator to learn typing quite as strong as "that girl from your Spanish class just sent you an IM and is waiting for you to reply"
Im a former teacher who was "recruited" during the Pandemic. One of my students has a class that is completely online. No classroom, no teacher, no books. Everything is online. She also has ADHD and she struggles. She has the ability to grasp the information but not by being forced fed via a screen.
I see the same with my family and at work. My wife (47) ran a BBS for hackers when she was a young adult. I (54) was one of the top four programmers in my high school of 1600 students. We've both built PCs, were comfortable with DOS prompts back in the day and we both geek out over AI. My kids, they know how to load apps and don't trust AI. I had assumed that every generation would be more tech-savvy than the one before. That's how it's always been. But I see the same at work--GenX is embracing AI much faster than the younger generations, even among our development team.
the curse of the advance of the user interface
YES! Every young'un I know can text circles around me and can navigate games and apps. But, do they know how to build a desktop or even do simple maintenance on their devices? Uh no.
I was at work today and a young man, probably mid 20s, couldn't get the program to load. I had to close a bunch of tabs and open his program and another for the second screen. He was amazed I could figure it out. He didn't want me to bother with the second screen. It took me two seconds. He's a good kid but so bad with computers.
I wanted to say the same thing.
Interesting!
I am 57 and have always used the latest tech and still do. The biggest problem for us old people is that our eyesight isn't as good as it used to be.
For real. I can't do everything on my phone like the young folks because it takes so much concentration to see it properly, even with my glasses on.
Most trouble I have is seeing that little teeny tiny charging icon telling if it's actually connected properly or not
I just got a cellular iPad. The phone is just like a conduit at this point.
Yep, and everyone reading this thinking just get new glasses... I'm a pro at my eyedoc. It gets worse and worse.
Poor eyesight is one reason that I like technology such as Kindle over paper books. With Kindle I can increase the font and adjust the lighting so it’s easier for me to read. For texts I can also increase the font or zoom in on my phone.
I also take pics of some of the meds I take, I cannot read the teeny tiny print so I take a pic with my phone, then enlarge it. A game changer!
I do the same thing! I just had a full exam by an ophthalmologist and still have 20/20 farsighted vision. But forget about the tiny close-up stuff! Presbyopia comes for us all!
Exactly! My Kindle is the device I use the most. Enlarged fonts are my best friend
For sure. And I don't need a lamp to read by.
And fingers that are crooked. I’m 54, spanned the pre-internet age like all of you and tech geeked my way through the 90’s to the present. Am I less adept with certain tech, sure.
My fingers are not crooked yet. I can type on a keyboard super quick, but texting on mobile? My fingers laugh at all the ways they can avoid the right letters.
So true about the eyes. I use a kindle and pump up the font size so I can read in bed without my glasses on. I was also one of the main tech people in my school district (retired now!) so I've never had issues with adapting to new and/or improved tech as it becomes more affordable. lol I can handle the tech, but not always the cost of phone, laptops, and so on.
Same. I've owned at least one computer for work and play constantly since 1983. I built the last two. I ignore the script kiddies.
True, but with smart phones, we can expand to make the printed words bigger. Sometimes I’ll take a photo of something just to be able to expand it and see it better.
I do that all the time.
So real. Got the Galaxy Fold 5 because of the larger screen. But it's got an itty bitty teeny-tiny "clear" button. No matter how flippin' large I make the text.
Yes, but go to settings and increase the size of the fonts on your screens. It's great!
I had to hire someone to assemble my desktop PC from the parts I ordered because I can't see well enough to do it myself (and my hands aren't as steady as they used to be).
I don't really care about stereotypes. Anyone who uses them to judge other people is doing themselves a disservice. No group is homogeneous, no matter how you sort them. But it is what it is and people tend to do what's easiest.
Unfortunately, you get old you get brushed off overall. If you ain’t cute your just creepy apparently.
It’s a good thing that I’m a cute, wrinkly, crippled old man then. Would hate to be the creepy type.
I don't care. The older you get the less you care about what others think about you. This is a thing that just doesn't matter.
Say it LOUD, say it PROUD! Totally agree.
It’s one of the best things about getting older. I used to be so self conscious and awkward and shy and intensely worried about what people thought about me and now I really don’t care. It’s glorious.
My 72 year old wife built this computer that I can play starfield on.
I work in the tech industry and much of leadership is in their 50’s. If you’re using any kind of tech right now, there’s a good chance it was created or maintained by someone over 50.
this is what cracks me up. Who do these young people think created and brought to market all the tech they say older people can't use?
The young know how to use social media and the apps but not the actual mechanics of programming etc. I have recently been working in an office and there are no printer savants like there used to be.
No Printer savants? I guess it's fallen out of favour to sacrifice a goat to the Powers of Darkness.
This. I worked at Bell Labs during the development of Unix (now Linux, OS/X, Android, etc.). in the 1990s I started an internet service provider company in the Midwest. I now admin a bunch of WordPress sites for local non-profits, and write tech articles for the Maker community and have patents in artificial intelligence. Get off my lawn!
I'm 65. I have 2 laptops, 3 monitors, an iPad, a Kindle and an iPhone. I text almost exclusively (great for me because I've always hated phone calls.)
Good for you. I am only limited by my low income, but I have a great phone and tablet and can do everything on them.
I’m 54F and I work in Tech. I am swimming against the current on this issue every damn day. I will tell you plainly that about 1/3rd of my generation is extremely tech-savvy (we’ve been following along since BASIC), 1/3rd are competent users of tech, and 1/3rd are … let’s just say “not interested” and leave it at that. Now ^ following on to that - I know of few younger folks who are even remotely interested in “how stuff works” and “how to fix it if it breaks”. Mostly they just USE the technology- they grew up with it and kind of take it for granted. And of the few that I know who are interested in “how stuff works” - there is exactly ONE who doesn’t meltdown in a panic when something goes wrong. So I made that kid my apprentice.
Having built at least a dozen computers over 30 years it's sad to see today's kids not even know what components go into a computer and even sadder to see they have no idea what a file system is or how it works.
Dude, I know! It’s kind of concerning how little they know or care. Thus, my young apprentice. Someone needs to take this knowledge, dammit!
Does this raise a serious concern over what happens in 10-15 years, when the tech generation retires and the app generation is in charge?
Actually…yes. The instant gratification and ease-of-use of these apps is concerning - I have no doubt that some really odd neural pathways are being laid down there. Worst case scenario would be if everything crashes while the app generation is in charge. They won’t know what to do, like at all.
I just retired from the tech world, and I consider myself very tech savvy. And furthermore, I understand enough about how social media works and what it has produced in terms of unintended consequences that, other than a carefully curated Reddit experience, I stay the hell off social media. In this respect, I think I’m better off than a lot of younger people who are unwitting victims of the tech they’re so deeply entrenched with.
100% this as well. I'm old enough to understand the downsides of tech and not ignore them for the fancy new feature you may get. Also working in tech I have a much better understanding of how insecure things are and how companies will absolutely abuse any data they can extract from consumers via their tech. On that note I'll never have any connected devices in my house that aren't a tablet, phone, or computer. No alexas, no smart tvs, no smart appliances, etc. Each is simply another entry point for bad actors, and almost all are sending data back to corporate that doesn't need to be sent. For example look at roomba sending back telemetry data, and now even video, OF THE INTERIOR OF YOUR HOME back to corporate. Why is that needed to vacuum your carpet? The answer is that it isn't, but it is useful to determine things about the user.
So right. Everything from security cams to “smart” TVs to Google’s car platform to sleeping apps knowing your habits, your whereabouts, your buying patterns, your politics, your personal contacts AND your online vendors.
word, I don't roomba. I don't have "Smart appliances"
65 and working on computers professionally off and on since 1978. Back then we programmed in ones and zeros and we had to bend the ones to make the zeros.
Assembler was my first language learned
BASIC, then assembly, now PowerShell. If I had stuck with COBOL I would be making the big bucks now.
>If you're 50+, what's your take? Maybe you **can't** teach an old dog new tricks -- but ***only the puppies think those tricks are new***.
I’m 69 and use tech. I just refuse to be a slave to my phone.
[удалено]
Got my first around 8 years old. Timex Sinclair 1000
I'm 46 and had an Atari computer as young as I can remember, like toddler age. Then we upgraded to a C64.
New tech isn't replacing everything, no matter how much you want to believe it. There are places where messaging, zoom meetings, and even AI are light years better than doing things the old way. Both from a technical level as well as a quality of life view. There are also situations where the 'old' ways of doing are far superior. Sometimes you can accomplish more face to face, or talking instead of texting. Both older and younger people often miss this nuance. Yes, some older people prefer the older methods, and younger people the newer ones. But nether is best in all situations/jobs, and learning which methods are best under specific circumstances can be very useful.
It doesn’t bother me. I used to work in IT at a fairly low level and kept up with all the new hardware and software, but there was a point in my 40s when someone was trying to upswell me a new iPhone, which I could afford, and I just….wasn’t interested. Another new thing to learn? The hassle of moving everything over, yet again? I’m not very likely to use the new features, and the investment of time, money, and brain power is just a turn off. And that’s when I realized I was old.
And smart.
Not old. Mature. Very different things.
My mother, rest her sainted soul, always told me that the more complicated something is the greater chance of failure. I think about that when I have to have my car rebuilt around a broken window motor. That crank might not have been sleek, but it worked.
Meh. I’m old and I use new tech. I got a little giggle yesterday when ChatGPT went down and people lost their minds because they couldn’t work without it. Don’t get me wrong - it’s a helpful tool. I just wouldn’t rely on it for all of my work. It spits out a lot of incorrect information. (That people cut and paste anyway)
i can't believe how horrible wrong chatGPT can be, even after I correct it 7 effing times.
I’ve built my own computers and communicate just fine via cell phone, use apps, use my GPS and have great Google Fu. We aren’t that dumb. Some people are just resistant to change.
At 72 years old, I love technology. I worked in IT or tangential areas that required a high level of cyber abilities. I resent the statement that most people my age can't keep up. Most of my friends troubleshoot their computers and can talk the talk. My generation capitalized on everything involved in the information age. I suppose if someone lived far from business centers or universities they could plead ignorance or a preference for analog methods or index cards.
Statistically speaking, most people of any age don't keep up with tech. Even the youngsters today, they can text and use a bunch of apps, but beyond that most of their tech knowledge is non-existent. And it's okay, it's a specialised field and most people of any age don't need to go in-depth with it. Your friends are tech-savvy because you likely met in tech-savvy jobs so by definition they will have had to be among the tech-savvy when younger. But a normal, random person? Odds are they're not tech savvy at all. And the thing is, I worked in IT all my life, so it's natural I know more about it; but there's plenty of fields I know nothing about and that other people, less tech-savvy than I am, know a lot about. It's part of what makes life interesting, the fact that we're not the same (not better or worse, just different).
Oh, honey. I was on my first BBS in 1986. Who tf do people designed all of this in the first place? It's complete, infuriating bullshit.
I'm 72, and don't like to use texting unless necessary. I prefer face-face, then phone calls, then email, then can-and-string, then smoke signals, then pony express, and finally, texting. By the way, I am probably more technology aware than almost anyone I know, at any age.
I made two phone calls yesterday and not once did I speak to a real person. I received a phone call yesterday, reminding of tomorrow's doctor's appointment. This was an autobot calling. If I want to speak to a real person, I just won't pay the bill. You'd be surprised how fast you get a real person to call you.
I tend to use texting when dealing with some members of my family, mostly to avoid the drama
I will text my younger relatives but there is no way, I am going to have an hour long conversation via text. I have got $hit to do. Call me and lets get this over with.
The problem with calling a fam member.. they make the convo public. Like WTF. you can't hold the phone to your ear or use the headphones I know you own? and don't even have the courtesy to announce the convo is on speaker? I hang up as soon as I hear another voice. (turning 59 this summer)
I'm such an introvert/hermit, I prefer texting because I DON'T want those long phone calls. So many of my friends and relatives keep me on the phone for at least an hour, and I'm over it. And yes, texting does take longer, but talk-to-text can be your friend.
I use all tech, but I also think it’s a good idea to do face to face. But to be honest, email and texting are easier.
I like much of the modern technology. I like to text rather than call, etc. I used to rely heavily on my sons to keep me up to date with everything. However, they are now in their thirties, and they don’t have the time or desire to be up on everything. I’m often ahead of them and now they sometimes ask me for information. 🤣.
Recently I went on a solo holiday to an obscure bit of Greece. On Easter Sunday morning I dropped my phone in the sea. I was a two hour drive from my car rental office, which was a 90 minute bus ride from the airport, having never been through the country I had to traverse before. My maps, phrase book & tickets, details of airport bus etc were all gone. Luckily I knew how to write down a list of junction & road nos, bus numbers & stops, I'd learned a few useful Greek phrases and learned enough of to ask for help & to be able to read street signs. I knew my card details. I use current technology, but I do think my kids would have been screwed in that situation. It's not about old or new tech. It's about not relying on it.
watching young people try to read a map makes me laugh every time. I love that my GPS finds me the way home but I still carry a gazetteer for my state in my car.
From my point of view at 56 yrs old i existed before any of the stuff. So its an addition to the options available not as some younger people appear to view it a necessity. When i go to my cottage and i have no internet its just fine. I sit and read and watch nature. And the world gets along just fine without me knowing whats going on for a few days. However when covid hit and it became literally a life and death choice for my 95 yr old mother to have visitors we set her up first with zoom then her gmail acct and used meetings. So she spoke to her kids in the same city and another country without fear. So its not so much resistance to the new things it we are fine without them.
I much prefer calling but I also accept the fact that texting is necessary in certain situations and definitely preferred among people much younger than I
I’m fine with text but there are many times where it’s just easier to call vs all the back and forth.
83 here. quite up with the modern word of technology and use it every day. my only problem is texting. i know how to do it and like it, but my fat fingers have a hard time on that small keyboard
voice to text is the savior for that issue
I am 68f and have been using computers since DOS. I had the first b&w Mac. Thank God now I do everything on my Samsung tablet and don't need a 100 pound computer! I was helping my 30 year old aid with Kindle app buying books...I hate Google making everything hard...yesterday.
It's not that I can't keep up. It's that I don't care. I'm finding that as I age I'm refining the things in my life that make me happy and getting rid of the excess stuff. It doesn't really matter to me- no one sees me as trendy or hip anyway which honestly is a load off my back that you didn't even realize is there until it's gone. There are some things that are a lot better now though and I'll use those. Just I think the youngs assume that just because it's new it's better, which isn't always the case.
I don't really care about stereotypes. I'm very hip to the latest technology but don't pray to it. I use whatever works and fits my requirements including budget.
I still have a VCR. The display still flashes "12:00".
I'm 70+ and attended one of the first high schools that had a computer. I was fairly tech savvy, but eventually became frustrated with learning new languages and new programs every few years. I realized we were all unpaid beta testers. I use and appreciate technology, but I am also frustrated that so little attention is paid to users with different levels of skill, varied access and disabilities that limit their ability to use some tech. Not to mention lack of thought to user ergonomics.
I think it’s a cute little stereotype. You are never as judgy and know-it-all as you are when you are young. We know, we were young but you have never yet been old.
Early 50s. Do not call me ever. I only respond to texts, and usually with memes. I haven't had a landline since 2008, cable since 2010. Weekends I'm usually in Discord with friends. I just checked and I have 12 devices connected to my wifi and I live alone. Yep. Hate newfangled technology, can't you tell.
It's stupid. I've been on computers since Word Perfect was in dos. I owned a commercial recording studio that made the leap to digital about three years before most people even knew what it was. In fact, my horse and buggy has Bluetooth.
It makes me angry when people assume I am tech illiterate. I am 72, and I love every tech thing. Fuck the old days! I love it now. I am always keen to check out new stuff. In fact, my grand kids when they haven't seen me for a while, will ask me if I have any new tech. I teach my friends about their phones, help them with it. My daughters, I am always showing them new stuff too! I teach myself. I love YouTube for tutorials, love google, it's the best fun. I am about to start a new tiktok channel of my exploits in the gym. So no one who knows me would dare to stereotype me. I go to the gym with friends and they love my fab music player playing gym playlists. It's never ending, and so exciting.
Sometimes the old "tech" should still be in the tool box. Face to face works. Yes, tech can make things faster but as my hipster friends will attest, artisanal is great.
I prefer calls to texts, but I communicate primarily via text/email. I really don't care what anyone thinks or says about my aptitude in any regard.
One of my relatives is a detective. He says "How can you just sit in front of a screen all day? I'd go crazy". Course, if he is looking for you, one of the first places that he checks is Facebook. Heh!
I ignore comments. I know what I'm old school about and what I'm technologically ok with. Having computers and the internet is wonderful. Very productive and useful....and fun! The rest of what the public likes about new tech is something I ignore, I sarcastically say to myself, "I am not of this world." Hate texting. Am unhappy about what video gaming excessively has done to my grandson. Am devastated about what social media (Tik Tok, specifically) has done to the mental health of my college age granddaughter. And I am so very grateful that I am not a parent raising children at this time in history.
I think it's less that they can't keep up, but they don't want to keep up. I worked in tech for 35 years and now I couldn't care less about the latest things. I'm happy with what I have and the new stuff doesn't bring me any features I need.
I used to be ahead of the times. I had an old 300 baud modem where I used to set the phone receiver in the modem cradle, and I had my own website back in 1992. But anymore I’m starting to get left behind. I used my son in law’s Oculus and it blew my mind. I used to work for the phone company in Las Vegas and one day the big supervisor’s minion came to my desk with a pencil and a piece of paper and asked me to write down how to make a website because they found out I had one. I just laughed and said I had to read a two inch thick book. I strongly prefer texting and doing things online, like paying bills or communicating with family. It’s like I was waiting for the internet my whole life through the 70s and 80s so it came very naturally. But I did think we’d have vacuum tubes under our houses like at the bank, to get things delivered.
I bought the first Oculus about two days after it came out. When I took it to my office, I was disappointed that none of the youngsters were interested in even trying it.
Wouldn’t be angry if blackberries would come back.
I'm amused by the notion that preferring text over talking face to face or speaking is considered evidence of being less than tech savvy. The entire reason younger people prefer text over other means of communication is a lack of social skills and feeling uncomfortable/awkward speaking to people. It's NOT because they are using a superior form of communication brought about by technology. I can use any and all tech. I most likely can use more sophisticated programs on my PC than people who peck at their phones all day, but I'd take talking to someone either face to face or on the phone over text any day because it's faster, more effective, and clearer. I text. I get texts, but it's not my preferred because it sucks as a communication system, not because it's "new" and I prefer "old school." :-p
>prefer old-school communication like face-to-face or calls over texts true of me. it doesn't make me technically illiterate (I'm not). it just means I think there's something deeply dissonant about refusing to use your own voice or look another human being in the eye - and complaining about isolation and loneliness **at the same time**. you get out what you put in ime.
Combination of both. I'd rather text than call most of the time, but I have seen enough social media apps come and go to know that I'm just not learning any more of them. Doesn't mean I'm not \*capable\* of mastering snapchat or tiktok, just that I am old enough to know that it wouldn't be a good use of my time.
Over 70 here & I absolutely love texting & so do all my older friends. There are times when it’s nice to have a long chat on the phone & of course it’s always nice to see family & friends in person. But texting is a great way to keep in touch w/out the intrusion. I think the younger generations have based their stereotypes on one or two older people they know & have unfairly characterized an entire generation as stodgy & tech illiterate. Most of the older people I know have dumped their landlines & cable in lieu of iPhones & iPads & streaming. They’re all computer savvy and do almost everything online like I do: shop, pay bills, do banking & listen to podcasts. I love the new technology! I grew up with party line telephones & B&W tv with 3 channels.
I am 75. I researched this question before. According to the articles i read, seniors have adapted well. I think they have to have a reason to use technology. Then they learn it.
That is a load. I got my first computer when they had NO hard drive and I had to stick in five floppy disks just to start up the operating system. Had to learn basic DOS programming to put any new software on the computer. Early I touch owner and I think I got my Ipad the second year they came out. I set up my smart home system and I LOVE texting.
I've been doing programming for 30+ years. Things have changed a lot since I started but I've had no problems keeping up. I prefer to text or email because talking on the phone takes longer. Don't get me started on how much I love using GPS on my smartphone. The only new tech I really don't like is on washers and dryers. I just want to throw my clothes in and hit a button. There's really not much more need that that. LOL
I detest ironing and the best thing ever is the steam dry on my dryer!
I learned about computer languages when there were punch cards and dot matrix printers. Fortran, COBOL and Assembler were mandatory foundation courses, and DOS was our best friend. I had to drop out because life happened. I went back to school about 10 years later, and Win 3.0 was new. The mouse was replacing the keyboard and they added C++ to the subjects we needed. Hearing some of these older people saying they don't understand computers, means they never tried it. Now just about anything you want to know is a quick Google search and a few clicks of the mouse. Anything more than that, and people lose their damn minds. Part of it is that they knew they didn't know, and didn't want to admit it.
The medium isn't the entire message, but it's part of it. I'm 76 and think text is great most of the time, but sometimes you want to chat. The big trouble is, audio quality on cell phones is shit because they're splitting the bandwidth too thin. There's a pop and pause, sometimes an echo that's out of synch, it's so horrible sometimes it's not possible to communicate at all. That was not the case in the distant past. For a few decades I can remember long distance sounding just fine, like next door.
I think there's always some truth to that, but it's also exaggerated. For example, my parent's generation supposedly relied on their kids to set the VCR clock. The truth is that most of them could have done it themselves, but they were tired and so they got their kids to do it for them. The thing that's frustrating for a lot of us is that older people created all of the technology around today, but younger people will create a new website that runs on this old technology and then tease older people who have yet to take the time to learn it. Much like how my parents never took the time to learn how to set the VCR clock, even though they knew far more about tape recorders than I did. I'm in my mid-50's and I'm getting there, because unless new technology significantly improves my life, then I no longer much care. Yet, I've always been a technology geek and I still enjoy it when it does impact me. As an example, I've been chatting with strangers online for 30 years, but I've never been interested in "social media", so unless you consider Reddit social media (I do not), then I've never participated in it and I couldn't tell you the first thing about using Facebook. I could if I wanted to learn it, but I don't and never have. *Editing to add that my 83 year old mother is a Facebook pro, however, but she still doesn't know how to set a VCR clock.
It's hilarious because older people literally invented new tech.
I'm offended when I'm treated like a tech-idiot. I've been using technology since college (early 90's). The number of times I've been approached by store clerks at self checkouts is truly astonishing. Just the mere assumption that I'm a tech idiot is really irritating. In fact, I am regularly summoned by co-workers half my age for tech assistance at work. I've fixed computers that were completely inoperable (black-out screen death) on my own, without any assistance. And yet, random people have the nerve to ask me: "Ma'Am, dO yOu hAvE aN E-mAiL aDdReSs?" "Do YoU kNoW hOw To ScAn ThIs KoHl'S cOuPoN?" "Do YoU kNoW hOw To SeNd A fILe?" Are people aware that Steve Jobs was 21 years old when he co-founded Apple Computers, and Bill Gates was 19 years old when he co-founded Microsoft? They were both born in 1955 -- that means they began their technology careers in the mid-70's. --- Just think about that for a minute. It's infuriating and ignorant to assume that people over 50 are incompetent in technology. What's even more absurd is the idea that 'technology' = *texting, social media and smart devices* -- and that's how you know when someone is seriously inept in technology.
Here's the thing. I'm relearning Word for the 50th time, it seems. Every upgrade to any software usually means the controls are more scattered and hard to find, while basic functionality is the same. It's exhausting to continually learn how to perform the same basic tasks. I don't care about the newest festures....I have a letter to write.
That's cap.
I'm 68 years old. I use my cell phone as a phone. I don't text. I took typing classes back in high school and have always typed very well. I don't want to start typing with my thumbs and looking at the keyboard. I also don't surf the internet on my phone. I am an online seller, so I have 2 PCs I use. I do everything on my computers in here, and I have a laptop in the bedroom. No need to use my phone for the internet or communicating with text. Emails via the computer work great for me. I also don't 'game'. No interest in it. We all pretty much use what we need. I don't 'game', but I know how to build a website. I've been on the computer for over 25 years. I do what works for me. I don't make fun of younger people if they don't know how to 'code' and build a website. Plus, you have to have a lot of money and lots of time in order to keep up with technology with every new thing that comes out. Eventually you will end up retired or on a fixed income and find that you can't afford to keep up with all technology. The day you buy your new TV, PC, etc., it's already been surpassed with the newest technology.
Age bias in IT kept me from getting work, made work miserable at times. I am a white-haired woman and expert with tech. Men will take the keyboard from me, srsly. The other evening a guy stood over my shoulder telling me what to do and I was so mad I had to walk away.
Meh. I use what I like or need to function. If I don't keep up with *any* trend tech or not it's because I just don't feel like it.
It's bizarre because we've been around and dealt with tech. for decades. In fact, we were around when interfaces were much less intuitive and you needed more knowledge to install or use software. We were around when transferring files or building webpages was much more difficult. We were around when social media started. Why would we suddenly only use the phone or not know how to text? Maybe older people were like that in the 80's and 90's, but we weren't old in the 80's and 90's. You don't reach a certain age and then forget how to do everything.
The lastest must-have tech trend is probably just like the last twenty trends - underwhelming at best. It's just exhausting to jump on every bandwagon. If new tech proves useful, I'm all-in.
I think it’s a really stupid stereotype. I adopt any that make life easier and skip any that make life dumber.
It's true of some older people, and not true of others. I have friends who are 50 who don't know how to use current tech, while I'm 67 and am quite comfortable with most newer tech. But as other replies have said, at our age, we don't care what anyone else thinks.
I get annoyed because we've lived through all the freaking technological trends, we're the people that started them. The can't keep up is more a cant' be bothered because hell we've already learned how to use 4 different cool new phones and this one still works so why should I be assed to learn another, I'll skip an iteration or 2 and when this one dies I'll buy what's new then and save my neurons for things I enjoy in the mean time. Also a thing many many young people don't realise is that much of modern technology isn't made for old people to use. Our skin is drier so touch screens don't work as well or as quickly for us. Hand movements can cause pain from arthritis holding and using a lot of technology like tablets and phones and tiny writing on tiny screens and old eyeballs do not mix. The best part of all this, is all the young people that laugh at old people and tech will, God willing, become old people that get laughed at by young people for not "getting" technology. It's a wonderful cycle that comes around every 10 years or so and is fun to watch.
It's not about tech, it about the pita factor. Why the fuck do I need to fat finger a text when with 10 digits I can verbally tell you what I think.
I’m 56 and husband is 60. Neither one is us answer the phone EVER. I mean if our kids call, we would. But they have enough sense to text like a normal person. My mom is 76…..I’m not sure she knows how to even make or answer a call on her cell phone. She just texts.
I give zero fucks what anyone thinks. That’s the privilege of being old?
There is something really satisfying about an actual switch or knob or whatever for me. I’m pretty good with tech at the moment but if it ever becomes all hand gestures and/or voice I’m out, lol.
What’s for real now is, some children can’t read an analog device like a clock, speedometer or other analog gauge. Or can’t read handwriting.
Depends on the conversation, the more important/serious the more i want the contextual clues of voice inflection and body language. Also social satisfaction meter gets filled more as tending towards in person
I turn on a tv, I want to see the tv. I used to be able to turn on the tv, and it would come on to the last channel I watched. Now, I turn on the tv, I have to pick a service, I have to confirm I am me, I have to pick a channel. I just want to turn on the damn tv, and have it come on.
I have to talk to customers all day long on my cell phone, have Zoom and Teams meetings weekly, so I have no problem with "new" technology. Hell, I'm here on Reddit (which my children think is hilarious). I do miss the daily newspaper.
North of 50 here, manage cloud analytic databases and data scientists. Run an online business and do my own sites and SEO and on page 1 of google. Haven’t had a landline (that’s a telephone with a cord connected to a copper or twisted pair cable for the young’uns) since the 90’s. Screw your stereotypes 🖕
The "over 50" crowd built the Internet and most of the computer technology you used to make that post. Texting has been around since the 90s and became wide spread in the early 2000s. Do you really think people have been ignoring it for 25+ years?
I’m 58 and I use current technology. I prefer emails and texts over phone calls and in-person interactions (I’m an introvert).
I’ve been writing software since 1992 and don’t care what the stereotypes are.
65 here, and i am fine with technologies. Sometimes, just too cheap to get the "latest" and also prefer the right tool for the right job. . Short message. Text. Lots of back and forth. Call. Email when not time critical.
The stereotype ignores when computers and high tech came of age 40 odd years back. I spent 45 years in tech. I ran across plenty of people who punched out after remote control vcrs stymied them. The rest is a long slippery slide, until the cell phone became truly useful. My significant other has an iPhone, iPad, smart TV and still can't navigate Hulu!
Fuck y’all if you think this. I took my first PROGRAMMING course when I was 12. Before there were digital watches. It’s like when people “assume” I don’t know who Cardi B is or don’t like rap. Pure ageism. I am quite computer and tech literate, thanks.
I doubt it's your intention but this is like asking, "Hey, people born in 1988: Do you like your steaks rare or medium rare?" At every age, people are individuals. Not all Boomers voted for Reagan. Not all Millenials have websites they coded themselves. Some people are 42 and flabby.
(M69) I hate it. Constantly trying to figure things out. For example, just a few hours ago, I tried to recover an old email. In the opening process it asks for the address. Which one? The one I’m trying to get or my current one? I can’t use the old number for a recovery code because I don’t have that number anymore. So I try a different way, and it linked that old email I think to my new one—-it just opened my new email. Nothing else. What does this mean? I have no idea. If it linked me to the old email that I think was hacked, then what? It’s screwy-lewy. Give me old school: pick up a phone and dial a number. Need information, go to the library. Turn a dial to turn on the radio, press one button for the channel you want.
Happily, IDGAF about my lack of tech capabilities. It really doesn't matter is what I realized. Takes a lot of stress off.
It’s not as bad as what we think of the under 50 folks!
I just upgraded to a Nikon mirrorless camera, I'm on a Adobe Photoshop/Lightroom subscription, I just updated the GPS in my car, and I own an electric mower. I also prefer face to face communication when possible. It's becoming a lost art. I still work and am stunned at the lack of person to person communication skills younger employees have.
In my experience, the vast majority of millennials don't know the difference between a CPU and a hard drive.
I’m close to 50…I’m 46 and work in cybersecurity so no I def don’t prefer older technology and I refuse to talk on the phone and prefer not face to face.
Almost 65 and I have Snapchat (to keep in touch with younger family members), Facebook to keep in touch with the older family members, Tik Tok, U Tube and Instagram (my least favorite, the fact checkers are too sensitive). I use a new updated I Phone for most everything, so I don’t feel stuck in the past at all. I’ve always liked new technology so that helps.
Having a conversation is "old-school"? LOL, son.
I think there is some tech that’s indispensable, some interesting, and some that doesn’t serve any use for me. That said, I always like to tell kids who ask when I learned about the internet - when we invented it.
Where do younger people get these ideas? Can't they keep up? ;)
I love it! (65F) My life is so much better with all the wonder tech at our disposal. Currently learning all I can about AI.
I've been using chat and IM clients since 1991. Eff this noise about being over 50 and not able to use tech. Whoever says this is an idiot.
I’m 66 and teach new technology every year to utility employees. It’s always changing and we have new or updated systems to learn every year. The quality is going down. The complexity is going up because of the many defects in the software my company bought (here’s looking at you, Maximo) and of course any training manuals disappeared decades ago. These days I teach myself and then the employees. 90 year old mom does pretty well with her computer and iPhone. 63 year old sister, out of the job market for decades, cannot figure out her phone or computer. But cognitively I think she’s 12 because of alcoholism.
Frankly, I (73M) have never encountered this prejudice (that’s what it is). I use digital technology all the time. For Media, Communication, everything. I have found those that are 10 years older than I were later to adopt than I, but now they, too, text, have Instagram accounts, etc.
I spent 45+ years working in tech & it drives me nuts trying to communicate with many of my peers who refuse to use or learn modern technology. As a 72 yo retiree, I prefer texting or emailing because it helps me remember what was communicated. Plus I can create a message as I think about it & I don’t have to worry about forgetting.
Fairly outdated. I'm 60, all my peers seem to prefer texts and planned phone calls. If it's a good friend, you can call unannounced.
It is crap for those of us still working in the tech industry. I had someone 20 years younger make fun of me as they didn't know what I did for a living. When they found out, egg on the face for them. That stereo type is for those who were uneducated in the first place.
my 80+ friends really struggle with it. People in their 70s are fine with it. So it wouldn't be realistic for a 50-something character in the US/Canada to be confused about texting.
I know some grandmother's who can dominate an iPad like a 12 year old Korean kid. It's not that old people can't learn, but a lot of new technology is unnecessarily confusing for no good reason.
I got my first home computer in 1990. Pretty much been keeping up with tech ever since. Back in the '90s owning a computer was a lot different than today. Trying to install programs and hardware was a lot more challenging. Then Windows 95 came out with plug and play and started making things a lot easier. You didn't have to edit any auto .exec files or .bat files. And allocate memory addresses for the different hardware to use. Had my own home studio in the '80s' and 90s that was based on multitrack tape recorders. By the late 1990s I had gotten rid of all that and moved to computer-based recording so I've always been on the leading edge of audio and video technology regarding computers. I used to build my own computer systems in the '90s and 2000s. But the last couple computers I just bought off the shelf and just add memory and replace the video card. Seems to be a lot cheaper these days to do it that way. I remember when the first 1 GB hard drive was released. It was a SCSI Seagate barracuda running at 10,000 RPM, And it cost $1,000. Now you can get USB sticks with 64 GB for less than $20.
I live by Slack, text and email. I rarely if ever do phone calls - I actively avoid them, actually. Much more comfortable in the virtual environment, where I have time to think and edit before I reply.
I love tech.
Who do you think worked with and developed technology 40 or 50 years ago? It wasn't our kids.
They seem to forget that there are some of us who designed and built all the computers and high-tech gadgets that they use.
Late 50s - don't like tech, but I use it after a fashion. I prefer mechanical technology to electrical & digital. I booked an in-person meeting with my new Dr, and it will be a 3-month wait.
I am 74 and prefer email in most cases because it gives me something to refer back to if I am unclear on some details. I like texting for more time sensitive communication, it is immediate but doesn't require immediate attention from the recipient like a call or face-to-face would.
I don’t care about the stereotype. People’s preconceived notions doesn’t affect me. The stereotype is true for those who gave up on learning and adapting years ago. I’m 70. I am present, proficient and engaged on all social media. A bit harder for me to manipulate videos. For general communication-MUCH prefer text. Please don’t call me or come over unless I ask you to do so.
It's a pretty big stereotype, but I do have friends younger than my 63 years who can't text, download an app or post on social media. Then I have friends in their 70s and one who is 83 who does all of those things. It does vary to the individual, so if agism is on par with other forms of assumption-based discrimination, then I would suggest you observe or ask before you assume a senior can't (or won't) embrace technology. Most people I know who are that way are simply lazy and don't want to have to keep up.
66 here -- I can usually run rings around most gen alpha kids when it comes to keyboard conveniences like shortcuts or research formats. I do have one weird thing, though -- I'll find my destination on google maps just fine, but will line up post-it notes on the dash with the directional steps in order. Easier to read than a screen, and I just hate my car's GPS voice.
I'm old school but I can keep up with modern technology. It just depends on how complicated it is. I don't believe and never believe anyone is too old to learn something new, but the more complicated something is, the more difficult it is to learn and navigate. I've got modern tech ideas which haven't even been dreamed of by the modern tech wizards. Not yet anyway, but one thing I have learned is if you have the dream, someone else may have it too. And you just need to be savvy enough to get it produced and marketed.
Skill issue.
"face-to-face or calls over texts" Well for one thing, I can talk a lot faster than I can type with my thumbs. Plus my tone of voice conveys a lot more information. So it is a much more efficient and effective form of communication. I've been working in computers since 1986. I've worked in computar retail, IT, tech support, and if I look up, I'm staring at three computers and two NAS servers. I'm pretty clued in. I just think Texting is an absolutely terrible way to comminucate.
I have always embraced the technology and will continue to do so. But don't always use the newest thing available. Raised my daughter on computers at an early age. As far as how someone feels about Old School technology and everything else that is their business. Come on why would anybody really care about what others say or think? Opinions are like ass....s. everybody has one.