Don't know if someone is already working on this but I haven't seen or heard of it. The other day I was thinking about my older sister and her home computer that wasn't connected to the internet, ostensibly because she is afraid of getting viruses. Now, she certainly isn't unfamiliar with computers since she has been using one for quite a few years at work, but still, she worries about the wild wild west reputation that he internet has, and has decided that she doesn't need that headache.
In many ways I think she is to be admired for trying to simplify her life and not get caught up in all the high tech that so many of us labor with on a daily basis. I don't necessarily agree with her rationale for not hooking up to the internet, but it made me think about how many other people there are in the world who have deferred using the internet for the same reasons.
So, given my interest in technology for seniors, my thoughts naturally evolved to wondering if there could be a machine that solves this problem and simplifies the entire experience of using a computer.
Here is my idea:
Suppose you had a reasonably fast broadband connection and you subscribed to an online service that managed all your software maintenance - automatically.
That means that, lets say every night, your PC would log onto your service and the entire operating system and whatever programs you subscribed to would be checked out and refreshed daily. You would have a pretty simple setup with something like Microsoft works and all your files would be stored and backed up online, not on your machine, and you would have no ability to load new programs locally and screw it up.
The intent here is to appeal to those people who have a need to browse the internet, write e-mails, maybe even converse via a built-in video camera and microphone. We're talking a simple communication device with wireless keyboard and mouse, and a single USB port set up to upload digital photos. The objective would be to create a PC that was almost totally impervious to virus attack, with firmware that could go online and refresh (or upgrade) all the local software if needed.
This would require a big investment to integrate the online component and the hardware component, but it could be done. I'm even thinking that the PC may not even need a hard disk with the price of ram and flash ram getting so cheap. That would significantly add to the reliability.
Given all the hair pulling that computer users go through to keep their machines working, this would solve a lot of problems for people who use a home computer as a communicator - reading and writing messages, learning about things online, shopping, etc.
Who is working on this?????
Monday, May 24
Tuesday, May 18
Some Statistics on Aging
Baby boomers were born between 1946 and 1964. That makes them 40 to 58 years old today.
The median age of people in the U.S. has steadily increased from age 20 in the 1800s to 30 between 1940 and 1980, to 35 today. This dramatic shift is due to several factors: the declining number of infant deaths, rapid advances in medical care and especially age-related diseases, and the declining birth rate. Some forecast that it will be close to 40 by the year 2030.
In 1880, 78% of men 65 and over were still working. By 1940, this number had dropped to 44%. In 1990 it was 18%. During this time men’s health and longevity improved considerably. People were not less able to work; they simply worked less. Many factors were involved, but the fact is that there are a great many people these days not working for a significant portion of their lives. The result is that retirement has now become more a lifestyle and a choice, and less a sign of incapacity. Improved prosperity and the advent of social security are also significant factors here.
These items taken together should be a heads up for people involved in any endeavor related to senior services. Not only are people living longer, they are spending more time in retirement, the trend is accelerating and will soon be fueled even more by the baby boomer wave.
The median age of people in the U.S. has steadily increased from age 20 in the 1800s to 30 between 1940 and 1980, to 35 today. This dramatic shift is due to several factors: the declining number of infant deaths, rapid advances in medical care and especially age-related diseases, and the declining birth rate. Some forecast that it will be close to 40 by the year 2030.
In 1880, 78% of men 65 and over were still working. By 1940, this number had dropped to 44%. In 1990 it was 18%. During this time men’s health and longevity improved considerably. People were not less able to work; they simply worked less. Many factors were involved, but the fact is that there are a great many people these days not working for a significant portion of their lives. The result is that retirement has now become more a lifestyle and a choice, and less a sign of incapacity. Improved prosperity and the advent of social security are also significant factors here.
These items taken together should be a heads up for people involved in any endeavor related to senior services. Not only are people living longer, they are spending more time in retirement, the trend is accelerating and will soon be fueled even more by the baby boomer wave.
Two User-Unfriendly things in most homes
Everyone has things around their house that they find useful but still very frustrating.
For me, the worst offender is the horrible mess that is the modern day audio-video system. You have this eclectic pile of black and silver boxes that are each designed by a different guy which, when wired together generate a regular stream of 4 letter words by every member of the family. In the old days when it was just an audio system, things were fine once you got it wired up. But now that we have hooked it all together with the TV, VCR, satellite box (or cable), TIVO, and DVD player, well, you already know the problem. “Why can’t I get the VCR to record HBO from satellite, and why are the rear speakers not working?” or “I turned it on like I always do and now I just get snow!!” or finally, “I just want to watch the #$%! TV.”
The second offender, the home PC is sometimes cited as the answer to the above problem. I disagree. About two years ago, I ran ethernet wiring to five rooms in my house from a central wiring closet; this works great for sharing high-speed internet and printers. But until my entire AV system gets integrated down into a couple of boxes that are digital and converse with each other intelligently, I’m not even going to consider tying it into my network.
The problem is that computers don’t yet fix themselves. In my opinion, every night your Mac or PC should run a complete self-diagnostic, connect with the mother ship somewhere and automatically clean up all the little glitches that accumulate during daily use. Of course that would put a lot of technical service people in India out of work, but hey, that’s the price of progress. Then you would have something that maintains itself and is finally reliable.
My only hope is the fact that frustration fosters innovation and creativity and new business models. Change is good.
For me, the worst offender is the horrible mess that is the modern day audio-video system. You have this eclectic pile of black and silver boxes that are each designed by a different guy which, when wired together generate a regular stream of 4 letter words by every member of the family. In the old days when it was just an audio system, things were fine once you got it wired up. But now that we have hooked it all together with the TV, VCR, satellite box (or cable), TIVO, and DVD player, well, you already know the problem. “Why can’t I get the VCR to record HBO from satellite, and why are the rear speakers not working?” or “I turned it on like I always do and now I just get snow!!” or finally, “I just want to watch the #$%! TV.”
The second offender, the home PC is sometimes cited as the answer to the above problem. I disagree. About two years ago, I ran ethernet wiring to five rooms in my house from a central wiring closet; this works great for sharing high-speed internet and printers. But until my entire AV system gets integrated down into a couple of boxes that are digital and converse with each other intelligently, I’m not even going to consider tying it into my network.
The problem is that computers don’t yet fix themselves. In my opinion, every night your Mac or PC should run a complete self-diagnostic, connect with the mother ship somewhere and automatically clean up all the little glitches that accumulate during daily use. Of course that would put a lot of technical service people in India out of work, but hey, that’s the price of progress. Then you would have something that maintains itself and is finally reliable.
My only hope is the fact that frustration fosters innovation and creativity and new business models. Change is good.
Monday, May 17
Why is this important?
Why am I interested in this subject? I suppose because it is one of those looming problems that don't seem to be getting much attention. The leading edge of the Baby Boomer generation is 58 years old now and as most people know, this demographic has had a profound effect on our society as this wave of people started to build in 1946. Now they are approaching the time when their numbers will place increased demands on medicare and social security and a host of other senior services, which are already stressed and underbudgeted. As a member of that leading edge group I have experienced some of the problems that involve older parents and their children and would like to devote time to addressing some of them.
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