My dad recently died suddenly after a fall and I’m helping Mom slowiy get things together. Years ago they had a fairly equal relationship, but more recently Dad had taken to just doing stuff without consulting her. So he chose their smartphone and computer set-up and that was that. The problem is that he knew next to nothing about either. Right now she is left with two Samsung smartphones only one of which seems to have internet access, and a computer. The computer has has lost internet access and I have no idea why–there is a tangle of stuff attached to it, including a modem or something and a router, which is showing a working wifi network which does not respond to its last recorded password.
She wants to pay some “computer guy” to fix things. I think this is a Bad Idea. What she wants is to be able to set up email (she has never had an email account) and to check her bank balance and look up stuff on the internet. Oh, and play solitaire. She thinks she wants to be able to do some accounting in Quicken, but she has not actually done this in years. They have a tax preparer. She also wants the security of a cell phone. One of the current cell phones might be salvageable, although I hate the Samsung interface. She knows how to make a call from the phones, sort of, but that’s it.
My inclination is to trash everything and get her and ipad and an iphone. She has arthritis in her hands and has trouble with small print.
One question: Can she type? My own late mother was able to get into PC’s even as a bit of dementia became evident. (She passed before it got much worse.) But it really helped that she knew her way around a keyboard–she’d began doing clerical work during The War.
If so, I’d consider a laptop or desktop PC with a keyboard & a largish screen. And look up “cell phones for old people”–with large keys, etc.
(I love my Android phone but I’m not that old. Really!)
You can usually reset the router to the as-shipped default by pressing the reset button for several seconds. From there you should be able to set the wifi back up. There should be one cable going from the modem to the router and one cable going from the router to the PC. Check that both cables are plugged in at both ends. A good trick that often sorts out a dodgy connection is to unplug and re-plug each end in turn. If nothing else, untangling the cables is a worthwhile job.
I’m not sure that an ipad and smartphone are a good match for someone with arthritis. A PC or Mac with a full-sized keyboard and an ordinary, non-smart, phone with large keys seems more the ticket to me.
If you have money to spend on new products, sure, but I’d personally start with unplugging everything and starting the set-up from scratch if it’s a “tangle of wires”. The router can be reset to factory settings and a new password created which should allow you to connect the phones.
On the other hand, if she has two phones from 2007 and a Walmart computer running Windows XP then maybe it’s just as well to start fresh assuming it’s in the budget. Agreed with Quartz though that I’d get her at least one full-sized device with a large monitor and real keyboard if she has trouble reading/typing.
Thanks. You all may be right about the real keyboard. She was a computer user back in pre-internet days, so that may feel more natural to her. I will get down and check to see where all the cables are coming and going. The computer they have is not all that old and is running Windows 7 and the phones are a couple of years old. If I can figure out who was supplying the wifi access on the computer it may be the simplest option to keep on with that. It looks like they have both wifi and a physical cable connection, which does not seem right.
Cable goes from the wall into the modem and then from the modem to the router. Some set-ups, you then have a cable from the router to the PC so you have a fast, stable connection. The phones get their connection from the router’s wifi but the computer is physically connected.
I helped my mom upgrade to a smartphone after dad died. The plan she got came with a free tablet, which I thought would be ideal for her. Turns out that she hated it. Never could get a real reason out of her, I think she just likes the traditional keyboard better. The smartphone was basically to keep up with weather and Facebook when she is not physically at home. Even at that I get a call about once a week saying “Facebook has disappeared!” or “My weather thingy is gone!”.
Ok that makes sense. I’ll see what I can figure out from the connections when I get back there. Some things may have been unplugged from the power outlets, but I don’t think any other connections have been changed. I also have to check their recent bills to figure out who is providing what. Their landline is AT&T, the cell phones are Verizon, but I don’t know what the rest is (TV, computer, wifi).
Sounds like working with what she has may be the best option.
Depending on the arthritis and how keen she is try something new, I think iPad/iPhone is your best bet. The set up is dead simple. The exact same OS means everything will work the same and she’ll only have to learn once. iCloud functionality means her emails, texts, contacts, bookmarks, and other data will be automatically synced between the 2 devices.
Since she has trouble with small print, take her to an Apple store if you can so she can see what they are like her in own hands and ask the salesperson to show you the accessibility features- things like increasing and bolding text, increasing contrast, zooming, etc.
I tried to get my mother into a smart phone a few years back. She could not get the hang of it. She’d swipe the screen to unlock, then stare are the screen trying to remember what to do next until the bloody screen timed out again. Rinse and repeat.
So I got her a cheap mobile phone designed for elderly people. It has great big buttons, a small screen, automatic hands free answering and a panic button. If she pushes the panic button the phone:
Sends a text message to me and my daughter
Rings 000 (aus version of 911)
Goes onto handsfree so if she’s fallen over she can yell at the phone without having to be able to hold it.
makes a noise like a personal duress alarm
I also tried showing her how to use a tablet, she keeps setting off apps by touching the wrong spot. She’d be much better suited to a mouse and keyboard if I need to get her online.
This is interesting. My husband is sure that she should have an ipad and an iphone, but the consensus here seems otherwise, and I’m starting to agree. She claims to be “visual”, but she is used to a keyboard and mouse to the extent that she is a computer user at all. It’s easy to get around on touch screens, but maybe less easy to get yourself out it you get lost inside some app or other. She really can’t make heads or tail out of her current cell phone and I find it pretty unintuitive myself.
I kind of like the idea of a simple, “emergency” cell phone with a few key numbers. That’s really what she needs it for.
When you say elderly, how old is elderly? I had to set up my mother on the Internet when she was 82 or something. One of the first things I found out was if she croaked who would be responsible for the contract (sounds callous, but necessary).
After that I got her a low speed Dell (she didn’t need anything super quick- she does little else but send emails).
Now all that is 10 years ago and I’ve had to replace the computer. I was fortunate that Windows 10 had emerged as she couldn’t go from XP to Windows 8. I’ve always paid for virus protection for her although I doubt she ever searches anything on the Internet (she’s almost 93 now).
So I guess buy a good but not overly expensive computer, but also be prepared to spring for virus protection. And think sometime in the future the computer may need to be upgraded.
Also, I’d go for a large screen, keyboard and mouse. If arthritis is a problem small mouse can be a killer.
If she is used to a Samsung and a computer, I would advise against an iPad and iPhone. It is surprisingly hard to switch in either direction. I use an Android phone, and was given an iPad, and the thing drives me nuts. There’s no back button, and all my intuition is wrong. In several situations I have had to use a different device and Google to figure out how to do something basic on the iPad, like get it out of “jiggle mode”.
Also, it is really annoying to try to type on an iPad, or to multi-task. If she wants a device for banking, get her a computer with a screen and keyboard, and set it up to have large print on the screen. I like Macs, but if she is used to Windows, I’d stick with a flavor of Windows.
Depending on how much she used the phone for stuff other than phone calls, either a simple phone with large keys or the Samsung she has is probably good. You may hate the Samsung interface (and I don’t love it) but lots of people do like it, and it’s easier if she doesn’t have to learn something new.
If the budget includes room for an additional device, you might also get her a tablet for FaceTime or Skype or Google hangouts. (Which all work about the same.) If you do, plan to set everything up so all she needs to do is hit one icon to get started. This is a much simpler use-case than on-line banking, and an iPad could be fine, if that’s what the rest of the family uses. You might also load movie software on the tablet.
You really have to consider her as an individual. I’ve got one client who’s 97 and loves her tablet and can do more things on it than I can. I’ve got one who’s 60 and can’t figure out how to touch an icon. And everywhere in between.
The older they get, the less useful a person’s age is in determining what they can do and what they prefer.
(I’m 40, and I struggle with my mother’s iPhone. I know Windows and Android. My brain has decided that’s enough. Her iPhone looks a whole lot like my Android, but there’s a lot of frantic pressing of things that don’t press before I finally give up and remind her that I told her when she bought it I wouldn’t be able to help her with her iPhone woes. I can get in to about anything, but I have a dickens of a time getting back out again. )
Plan a day out with a nice lunch and a trip to a big box store to browse. I’d suggest doing this even if you figure out what’s wrong with the stuff at home. Just because your dad picked it out and set it up doesn’t mean it’s the best thing on the market for meeting her needs.
Don’t give in. Your brain is not the boss of you. You’re not too old to learn things.
As for the OP - Windows 7 is probably the right OS for your mom. It’s familiar to her. If you buy a new PC, it will have Windows 10 or OSX, and she’d have to relearn things. I’m sure that computer will do email and websurfing, provided you give her good passwords. There’s a lot to like about iPads but they’re not great for typing.
You might consider getting her a fingerprint reader for security but I don’t know.
You’re right, but there’s this big thing where I just don’t care. If Apple takes over the world, of course I’ll learn their operating system. But I have no motivation to learn a system that I don’t own and can’t afford anyway. I told Mom when she got it (and she got it because, and I’m not even kidding, “all my friends have iPhones!”) that she was going to have to ask her friends for tech support, because I haven’t been fluent in Apple since the IIe. She made her choice, and now she has to live with it.
She isn’t really “used to” anything. She’s never had an email account or used the internet for herself. She can use the cell phone as a phone, as long as she doesn’t hit the wrong app button and get lost somewhere. She thinks of herself as a computer user because she had a bookkeeping job back in 1992, but since then, her use has been pretty much limited to Quicken and Solitaire.
If she prefers a full-size keyboard, get her a Chromebox to replace the computer. It’s impossible to screw it up and costs less than $200 for a very decent one.
I’ll tell you why (probably). If I have to punch a password into my tablet I can do it, but it is a royal pita. I will never write anything using it. My e-reader is technically a tablet and I could get my email on it, but never do. I don’t so text on my phone either. Actually I use a Jitterbug and it doesn’t do texting. I am 78. I got my first computer in 1982 and have been using email since 1984, so a standard PC is second nature to me, although of course I use windows. And please don’t ask me to get a Mac.
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