Is this a symptom of getting old...

[Prudence (imported)]

When i get someting new i mostly read the howto's or the manuals before i even start with it. The younger generation is not afraid to push buttons and just see where it ends. But i'am still smarter then my kid's.

I work in the I.T. industry, and this is THE problem with a large part of the "over 40" crowd. They are deathly afraid of, or maybe even incapable of, trying anything or thinking on thier own when it comes to computers and technology. Often times the person is actually pretty smart, and if they could just get over this irrational fear (or whatever it is) they would do very well. Also, obviously, there are exceptions to this (ie: not all "over 40's" are technologically incompetent, and not all "under 41's" are technologically competent).

My biggest problem is our IT department has to be one of the most understaffed in the world, and I have so much work "on my plate" that I simply don't have time to spend hand-holding people who refused to learn the training they were taught (often multiple times). I've ended up typing extremely detailed instructions (detailed enough for NASA to use -- anyone who has seen one of NASA's procedural bulletins will instantly understand what I mean). I have to include every little nitpicking step, things that would be "common sense" to most people. The nice thing is, once I print out these procedures, the technically clueless people seem to finally "get it". Saves me a lot of time.

The bad thing is, some people (again mostly "over 40's") just can't seem to apply what they learned in one area, to another similar area.

For example:

"All programs have a File Menu... So to save something in Excel, do the same as your did in Word, just go into the File Menu and click Save"

I actually got this as a call the other day from a newly-transferred worker. It astounds me that this person was unable to figure that out on thier own -- !!!!!

[Riverwind (imported)]

OH my, its true, if I really want to read an article, I print it out over reading it off the screen. I have one pair of glasses for driving and another which are bifocals for computer and close up, but I find I am more and more reading this stuff without my glasses at all.

Jesus, get rid of that Apple, its to easy to use and get a PC, that will slow the little guy down, for a couple weeks.

River

[Free to be ME (imported)]

I am 51 yikes! Where did the time go? I guess I am one of the rare boomers who has from 5th grade had access to a computer at school and at home later on. Good gosh I recall that one of the state of the art games played on DARP net!!! was "

Hunt the Whumpus" . anyway I am nearsighted and have a slight case of colorblindness that the tint on my normal glasses compensates for but totally messes up screen print. I have found that upping the contrast a notch or two does wonders when I wear my untinted glasses however if you do any photoshop work be sure to reset the screen contrast to normal before doing that work.

as far as typos go I am king of them due to crappy typing skills.

[MacTheWolf (imported)]

As a OLD

geezer, I find that keeping up with rapidly evolving technology is a great challenge. I've gotten to the point that I don't even attempt to keep up with it all. If I have a need to know, I am perfectly capable of learning (or if not, then I am brain-dead, fossilized, or just frustrated). I am reasonably technically skilled, but am no IT expert - not even close - but I can function and can learn. When I need video to drive my truck, then I think I will learn how to use it... I think the pilot above is self-limiting; the only deterrent to advancing with such systems (notably as a pilot) is one's physical capacity, and willingness to engage mental capacity.

As an aside to writing, I find that my best ally for proofing a document (virtual or paper) is time. I will always pick stuff up in either format, but I seldom get it all the first time I proof (spell and grammar checkers only are good for about 50-60% of editorial needs, in my experience). An additional pair of eyes is usually of great value, as well. Writing is an art, seldom a science, and nearly always has the imperfection of human frailty. That is what makes literature so fasacinating.

Grandpa Kristoff is right.

[JesusA (imported)]

I was having trouble with my computer. So I called Eric, the 11 year old next door, whose bedroom looks like Mission Control and asked him to come over. Eric clicked a couple of buttons and solved the problem.

As he was walking away, I called after him, 'So, what was wrong?

He replied, "It was an ID ten T error."

I didn't want to appear stupid, but nonetheless inquired, "An, ID ten T error? What's that? In case I need to fix it again."

Eric grinned.... "Haven't you ever heard of an ID ten T error before?"

"No," I replied.

"Write it down," he said, "and I think you'll figure it out."

So I wrote down: I D 1 0 T

I used to like Eric.............