First of all, a bit of background: A high school dropout,
stay-at-home mom until the age of 40, I wasn’t too
motivated to learn. Then I read the following quote:
"Old Bureaucrat, my comrade, it is not you who are
to blame. No one ever helped you to escape.…
Nobody grasped you by the shoulder while there
was still time. Now the clay of which you were
shaped has dried and hardened, and naught in you
will ever awaken the sleeping musician, the poet,
the astronomer that possibly inhabited you in
the beginning."
(Antoine de Saint Exupery)
I didn't want it to be too late, so I finished high school,
then took a full-time computer course, and finally
business courses. My desire to learn and my self-
confidence grew with each step forward.
I love using computers and realize that the more
you learn, the more there is to learn. So I thought
I'd take a trip down memory lane:
- My first computer had no hard drive, but I still
thought it was pretty neat.
- The first time using an online encyclopedia - we
were amazed to see pictures of birds and animals,
and actually hear their sounds.
- The first time we connected to the Internet -
hearing someone's voice and responding by
standing in front of the monitor and yelling into it.
- The first family newsletter, complete with clip
art and three columns, written faithfully every
week for almost a year and sent to my family.
- My first emails to my daughter, so much easier
than trying to think of a long letter. Instead I
could send a line or two as things happened.
Emails back and forth, to keep for future
generations.
- My first chat using a webcam; watching my
grand-daughter lift her new puppy up for
me to see.
- My first multiple chat, trying to talk to daughter
and granddaughter in two different cities at
the same time and trying not to get confused.
- My first time opening up a computer, with the
aid of my sidekick mother, and adding a cd
rewritable drive.
- Learning that you should always note where
the screws came from or there will be one
left over.
So many firsts, especially mistakes, too many of
those to count. I learned:
- not to pull the plug out of the monitor end or
you will have to buy a new monitor.
- not to fiddle with your monitor settings too
much or you may not see anything.
- not to continue without saving your work every
so often, unless you enjoy panic attacks.
- not to select public chatting on MSN, unless
you want to see a strange man’s face on your
screen saying hello to you, just before you
quickly turn it off.
- not to buy more software until you at least
try the last one out first.
- not to let your grandchildren print in colour
as much as they like.
- not to expect that your computer will always
do what you want. It often has a mind of it’s own.
- not to sit for hours in front of the computer
without a break. No more meals at the desk.
- And above all, not to ever, ever think you won’t
learn to tame that machine. No matter who you
are, or how old you are, it’s never too late 2 learn!
Carol Bremner is a computer loving member of the gray generation. Her websites, http://www.creativehomecomputing.com and http://www.motivatedtolearn.com promote computer literacy in the home for the over 50 crowd.
Source: www.articlecity.com
