Filed under Seniors and Technology

iPad for Dad, #2 – Getting Started

I took the iPad to my parents’ house on Monday. I live about 100 miles away, so Dad and I worked together exploring the iPad while keeping in mind that we will be apart  for a couple of weeks. Of course I will provide technical help by phone. He is intrigued and interested and tried most of … Continue reading

iPad for Dad, #1 – Getting the iPad Ready for Dad

If you like this post, read some of the other descriptions of our Father/Daughter iPad for Dad adventures — iPad for Dad, #1, iPad for Dad, #2, iPad for Dad, #3,  iPad for Dad, #4, iPad for Dad, #5, iPad for Dad, #6,  iPad for Dad, #7, iPad for Dad, #8,  iPad for Dad, #9, iPad for Dad, #10, iPad for Dad, #11, iPad … Continue reading

Aging Parents: ElderGadget Reviews for Older Consumers

Thanks to the Oregon Choice Blog Round-up for the tip about Eldergadget.com, a site with product reviews on a wide range of “elder-friendly” products. I’ve looked at the sections on digital cameras, luggage, vacuums, and coffee makers, and they are filled with helpful information. I was especially excited to see Eldergadget’s review of the iPad … Continue reading

Caregiving – Coordinating the Stakeholders

As a parent ages, the range of people who offer support expands dramatically. The older the person the larger the group can be, with multiple doctors, caregivers, assisted living staff, family members, friends, and therapists. A broad range of supporters is a plus, but a designated coordinator, someone in possession of the big picture, is … Continue reading

Update on My Parents’ Blog

My parents worked hard to figure out (outwit?) the eccentricities of the Blogger site, and they managed to get their new blog up and running. They only needed a bit of help from me. I have made a mental note to think about writing some technology tutorials and attaching them to a technology tutorial posting … Continue reading

NIH Senior Net – A Senior Friendly Site

…and Tips for Making a Website Senior Friendly Take a few minutes to visit this NIH Senior Health site. Bring an aging parent along. Notice the great care that has been taken to make the site easy-to-read with large type and navigation links that are clear and uncluttered. This site is full of information on … Continue reading

Aging Parents and Children: Wireless Medical Information

A few weeks age I wrote about a my mother-in-law’s atrial fibrillation, especially how she grew increasingly helpless as she felt the unusual heart beats while her physician never heard them. Even after Mother wore a monitor at home for 48 hour the monitoring it wasn’t enough to detect the problem. Additional consistent investigation was … Continue reading

My Parent’s Blog – Seniors and Blogs

Wow! Technology never stops. This morning my parents, age 86 and 82, told me that they went to Google and started a blog.  This is the coolest thing because they love to write and they love their computers.  Also they have lots of great opinions about helping others, ethics, and building community. I cannot wait … Continue reading

Census Information and Aging Parents

I’ve written about seniors and aging parents and how they can interact with technology, computers, urban legends, and scams, but one aspect that I have not touched on is the upcoming census. Dale over at the Transition Aging Parents blog, has written an excellent post about helping aging parents avoid census scams. Census information gathering … Continue reading

Technology and Seniors: Practice Makes It Easier

If you are an aging child and you have parents who use or want to use computers, check out this great web site. The Senior’s Guide to Computers, run and updated by Jeff Mayer, features wide-ranging advice, ideas, illustrations, tutorials, and much more. His explanations are in simple plain English, and it’s possible to choose … Continue reading

Seniors: Avoid Online Fraud

All of us, no matter what our ages, need to take care when we buy things online.  There is so much to learn about the  online world, and deceptive or fraudulent practices take advantage of any gap in our knowledge. When you read the rest of this post about deceptive practices related to online purchasing, … Continue reading

Evaluating Health Web Sites – Part II

We all learned to write essays when we were young. Our teachers taught us to introduce the important facts.  With web sites the rules are the same. Usually it’s easy to identify significant information about a site, information that indicates whether a site is a reliable resource, but sometimes it’s not so easy. Many web sites often look … Continue reading

Health Info on the Web — Be Careful! Part I

Just about every time I speak with people about health issues they refer to one Internet site or another. This worries me. Too many people are finding too much inaccurate virtual information. Older adult children like me as well as senior citizens are eagerly surfing the web for medical information, however, when we go off … Continue reading

Scary or Urgent E-mail — Don’t Be Fooled

E-mail  is the best communication tool for seniors, kids, and grandchildren and is so easy and convenient!  This interconnectedness is even more important at times of family illness and when family members live far away from one another.  All family members, but especially seniors, need to master some important skills and understand some key concepts, … Continue reading