An aunty in my society, aged 68, asked me if I could teach her how to use her electronic devices, essentially her android phone and her iPad. I readily agreed.
A thread of observations:
A thread of observations:
Her objectives :
- to not depend on her family because they have their own life
- feel confident because she now has the knowledge to operate her phone
Here's how our first "class" went :
- to not depend on her family because they have their own life
- feel confident because she now has the knowledge to operate her phone
Here's how our first "class" went :
She was waiting for me in the garden, with her Vivo phone and a small notebook which had a set of questions she wanted to ask.
Question 1: "Beta, is there a way to increase the font size on my whatsapp? I can't see it even with the large option they have given."
Question 1: "Beta, is there a way to increase the font size on my whatsapp? I can't see it even with the large option they have given."
I tried to see if the phone fontsize could be increased but it was at maximum.
Sadly, #WhatsApp doesn't allow for a custom fontsize. I wonder why?
Sadly, #WhatsApp doesn't allow for a custom fontsize. I wonder why?
Next, edit long texts sent on WhatsApp and send it back.
Easy peasy? Not.
#WhatsApp does not have a way to expand the text area to more than ~30% of the screen, I had to teach her to copy it and paste it on Notes > edit > share it back on WhatsApp.
Yes, she wrote it all down.
Easy peasy? Not.
#WhatsApp does not have a way to expand the text area to more than ~30% of the screen, I had to teach her to copy it and paste it on Notes > edit > share it back on WhatsApp.
Yes, she wrote it all down.
Question 2: "Can you help me download Zoom?"
I took her through it and realised @zoom_us onboarding is a nightmare for them.
I probably felt this because I quickly fell into their way of interacting with the device and every tap felt like a test, too unnecessarily complex.
I took her through it and realised @zoom_us onboarding is a nightmare for them.
I probably felt this because I quickly fell into their way of interacting with the device and every tap felt like a test, too unnecessarily complex.
Just the three issues took us an hour. She thanked me and told me she hadn't found anyone willing to help her and there was nothing online also.
She also said she'll practice this by herself before we meet next week.
She also said she'll practice this by herself before we meet next week.
She paid me and said she was grateful I was taking out the time. She knows many of her friends who feel this way but are too shy to seek help.
"I can't sit still beta, I need to find ways in which I can help myself."
Did I mention she's 68?
"I can't sit still beta, I need to find ways in which I can help myself."
Did I mention she's 68?
I'll be documenting observations here(we meet every Wednesday for an hour) in order to get some insights and start conversations around how, in the midst of designing "unique" solutions tend to ignore a large part of our community.
