Just Jill is the creation of Jill Cohen Morris. Jill is an avid Rambler and mother of two from Toronto, Canada, with a remarkable zest for life and a fabulous sense of humor.
Dear Just Jill,
I have a love/ hate relationship … with the T word … TECHNOLOGY!!
As an adult, I understand the benefits of technology and the digital world. It has opened up a wealth of positive advancements in the world … I do get it!!
At the same time, I find it so overwhelming. For the younger generations, it is their language, and they just expect everyone to communicate and operate within the parameters of that language.
I find if I ask someone for help, they get frustrated and end up just doing it for me. Well, what’s the benefit of that? I have learned nothing and am now equally as frustrated.
I’ve explored a few courses, but they are either way beyond my expertise, or I’m put in a group with people who don’t even know how to turn on a computer.
I’m no slouch … I have an iPhone and a computer, and I text (I have learned to curb my emailing because, apparently, that clearly indicates that you are not with the times). I’m on a bunch of social media platforms. I actually think I’m pretty savvy with technology until I meet someone who really is savvy!!
I guess this is not really a question but more of a rant?
Do any other Sole Sisters out there feel the same?
What’s a gal to do?
Sincerely,
Techie Not Techie Tina
Sole Sister Advice
- Me too. Troubleshooting issues has become very stressful, and in the last six months, the software has become far more complex. I need help understanding most of it.
- That's absolutely me too! I know enough about technology to get by, but I need help learning new tech tools! I hate filling out forms online; I detest scanning menus and ordering online on my phone. I want to see the whole extensive menu with beautiful food pictures. My own laptop scares the heck out of me nowadays. It's constantly updating. I have no idea how to turn on the TV, so I only watch TV if it's Netflix on my laptop (which I can still navigate). I have a love/hate relationship with phone apps.
- This really resonates with me. With technology, I know how to accomplish tasks that interest me, but I need help to learn what doesn't. It's important not to become complacent about learning new tech tools because I will be left in the dust if I don't keep up.
- I totally agree. I keep an open mind to doing things in new ways. Still, at times it seems more complex. For example, I now get messages through Messenger, two email accounts, WhatsApp, IM, and Telegram. I must keep reminding myself to keep a growth mindset, but it is sometimes challenging.
- YES, to all of this!! I built a whole community on a new platform (somehow!?!), and now my biggest challenge is encouraging others to even use it ... most are already overwhelmed by technology! We can't let tech crap get in the way of what we want to learn and do! It's called The Wellness Intelligence Collective (TWIC). It's free and bullshit-free, and you're welcome.
- It depends on what you feel you are missing out. Is it not related to grandkids? Trying to organize photos? Knowing that you are on top of all the trends?
- Should be more choices. Some people want to avoid using their phones to fill out forms. Or do anything other than use it for emergency and family contact. For example, that person would be me. The hospital has sent documents to my 88-year-old mom to fill out in a text message to her iPhone for pre-registration for surgery. She can't navigate the info on the phone, so I have to do it for her. How can they expect this from all the elderly? And … now her phone is unavailable to her/me as it's all jumbled up from her trying to figure it out. This type of shortcut It's not helpful.
- Give me a flip phone, and I'd give up tech and move out to the forest. It has been more harmful than good, in my opinion. Bring me back to the '80s, please.
- Ahh, the days of flip phones. Little do you know you are on trend. There is a growing movement among Gen Z to do away with smartphones and revert back to less smartphones like old-school flip and slide phones. Flip phones were popular in the mid-1990s and 2000s but are now making a comeback among younger people.
- I think we must stretch ourselves and learn new technology - especially internet technology, which we are discussing here. Still, I am biased because I work in digital marketing, so I use internet technology daily and love it. Internet-based technology offers us a world of connection, learning, and understanding. Fear and discomfort should not hold us back from engaging. Of course, individuals differ in how much they enjoy being and learning in a digital world. Still, it is a misfortune to miss out because you are afraid of or uncomfortable with the technology. Take a deep breath, dive in, and learn; you won't regret it.
- I remember very clearly when someone explained social media to me in 2007. I knew instantly that I would love it and that it would change the world. Then when I learned I could publish my thoughts on a website without knowing how to code, my head exploded. I changed careers.
- Technology is fascinating and changing at a speed that is difficult for most humans, no matter their age, to understand. I recently listened to a fascinating This American Life podcast episode (797 What Was I Thinking When As We Were Sinking) interviewing a content moderator at Twitter and outlining his experience after Musk took over. It was fascinating and terrifying at the same time. His name was Yoal Roth. He was literally driven out of his home by death threats - he and his family had to go into hiding. Yet he ends his interview with Ira Glass by saying, "I love the Internet. I really do. I think -- the Internet's power to bring people together and help folks worldwide find connections that matter to them is magical and is one of humanity's greatest achievements." I agree with him.
- Perhaps a veritable army of wise, happy middle-aged women can help make the Internet a more comfortable and safer place for everyone.
READ MORE > Just Jill, Rambler Cafe Blog
it comes to somthing when my seven yesr old grandaughter shows me how to find netflix and deletes things from my i phone photos that i dont want, how do they know this? im amazed .
I seem to go down so many rabbit holes when I have to learn a new app or just respond to some interactive document I’ve been sent. I’ve found ChatGPT to be my friend, explaining things to me “like a 5th grader”.
As someone who travels alone I think tech is a massive enabler which allows freedom to travel with almost no concerns and always able to communicate with your family no matter where you are. From booking apps for accomodation , transport and tours, Google maps to find the hotel, FB to look at groups of likeminded travellers , Kindle and Netflix so you are never sitting alone at a restaurant staring into space, apps make solo travel doable. Tech support and help?? Give it to your child or grandchild…you dont need to understand it all!!!
I have a friend who has an iphone, refuses to text, has somehow found a tech plan which excludes all photos etc. from her texting app, and will only have a phone conversation on her landline. She thinks social media are dumb so no media access wither. So she never sees my photographs or text updates, is unaware of much that would be of interest to her where she lives, hasn’t figured out that whole universes of interesting stuff happen on Zoom (she doesn’t like Zoom), insists on actually going to the library rather than downloading the book, and enjoys very few phone conversations because many of us organize those via text too. And another dear friend who sends an old-fashioned monthly letter via email but tosses her iphone in the drawer when she gets home. And a family member who regards herself as a reliable emergency contact but never answers her phone, lets texts back up for days until she decides to cherrypick her way through and respond to whatever she wants, and would be completely inaccessible in any actual emergency. These are all highly educated women with the resources to keep current on iphones etc. but insist on living as they did in pre-digital days and the whole world, not just the world of younger people but the whole megilla, has passed them by. It makes them more vulnerable to scams and disinformation, contributes enormously to social isolation and political disenfranchisement, and can greatly increase risk during emergencies. It doesn’t take complex knowledge of digital systems to text or fill out a form online or do a Google search. Many libraries have a resource person who will help with basic tech questions and every Apple store has free help if one is using an iphone or Mac. The internet is full of resources to help with the most basic of questions and AI is now an endless repository of ever simpler answers. I’m not a tech wizard by any means but I refuse to maroon myself from the world. I participate online in everything from courses to religious services to helping people with veterinary emergencies. And, yes, I found Sole Sisters online as, I presume, we all did. The revolution has already happened and we lose an enormous amount by refusing to be part of it.
Ugh. Geez, while starting to post a comment one rogue finger hit tapped the screen and posted before I’d typed one complete sentence. Anyway, for me is suchba mixed bag of technology being both good and bad for us. Personally, of late, what i do not like is what seems like a trend towards relying heavily or solely on tech and completely removing human interaction which just doesn’t seem like a good idea. Namely, like just with customer service. I’m finding more and more that when i try to contact a business that reaching an actual person to troubleshoot my problem is either not an option at all or buried deep inside an automated phone tree that takes forever to navigate. Yes, i get it, there are many things that can be addressed this way but there are plenty of non-cookie-cutter issues that REQUIRE a person to troubleshoot and I’ve just found tech or setting up systems that rely on it too heavily to be a block to good customer service rather than a helpful supplement to it.
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