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I am over 50, and I use the computer all the time, much as NY Annie does. Like anything else, you have to decide HOW you want to use it, because, for instance, Facebook can be wonderful or terrible...YOU decide how you want to utilize it.
I think it's quite presumptious to assume that people "over 50" don't use technology...it's made life simpler (or more complex if you don't take charge of it) and I have had the delight of reuniting with friends and acquaintances from many years ago who, to my delight and just like me, have matured an wisened with age and we have enjoyed sharing bits of our personal journeys through life, something we would not have been able to do without a venue like Facebook...again, it's all in how you choose to make technology work for YOU, and not vice versa. And most people who want to continue growing and learning, do use computer technology.
Additionally, when my mother was living, at one point she had throat surgery and couldn't speak for several weeks. She was also hard of hearing and had lots of difficulty using a phone anyway, even with her special earpiece to amplify sound. After I saw her through surgery and had to go back to work, she used the computer I bought her while I was with her, to communicate with me. She was about 72 at the time, and she loved it so much she began using the computer (emails, mainly) to communicate without having to put on her hearing aid, which hurt her ears and by that time didn't work all that well for her. Computer technology opened up a whole new world for her and she loved it.
The trouble with Facebook is it becomes a friends collecting business. Back when I was looking for a job the recruiters told me they looked me up on the Internet and looked at my Facebook account to see how many friends I had. I suspect many recruiters and hiring managers will look up serious finalists for jobs but few will be so honest and tell the applicant. Because I only had 35 friends they thought I was a social outcast. Most of my so called friends on Facebook were younger and had 300-500 friends. I am sure the recuiters will love them. (I dumped my Facebook Account when I was told I did not have enough friends!)
Last edited by The Outcast; 09-07-2010 at 12:40 PM..
I see a lot of people well over 50 on Facebook, and definitely using email.
Although some people are hesitant to use Facebook, it's easy to configure FB to use lists so that you can open certain things to family, others to friends, etc. It is what you make of it. It is not MySpace. What does amaze me, however, is that some people have no shame. Drug references, endless detail of how they get drunk every weekend (at age 45), and other drama. I guess it's really no different than the world outside. Some people keep to themselves, others... don't.
The trouble with Facebook is it becomes a friends collecting business. Back when I was looking for a job the recruiters told me they looked me up on the Internet and looked at my Facebook account to see how many friends I had. Because I only had 35 friends they thought I was a social outcast. Most of my so called friends on Facebook were younger and had 300-500 friends. I am sure the recuiters will love them. (I dumped my Facebook Account when I was told I did not have enough friends!)
Well, I recently got a new job and it was not through a recruiter. I had a stringent background check (FBI and DOJ) and no one or any supervisory personnel commented on the fact that I was on Facebook or that I had too many or a too little number of friends.
I wish the older relatives in my extended family used Facebook or at a minium had an email address, but few do. Actually I counted 14 extended family relatives and only two have a face book account and only 4 have a personal use email.
Do you find that IN GENERAL social networking is for younger people and those over 50 years old even avoid using email to communicate?
My aunt is 85 years old and bought her first PC two years ago. She e-mails me almost every day, and she recently made her first online purchase (with my help). She's sharp as a tack and always wants to learn new things. I think it's a hoot!
I have several other elderly friends who do e-mail. I know of one who does facebook so she can communicate with her grandkids around the country.
I see a lot of people well over 50 on Facebook, and definitely using email.
Although some people are hesitant to use Facebook, it's easy to configure FB to use lists so that you can open certain things to family, others to friends, etc. It is what you make of it. It is not MySpace. What does amaze me, however, is that some people have no shame. Drug references, endless detail of how they get drunk every weekend (at age 45), and other drama. I guess it's really no different than the world outside. Some people keep to themselves, others... don't.
I KNOW! You are so right - one person on my friends' list actually posted all details about the fact that she was having a COLONOSCOPY the next morning...THAT'S when I decided to customize my lists...
I am 42 and use email on a daily basis but I simply do not see the point of social network sites. I have no desire to ever join Facebook or Twitter. I find snail mail, email and phone calls as well as meeting in the flesh perfectly satisfactory in terms of keeping in touch.
I have gone on facebook out of curiosity via a friend's page and could not believe the inanity and superficiality of it all. I am obviously way too intellectually dim to even comprehend the appeal of such websites. I shall resist it until my dying breath. To me it is the personal equivalent of reality TV show turning us all into voyeurs and self obsessed narcissists/exhibitionists who need constant reassurance as to how many "friends" they have. What I have seen of it reeks of desperation and the delusion that others should care about one's life.
Facebook to me is the anti-thesis of privacy and I value mine far too much to enter that world. Call me a grumpy old sod but I don't need 24 hour access to humanity 7/7 365 days a year.
I don't know of any using facebook. But they all use computers for email and other purposes. Have for a whole lot of years. Its not like this stuff is all that new you know. I started using computers back around Dos 6.0 and now run openSUSE Linux on my boxes, I am over 50. I build my own computers. I am not a computer geek. My Slashdot ID is 6 digits.
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