PCs for Old Folks: Do Seniors Need Stripped Down Tech?
Imagine a computer that was so simple even a complete novice could use it out of the box. A computer with a low-powered, low performance and low-priced CPU, the Sempron LE-1250 (or maybe even an Intel Atom). Imagine that it comes in a small box with a tiny (by today’s standards) 19-inch monitor and cheap dime-store keyboard.
What would you do if you had a warehouse full of these machines, all less capable than the cheapest netbook? If it was me, I’d hire a trusted public figure and try to sell the lot to the only demographic that would buy them — old people who have never used a computer before. Better, I’d charge $735 or $890. After all, they all trust the lovely British TV presenter Valerie Singleton, right? Well, guess what? Somebody beat me to it.
The two simplicITy Suite computers are cheap-o boxes with the above mentioned processors, and either wired or wireless keyboard or mouse depending on whether you opt for the 100 or the 200 model. Available in the UK, both run Linux Mint and Eldy, a simple desktop environment which offers the bare basics of email, web browsing and chat. Eldy (and Linux, of course) are both free. In fact, visit the Eldy site (tagline: “Easy computer for our seniors”) and you’ll learn that it can be installed on any PC.
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Seniors
Seniors don't need anything stripped down! ewwwww
Introducing the Linux OAPC
daniweb.com: What do you get if you combine a computer company with a group of Vegans and someone who used to present a popular children's TV show? The less than obvious answer is a Linux computer designed especially for old people.
But there you have it, and according to the press release that sits before me the awfully named simplicITy computer (what's wrong with OAPC I ask you) that is designed specifically to meet the needs of users aged 50 plus, has come about courtesy of a collaboration between a money saving website co-founded by ex Blue Peter presenter Valerie Singleton, a group called Vegan Solutions and a company by the name of Wessex Computers.
The real question I find myself asking is why?