Caught up in the world wide web
“It really is great,’ says Hilda Kingston, 68, a retired nurse from Bandon, Cork, who went on one of Age Action’s computer courses with her husband, George.
“Before all I could do was just about turn it on. I had never used a computer at work. Now I find it very handy for Googling things, finding information and it really helps doing the crosswords.
“The only problem now is that it is so time-consuming. Once you sit down at the computer, you are always on it much longer than you think you will be.”
George, 69, a retired supplier, agrees and enjoyed the course so much, that he immediately signed up for another, more advance, one.
“The teachers were fantastic. There were six of us in the class and we had one-to-one teaching. The tutors were so patient. The first thing mine did was to set up an email address for me.
“I am now emailing all my friends and family. I haven’t booked a holiday or done anything like that on the computer yet, but I know how to do it now if I wanted to.”
Not surprisingly, their seven children, aged from 25 to 36 years, are very proud of their parents and their new-found computer skills.
“They were very impressed,” says George. “The computer had been in the house for a long time, but the only ones using it, until now, were the children.
“I had done a computer course in the 1990s but I think things have got so much simpler since then. Getting onto the internet now is child’s play. I use it all the time, anything I want to know I go on YouTube or Google it.
“It really is amazing to see what is out there, you really can get anything on it.”
The Kingston’s would urge other older people to enrol on the course, it is only two hours a week for three weeks and stress there is nothing to be scared of and no need to be embarrassed by asking “silly’ questions.
“I would really recommend the course to everyone. I was very impressed by the fact that the tutors were so patient and so helpful,” says George.
“I don’t need to do any more courses now. I will just practice away with what I have learnt now and enjoy it.”
The next challenge for Hilda is learning to use Skype and she is planning to sign up for the same advanced computer course as George.
“It would be great to learn how to Skype, especially if our children are away,” she explains. “Our daughter was out in Africa for a while and it would have been very useful then.”
*Contact your local Age Action group for more details on their computer and mobile phone courses, e20 per participant, www.ageaction.ie
