My parents are in their mid-fifties. Having a daughter like me, they at least are familiar enough with a computer to do the basics, such as e-mail, search the internet, use Word, and follow instructions that are work-specific.

They are nowhere near as savvy as my 60 year old uncle, who set up his own internet side business selling custom tee-shirts, but they get by.

Yesterday, my Mom was telling me about her neighbor. The woman was laid off from a job she’d had for a very long time. She has no other skills, and is completely baffled by, and frightened by, computers. She is just going to retire early now, because there is no job she can get (that she can physically do) where she doesn’t need to do SOMETHING with a computer. She can’t work in an office job at all, because even the most basic job needs to use e-mail and Word.

I watched my grandparents slide into oblivion because they retired too early. They sat at home and watched TV; having no extra money, and not being very into other people, they did nothing for years on end. Retiring early is a key to an early grave if you don’t volunteer or get out of the house. The brain fries and dies, fed by nothing more than a glowing tube of moving pictures and the drone of the newsman.

There is very little you can do these days, work or volunteer, that doesn’t require at least a very basic ability to use a computer. Yet I am astounded at the number of people in the 40-70 year old range that have no clue at all about them!

If you’re old enough to be reading this, and your folks are young enough to not be in assisted living care, it is your responsibility to help them if they need it.
(If you don’t know, LEARN. It is a required skill now.)

Here are things you can do to help your folks learn enough about computers to get a basic office job.

• Sign them up for a community learning program or a college course. Many suburban communities offer adult learning programs through their park district for a lower cost then a college would.
• Buy a cheap used computer to play with and learn on. You don’t need a speed-demon, top-of-the-line computer to learn to use the internet, e-mail, and a word processing program. People are always upgrading — get a used one from a trusted, local source. Ask your neighbors, family members, friends, and co-workers; someone will upgrade and have no clue what to do with the old computer.
• Don’t be afraid to play, and teach them not to be afraid to play. Set a system restore point in case anyone fries it. Half the barrier (if not more) to learning is FEAR.
• Buy Microsoft Office. I know, it’s expensive. Buy a student version if you can, or buy an older version, but buy it. It’s THE most commonly-used suite out there, and if they know it, they can learn others.
• Get them a tutor. Again enlist the help of friends, family, neighbors, and co-workers to find a young person who is trustworthy and looking to earn a little side money. Have them tutor your folks once or twice a week for a couple of hours.
• Talk about it with them. Don’t make them feel stupid or dated. This computer stuff is very difficult for many of our parents, as they didn’t grow up with computers. If they’re old enough, they were lucky to have a phone in the house, and a TV was a luxury they couldn’t afford. Be gentle.

These are the skills everyone should have if they hope to do even the simplest office job in today’s world.

• Basic terminology. Cursor, window, mouse, right-click. I’ve actually had people not understand what right-click meant. There is no “any” key. F5 is a function key, not the F and the 5 together. They can’t get help from tech support if they don’t understand how to communicate with them.
• Basic knowledge. What, and where, are files and folders, how you work with them, what file extensions are, how to find documents, how to navigate, what the desktop is, using the menus, using the Start menu, and so much more. Many of us already know all about these things, but don’t even think about them. Like driving a car.
• E-mail. The most common program is Outlook. Not Outlook Express — the real Microsoft Office version. They should be able to add, remove, and update a contact, compose and send e-mail, and get e-mail. Bonus points for the calendar, tasks, and notes functions.
• Printing. How to print documents / web pages, how to change the ink, how to buy ink, putting paper in, clearing a jam.
• The Internet. They should know what the URL bar is, other basic terminology, the difference between search engines and web pages, and all the things a more experienced user takes for granted. Internet Explorer is a browser, the internet can be accessed by many browsers, and Windows is not the Internet.
• Word. If you just can’t get Office, OpenOffice is an alternative, but realistically, some people are just never going to be able to do more than exactly what they are taught with computers. You may need to visit the library or a neighbor to get them the experience.
• How to get help. Tech support numbers, what to tell them, how to find versions and serial numbers of software and hardware, how to search for help on the internet.

Our parents need to have these vital skills.
If they should lose their job, they will be hard-pressed to get work without them, and if they are physically unable to stand for long periods, they can just give up now. If they are retired, they need them to stay in contact with the world, with you, and just to exercise their brains so they don’t get mushy.

Consider it re-payment for all the nasty shenanigans (and diapers) you got into when you were young — help them pick up these vital skills now.

Did I miss anything? Got a story to share or other helpful tips? Tell me in the comments!