Just wanted to share this story as I think it illustrates perfectly where the strength of iPads is and where the vision of "post pc era" is heading (sorry if it's a bit self-indulgent!)
As I have posted on here before, my mother passed away from pancreatic cancer in August leaving my dad to cope with living on his own for the first time in nearly 50 years (they would have been married for 50 years in September and had been together for nearly 55 years). We live over 100 miles away (which is quite a long distance in the UK!) so can't get to see him as much as we'd like, and were concerned that he was struggling to keep his mind occupied.
My mum was quite switched on to modern technology but my dad has an almost phobic dislike of computers. It was his 70th birthday this week so we went up to see him at the weekend. While we were there, I got my daughter to show my iPad to him. He took to it really well and exhibited none of the "fear" that was typical when trying to get him to use a mouse and keyboard, and was soon browsing the internet like a pro. She then showed him Google Maps and street view which was revolutionary to him (as I said, he's not switched on to technology) and his face lit up when she took him on a tour round various cities.
Anyway, after about 2 hours he was sat with the iPad and playing around happily with a smile on his face, so I said to him "Do you think you could use one of these?". He replied that he could definitely get on with one, so I said "Right, then - it's yours!" He thought I was joking at first, but once he realised I was being serious he was elated.
Thanks to iOS 5, I was able to wipe it clear and set him up with a new email address and iCloud account wirelessly and set it all up for him without going near a computer (fortunately, he hadn't cancelled the internet connection my mum used) and he is now the proud owner and user of an iPad - I've had e-mails from him this morning which I never thought he'd be able to do! (the only slight fly in the ointment is that iCloud e-mail is a bit ropey at the moment and some e-mails are taking ages to get through to him, which is a bit confusing)
I don't think he's put it down since yesterday and within the space of 24 hours, the iPad has converted him from a technophobe. He now has a new toy to play with and explore and a new way to keep his mind occupied. That to me perfectly illustrates the vision of the iPad and how it really can change people's lives
As I have posted on here before, my mother passed away from pancreatic cancer in August leaving my dad to cope with living on his own for the first time in nearly 50 years (they would have been married for 50 years in September and had been together for nearly 55 years). We live over 100 miles away (which is quite a long distance in the UK!) so can't get to see him as much as we'd like, and were concerned that he was struggling to keep his mind occupied.
My mum was quite switched on to modern technology but my dad has an almost phobic dislike of computers. It was his 70th birthday this week so we went up to see him at the weekend. While we were there, I got my daughter to show my iPad to him. He took to it really well and exhibited none of the "fear" that was typical when trying to get him to use a mouse and keyboard, and was soon browsing the internet like a pro. She then showed him Google Maps and street view which was revolutionary to him (as I said, he's not switched on to technology) and his face lit up when she took him on a tour round various cities.
Anyway, after about 2 hours he was sat with the iPad and playing around happily with a smile on his face, so I said to him "Do you think you could use one of these?". He replied that he could definitely get on with one, so I said "Right, then - it's yours!" He thought I was joking at first, but once he realised I was being serious he was elated.
Thanks to iOS 5, I was able to wipe it clear and set him up with a new email address and iCloud account wirelessly and set it all up for him without going near a computer (fortunately, he hadn't cancelled the internet connection my mum used) and he is now the proud owner and user of an iPad - I've had e-mails from him this morning which I never thought he'd be able to do! (the only slight fly in the ointment is that iCloud e-mail is a bit ropey at the moment and some e-mails are taking ages to get through to him, which is a bit confusing)
I don't think he's put it down since yesterday and within the space of 24 hours, the iPad has converted him from a technophobe. He now has a new toy to play with and explore and a new way to keep his mind occupied. That to me perfectly illustrates the vision of the iPad and how it really can change people's lives
