Friday, November 20, 2009

Old Dogs, new tricks

The more I try to learn about using my Mac the more I know I don't know. The last couple of weeks I've sat through very intelligent and accessible lectures about how to use different aspects of my Mac -- I've been using a Mac for 4 or 5 years now and listened to a LOT of lectures. You'd think I'd be getting it. I expected I'd be getting it.

Not so, what is supposed to be SO intuitive that a five year old can manipulate a Mac is just not sinking in. A friend asked me to scan something for her. "No prob, "said I, I've scanned a number of things. Ha! It took at least 15 minutes to go to screen after screen and get the thing scanned -- twice as it turned out. So frustrating, really no understanding the of screen prompt. Feeling like Pooh, "a bear of very little brain". Finally stumbling on the answer and achieving the desired end.

This is not a language that makes sense to me! I am a words on a paper page person and then I am not always good at following directions [especially if they were written by Asian person about how to put together a bookcase or cabinet. It tends to destroy a life time of self-confidence, a belief that, indeed, I was intelligent enough to figure out most logical instructionss. But nothing has yet convinced me computer-eze is logical. And, contrary to the opinion of many who are under 25 years of age, it is NOT FUN. Waltzing around the room to Johann Strauss music is fun, playing Pictionary is fun, riding a bicycle is fun -- computers are not fun. Necessary, yes, in this day and age, but fun? Not. Somd tricks just don't make a lot of sense to old dogs and they refuse to learn.

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