Information, answers and just plain good stuff about computers and technology
Contributed by Chris Leto A recent study announced that only 40% of Americans have computers and Internet in their home. My first thought was—“Wow, that’s still over half of American’s who do not have access to so much information.” Then I thought, “Well, maybe they don’t need a computer at all.” Then I thought, “Who are ‘they’”?

So lets break it down by age and see what an age group might use a computer and Internet for.

AGE GROUP 0-3 years old. Not many kids know how to use a computer from birth to 3 years old. But—I could think of tons of reasons why a parent of a child might need a computer. They could use the Internet to look up doctors, look up medical conditions on webmd.com. Parents could communicate with other parents in chat rooms to compare child-rearing techniques.

AGE GROUP 4-8 years old. My niece is 4 years old. She lives with us and we have found quite a few computer programs to help challenge her as she prepares to go into Kindergarten. She has learned how to count to 20 using some fun CDs and her sentence structure has improved as a result.

AGE GROUP 9-13. My nephew, who is 9 years old, also lives with me and I know for a fact that he loves and sometimes needs the Internet. He uses the computer to play games on cartoonnetwork.com, but he also has started to learn how to do research for school projects. He needed a picture of some dinosaurs and could not find the perfect picture in his school library, so he went to google.com and was able to locate the perfect image.

AGE GROUP 14-18. A scary time for many parents as your kids turn into these strange beings called Teenagers. As kids enter high school, they are often required to do online research, as well as type reports. But, most teenagers believe their social development depends on having an e-mail address and access to the Internet. Many teens leave messages, communicate and create personal websites online.

AGE GROUP 19-22. Kids in college need the Internet to do research to complete college-level classes, and to communicate with friends and family back home. They also now keep track of new responsibilities by checking their bank balance, credit cards payments and school accounts online.

AGE GROUP 23-30. Today, new graduates out of college use the Internet to get their resume out to companies looking for new hires. Most companies today will not hire a prospective employee who does not know how to use a computer and do research on the Internet.

AGE GROUP 31-40. You’re now established at your job and its time to settle down. You have met the perfect mate and it’s time to look into buying cars and houses and to use the Internet to research areas to have your “wedding”. Also, you might want to have children and need to research doctors or adoption agencies and procedures.

AGE GROUP 41-55. Almost time for retirement and what are you going to be doing with your life after work? Now that the kids are in college how about using the Internet to plan that vacation to Paris? Or look at what to do with your 401k?

AGE GROUP 55- and beyond. You can use the computer to keep track of your retirement accounts, explore a second career or a business to start. The Internet can let you indulge in learning more about hobbies or recreational activities that you may have more time for. As kids get married and scatter across the country, the Internet is a lifesaver when it comes to shopping for holidays and birthdays. You can go back to school, learn a new language, or order your
medications on line.

It’s the 21st Century and we all can use the assistance of technology, but kids really need this advantage. If you have a niece or a nephew and their parents do not have a computer or Internet access, you might want to think of a group gift for the holidays and get them a basic system with a gift of one year Internet service.

For more information, check out DELL.com for prices on computers. Visit craigslist.org to buy a used computer from a fellow Texan. You can also contact SeniorNetAustin.com to have someone come over and help connect your system, or try and problem solve your computers headaches.