David Wadleigh gave us some food for thought on how computer technology, which so many of us consider a 'no-brainer' is still hard for some people to grasp. The following anecdote is _true_, and taught me to _always_ chanlenge my own assumptions: I helped my father buy a nice 386 computer with winodows, a inkjet printer and a fast modem some years ago. Since he has one of the old Compaq 'luggables' with the 5-inch screen before that, we moved that into the other room. My stepmother continued to use that computer to work on her word processor. She's a very successful Public Relations professional, and no dummy. I was at their house, and my father was out, when she asked me to print something out for her (my father took all of her documents and printed them on his computer). Being a computer professional and som-time trainer, I suggested that I show her how to do it herself. Gamely she sat down at the computer and put her disk in the floppy drive. I then said 'take the mouse and point it at this icon', pointing to the icon that would start her WP on the new machine. She calmly picked up the mouse and pointed it directly at the icon on the screen. Luckily, she has a good sense of humor, becuase I was rolling on the floor laughing, mostly at how my own assumptions had assumed that using a mouse was intuitive. I'm a much better trainer after this experience, because I've stopped assuming that anything on a computer is intuitive. ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 26 Jan 1995 23:20:15 -0500 From: John Burrill Subject: Re: Venting [snip] > I then said 'take the mouse and point it at this icon', pointing to the > icon that would start her WP on the new machine. She calmly picked up > the mouse and pointed it directly at the icon on the screen. > > Luckily, she has a good sense of humor, becuase I was rolling on the > floor laughing... Justin, I fail to see the humor in this. I've been pointing my mouse at icons for a long time and have been continually frustrated. I can't imagine what you find humorous about the failure of the mouse-makers to put the little electric eye on the front of their mouse. Only my extensive experience with the TV remote led me to the discovery that this was the reason for the lack of response. Your mom is surely due an apology.