Education also plays a role in the number of seniors owning computers. These figures show that seniors are not as technophobic as we all have assumed and been led to believe. The SeniorNet suspects that the reason seniors have been stigmatized as technophobic stems from an 1980 survey that indicated that corporate senior managers avoided computers, delegating clerical tasks, such as word processing, and answering email to their secretaries and lower level employees. However, it seems that once these tasks that are considered more secretarial than managerial are excluded, seniors are as likely as anyone to use the Internet. Perhaps one of the turning points for seniors to overcome their fear of technology, was the improvement of computers.
Computers are much more user-friendly now.
Netscape and Microsoft browsers offer simple point and click overlays for the Internet, making it extremely easy to surf the Web. Most service providers offer simple windows, bars and pull down windows that are easy to understand and only take the click of a mouse. Also, there are new devices and software for those who have disabilities. The mouse is wonderful for people with conditions such as arthritis, who find it painful to type. There are also Braille keyboards, voice recognition, enlarged monitors and large type that help overcome some of the disabilities that seniors may experience.