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Marin Senior Fair connects people with technology, teaches computer skills [The Marin Independent Journal, Novato, Calif.](Marin Independent Journal (CA) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Oct. 23--After being goaded by her 103-year-old father, Ruth Wetherow, of San Rafael, decided to follow in his technologically savvy footsteps and sign up for a Facebook account -- but she has yet to fully use the social media website. "I'm so embarrassed to say I don't know how to post things on Facebook," she said. Armed with an iPhone and questions, Wetherow learned a few tricks of the trade at one of the "Get Wired" booths Wednesday at the 29th annual Marin Senior Information Fair at the Marin County Fairgrounds in San Rafael. In addition to the 140 booths focused on services, health, fitness and activities, the free fair featured stations for learning about social media, Skype, email, tablets, Internet safety and smartphones. Following a short tutorial by a volunteer with the Golden Gate Computer Society, Wetherow said she felt excited about getting more involved on Facebook and sharing her views with friends. The computer society, which is an all-volunteer nonprofit, staffed four booths at the fair aimed at familiarizing seniors with the latest technology. Interactive help Jeff Mulanax, volunteer coordinator for the Golden Gate Computer Society, said the group has about 300 members and has been in existence since 1981. In addition to a monthly general meeting, multiple meetings are held each week for those interested in learning about digital cameras, Google services, smartphones, website design, computer hardware and much more. "We're an organization of users helping users," Mulanax said. The society won the first place ribbon at the fair for having the best booths. Each booth was interactive, allowing people to create a Skype account, a program that lets people make free phone calls from their computers, while also learning about webcams and other gadgets. Volunteer Babette Bloch, of Strawberry, has been a member of the computer society since 1988 when she got her first computer. At the fair she manned the booth focused on helping people navigate smartphones and tablets. Of all the technological advances, Bloch said the iPad was the most distressing for her to learn to use. "All the icons are different and it's like 'What do I do with it?" Bloch said. But she has since mastered the device and found it useful for keeping in touch with family. "My daughter just got an iPad before going to Costa Rica this summer and it was wonderful because we could Skype," Bloch said. Technology views At the booth where seniors were learning to Skype, John Potter, of San Rafael, said he's still using an old computer with a Windows XP operating system. He said he hoped the society volunteers could give him some feedback on what type of new computer to get. "I don't know too much about it," Potter said. While familiar with Facebook, Potter said he wished he'd never created an account. He said he's constantly inundated with updates from his family, but isn't sure how to respond. "I don't know enough about it to be able to send messages securely," Potter said. For Hans Van Heusden and Michele Van Heusden, of Terra Linda, the use of Skype and Facebook doesn't interest them as much as connecting through real human interaction. While they have a computer for writing emails and printing photos, that's about the extent of the technology they desire. "I'm still from a time that you want things that are tangible, you can grab it," said Hans Van Heusden. Fair volunteer Pat Burns, of Fairfax, said she doesn't even have a cellphone, but used to be a legal secretary before retiring 10 years ago. At that time she was up-to-date on all the latest technology as it pertained to law services. "Since I've retired, my computer skills have gone down," Burns said. The Golden Gate Computer Society booths were among those Burns visited during the fair. Curious about how to use a mouse and keyboard with an iPad, volunteers demonstrated the setup for her. Burns said the overall event offers a positive opportunity for seniors to learn about the vast array of services available to them. "It seems to be fairly well attended every year," she said. Follow Megan Hansen's blog at http://blogs.marinij.com/bureaucratsandbaking. ___ (c)2014 The Marin Independent Journal (Novato, Calif.) Visit The Marin Independent Journal (Novato, Calif.) at www.marinij.com Distributed by MCT Information Services |