To find people who refuse to embrace technology irritating?

[Sophiehoney]

I don't mean people who genuinely struggle

I am irritated with people who absolutely refuse to even try.
I am sure a lot of the time they do it on purpose. They use the whole "I don't do technology" thing as a personality trait, to be quirky and "not like all you young people" when simply being a bit older is not a reason in itself, as Mumsnet proves!!

People at my work are moaning like hell because the system of filling in patients notes at the end of the shift in a book with a pen has been replaced by handheld devices (basically phones) that are more secure and can be completed on the go. They are so simple but some people are refusing to learn so others are filling their notes in for them.

A lady at the doctor's today point blank refused to even try to sign herself in on the machine. It was literally just a case of pressing a button and then filling in a form with her name and DOB using a keyboard. She declared proudly "I'm not doing this, I don't do technology, I don't even have a mobile phone!" And made he poor stressed receptionist with a line of people waiting come out and do it for her.

My mum will pop round a million times a week with "something she needs me to on her iPad" and it's usually just something trivial like reading an email and sending a one line reply that I know she is capable of. I've stated getting my 13 year old to do and she pays him £1 every time so every cloud 🤷

But these people do irritate me when they expect others to pick up their slack by refusing to try.

AIBU?

I know someone who likes to tell everyone she has a high IQ and that she is a member of MENSA, yet she won't do online banking or anything IT related.

She fails to see the irony. She says that she just got employees to do stuff for her. I call it weaponised incompetence.

I pity people from a non-tech background whose only way of banking is by an app on ther phone, coupled with multifactor authentication (MFA) and card readers. Plus setting up biometrics so they can use their fingerprint to authenticate.

How do non IT literate people have a hope in hell of piecing all that together. It causes an anxiety loop that they then associate with everything to do with technology.

I've finally 'got it' with the MFA on my banking using texts to my mobile after numerous false starts and getting through the pain barrier. We started using MFA every day to log into our laptops for added security and that was a nightmare to begin with.

@Sophiehoney people are so frozen in fear they minimise it by saying "I don't do IT"

The trouble with tec is that the people who create the programmes often miss out basic, fundamental steps.
The equivalent is expecting someone who has never, ever used a kettle to know how to make a cup of tea.
Stating first boil the kettle to someone who is not aware what that means is pointless and frustrating. The instructions should say fill the kettle up to point X by adding cold tap water. You need to remove the lid first, pull this level to remove the lid.
That sort of thing.
I also dislike parking apps.
They are ok for those who use the same one regularly, with the same car, in an area with an excellent signal.

That’s fair enough as long as people don’t expect other people to do things for them. And if people are fine with not being able to park where they want to because they won’t use parking apps.

But if someone is complaining because they can’t park where they want because they won’t use parking apps and do other things, then that’s the incentive.

I've only seen one maths app that is done well and that was at primary level.
My daughter gave up on hers because doing graph work on a screen is hell and often the numbers the app generates are not conducive to reading the graph accurately enough to input the right answer. Same with doing any sort of circle theorem, trigonometry etc where often you need to draw extra lines.
Most maths problems will be multi step and apps don't accommodate for it, so she would have to copy out the question complete it and then input the answer. No marks for method, no guidance on where she went wrong, just a simple right/wrong answer at the end isn't enough feedback.

She just stopped doing her homework as it was so time consuming and laborious and soul destroying.. We have provided workbooks, printed sheets, past papers and a tutor to guide her through this paper based learning all as an alternative to the homework.

She has just sat her maths GCSE on paper where there are methods marks, where they are asked to show working, where she had to add components to graphs and so on. These important exam skills are all things that are skipped if a student has only known an app that rewards a correct answer.

A lot of our patients didn't understand what a "surname" was. We changed the wording to "Last name". The still type in the initial of their first name.

It kinda isn't. Resilience is being able to recover from a difficulty and not get stressed out by it.

Resilience is adaptation to adversity and the ability to bounce back - not adapting to learning new tech! 😁

Sorry @Lifestooshort71 - I didn't see that you had already written the same.

After all the covid stuff, it is hard not to see those GP signs in screens as a vector of disease. Maybe it wasn't about the technology.

Everyone struggles with some aspect no matter their age. I’m 31 and for me, it’s formatting Word/Excel

Thank you for saying this. Lots of people, particularly the elderly but not exclusively, lose the ability. There are endless reasons for this. Bluffing their way through the situation may be their way of coping/saving face.

I think you're right. It's much easier to say that you don't understand or can't find your glasses.

Parking apps are the work of the devil though. My nearest station has very poor signal and it's really difficult to get the app to work. The only plus points are being able to extend your parking time remotely or pay when you're actually on the train.

Is it because it’s asking for last name first so not intuitive most people if coming to reception counter would say Mary Smith here for my 10am Appointment.
Not Smith Mary, June 9th, 10am, yes correct, submit. Think ours randomly asks for your sex too?!
Our Gp screen asks for month first then date, I assume system is based on American tech where they do dates other way around.
Enter all details and don’t click yes and submit (2 extra presses on screen ) you sit there and not called as it’s not gone through.

No problem! I've been a Spurs supporter for nearly 70 years - I know all about resilience!

That’s all very well; but DD has a blue badge. We find it falls between the cracks often. The district council has imposed on street parking charges in our town. The signs say when you park, you must register on the parking app. However, people with blue badges can park for free. You cannot register on the parking app as a blue badge holder.

DH took it up with our councillor, who directed us to the council’s FAQ. That does not answer the question as to how blue badge holders register on the app. We have taken to not registering, when we take DD to town, because there is no alternative.

We had the same problem in the station car park; except when we complained to them, it being a private company; they put up signs in the blue badge spaces, giving us a different area code with no charges.

OP seems to forget people with learning disability may be able to cope with using cash in shops, or ringing up for a GP appointment; but they can’t use a smart phone or navigate an e consult on their own. They end up, being deprived of what independence they have and shut out of adult life.

My DD can pay with cash; but she can’t remember a PIN number. She couldn’t begin to cope with an app. The state ends up having to pay for care workers to do it for her.

Yes, but that personal service comes at a cost, probably more than the £20 you paid for the portal.

Why don't you change the number to the new mobile? Or why didn't you swap your old mobile number to your new mobile when you changed phones?

My grandparents were video calling their brother in Australia until they were approaching 90. It gave them more contact with them than they had had in about 50 years. It was lovely.

My mum however does struggle with technology, she is severely dyslexicband has processing issues following a stroke on her 20s. She struggles with tech and says its because it's new or what ever. The reality is she struggles with comprehension and reason. Looking at a screen feels much more like a test and she freezes in front of tests following the trauma of being labelled stupid in school. The black on white can cause blank spots and cause distortions in the text if you are dyslexic. Part of her dyslexia means she can have issues with seeing numbers the wrong way around 76 as 67 which adds doubt when selecting the right numbers on a screen.
Our GP sign in screen is
"Which month were you born in?"
"Which of these is the year you were born in?
"What is the first letter of your surname?"

The years are 12 randomly assorted years and there is a qwerty keyboard for the letters, my mum isn't super familiar with a keyboard.
Whilst it is essentially collecting the same information for my mum it is a lot more challenging than being asked to write her name and date of birth on a form.

One of the other difference is you know what to do next when you have a paper form, you turn the page over. On a screen is she meant to be looking for an arrow? A cross? A next button? A green tick? It all creates added complexity for her mind that makes it a barrier to use it.

I think often the refusal to engage with tech can be an excuse to avoid facing a different difficulty such as failing eyesight, reduced cognition, poor comprehension skills or poor literacy

Would those people understand paper versions of long T&Cs or contracts any better? Lots of people just blindly sign in pen whatever forms are put in front of them in banks, when buying say a car or furniture on credit, even renting or buying a house, etc. How many posts are on MN and other fora from people wondering about how to get out of a flat lease or car finance, or who is responsible for the fence of their house, when the answer is in the paperwork they signed, probably in pen if it wasn't very recent!

I'm 77 and pretty profficient with technology but have lost the use of some of my apps effectively through forgetting passwords. I find it really stressful. I'm fairly fit and still working, but my memory isnt great and I panic. I've given up with the online banking and gave no bank for miles.
It's a bit humiliating when I get stuck!

Neither of my parents do online banking or have a smartphone and seem to be managing fine. I assume they have other ways of doing what they need to do. They're both retired so don't care about spending time in line at the bank or whatever. They won't use self checkouts either, they say it's taking jobs from people.

As long as the person isn't expecting you to do their life admin or work I think it's personal preference.

Such a good point @Amiacoolorwarmcolour. Also the people who develop and roll out the apps and updates are people who find this stuff simple and let's be honest, often people who find interacting socially to be difficult. It appeals mostly to people like them. One could argue they were forced to conform in a way that they struggled with for many years. And that's not right. But now I fear the pendulum is swinging the other way and what was once a balance with an element of inclusion is now another form of exclusion. Only instead of being sympathetic and supportive of those being excluded now, it's becoming socially acceptable to criticise and sneer at them. Tech should be a choice, the problem is it no longer is.