I work in retail, and occasionally I'll get an elderly customer interested in trying out a smartphone for the first time. Almost all of them want to go with a prepaid option. iPhones are too expensive on prepaid when you're buying them outright, so despite being fairly user-friendly for the elderly (the only perk of iOS!), it's out of their price range. Because of this, I'm always trying to steer them towards the Lumia 635 we have for AT&T GoPhone. It's hit-and-miss with a lot of people. I had one woman complain that everything needs a password. She didn't like having to sign into Facebook...I told her she'd need a password even if she signed into Facebook on a desktop computer, and she tried to tell me otherwise. Some people are too frustrated and put-off by how different Windows Phone is to even give it a try. She did three exchanges for the same phone, insisting something was wrong with it...
Then, there are other customers like a lovely elderly couple I had who bought the phone, and I tried showing them how to use it, but we got too busy and wasn't able to continue showing them how to do many things. They were quick learners, but I still felt a little bad. They said they'd come back when we weren't so busy, but they never came back on the day they said they would. I showed them the Help + Tips and Luma Help + Tips apps before they left, though. The information they contain is helpful, but the way information is organized isn't useful at all. Additionally, it's not laid out in a way that makes it intuitive. There's no "Lesson One" or "Start Here", what you get is a FAQ and a search bar to type in a question, and hope you phrased your question well enough that you can find the tutorial you're looking for.
It prompted me to think of another, better way to help people adjust to their new Windows Phone.
I've been wanting to get into programming for a while now, and until now didn't really have any solid ideas for a useful app. Here's what I'm thinking. A Youtube tutorial series, showcasing Basic, Intermediate, and Advanced tasks, as well as a companion app, so people can learn as they follow along with the video. The app can teach them things a video isn't as efficient at, like how to Tap, Long-Press, Swipe, etc. I've noticed the biggest problem old people have with learning how to use a smartphone is input. They can't accurately touch the screen. And when they do, they don't know how long to keep their finger on the screen, or they accidentally move their finger, causing a different action. An app similar to this that teaches them how to touch the screen would benefit them greatly.
I've got a very rough outline of what to include in this tutorial, but I thought I'd give you guys a chance to chime in, as well.
This is what I've got so far
Any suggestions? What do you wish somebody had taught you when you were using Windows Phone for the first time? What tip/trick do you think people stand to benefit the most from learning?
*note*
I am aware of the Windows Central How-To Guide for WP8.1, and I will likely be using information from it, also.
-edit-
In addition to tutorials, if you believe certain tutorials should precede others, or the general structure of how it's all organized should be arranged differently, feel free to mention that, too.
Then, there are other customers like a lovely elderly couple I had who bought the phone, and I tried showing them how to use it, but we got too busy and wasn't able to continue showing them how to do many things. They were quick learners, but I still felt a little bad. They said they'd come back when we weren't so busy, but they never came back on the day they said they would. I showed them the Help + Tips and Luma Help + Tips apps before they left, though. The information they contain is helpful, but the way information is organized isn't useful at all. Additionally, it's not laid out in a way that makes it intuitive. There's no "Lesson One" or "Start Here", what you get is a FAQ and a search bar to type in a question, and hope you phrased your question well enough that you can find the tutorial you're looking for.
It prompted me to think of another, better way to help people adjust to their new Windows Phone.
I've been wanting to get into programming for a while now, and until now didn't really have any solid ideas for a useful app. Here's what I'm thinking. A Youtube tutorial series, showcasing Basic, Intermediate, and Advanced tasks, as well as a companion app, so people can learn as they follow along with the video. The app can teach them things a video isn't as efficient at, like how to Tap, Long-Press, Swipe, etc. I've noticed the biggest problem old people have with learning how to use a smartphone is input. They can't accurately touch the screen. And when they do, they don't know how long to keep their finger on the screen, or they accidentally move their finger, causing a different action. An app similar to this that teaches them how to touch the screen would benefit them greatly.
I've got a very rough outline of what to include in this tutorial, but I thought I'd give you guys a chance to chime in, as well.
This is what I've got so far
- Beginners
- Physical input: to turn the device On and Off/ Volume control
- Screen input: How to Tap, Long-Press, and Swipe
- Button input: What the buttons at the bottom do
- How to Open/Close apps
- How to delete unwanted apps/ How to install new apps
- How to Add/Remove apps on the Start screen, and reposition
- How to create a secure password
- How to import your contacts, pictures, and other personal data
- Intermediate
- How to use Cortana (likely to be broken into a multi-part video)
- How to navigate to a destination
- How to customize your phone
- Advanced
Any suggestions? What do you wish somebody had taught you when you were using Windows Phone for the first time? What tip/trick do you think people stand to benefit the most from learning?
*note*
I am aware of the Windows Central How-To Guide for WP8.1, and I will likely be using information from it, also.
-edit-
In addition to tutorials, if you believe certain tutorials should precede others, or the general structure of how it's all organized should be arranged differently, feel free to mention that, too.
Last edited:
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