I’m not convinced that parents and computers should mix, but Microsoft provides six steps when buying your parents a computer.
They appear to have missed the first point, which should be: Buy a Mac.
Though admittedly in most people’s cases that would contravene step 3: Set up their desktop with software that you are familiar with.
(via Ed Bott)
Yeah I reckon Buy a Mac is better advice than those six steps.
And I’d especially avoid the step that says ‘include a photo quality printer’. Or at least add the words, ‘and a large bank balance for ink supplies.’ Instead of the printer and its inevitable streaky photos and ink problems in the very near future, show them how to take files to KMart and have their photos printed in any quantity for 30c each.
We tried and tried to get Linux working with a wireless networking card and ended up giving the parents a Windows box. Step 2 was “hack together a box out of bits and pieces lying around, buy missing components”. Step 5 was “lock the wireless router down to the one LAN card they’re using plus turn on encryption, remove IE, put in firewalls”.