Eldy, the best way to bring Internet to seniors

Technology has become so important recently that it has ended up reaching even the most remote edges of our society, including a group that didn’t seem to have any interest in it – senior citizens. Despite that our world has turned into one in which seniors don’t dare to even go outside, little by little there have been more seniors that are discovering the many possibilities that the Internet offers, from being able to see their children who live thousands of miles away, to visiting any corner of the earth without having to leave the house. The problem is when we try to get them to use our computers by themselves, considering their vision difficulties, and that they are completely unaccustomed to that kind of an environment. So, how can we help our grandparents use the computer?

A great option is any of the many computer classes designed especially for seniors, which you can find in many cities. Even still, the interface itself of the computer can present an obstacle, which you can solve by configuring the different accessibility options that Windows offers, for example. Another simple and even more efficient option is to look for a program specifically designed for seniors. One of the most effective ones that we have found is called Eldy.

Eldy, which was created by an Italian organization that promotes active aging, simplifies your desktop, and adapts it to the principal needs of seniors. You can find Eldy in versions for Windows, Mac, and Linux, so whichever platform you’re running won’t present a setback. The installer itself is proof of how the program has gone with large font, and good contrast in the background, overcoming any vision problems that seniors may have. This style is maintained throughout the entire program interface.

Registration only takes two simple steps, then you receive a free email address on eldy.org, and you will be able to access Eldy’s main menu, The Square. You’ll see six big and simple buttons on The Square: Email, Surf the Web, My Profile, Chat, Eldy TV, and Useful Tools. The bottom part always has the date and time, along with a button to go back or return to The Square.

The profile will be very important, as Eldy is a large community of senior users. They can communicate with their friends, and interact with them in general chat rooms, thus presenting a means by which seniors can get to know other without having to go play bingo at the senior center.

Sending and receiving email will be very simple with the large buttons for adding recipients and attaching documents. An important detail that they have kept in mind is including a button for the @ symbol when writing emails, eliminating the barrier of having to use keyboard combinations.

In the Useful Tools you’ll find a notebook (with simple buttons for creating documents, cutting, pasting, saving, and printing), and a file explorer that allows you to view your photos, rotate them, and print them off. Additionally, the program integrates with Skype (which you’ll have to have installed), allowing you to call your contacts on a simple and easy interface.

To exit, all you have to do is click on the button, which is always visible in the upper right-hand corner, where you are given the option to exit the program, minimize it, or keep using it.

However, Eldy isn’t free of issues, the most serious of which is how it doesn’t take advantage of a feature as interesting as Eldy TV seems to be. Because it is an Italian program, said button redirects to an Italian website with different content you can stream, which won’t be very helpful for those who don’t speak Italian. Additionally, you’ll find that the Help section is also in Italian, which is precisely the one that should help you out when you’re in a tight spot.

Download Eldy on Uptodown | http://eldy.en.uptodown.com