There's already something very similar to what you describe, Scott: http://www.redstampmail.com
It's a very simple web-based email client for seniors. My grandfather uses it, and seems to be pleased.

I felt the same way! I started to build my own application but, I found this and became a partner. VERY easy to use, extremely safe (they can only receive emails from people that are in their address book), easy Internet browsing and brain-builder games. Go to: www.WeMailToo.com . I truly believe that this can change lives, and let our Seniors communicate with family and friends. -Tim

I can appreciate people's comments about this being condescending, but I've spent the last 8 Christmases helping my husband fix his parents' and brothers' computers rather than actually enjoying the holidays.

Scott, there are really good solutions like you suggest out there already. It really depends on the desire of the elder person and/or their adult friend or family member who is helping them find a solution. Many, many kids have bought computers for their elder parents which go unused. Even with great non-techie overlay software such as http://bigscreenlive.com/ or http://www.famililink.com/, many seniors just don't want to have anything to do with a computer.

My company partnered with HP to create Presto computerless email, which is a senior-friendly, modem-equipped printer with attached web service subscription that delivers formatted messages with photos or PDF documents sent from any email account or email-capable device. Seniors LOVE Presto because there is nothing for them to do: no PC, no Internet service, no junk mail (approved senders only), the machine just dials in to a local dial-up number 5 times a day, retrieves waiting mail, and automatically prints it. Presto mail goes from printer to refrigerator in a snap, without any intervening steps.

Of course I am biased as I am CEO of Presto. But you can see over 100 glowing reviews on Amazon or read about it on my blog: http://blog.presto.com or company website: http://www.presto.com.

I've been an avid Dilbert follower for years and was told yesterday that my hair was not pointy, so I think at least one of my employees doesn't think of me in the same vein as Dilbert's manager.

Keep on keepin' on,

Peter Radsliff
CEO, Presto Services Inc.

Sheesh. This seems a bit condescending.

My Dad is 82 and is using a Mac for email, web access and his online photo albums.

I think my Mom (77) is doing his tech support for him. :)

http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/183774/gboard_automates_gmail_tasks.html

This peripheral might be of some use for simplifying Gmail for elder users. I'm not overfond of the delete buttons being so central for that audience, but the other buttons look handy.

(I am in no wise affiliated with these folks and this product could suck... a friend just sent it to me and I thought it might be appropriate given the nature of this discussion to post it here)

If you’re one of the 47 million Americans without <a rev="vote for" title="Finding Affordable Health Insurance"
href="http://personalmoneystore.com/moneyblog/2009/12/02/finding-affordable-health-insurance/ ">health insurance</a>, finding a place for insurance in your budget may seem like an insurmountable task. However, there are options out there, and the expenses involved in these options should be weighed against the cost of an unexpected medical emergency – a $ 50,000 emergency surgery is a lot harder to cope with than a few hundred dollars each month. One option for lowering your costs is to consider a high-deductible health plan, which will give you a smaller monthly payment in exchange for a lower level of coverage. It’s not ideal – you’ll have to pay out of pocket for any doctor’s appointments or tests until you reach your deductible – but it will prevent major medical expenses from causing you to go bankrupt.

litl.com appears to be working on something like this. Dunno how well they'll fare, though.

They had a device years ago called the "i-opener" which was basically a simplified "computer" which focused mainly on making email simpler for the older generation. It sold TOO well (at $99) and the company went bankrupt a few years later. I still have hers and I'm sure it can once again be used but I don't really know. I keep it for sentimental value but even though it was STILL a little tough for her to use, she did really well.

We just created the Grandpa/Grandma Mode for photo/video sharing. View endless photos and videos from any computer with the ease of "plug-n-play" and without typing at all. Check out the 2-minute video at http://specialdeals.com and the free Greeting Key.

Although I am still closer to the womb than the grave, I find the stereotype that elderly people are technology-imbeciles somewhat offensive. I think there is a special place in hell for the people who make those condescending "Jitterbug" cell-phone commercials, in particular.

Are we trying to say that the human capacity to learn new technology ends in our 40's?

I'm good with the whole idea of large buttons that make it easier for those with fading eyesight and manual dexterity, but the whole song and people dancing the jitterbug seems a little over the top.

My father is 75 and used to work as a systems analyst, though when he retired they were still working in RPG II. He's almost useless on a PC, since he learned a system that was very unfriendly to crashes (in particular his field, which was finance/payroll). He has to know what the computer is going to do before he'll click on anything, and usually can't find the right thing to click anyway because it doesn't resemble any of the commands he learned. We tell him it's okay to just turn the thing off and back on again, but he's horrified at the thought. Plus he's just generally stubborn. 'Be reasonable--do it my way' is his desk sign.

My mother, a lifelong schoolteacher, does much better because she never used a computer until a few years ago and so doesn't want to know what the process is, only the end result. She has a list of how to do various things, but is proficient with email and attachments and general browsing. She'll at least experiment, then ask Dad to help her if she gets stuck, but that just makes him mad that she was messing around with something she didn't understand, and then she gets mad that he won't try to help, and then they call me to sort it out.

Good thing computers weren't around any earlier, or their 48-years-so-far marriage might not have survived the experience.

webgrunt: I suspect you're right about the comment ratings. My comment (about an e-mail system similar to the one described in the blog, which seemed topical enough) was quickly downgraded to very negative -- I'm happy to fix it up if there was something wrong/offensive about it, but some of the numbers on the ratings seem unusual.

I think WebTV had the right idea. For that group of seniors who can't or won't deal with computers, the TV is the way to go.

Even the most anti-technology senior can handle sitting in his/her usual recliner with a small wireless keyboard in lap - reading mail on the TV screen.

My father-in-law fakes a heart attack whenever I suggest he look at something on the computer - but he can handle WebTV just fine.

A simple, e-mail-only keyboard that has large buttons for "Mail", "Reply" etc. would be nice. The last webtv keyboard I saw was too complex -- but that was in the 90's and it may well be much improved by now.

The whole WebTV deal must not have been implemented very well - because it was a good idea - and is still a good idea for a small (and admittedly, declining) population of folks whose families want them to be connected - but who can't or won't ever touch a PC.

The comments for this edition of the blog are getting weird ratings--some posts have ratings in the negative thirties or even forties, while similar posts have ratings in the positive single or even double digits. I wonder what's going on...

My brother in law set up his grandparents with a service called "Sunnygram."

That service creates an e-mail address where we can send e-mails, photos, whatever. Sunnygram prints them all out and sends them via U.S. mail.

If grandma and grandpa want to respond, they can write out a note and send it via mail, and the service converts it to an electronic file and distributes it via e-mail. Grandma and Grandpa don't even need to own a computer.

(I have nothing to do with the company, and I don't know how much this costs... I believe it's a monthly fee. But I think it's pretty cool that my six-year-old son can draw a picture, scan it and send it to his great-grandfather via e-mail using the service.)

We had tried other means of connecting them to e-mail in the past... set-top boxes, etc. This is the only one that seems to really work.

I find this to be a gross generalization. I know of several seniors who are quite capable with technology, my own grandmother who is 71 has no issues sending and receiving email, checking her bank statements online, or even sending and receiving text messages. I'd wager that most seniors could do it were it not for the atitude of quitting before starting.

You mean a Mac, don't you. I've just set up one for my parents exactly for this.

* They have a Gmail address, but I've set up Mail on the Mac to act as a front end.
* Mail is pretty straightforward. They haven't gone wrong yet.
* No double click or right click necessary. Everything is one click.
* Their address is unpublished so they shouldn't get any spam. (It would be good if I could restrict it further to their address book only though - good idea)
* Picture attachments are shown at the bottom of the email. Not sure about other documents.
* I do tech support for them using LogMeIn (free product for Macs and PCs) whereby I can log in and see their screen to see what they're doing, and give them assistance if necessary. They're doing pretty well though. No Nigerian scammings yet.
* 'Grandpa mode' is pretty much their login. I have an admin login, they get basic stuff.

It sounds restrictive, but they like it as it's simple. If they want to do more, they'll learn at their own pace and I'll let them have what they want. I set them up with Mail, OpenOffice and Firefox; they discovered iPhoto by themselves and LOVE it. The only actual technical support I've had to do since was because of a genuine bug in OSX (Safari stopped working, hence Firefox now).