Microsoft is soon to unveil a marketing campaign aimed at workers the software company says "may be entering the 'awkward age of computing."' A key part of this campaign is a research project, conducted by Forrester Research, which looked at the requirements in the population for better access to PCs.
The technology Microsoft is promoting, such as text magnification, speech recognition and filter keys, already exists in the company's products. Historically, the impetus for these developments was the needs of the disabled user. Clearly, Microsoft figures that with the work force getting older, more people are finding their computer has become "awkward." (I guess awkward is one better than saying “challenging”)
Perhaps the driver for this venture is Bill Gates, who will turn 50 next year and who is beginning to find using his PC “awkward”.
"Whether it's rock 'n' roll or hot tubs, or now face lifts and Viagra, the boomers have had a strong impact on changing our culture, and so we do believe that they will change the culture as they move later in life," said Madelyn Bryant McIntire, director of the Accessible Technology Group at Microsoft. I thought this was an interesting and rather insulting way of characterizing a generation!
I might not like some of the commentary but I am delighted that Microsoft is taking the issue of aging and computing seriously. You might want to have a look at what IBM is up to in this area. See the post on July 4 2003.
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