| By :
Marilyn Katz
Are People Over 50 Online? Somehow younger people got the thought that they owned the web. However, whoever you believe invented the internet, it was not your teenager. It was certainly developed by older people, and was brought to popularity by baby boomers. Who invented the internet anyway? In a way, the net is one of the outgrowths of the 60's generation, and it really does provide a tool to promote many of their values. Communication is open. Barriers to entry are small. Instead of starting a sit-in a person can simply start a blog! Brain Benefits of Surfing the Web A UCLA study demonstrated that browsing online actually stimulates brain areas that are related to decision making and reasoning. They wrote that the internet can be a very valuable tool for middle aged people and seniors who want to keep their minds active. Social Networking Benfits Large social websites, like Facebook, can be a great way to keep up with family and old classmates. You can find old friends and make new ones with the tools provided in these sites. Even though we originally associated these sites with younger people, like teens and college students, their function has moved far beyond this. News For Older People Some news sites target older people with news that is of partiular interest to them. Subjects like Medicare and health are covered. The great thing about these sites is that much of the content is user submitted so the visitors can actually participate in building the content and value. Submitting news, commenting on other people's submissions, and finding information are great activites that are sure to be engaging. Business On The Web Online banking and bill paying services are bound to help older people manage finances. It is great to be able to track savings, expenses, and earnings online too. These online financial tools actually make it much simpler to manage money and make decisions. You can find everything from your bank balance, credit card paymets, to credit scores online. Baby boomers can certainly use these websites to help them manage their money. Older People are Blogging Too! Many older people use some of the free online blogging services to start their own blog. They are posting articles about subjects that interest them. Some post about art, home repairs, or business. The bloggers get a lot of enjoymet and pride out of their work. And other people can learn a lot from them too. It does not take any special technical skills to use these free blogging services eiter. If a person can learn to use their email, they can use a service like blogger.com or wordpress.com. Online Income for Older People I have also seen many older people supplement their income online. They have posted sales from online auction websites like EBay or Amazon. I knew one older couple who would browse garage sales, library sales, and even used book stores for used books. Then they would resell them on Amazon. They took the time to learn the market and figure out which books would sell, but after that they had a very simple home business they could manage from their homes. They did venture out to buy the books. But they could do their sales from a home computer with an internet connection. They could even print postage online, order packing materials, and set out their orders for the mailman. Other older people have found online work doing freelance writing. Many websites need content, and they will pay people to write it. They also need editors, moderators, etc.
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