People tend to be intimidated by unfamiliar technology, and with good reason. When you grow up with a particular thing, it’s easy to forget how complex the device is and how much difficulty someone who did not grow up with it might have learning it. Everyone encounters this at some point. It may be a parent who learned the nitty-gritty of computers back when they first hit the mass-market with the DOS operating system. After their initial excitement, they may have gotten distracted and didn’t come back to them until Windows 3.1, or someone upgrading from a home phone to, say, a smart-phone. Even someone tech-savvy may be stumped by the workings of a complex audio and video systems with twelve devices and fifteen remotes.
Here’s a tip for tackling the adjustment phase or more like the rarer air at the top of the technology mountain, if you will. Take it slowly and, to borrow from Douglas Adams, “don’t panic.” Everything has its own logic, however obscured it may be initially. If you just look closely at what you’re presented with, you can figure it out. Finding the “on” switch is a good place to start, although even that can present its own challenges.
Imagine a common scenario that everyone is bound to run into, which is that you’ve just upgraded from an older version of software to a newer one, maybe one that is several versions newer. Suddenly everything looks different and all the options are in different places. All the time you spent learning the workings of the previous version would seem to be wasted, and sometimes it is. But look closely, and remember that any redesign is probably motivated by an idea of what will be “easier” or more intuitive. Examine the menus you’re presented with and look for a tutorial, if there is one. If all else fails, you can always Google the task you wish to complete.