The Book Jacket:
Facebook, a powerful networking tool for people of all ages is at your disposal. Are you going to be left in the dust, or join the herd that is finding old friends, organizing events, and keeping in touch with friends and family all over the world? If you want to spread your technological wings, this guide to Facebook is all you will ever need.
First, it is important to tell your new users to throw away their preconceptions. They need to forget that they believe that this is just like email, or a phone replacement. If users come in with these preconceptions, and they are not effectively challenged and addressed during the training process, according to Orlikowski, “people act towards technology on the basis of meaning it has for them” (364). This means that users will be unable to use the full scope of Facebook’s features and maximize their user experience, as happened with Notes.
The 40-60 years olds need to understand that email, or messages, are a part of Facebook so that they will be able to more easily use that functionality, but not see email as a replacement. That is the challenge. This can be overcome by introducing messages in the framework of overall Facebook communication, and how using the Wall, messages, and Events together is just as good as sending an email or an evite, if not better.
My training program would begin with an explanation of the Wall, Photos, and the Profile page (personal aspects), as well as connecting with friends. This is the heart of Facebook. What 40-60 year olds are most interested in are connecting with long lost relatives and old friends. Facebook is one of the most effective ways to do this, since searching for people is very is a snap. This is an easy confidence booster for users, and I would suggest that they first focus on this to motivate them to learn more.
With just a little time put into Facebook, adults will be able to connect with many people from long ago, a huge return on their investment. One possible way to test the reward they receive is by seeing if these new relationships make them happier and how many relationships they maintain. Understanding the heart of Facebook will enable users to discover more on their own, or they could read further into the book for an explanation of applications and other Facebook features. It is possible that they will uncover new features by exploring the system with their friends.
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The only thing harder than getting people to use new technology is getting them to read. Why do you think people will be so interested in Facebook that they will read this book? While you definitely hit on the right aspects to explain about Facebook, I'm not sure how this gets the users to appreciate the difference Facebook offers.
ReplyDeleteThe point is that you are writing a "how to" book. We didn't get to design a class.
ReplyDeleteI definitely agree that it would be a hard to achieve a balance between teaching them about messages in a way that is not in their email frame. Especially with people who are a bit close minded with learning new technology, it would be challenging to attempt to explain something without having them see it through the bit of technology that they do know. Unfortunately for me, my mom is an engineer and can figure out how to work Facebook just fine on her own...
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