McDusty 
Ricky MondelloPlease stop using “mom” as an example of an unsophisticated user of technology. This reinforces harmful stereotypes.
Instead, I suggest using “congressperson”.
Jan Lehnardt 
@rmondello I’ve been going with “mayor” for a few years :)
Katherine Stiles 
@janl @rmondello Because no one would expect ‘Mutti’ to be ‘an unsophisticated user of technology’ back in the day maybe? :-)
Jack Yan (甄爵恩)@janl @rmondello So this is why I didnʼt win when I ran many years ago. Too tech-savvy! 🙂
macfixer
Michael Ward@rmondello I worked in IT local government in the UK. One particular morning I was required to cover the tech helpline for the local elected representatives. Never have I had to deal with a more ignorant, self entitled, ego inflated bunch. Not all of them of course, but far too many. Was exhausting.
@michaelward Sounds terrible; I'm so sorry!
@rmondello thanks, but it was 20+ years ago, I’m over it and it was only the once. I refused to ever do it again. It also didn’t help that the help desk software was some obtuse MS-DOS based monstrosity that was 15 years obsolete. 😭
Sammy@michaelward @rmondello unfortunately the only part of that I'm surprised about is "not all of them".
@scribbler @rmondello there were a few councillors who were polite, attentive and didn’t see themselves as entitled overlords. However, they were in a minority amongst those that called that morning.
tipsyatwork@michaelward @rmondello I also used to work in local government IT, the number of times I had to turn on the TV for a meeting, all because one particular director could not work out how to use the remote control, still amazes me to this day. Dumb arses get employed and elected all the time.
@tipsyatwork @rmondello Don't they just! I left after 7 years, despite loving those I worked with, because the management were change resistant and pace of progress was glacial. They're still using the barely adequate CMS we put in place in 2005.
@michaelward @rmondello you lasted longer than me, I had enough of the politics and other crap after 4 years, I spent 22 in state government which was not bad, back in private industry nowadays so much better, miss some of the people though, but not the crap that goes with it.
Michael Porter@michaelward @rmondello I’m looking for volunteer work now that I’m retired. This sounds like the ideal placement…
“Is your mouse actually plugged in, you ignorant, mossy, stump?”
#NothingToLose
“Is your mouse actually plugged in, you ignorant, mossy, stump?”
#NothingToLose
Not a Spring Onion@MichaelPorter @michaelward @rmondello
"Okay, and now we do all the steps again, and this time, you don't reflexively click on every message box 'Ok' that you see..."
juliusloewe@rmondello Brings back memories of the Facebook hearing. 😂😅
Matt Stocum@julius “now Mr. Zuckerberg, can you explain why my candy crush only gives me red candies when all I need is blue, and how this proves you’re in a conspiracy with China?”
iopsthecloud@rmondello In my personal experience, "parents" works well for me 😍
Bobby Perrotti@rmondello I use “cousin” because everyone has an absolute rube somewhere in the family tree that they can conjure to stand-in for “resident idiot, still worthy of sympathy”
Joakim@rmondello "Suppose you were an idiot. And suppose you were a member of Congress. But I repeat myself." - Mark Twain
Brian Grinter@rmondello My mum (not mom - I'm Australian 😉) retrained in IT once my brother and I were in school and ended up working in the industry until she retired a few years ago so definitely a power use
Carol Warady@rmondello Mom taught you guys how to use a spoon!
🌈☔🌦️🍄🌱🍉@carolw @rmondello when mum teaches you how to fork();
Elaine Rigues@carolw @rmondello I actually can teach my children how to make a fork (on Git lol)
sentient water@rmondello Or in a personal example of a role I had. The head of the IT department of a hospital.
Auntie Denier
What does IT stand for
@cordeliane @rmondello What doesn't it mean? 🤔
ngoomie is moving!@rmondello my mom is certainly better at using tech than any congressperson that's for sure
Cathryn❤️🕷@rmondello Indeed. Mom…. still waiting for the respect they deserve for amongst other things, literally dealing with ALL your crap for years and still trusting you with their vulnerability anyway.
Michał "rysiek" Woźniak · 🇺🇦@rmondello exquisite point, I shall comply!
Leah Rowe ist kein Roweboter@rmondello my mother runs Linux (and coreboot) on her personal laptop. i set it up for her, and she tells me she much prefers it to the windows machine that she once had
@rmondello she also knows how to use tor
@libreleah I love this.
brin3m@libreleah @rmondello Years ago my son set it up for me on an old laptop. My new one does not have it but i know what it is and understsnd it when i see it. Learning new things is great. Expands your universe .
MFierst@libreleah @rmondello
So did mine. "Much better", she said, "I can find everything I need.". She was talking about Gnome on Linux. 😄
Never underestimate moms.
So did mine. "Much better", she said, "I can find everything I need.". She was talking about Gnome on Linux. 😄
Never underestimate moms.
Ashley Rolfmore (leymoo)@rmondello "Sales Director" or "CEO" are my favourites :D
Json Doh@jdoe @rmondello I did work on a module about 5-6 years ago where the main user persona was 65-80 years old.
Also there are stories of university students now being taught how file directories work as they never needed them growing up...
it's never been a linear spectrum of "sophisticated" vs "unsophisticated".
@leymoo @rmondello I worked for a CEO who refused to have his web browser updated from IE6, as he didn’t want the UI to change & despite IE6 being deprecated with <0.5% global usage. This meant that the e-commerce site I was working on has to be compatible. Anyone working in web dev at that time will attest that IE6 support was a nightmare. I went as far as to explain the inordinate cost of supporting it, but he wouldn’t be swayed.
@michaelward @rmondello edit his hosts file, redirect his favourite news site to placeholder, put some fake article in about IE6 causing [terrible ailment] later in life. Problem solved!
@leymoo @rmondello hmm - that would have been a very useful tip at the time 🫡
Peri@rmondello and if you're using the Westminster Parliament type government - Member of Parliament.
Or in 🇨🇦 - provincially - MLA/MPP/MHA/MNA depending on where you are 😉
David LaSpina@rmondello Do people use "mom" for that? I usually hear "grandma"/"grandpa"/or "old person" when people around me are talking about people who find tech challenging.
That said, "congressperson" is of course the correct substitution here. Well said!
Chris [list of emoji]"Political cartoonist"
Kis Lota 👽@rmondello true, true
my mom's actually more tech savy than most people her age 💕
my mom's actually more tech savy than most people her age 💕
One Dude. Opinions. All Mine.
Rasmus Sten@rmondello I heard an astronaut say that NASA engineers refers to their tools and processes as “astronaut proof” when they’re really foolproof 🙂
Amy (she/her/hers)@rmondello "member of European parliament"
Stevens R MillerI was an elected public official once. At the time, I held a graduate degree in computer science. I am now a computer science faculty member at a university.
There is no need to use any class of person as "an example." If someone is unfamiliar with something you know about, help them become familiar. There was a time when you didn't know it yourself.
If you do need an example of an unsophisticated user of technology, I suggest saying, "an unsophisticated user of technology."
AmberWavesoFlame@stevensrmiller @rmondello maybe you would still be an elected official if you were more #funatparties :)
Josh 
@rmondello “squarespace sam” is our non-techy persona :D
0ddj0bb@rmondello oh as in "its so easy to use your mother can use it?"
@0ddj0bb Yes! That!
@rmondello i like the idea of using politicians as the dunce who doesnt understand tech. Especially given the danger of the fact they legislate it
Lyner@rmondello I use grandma
Justin Allen@rmondello This made me laugh. Unfortunately for everyone it's super true.
SteeleDynamics λ 
@rmondello MC's -- Members of Congress
I Can't Believe It's Not Zero!@rmondello Seriously. Mom has been using a computer for 40+ years and can write postscript in a text editor.
S★m V★rm★@rmondello fair! 🤣
John Infante@rmondello Executive Vice President works well too.
rag. Gustavino BevilacquaEven "the average cop" would be appropriate.