[smileLP]

hi,

my mom had a smithsonian era OS 9 G3

i just got her a 3 yr old used imac, w/a 17" (wide) screen

in its fullest resolution, stuff on the screen (she mostly uses it for aol) is simply too small for her to read

if i go down to one lower resolution setting, things get a little bigger , but not big enuf, and it looks fuzzy/crappy

i have heard from a computer expert friend of mine that the shape and size of things on the mac monitors of late have prompted complaints from the senior set

does anyone have any advice for me? she likes the flat screen; i'd rather not go back to her old monitor (a tube, which DID have stuff big enuf on it due to some filter that was req'd to attach it to her computer, and the clarity was great)

should i start from scratch w/a mini mac and a, say, viewsonic monitor, more square shaped than the (i think) annoying rectangle of "wide screen'? would such a combo even solve the problem and make things bigger on the screen?

i've looked but haven't found any software that would help. one non-mac software looked very promising, but alas PC only. and this "clip on" magnifying screen looks lame

any help/thoughts would be appreciated. my mom's 82 yr old eyes thank you

richard

[Rev-O]

Have you tried System Prefs>Universal Access>Seeing? Through that you can enable White text on black backgrounds for enhanced contrast as well as a Zoom function and a Voice Over funtion. Worth a shot. Hope it helps!

[JKT]

Read this article for a description of the built-in zoom feature and also for some alternative software that will zoom a section of the screen rather than the whole screen (note, another third party solution is OmniDazzle which also has this as one of its features).

[kick52]

Originally Posted by Rev-O 

Have you tried System Prefs>Universal Access>Seeing? Through that you can enable White text on black backgrounds for enhanced contrast as well as a Zoom function and a Voice Over funtion. Worth a shot. Hope it helps!

yeah. just do that.

works fine, and goes in as far as you like. it will make it a bit blury, but tough.

also, its "enough"

[moonmonkey]

Leopard 10.5 will run on her iMac when its released and is the first Mac OS to feature a resolution independent interface, this will be great for your mum!

Until then you will have to use the zoom feature.

[skybolt]

'm sure you will get her squared away using the suggestions above. But I just want to congratulate your mom on being computer-ish! I think it is wonderful when the older set wants to/keeps up with the world of today! When my mother was 82 I tried to get her on the web (something simple like webtv at the time), but she told me she didn't want to learn anything new! So she missed out on emails from her far away grandson, her great grandsons, etc. So hurray for your mom! She's my kind of lady! (BTW - I'm an over 60 grandma who LOVES technology!)

[smileLP]

hi, (original poster here)

thanks for all your suggestions

for the record, the control + scroll wheel zoom feature won't do it for her, cuz i had her try it, and while it IS good for just reading something, when she is in aol and goes to her incoming/saved mail (she runs auto aol, instead of reading/writing her e-mails on-line), she then has to move the cursor to open each e-mail, and as you know things start moving around at that point and she didn't like that (and i don't blame her - for something other than just reading, something where you have to move the cursor and click on something)

as for the other zoom feature you mention in preferences, is that also best for just reading? i.e. will things move around if you move the mouse? also, does it have to be activated for each new document, or each time you turn on the computer, or is it a permanent default

lastly, what is that symbol i don't recognize when it's telling you how to do that zoom?

it says for zoom in: [apple] + (some symbol i don't recognize) + [the equal sign]

i know i am starting to sound like a nay-sayer, but i am just being realistic. i tried the contrast thing in preferences and the white on black option, and neither of those will help her. it's mostly she just needs certain windows she works with bigger

but i will look at everything suggested here, including the articles and software referrals, and for that i thank you

but bottom line: it sounds like leopard 10.5 will be the true solution

again, thanks all

[mindwaves]

Originally Posted by smileLP 

hi, (original poster here)

lastly, what is that symbol i don't recognize when it's telling you how to do that zoom?

it says for zoom in: [apple] + (some symbol i don't recognize) + [the equal sign]

option key

[JKT]

For the zooming, you can change the way the screen moves in response to the mouse:



Your mum might prefer one of the other options to the continuous movement.

FWIW, pretty much every app will allow you to increase the default font size. Where OS X is deficient is the size of text in the menu bar and Dock, which can't be changed without a hack.

[smileLP]

>>FWIW, pretty much every app will allow you to increase the default font size. Where OS X is deficient is the size of text in the menu bar and Dock, which can't be changed without a hack.<<

aol has the same shortcoming within... aol

thanks all