I saw this book and picked it up at my local library after an elderly acquaintance asked this question out loud during our still-connected cell phone conversation.
I wondered if it would be helpful for the technology-challenged people I know. This is a great little book to give to your interested grandmother or to someone who has a few fill-in-the-blank questions. It is not a how-to for those who want to advance their already-existing skills. Some of the information is already a little dated but this definitely goes with the territory. It is still good information since it explains how some things came to be and gives the reader the basics that they can build on. There are a lot of pictures and the author's upbeat "Try it! Go for it!" encouragement is a positive way to encourage reluctant readers to get their feet wet. Abby Stokes covers computers, smartphones, tablets and apps using simple, easy-to-understand language.
I am always amazed by the people I meet who refuse to even look at a computer, hoping to avoid this dreaded thing until they die. Were there those out there who refused to look at television thirty years after it became mainstream? We will leave the thornier questions on Facebook and Twitter manipulation to others. This book is simply a great starting place. I found it a very fast read since I have been using these technologies for decades, but even I learned a few things. ( )