It is true that many of our younger generations have not experienced life without the assistance of the electronic media devices such as computers and televisions, however, a huge percentage of people in our society are not comfortable with the so-called ‘electronic age’ and all the hardware it represents. It is rash, one-eyed, and ignorant to assume that, if you are conversant with computers and the like, that everyone else is.
Indeed, there are citizens who have not ever used email, or even SMS. Far be it from me to tell you why, but at a guess I would say that either;
1. No-one has ever introduced them to a computer email service, or a mobile phone SMS capability, or
2. They choose to use ‘old-fashioned’ ‘snail mail’, and the telephone, or even (God forbid!) to visit in person.
Until such time that these are not viable alternatives to using the computer to receive bank and other notifications, they are actually NOT ‘old-fashioned’ or outdated methods; they are simply another way of communicating, and up to personal choice, as such.
Communication has never been an easy concept for man to grasp; immense effort, generations of knowledge, and opportunities to improve our technology have led us to where we have advanced to at this day and age. However, computers are not infallible; human error, computer viruses, electricity surges, power blackouts, and natural disasters affecting Internet connection are all an unwelcome but very real hazard to transmitting, storing, or receiving information via computer. Ask anyone who is computer literate about the frustration of trying to access email on-line when your server is down, or unavailable. Perhaps they will also admit that there have been times when the computer was inaccessible to to it being ‘in the shop’ for removable of a computer virus.
Mail services are far more reliable, as are telephones (presuming the connection is in place from one telephone to another, as it usually is), so I have more faith in these alternative forms of communication, especially when we are talking about financial records.
I think, if it’s not broken, why ‘fix it’?
Ask anyone who is computer literate about the frustration of trying to access email on-line when your server is down, or unavailable. Perhaps they will also admit that there have been times when the computer was inaccessible to to it being ‘in the shop’ for removable of a computer virus.
Our Grandparents, our parents, and our neighbors grew up relying on mail services and telephones, so I think to myself, ‘Why can’t I get my bank statements through the mail like they do?’