Family gains television games
The elderly are characteristically not included in technology's rapid advancement. This is not because they cannot adapt, but because they prefer not to and feel more comfortable with the technology they already know. This has proven to be the biggest barrier to their adaptation to new communication avenues such as Internet chat and videoconferencing programmes. New developments for interactive televisions may now provided the elderly, or homebound with a means to improve their quality of life. An EC funded IST project has sought to bring interactive services to them, one such, on a gaming platform. In this regard, the SAID project sought to develop a platform whereby they could interact with friends through their televisions. Aside from providing them with a means whereby they can videoconference, the SAID project also furnishes them with interactive gaming. The interface is simple, thereby fostering ease of use with a utility they are already familiar with. Using their remote controls, users simply log onto the client's server and find a contact online in their address book. To simplify things even more, the address book is photo orientated, making the recognition of contacts as simple as it can get. Currently there are two game available to choose from; chess and a game based on a magician series such as guess-the-card. The idea behind this development is to users maintain contact on a periodic basis with both families and friends. For millions of people around the world, being old and alone is something to dread. For many it is synonymous with depression, neglect and abandonment. Television may now provide a means by which all this may change in some part and help to make distances between families a thing of the past.
