A short (and funny!) film about learning IM
November 1, 2009 on 12:14 pm | In Fun Stuff | 13 Comments
A co-worker pointed me to this short film about a 50+ couple, Mia and Florin Popescu, who are both a little scared of technology but determined enough to stick with it so they can IM with their son, Alex, who lives in the US. A piece of crumpled paper with instructions from Alex is their only map to the sometimes complicated world of Yahoo Messenger. It’s not a documentary but it feels like one!
Created in 2008 by Director Constantin Popescu, “The Yellow Smiley Face (Fata Galbena)” is a delightful and funny look at the steep learning curve computers present for those who have little to no experience. Watching the couple took me back to when I taught my own parents and grandparents. A powerful reminder that at some point in the past, I too had to learn how to use this machine that hums at my feet day and night.
What’s most charming about the film is the big payoff – Mia and Florin’s faces and excited chatter when they finally do connect with Alex and see him on-screen. A nice illustration of how all this complicated technology can ultimately help us make real connections.
Even if it is sometimes daunting.
Sarah Bacon
Product Manager
Yes, I saw this a while ago. One amazing short film.
Comment by MAD — November 2, 2009 #
Painful, just P.A.I.N.F.U.L.
Comment by kckman — November 2, 2009 #
it’s a Romanian movie, in Romania Yahoo Messenger is very popular.
Comment by emrares — November 2, 2009 #
emrares, they know that.
Comment by Petru — November 3, 2009 #
Miss Sarah B.
Thanks for the Video, I think it’s kind of cool of the parents chatting to their son who’s away from his country.
Is it Yahoo! Messenger they’re using?
Anyway, quick question and completely off-topic here, just wondering is Yahoo! Messenger 10 Beta completely compatible with Windows 7 Ultimate?
Dave.
Comment by Dave — November 4, 2009 #
@Dave – Yes, Yahoo! Messenger 10 is compatible with Windows 7.
Sarah Bacon
Comment by Administrator — November 4, 2009 #
Thanks Miss Sarah B.
Comment by Dave — November 6, 2009 #
“e o fata sau o fatza?” means “is it a girl or a face?” not “yellow,mellow”
. But it’s a bit exaggerated sometimes. Mom’s 50+ and she knows these things better than it’s shown here; but who knows, people differ…
Well yeah, here in Romania we are using Yahoo Messenger very frequently; few are those who are using MSN or GTalk or any others. It’s absolutely normal for us that when we say “my id is cata2007″ it means “cata2007@yahoo.com”. Yahoo is like…something usual now.
I don’t know why I’ve been reading the subtitles while watching this; maybe to spot the errors
Interesting
Comment by Geo ^^ — November 9, 2009 #
I know for all you kids who grew up with mouses for teethers, this video is pretty lame. But for this 55 y/o grandmother whose youngest son moved 1500 miles away a year ago and who grew up with LP’s and 8 tracks, this was priceless. In my work, I use a computer for ordering things and looking up test results, but until my son left home I never felt the need to use our PC for communication. This year has been a great learning experience and an adventure. Overcoming fear that mistake will cause breakage, realizing that each mistake is just an opportunity to learn…..
Comment by GrannyG — November 10, 2009 #
priceless video … although my mom’s a fast learner, my dad doesn’t really care about computers so I can relate to the story. Indeed, there were some mistakes in the translation, but who cares .. it’s an universal story. There most surely are parents all over the world going through the same ordeal. Who knows, the way technology is developing, maybe it’ll be our turn someday … cheers for the video Sarah
Comment by alex — November 13, 2009 #
really its not that far off. i know exactly what they are feeling, ‘what if, what next, click here?’ I’m new to p.cs, and i get it!!! Bravo!!!!
Comment by sharla grimm — November 16, 2009 #
I have a message that My father likes yahoo .
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