Some people shoudn't be allowed to have access to a computer

Today I had a phone message.

'Er 'It's Dad. We're having a bit of trouble with the magic box thing and something about the server you see and well I can't ask you because you're out so when you get this message call me back.'
My heart hit the floor; 'the magic box' is his word for his laptop. His laptop which I never wanted him to have, warned him against having and have regretted letting him have ever since.

He bought it because some of his 'contacts' have been sending him communications by e-mail and gradually in the modern world this seems to be the way forward.  Paper communication is becoming rarer and rarer and the older generation are being left behind.  Of course some of our silver surfers have got with it and joined the computer generation. Imelda is not one of them.

'It says 'server error communication something or other'.
Great - just what I need on my day off. By way of an update I can use e-mail and various Microsoft products but I am not an IT person.  Any time I ever manager to fix a PC issue it is by fiddling with everything I can think of until the blessed thing fixes itself for fear of catching fire.  As I have said before too much uneducated fiddling should be banned.

In Imelda's eyes being unable to read an email is in the same league as a major meltdown. To me it is the beginning of a huge headache. I used a PC daily as part of work when I worked in the call centre. It by no means made me an expert. Compared to most of the twenty somethings I worked with, my extreme age (40+) rendered me somewhat prehistoric as far as the PC world was concerned.  Even so, compared to Imelda I am a PC guru.

I thought logically if Ant could use his PC, and they are in the same house, using the same wifi connection then it is not a server issue.  I asked Imelda if Ant could get a connection on his laptop.
'Er, I don't know, you better ask him.'
'Dad, just tell me has he been reading his e-mails today.'
'Er I don't know, I told you but he read me the one from you today.'
'Right, so he can get his e-mails if he had mine this morning so I guess it's not a server issue. What do you need to do on your PC?'
'Well, I don't know, Someone said they sent me something you see and I need to go to their place.'
'Do you need to get onto their website or just read an e-mail?'
'I don't know - ask Ant.'
'No, Dad, this is easy just let me ask you. Do you have your password?'
'I don't know (shouts) ANT - DO I KNOW MY PASSWORD?'
I decide to go back to basics. 'Dad do you know your e-mail password?'
'Oh I don't know' he is getting stroppy, 'Here, ask Ant.'
Ant comes on the phone.
'Hello Yes?'
'Ant, does dad know his password for e-mail?'
'I don't know... can you come round?'
I don't want to come round, I don't want to go into that house for an hour and faff about when this is simple. I figure if my dad can sign into Ant's PC he can get his emails. Only one problem, Ant doesn't know how to log out.
I decide to tell him over the phone.
'Right, Ant, you know when you are in your e-mail account and there is your name at the top with the picture of the dog we put on there for you?'
'Yeeessss.'
'Right, are you sure - at the top, on the right?'
'OK'
'Right, click on there and there is a drop down menu right?'
'Yes, OK'
'Great, click on there and go down and you will see LOGOUT or LOGOFF. OK?'
'Ah - OK, yes, I see.'
This was easier than I thought it would be.
'Right, Ant, once you have logged off like that then you go into LOGIN again... OK?'
'OK...'
'Good, great, now put Dad's email address in there and his password...' There was a long silence. 'Ant, is that OK?  Have you got it?'
'Yes, Yes, I get it.' Ant was upbeat, he no longer had to concentrate.
'Right - so are you in to Dad's email account now?'
'Er - I don't know, his laptop's in the kitchen and I'm upstairs.'

Is it any wonder I am slightly mad?