When seniors look for computer advice on Sydney’s north shore, they might be helped by a man who may be Australia’s oldest tech-support guy.
Age is no barrier for 102-year-old Dean Simes, who runs the Computer Pals seniors computer club in Turramurra.
Mr Simes’s club teaches senior citizens how to use a variety of computer and smartphone functions such as Windows 11, Microsoft Excel and WhatsApp.
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“People that join this club are having to live with the computer world more and more,” Mr Simes said.
“When this club started [in 2000], XP was just coming out, and now we’re in Windows 11, and over the years there’s been a lot of changes.
“You can’t avoid having to use a computer.”
Michael and Vera Last attended one of Dean’s classes to learn to use WhatsApp on Android. (ABC Radio Sydney: Declan Bowring)
When ABC Radio Sydney visited, Mr Simes was teaching Vera and Michael Last how to set up WhatsApp on their Android phones, using a lesson he drafted using AI, projected on to a big screen.
Ms Last, 94, remembers being good at computers while she was working, but feels she has lost touch in the years since.
“Things seem to deteriorate in my tiny mind, so I need all the help I can get,” she said.
She and her husband say they never asked about Mr Simes’s age.
Dean’s age was never a consideration, Michael and Vera say. (ABC Radio Sydney: Declan Bowring)
“It wasn’t a criteria,” Mr Last said.
Bill Soper, the club’s secretary treasurer, says Mr Simes’s expertise was legendary.
“All of us bow down to Dean’s knowledge of computers,” Mr Soper said.
Bill Soper (left) teaches classes at the Ku-ring-gai Computer Pals club. (ABC Radio Sydney: Declan Bowring)
Computers a late interest
Mr Simes had a career in the mining industry before becoming a consultant in the 1980s when he moved to Sydney.
He used computers in his work, but didn’t have one of his own until he bought one second-hand in his 80s.
When he retired, he wanted to learn more about computers and help others understand them.
“When I first got my own hand-me-down computer, I found I was asking people for help,” Mr Simes said.
Dean Simes went to TAFE to learn more about using computers. (ABC Radio Sydney: Declan Bowring)
“I needed to know more, so I did three years at TAFE.
“[I] also had in mind that I could perhaps help others in this computer club [Computer Pals], which I joined.”
Mr Simes is now president of the club. He also bought most of the club’s equipment on their behalf and is in charge of looking after it.
He teaches classes in using the internet, email and computer storage.
Mr Simes is even across the growing plethora of AI search engines, which he says are useful, but only when you ask for very specific information.
“If you ask a general question, you might find yourself down a rabbit hole chasing things that had nothing to do with what you want,” he said.
“You’ve got to be careful when you do this to make sure your question is as precise and limited as you can make it.”Practice makes perfect
Mr Simes understands some elderly people may want to avoid the technology, but says it is becoming harder to live in today’s world without using computers.
His advice to those struggling is to practice — but to practice the right thing.
Dean Simes was named Ku-ring-gai Council’s Local Citizen of the Year in January. (Supplied: Ku-ring-gai Council)
“It’s fun for perhaps playing solitaire for a bit, but apart from teaching you how to use the mouse, you don’t really learn a lot more,” he said.
“When … you’re shown how to do something, don’t just be shown.
“Do it yourself, under supervision, go home and do it again and again.”
His years of service helping the elderly understand technology have earned him recognition from Ku-ring-gai Council, which named him Local Citizen of the Year at a ceremony in January.
“Dean is the ‘go-to’ person for all tech issues,” Ku-ring-gai Mayor Christine Kay said.
“Computer Pals is a wonderful community group empowering senior citizens to access digital technology and learn new skills.”
Age is just a mindset
Digital literacy advocate Jocelyn Brewer says many older Australians are not as confident with technology as younger generations.
Challenging your brain later in life
“People who are younger and growing up with emerging technology are more hands on,” said Ms Brewer, who founded Digital Nutrition.
“No-one’s been taught how to be scam-aware … it’s often when things go wrong that you get some of this advice.”
Ms Brewer says it is important for older generations to engage with technology, in order to avoid being targeted by scams and online misinformation.
“Anyone who accesses the internet … really needs to know not just the technical aspects of how to use it, but actually some of the psychological impacts and the risks around its use.
“Numbers and age is really a construct. It’s really about your mindset.”
Staying active
As well as being a go-to tech guy, Mr Simes plays bridge, spends time with his six children, goes to a Probus club and still drives his car.
He also goes to the gym to avoid losing muscle tone.
Mr Simes says eventually he’ll have to stop running the Computer Pals club — but for now, he has plenty keeping him active.
“I suppose it stops me from being a couch potato,” Mr Simes said.
“I don’t get too much time sitting twiddling my thumbs.”