Fox Run Retirees Form iPad Club

—Submitted by Fox Run

Keeping up to date with the latest technology can be difficult if you didn’t grow up using computers, cell phones and other electronic gadgets. But that hasn't stopped residents at in Novi from embracing a new technology that has made their lives easier and more entertaining.

A group of Fox Run residents have formed an iPad club to exchange tips, share applications (known simply as “apps”), and help one another troubleshoot technology issues. Gloria Maire came up with the idea for the club, and she asked her friend and neighbor Hilda Edwards to help organize it. About 20 people showed up for the first meeting and others are expected join as more residents continue to purchase iPads.

Edwards, a former school teacher, who moved to Fox Run from Bloomfield, said she has been using computers for more than 30 years and describes herself as a “techie.” In fact, she used a computer to help her students learn to read in the 80's. She has stayed current with technology since then, and when Apple introduced the iPad, she knew she wanted one of her own.

“I already had an e-reader, so I really didn’t need it,” she said. “But I saw a lot of my friends using it and thought, ‘This looks like fun.’”

She purchased an iPad 2 last fall, and she uses it on a regular basis. She checks her email on it, plays games and periodically watches TV shows. She even recently discovered an app that allows users to download electronic copies of the Bible.

“I have over 20 apps,” she said. “What is so cool about the iPad is whatever you feel like doing, you can do.”

Jack Beggs, another Fox Run resident, who moved from Troy, received an iPad as a gift this past Christmas. He and his wife, Rosemary, use it to check email and read newspapers like the New York Times.

“It’s a very portable device; you can take it anywhere,” he said.

Beggs says he’s found the Skype application most useful. It enables users to make video calls over the Internet. Some of his and his wife’s friends from Fox Run were spending the winter in Barbados but wanted to stay in touch with their neighbors back in Novi. His iPad was the perfect solution.

“Now we can go into the living room [in Fox Run’s clubhouse], which has wireless Internet, so we can show our friends in Barbados what is going on [there] using Skype,” he said.

Prior to receiving his iPad, Beggs had primarily used PCs, so he’s just getting familiar with Apple’s operating system. Fox Run’s iPad club, he says, is a good opportunity for him to trade tips with other users.

“A couple of people have had iPads for a while, so we can use their experience,” he said.