Computer University@Sea - distance learning from a cruise ship

Cruise Travel, Oct, 2001 by Jeannie Block

Learn to cruise the internet while sailing with Crystal

It wasn't too long ago when people took cruises to get away from it all. Nowadays, it seems that they don't necessarily want to get away from everything. Having access to e-mail, stock quotes, and even the internet have become desirable onboard entertainment options, and cruise lines are responding big time.

Recently built vessels feature some kind of computer facility--many have their own internet cafes, modeled after small shoreside establishments that offer convenient on-line services. Similar installations are being added to older ships. The trend was accelerated by research reports citing baby boomers and seniors as the fastest growing groups getting wound up in the worldwide web. Of course, it's no coincidence that these population segments are the primary targets of the cruise industry.

Running far ahead of the pack, luxury-cruise leader Crystal Cruises several years ago introduced its unique "Computer University@Sea" on both of its 940-passenger ships, the Crystal Harmony and Crystal Symphony. Two years in development, the finely tuned, no-cost program echoes early guest surveys showing that computer access would appeal to the line's upscale clientele. Seniors, among others, said that being able to communicate by e-mail with the family would enhance the cruising experience. On the other hand, many saw computers as technically profound and threatening. Crystal's novel approach was developed to encourage passenger participation by easing them through a primary course leveled to the slowest participant. (Intermediate users also are enabled to expand their skills.) Responses to these programs: a litany of accolades.

To start with, Crystal's clientele is mainly 50s-and-up, well educated, and with time and wherewithal to cruise the top-rated vessels' worldwide itineraries. Interestingly, few in our computer class whom we talked with on our 11-day Panama Canal transit last April aboard the 49,400-gross-register-ton Crystal Harmony had even been aware of the computer learning center before embarking. By cruise end, though, 68 percent of all guests either participated in classes, used e-mail, or monitored stock portfolios. On the previous sailing it was 71 percent.

The high involvement of both the modestly computer literate and the near- and total-clueless has varied little from start-up, according to Mike Newell, school dean on our sailing. Most neophytes sign-up hoping at least to learn to send e-mail from the ship. A one-hour class and a bit of practice is all it takes to do that, he said. Simplified sessions in word processing and in setting up spreadsheets are also part of the curriculum. A hands-on course on internet usage has recently been added. CU@S's best testimonials, he added, come from enthused novices who've said the instruction made them want to get more involved with computers at home.

The program is successful, Newell explained, because these are hands-on classes, offered in non-technical (no giga/mega/terabytes) terms. And a coterie of ever-present instructors with impressive computer credentials closely monitor classes and laboratory practice periods, over a usually 12-hour day. Like Newell, all are volunteers from various walks of life, who enlist for at least a 30-day stint and undergo stringent screening. Mike, an early retired marketing executive with EMC and IBM, and instructor wife Judy, another IBM veteran, are co-founders of a SeniorNet Learning Center in Vero Beach, Florida, which trains older adults to use personal computers.

Passenger Tooru Murakami's experience with the program is not untypical. The retired civil engineer from Honolulu told us he had received a computer as a gift but was afraid of it, even after some outside instruction. He and his wife had booked the cruise on a friend's recommendation, looking to relax and enjoy what he termed "a high-quality cruise ship." Learning of the school via the ship's daily bulletin, he opted to give it a shot, hoping at least to get the hang of e-mail. Not only did he manage that, but he also credited the total learning experience with "opening a whole new world" that he intends to eagerly explore.

For photographer husband Bernie and me, two total computer dum-dums aboard to do an article about the program, it offered a formidable challenge. Being from the "old school," we were long content and productive using big yellow lined pads of paper and a comfortable 10-year-old word processor. To be candid, we were more afraid of tangling with the "computer monster" than anything else. But, like Mr. Murakami, we were converted, and have been checking out systems suggested by Newell at a lecture, "How To Buy A Personal Computer" (Two other presentations, "An Introduction To PCs" and "Introduction To The Internet/World Wide Web," were equally salient).

Beginning with our first "e-mail" session (at least four classes are conducted on sea days), we were seated at work stations at a U-shaped table set with 19 Compaq Presario laptop units. The class leader, up-front using an LCD projector hooked into a computer, explained some basics, then got us playing computer solitaire as a fun way to learn how to use the mouse. Finally logging on (starting the process), we followed step-by-step instructions a bit gingerly, keeping an eye on the projector screen for assurance. We also got welcome help from instructors roaming behind the group, watchful and so quick to aid the unsure. (These people were the greatest.) Within the hour, as Newell had predicted, we had walked through the entire procedure, still a trifle hazy, but no longer mystified.