Dawson St church brings you online

St Ann's church in Dawson Street has a reputation for innovation whether it be in the musical events it presents or in how it reaches out to the community around it. Since April last year St Ann's has added another innovative string to its bow with the launch of a cybercafΘ aimed at older people who would like to become part of the e-mail and internet revolution.

The cafe opens its doors to senior surfers between 12 a.m. and 3 p.m. from Monday to Friday and provides free tuition to those who are new to computers and cyberspace. Those who can are asked to make a £2 contribution to defray the costs of the telephone lines.

Classes last an hour and no experience or knowledge of computers is required. The computers used in the e-cafΘ were donated by the internet service provider Connect.

Many of those who have come in for tuition have done so in order to be able to e-mail their children and grandchildren abroad. Others have wanted to use the internet to find old friends or to trace their family history.

Paddy Carey and Ken Mooney are the cybercafΘ tutors at St Ann's. "We have a sign outside on the street and that brings in people, including tourists who come in to e-mail home," says Ken Mooney. "We encourage people to come regardless of age and we find that about 98 per cent of them pick it up surprisingly quickly. They might find the keyboard a bit difficult to start with, but they get the hang of it in one or two lessons. The classes cover basic skills such as using a mouse and scrolling and then we move on to e-mail and eventually to searching the web and using the internet to get specific information.

"Initially we had a very good response to the cafe, but it quietened down during the summer," says Mooney. "But I'm pleased to say it's been getting busy again and if possible we'd like people to phone us to book in for a session. It just means we can manage things a bit better. If people would like to call us the number is (01) 676 7727."