Access to the internet

and the ability to use a computer seems to be taken for granted. It should not be.
There is a letter about that very topic in this morning's paper but I was reminded of it last night. A friend rang me to say that a mutual friend had fallen and injured herself. Could I please let someone else know? Why? Because the person who phoned me does not have internet access and had no way of finding as much as a telephone number. You look those up on line now - and that only works if it is an old "land line" sort of number. Mobile numbers are nowhere to be found.
Once there would have been a telephone book with a print size you could actually read (if with a little difficulty) and she would have made the call herself.
This morning's letter pointed out the increasing insistence on doing business through a website or contacting a government department or other service through a website. I immediately thought of all those people who depend on spending time at the library to use the computers there. Many of them are older unemployed people who do not have access to the internet. They do not have the sort of mobile phone plan (if they even have a mobile phone) that allows them to make endless calls and "hold the line" for minutes on end. If they need to make contact with Centrelink (our social welfare service) then they need to go and make an appointment to - wait for this - make an appointment.  They have cut the number of offices for  Centrelink so many people have to travel further. 
The past few weeks must have been a nightmare for such people. They would still be expected to show they were searching for work and those who were already seeking help are now competing with those newly out of work but with the advantage of recent experience. 
There are all sorts of little issues that come up. Some of them are relatively simple. Even I can sort some of them out - mostly because I am used to reading forms and trying to work out what the writer intended and how the relevant legislation might be applied. There are things however that confuse me completely. I simply do not understand how the mind of the so called "public servant" worked at that point. I have seen legislation applied in very creative ways and for very creative reasons. It does not help when you log into a website and you are faced with a range of options and not one of them applies to the problem. Phone them? The same options might apply - or there might be fewer options. Go to the wrong option in the hope of talking to someone, anyone? No, that doesn't work. It is not their responsibility. They cannot give you an answer. You will need to contact.... And so it goes on.
Perhaps it is time for some smart individual to set up a service which allows people to say, "I need to actually talk to a real person" and get them through to someone who can help. 
Is it time to stop relying on computers and starting to rely on communicating instead?