Make it easier to read
One card at a time. Open your AI app, type the words from the gray box there, then do the check at the bottom.
First time here? Ask a family member to help you set up once. It takes about ten minutes.
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For retirees, and anyone new to AI
Learn to use AI on your phone, one small step at a time.
What this is: a large-print set of cards. Each card shows you exactly what to type into an AI app on your phone, then how to check its answer before you trust it. No cost, no ads, no sign-up.
What an AI app is: an app you can ask questions in plain words, like asking a well-read friend. It writes back. It is often helpful and sometimes wrong, which is why every card ends with a check.
Who it is for: anyone who feels unsure about computers. You go at your own pace. No computer degree required.
Start here
This page does not listen or talk back.
It gives you words to use in an AI app. That is a separate app on your phone that answers questions. You type or say the words there, not here.
No AI app on your phone yet? Ask someone in your family to set one up with you. It is free to start and takes about ten minutes. The checklist on the Guide page shows them how.
For the family member helping: once the AI app is on the phone, write its name here. Every card will then say exactly where to type the words.
Your AI app: . Type or say the words from each card there.
Open itHow it works
- Have your AI app ready. It is a separate app on your phone. This page does not listen or answer.
- Pick one card. Just one. There is no test and no wrong order.
- Copy the words, then paste them into your AI app. Tap "Copy these words," open your AI app, press and hold where you type, and tap Paste.
- Read its answer, then check. Every card ends with a safety step. Do not skip it.
Six suits, one for each part of life
Fill-in helpers for every day
The kitchen, the garden, staying active, family and friends, getting out, learning and hobbies, and your phone itself. Tap a few choices and the words are written for you. It works fine outdoors too: turn on bright sun mode and the text gets bolder.
The one rule to remember
If anyone, or anything, asks you to hurry, keep a secret, or pay with gift cards: stop. Real banks, real offices and real family will wait while you check.
Prefer paper?
Print the cards on cardstock, print the large-print guide, or print the one-page checklist for the family member helping. Any home printer works.
Pick what you need. Tap your choices, and the words appear in the gray box, ready to copy into your AI app.
Got a message that worries you?
Don't ask an AI app about it
A scam message can be written to fool an AI app too, and an AI app can be wrong while sounding sure. This one is for you and someone you trust.
- Do not reply. Do not click anything in it or call a number in it.
- Do not copy it into another app, including an AI app.
- Close it.
- Call back on a number you already have for that person or company, such as the number on your card or statement.
- Ask someone you trust to look at it with you.
- Report it. ReportFraud.ftc.gov. Free advice: AARP Fraud Watch Network Helpline, 877-908-3360. You do not need to be a member.
Each card is one small thing to try with the AI app on your phone. Pick one. Send the words to your AI app. Read what it writes back, then do the check at the bottom of the card.
The guide that comes with the cards. Tap a heading to open it.
For the family
Setting up a parent's phone: a checklist
One afternoon of setup makes everything else easier. Tick each one off as you go.
My people
The people to call when you're not sure about something.
Saved in this phone's browser, not sent to us. Anyone who can unlock this phone can see it. Clearing the browser's data or changing phones removes it.
Keep a copy on paper or in your messages, in case this phone loses it.
Keep this list safe: add Asking Stuff to your home screen. Some phones clear what a website saved if you don't visit it for a week. Adding it to the home screen usually helps, but nothing saved on a phone is guaranteed, so keep a copy on paper too.
How do I do that?
iPhone: open askingstuff.com in Safari. Tap the Share button, a square with an arrow pointing up. Scroll down and tap "Add to Home Screen," then "Add."
Android: open askingstuff.com in Chrome. Tap the three dots in the top corner, then "Add to Home screen" or "Install app."
Ask a family member to help if it looks different on your phone.
Free help with scams, the AARP Fraud Watch Network Helpline. You do not need to be a member.
877-908-3360
Staying safe
Five rules
- Keep private things private. Never type, say or connect your Social Security number, Medicare number, bank or card details, passwords, or anything about your health or your money. No real AI app needs them.
- Check before you trust. Before you act on anything about health, money or the law, check it with a person you trust or an official source.
- Hurry means stop. "Act now," "don't tell anyone" and "pay with gift cards" are the words of a scam.
- Call back on a number you already have. Voices and pictures can be faked. Hang up and call the person you know.
- You are still in charge. You decide what to ask, what to believe and what to do. The AI app helps. It does not buy, book, cancel or sign up for anything for you.
When something feels wrong
Stop. Hang up or close the window. Do not send money, gift cards or codes. Call someone you trust.
To report a scam:
Free help and advice, the AARP Fraud Watch Network Helpline. You do not need to be a member:
877-908-3360
The Staying Safe cards
About Asking Stuff, and your privacy
What it is. Large-print cards and fill-in helpers that show you what to type into an AI app, and how to check its answer before you trust it.
What it costs: nothing. No cost, no ads, no sign-up.
What we collect: nothing you type or save. There are no accounts. We count visits without learning who you are, using a basic visit counter from the company that hosts these pages, which also sees basic connection details in order to deliver them. What you save here, like your people and your AI app's name, is kept only in this phone's browser and is never sent to us. Anyone who uses this phone or browser can see it, and so can anything you install in the browser. The "Copy" and "Share" buttons send words only where you choose. Reading aloud uses your phone's own voice. What you type into an AI app is governed by that app, not by us. You can remove what is saved here at any time with the Remove buttons.
Not advice. Asking Stuff teaches you how to use an AI app. It does not give medical, money or legal advice, and neither should the AI app. Check anything important with a person you trust.
What is saved on this phone. Your people, your AI app's name and address, and your settings. They stay in this phone's browser until you clear them.
If you share this phone, clear these before you hand it over. Tap a button twice to confirm.
Questions or a mistake to report? Write to contact@fellowshipintelligence.com.