[Tfug] OLPC - slightly OT

[John Karns]

On Tue, May 20, 2008 at 3:33 AM, Steve <lukkystarr at excite.com> wrote:

>
> An OLPC critique....
>
>
>
>
> http://commentisfree.guardian.co.uk/andrew_brown/2008/05/chips_with_everything.html
>

The article has a ring of astro-turfing to me:

================

"The collapse of the scheme illuminates the utter falsity of the hope that
technology alone can lift people out of poverty."

================ end quote

What a crock.  I don't think that was a goal for for Negroponte et al *1.
But in any case, some unanticipated political issues came bubbling up over
the past 3 - 4 yrs since the project was announced.  For one, the fine folks
at MS perhaps saw some writing on the wall that made them fret for the
future dominance of their monopoly.  Some say Intel also felt a threat and
answered with the Classroom PC (or whatever they call it).

To sum up, the troubles encountered by the OLPC project are as much or more
related to string-pulling by entrenched corporate entities than anything
else.

Perhaps others here are aware of the recently exposed MS deal with maker of
small PCs:

http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/145719/microsoft_to_limit_capabilities_of_cheap_laptops.html

Microsoft to Limit Capabilities of Cheap
Laptops<http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/145719/microsoft_to_limit_capabilities_of_cheap_laptops.html>

Microsoft plans to offer PC makers steep discounts on Windows XP Home
Edition to encourage them to use that OS instead of Linux on ultra low-cost
PCs (ULPCs). *To be eligible, however, the PC vendors that make ULPCs must
limit screen sizes to 10.2 inches and hard drives to 80G bytes, and they
cannot offer touch-screen PCs.*
**

*1 From the laptop.org site:

Our goal: To provide children around the world with new opportunities to
explore, experiment and express themselves.

-- 
John
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