The One Laptop per Child project will make Linux as popular on the desktop as it is on the server today, according to Nicholas Negroponte, head of the project and co-founder of the MIT Media Laboratory. Speaking on the final day of Red Hat's annual user summit, Negroponte told an audience of Linux enthusiasts and technology professionals that the OLPC project will lead to mass adoption of the operating system, if the software that powers it is efficient and usable enough.
To view parent comment, click here.
To read all comments associated with this story, please click here.
Member since:2005-07-11
And yet you don't tell about a single on. *sigh*
I wasnt even sure you were serious, but apparently you are so here goes...
1. A 486 would be *nowhere* near as powerful as the current CPU they have spec'ed
2. How many 486 laptops do you think can be upgraded to anywhere near 128MB of RAM? Answer; probably none of them. I'd be shocked if any that old could even hold 64MB.
(Trying to get usable Fedora Core 5 desktop to run on a config as mentioned in the above two points would be an exercise in futility. But if you dont believe me, you are free to prove yourself wrong by trying.)
3. The 486 laptops (obviously) use standard hard drives, whereas the others use much more rugged flash storage. Considering these laptops are for children, the more punishment they can take the better.
4. Using a wide range of various 486 era OEM model laptops would also vastly increase the support training costs. Instead of teaching someone how to fix just one type, you now have umpteen different ones.
Member since:2006-01-02
It is painfully obvious to me that you have never lived in a 3rd world country, because if you did you would know that the extremely poor areas which make up the majority of the population are still using antiquated technology 'circa' 486 days. You will find that many schools do not even have electricity, or decent whiteboards. Many do not even have books.
Yet you crow on about 128mb ram and a 486 being too slow. Time for a reality check. Many of the schools in these impoverished areas *DO* use 486s. Windows 3.1 *STILL* works. In fact, here's a kicker - many still use 286 and 386 desktops. As for maintenance, that is relatively cheap when the technology you are using has been given to you for free by aid organizations and neighbouring countries.
There are a few people in this thread that have made informed comments and it is quite easy to see which ones have actually lived in a 3rd world country and which ones are dreaming without taking into account basic necessities that these folks do not even have.
This project may fill a niche but it definitely will not provide *one* laptop *per* child.
Member since:
2005-10-27
And yet you don't tell about a single on. *sigh*