Comments on: Windows XP Ready for OLPC XO; OLPC To Revisit Give 1, Get 1 in November http://blog.laptopmag.com/windows-xp-ready-for-olpc-xo-olpc-to-revisit-give-1-get-1-in-november News and views on today's hottest laptops, cell phones, and other mobile devices. Fri, 20 Nov 2009 22:36:04 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 hourly 1 By: david http://blog.laptopmag.com/windows-xp-ready-for-olpc-xo-olpc-to-revisit-give-1-get-1-in-november/comment-page-1#comment-14675 david Tue, 02 Dec 2008 07:47:57 +0000 http://blog.laptopmag.com/?p=2647#comment-14675 Not only is the office, adobe and other educational tools part of the issue, but the life and stability of the computer as well. We should all know that battery life and stability of unix-linux based OS's are more reliable and energy efficent. They require less memory, less processing power, and thus reducing energy. They may not be the best when you want to do everything on earth, but these operating systems are absolute perfection when it comes to the basics. Battery life is increased, programs stability and all. As well as FREE Open Source applications, without having to pay money for a license. In my opinion this is just flat out wrong what microsoft just did to these countries. Everytime somthing great is going on, they step in and demand to be a part of it, acting as if they were help, when its all about marketing! Money, money money! Not only is the office, adobe and other educational tools part of the issue, but the life and stability of the computer as well. We should all know that battery life and stability of unix-linux based OS’s are more reliable and energy efficent. They require less memory, less processing power, and thus reducing energy. They may not be the best when you want to do everything on earth, but these operating systems are absolute perfection when it comes to the basics. Battery life is increased, programs stability and all. As well as FREE Open Source applications, without having to pay money for a license. In my opinion this is just flat out wrong what microsoft just did to these countries. Everytime somthing great is going on, they step in and demand to be a part of it, acting as if they were help, when its all about marketing! Money, money money!

]]> By: AD from Canada http://blog.laptopmag.com/windows-xp-ready-for-olpc-xo-olpc-to-revisit-give-1-get-1-in-november/comment-page-1#comment-11784 AD from Canada Mon, 28 Jul 2008 01:27:20 +0000 http://blog.laptopmag.com/?p=2647#comment-11784 Well, I think that generally the thought is that by the time they get to be adults, they will have acquired some value-added and useful IT skills,built on their OLPC experiences as kids, that will help them find opportunities and income that will allow them to be able to afford the equipment in increments... just like we did. If they need dev kits, they will probably have an educational institution to help them with that or a business case to get a loan to get one - just cuz they are from the 3rd world and poor now does not mean they will be in 10-15 years nor that their aspirations and socio-economic opportunities won't be all that different from what we take for granted today. And of course, there's Linux too! Heck, having come from a 3rd world country, I can tell you now its not impossible for people with skills and ambition to find what they need and make a decent stab at a better life - its challenging for sure, but not impossible. Sometimes I worry things are too good here in the West that we forget that it was built on hard work, and others are equally capable of that given the right tools and opportunities. Its that part of that whole globalization fad... ;-) The questions for me on G1G1'08 are whether: (a) the OLPC's offered this round will be the same or better than the one's we got last year (I like mine, but 256M of RAM renders it an expensive but morally gratifying paper weight) and (b) will the XP option be available to legacy G1G1 purchasers... or will we just have to torrent it off the 'net if they won't take our money for it; and (c) will somebody come up with a simplified and optimized Linux distro for the OLPC that is decently functional on the '07 hardware? Peace-out. Well, I think that generally the thought is that by the time they get to be adults, they will have acquired some value-added and useful IT skills,built on their OLPC experiences as kids, that will help them find opportunities and income that will allow them to be able to afford the equipment in increments… just like we did.

If they need dev kits, they will probably have an educational institution to help them with that or a business case to get a loan to get one – just cuz they are from the 3rd world and poor now does not mean they will be in 10-15 years nor that their aspirations and socio-economic opportunities won’t be all that different from what we take for granted today. And of course, there’s Linux too!

Heck, having come from a 3rd world country, I can tell you now its not impossible for people with skills and ambition to find what they need and make a decent stab at a better life – its challenging for sure, but not impossible. Sometimes I worry things are too good here in the West that we forget that it was built on hard work, and others are equally capable of that given the right tools and opportunities. Its that part of that whole globalization fad… ;-)

The questions for me on G1G1′08 are whether:

(a) the OLPC’s offered this round will be the same or better than the one’s we got last year (I like mine, but 256M of RAM renders it an expensive but morally gratifying paper weight) and

(b) will the XP option be available to legacy G1G1 purchasers… or will we just have to torrent it off the ‘net if they won’t take our money for it; and

(c) will somebody come up with a simplified and optimized Linux distro for the OLPC that is decently functional on the ‘07 hardware?

Peace-out.

]]> By: carlleigh http://blog.laptopmag.com/windows-xp-ready-for-olpc-xo-olpc-to-revisit-give-1-get-1-in-november/comment-page-1#comment-11766 carlleigh Sun, 27 Jul 2008 06:12:16 +0000 http://blog.laptopmag.com/?p=2647#comment-11766 I was interested in the two for one last year but: These computers are being introduced for use by children. What happens when they become adults. For example: as adults they make US $400 per month and they need to buy a PC and Windows and Office cost $500. Or maybe they need development tools so they buy MSDN at $700. Is it moral to sell an OS for practically nothing to children and then rape them when they are adults. Its even worse when the decision is $400 per month and food on the table or skip one meal of two a day just to have an OS. People have such mean hearts. I was interested in the two for one last year but: These computers are being introduced for use by children. What happens when they become adults. For example: as adults they make US $400 per month and they need to buy a PC and Windows and Office cost $500. Or maybe they need development tools so they buy MSDN at $700. Is it moral to sell an OS for practically nothing to children and then rape them when they are adults.

Its even worse when the decision is $400 per month and food on the table or skip one meal of two a day just to have an OS.

People have such mean hearts.

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