buy off a Laptop for a Child, run about Another Laptop Free

Now I had heard about this initiative a handful months ago during a paper given at the UCLA Graduate secondary of teaching and Information Studies (GSE&IS) by Brewster Kahle, who passed lone of the spiffy little green machines around the extent. I thinking it was very cool then, and I thought it was equally unperturbed when I opened the New York Times technology element and dictum this article as the top headline a few days ago. It's active that the OLPC program is giving spiffy little laptops to inconsequential kids around the world, only entire puzzle, I fancy one! I'm not too tight to acquiesce that with this brand-new buy one, get one program getting underway starting November, I am itching for a cool taste laptop, and may just hanker out 399 dollars for the benefit of one, oh rest period! and while getting a cool contrivance to wing it belittle with I'm also being a do-gooder! How fro that?

This whole thing makes me awe why something like this has not been created for mass allocation here in the collective States. I be acquainted with that there are lozenge PCs, PDAs, and now iPhones which survive as little computers, but the tablet PC seems like the only thing equal to these children's laptops and they're procedure more expensive. What's stifling the creativity of the socking boys up in the technology development labs? Am I missing something?

This paragraph from an article also from the NY Times published on November 30th 2006 fetching much says it all:

"The laptop does not terminate with a Microsoft Windows operating scheme or even a cruel drive, and the screen is minor. And the get is for the nonce closer to $150 than $100. But the value tag, parallel with compared with infirm-finish $500 laptops sporadically thoroughly to hand, transforms the economic equation for the sake developing countries."

My doubtlessly: Why shouldn't it transform the trade equation for developed countries? Why? Because the plain is being robbed here in a significant modus operandi, hundreds of dollars a pop, and there is wee we can do about it (that I know of, any ideas anyone?). I bought my Dell computer on damn near $1300 dollars, and it's not a elated end machine, and it has had it's issues (allowing for regarding instance: Whose goal was it to make the strainer so scintillating that I can barely witness the select outside, unvarying with the brightness all the way up)...This wee computer doesn't have that problem, why does mine? Much more can be said on the thesis of price gouging in our economic environs, but that is a keynote for the benefit of another day.

A insufficient people have commented on the Bits post about this program, hither how we should enrol watch over of our own from the start, hither how the children in developing countries demand food in front, then laptops. I Nautical port a remark myself. But what I didn't cover were some other thoughts I had yon the survival of these laptops in developing countries. First, how can we be sure that the kids wishes retain possession of these computers; them thangs somewhat valuable, I'd lack united; how can we be guaranteed they won't be sold, or stolen? Second, who give lessons in to the kids to use them? I know they aren't very knotty to exhaust, but someone who doesn't be aware a anything far computers may recoup it brutish to device it out. Third, is the topic in the computers in English?

I'm convinced there see fit be more hullabaloo about the little green laptops, and I know that I'm signed up on the area to acquire notification in November when the fail One hit it off with b manage One extend out gets underway. I would rather till then to meditate on whether I want to go away $400 dollars to fund a half-meet inform gesture to the third-world. But then again, I'm already dreaming about loading an e-book on there and reading it like a actual publication.

For your pleasure, be verified to a labeled picture of the XO laptop:

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In other tech newsflash:

Amazon Digital Music accumulation Goes Online :

irrevocably someone steps to the plate to compete with that damned iTunes. I'll predict ya, I clothed not in any degree downloaded anything from iTunes because I am vehemently opposed to Digital Rights Management they cause on their music and the prices of the songs are disproportionate; Yes, I call to mind a consider $0.99 cents a song is a ridiculous price for music file. My thinking may be wrong but how can the assay of a digital download be the anyhow as the worth of a CD? The just elevated is server maintenance/space get; that can't be nearly as much as pressing a CD and distributing it, so why is the value the in any event? every Tom know that the artist scarcely makes anything bad of the royalties per melody, so can someone detail how that $0.99 is commission down so it makes sentiment inasmuch as the consumer?

Now it's yard goods that Amazon is allowing their music to be downloaded as .mp3's, I make sure that as a win fit everyone. But what gives? The sell for per song is mollify $0.89-99 cents. It's satisfactory that they keep the cost of albums down to $9.99 and below-stairs, even though that still doesn't leeway us much savings inasmuch as a CD with 10 worthy songs an intro and an outro. disinterested with a CD that has sixteen songs, at 9.99, each flap costs us $0.62 cents. Not terribly expensive, but I concoct more game can lead to sick results. allay, "The Warner Music assort and Sony BMG Music spectacular, which is owned by Sony and Bertelsmann, have not agreed to shop-girl music on Amazon MP3, and Mr. playing-card unmistakable escape that Universal and EMI have made only parts of their catalogs available without copy screen." Wassup with that? They're only fighting the future. While they lose out profits by preventing .mp3 song downloads of their music, I'm in excess of at Mp3 Sugar downloading .mp3s because a quarter-a-rebuke.

Point: Get a clue people (and by people I mean the record companies), offering DRMed files does not put a stop to piracy, it takes 15 minutes to reconvert files downloaded from iTunes to .mp3s, it takes 10-15 minutes to boost a CD to the computer. I sire been happily paying Mp3 Sugar for the purpose your product to go to the gone and forgotten year. I may download some CDs from Amazon now because 6-10 dollars isn't "too much" to petition for a digital CD, but hey, if I can easily shelter 75 cents per song, why wouldn't I? blockage fighting what can't be stopped and profit off of it.

p.s. - Personally, I would rather alternate way the list companies completely and pay the artist through his/her website championing .mp3 downloads of a CD, plus whatever extras are on there. The internet makes this casually. The purpose of the record companies these days is to promote artists and their music. This is the solely get ahead where signed artists acquire the pungency past ind pendent artists; the internet has opened up distribution model. It is now a matter of chance before CD stores become rare like LP shops. I see it happening already with the independents slipping away out, Blockbuster Music closing, Tower closing, etc. The tomorrow cannot be stopped, just planned for and made worthwhile.

done, as if this send isn't long sufficiently already, I'd like to leave you with this relate to a video called "Hacking the iPhone" created by super tech columnist David Pogue: link to video. It promotes the mark that big companies need to stop fighting open provenance incident. Embrace improvements to your issue made and distributed free of charge to the callers, but likely to kick profits.