OLPC: Intel, Microsoft, and Other "Experts" Just Don't Get It

[ Thanks to Jim Klein for this link. ]

"The One Laptop per Child project has got to be one of the most controversial topics in both education and technology. The little green wonder has been incessantly discussed and debated, at once glorified for its ideals and derided for a host of perceived shortcomings. 'It doesn't run Windows' they say, (as if that's a bad thing--but I'll save that for another post,) followed by some errant declaration like, 'most software runs on Windows--how can you deny these kids access to it?' On the technical side, there's the 'what about technical support?' question and 'who will repair them when they break?' A few of my favorites from the education arena have been, 'who will teach the kids to use the machines?' and 'who's going to train the teachers and provide the curriculum?' Then we step into the silly, like 'what if the parents never let their kids use them?' and 'what about all the bad things on the internet?' as well as ridiculous ones like 'how will we protect these kids from Internet addiction...?'"

Complete Story

Related Stories:

• The Political Hoopla Between Intel and OLPC(May 23, 2007)
• GNU/Linux Horizons: How OLPC May Impact the Future(May 23, 2007)
• The Real Cost of $3 Windows(Apr 25, 2007)
• Leave Computers to the Market Economy(Apr 23, 2007)