A Friendly Criticism of the One Laptop Per Child Project

“This inequality–this unfairness–is still widespread across
the world, especially in developing countries. Far too many kids
face huge obstacles to exploit their potential, to learn and hone
their skills in tasks they love passionately. I’m not just talking
about programming–art, publishing, design, mathematics, and many
other disciplines, grew to depend heavily on computers. And it’s
not just about having access to a computer anymore–it’s about
having access to the Internet, and to all the communities it
harbors. If you don’t have a computer, you’re essentially cut out.
And there was little one could do about it, until now.

“The One Laptop per Child project intends to do just what its
name suggests. In case you haven’t heard of it: OLPC is a
non-profit organization formed by very smart and good willed people
that found out how to manufacture decent-enough laptops for roughly
$100 US, and that wants to put one in the hands of every child. In
case you have heard of it, you may be interested to know that the
silly power crank is gone…”

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