One Laptop Per Child
Thursday, May 22nd, 2008
So over the past year or so I have seen a number of news post of the BBC Technology section about the so called ‘$100 Laptop.’ The idea of this laptop is that is so cheap ($100/roughly £50) that it can easily be distributed in Developing Countries to children as tools for learning.
My first reaction to this project was “Why the heck do children in developing countries need laptops? Surely food would be a better gift?” However, this just emphised my naivety of the culture and situation in these countries.
After researching on their website, I found that actually a laptop for these children may be useful. As it is a learning tool, it teaches kids to use computers but not just in the sense of how to use Word or send an email (in fact in doesn’t have Word at the moment). It teaches children how to write computer programs and how to code. This will then enable them to get a job, and therefore be able to provide for their family.
The Laptop itself, the XO, is actually pretty sweet. It uses a strand of Linux, however can now have Windows XP installed on it. You can decided for yourself if that is a good thing or not. Everything has been thought about in the design in this laptop. It is waterproof, dust proof and drop proof. It has a built in web cam type camera and the screen swivles round and then flattens to create a type of tablet. Go to youtube and just type in ‘XO laptop’ or soemthing and have a look. This video is pretty good.
One frustrating thing about this project hasn’t got anything to do with the project itself. More the fact that the laptops cast $180 (they couldn’t quite get it down to $100) and it has amazing functionality. Also, the new model (XO2) as far as I can tell, is completely touch screen and they are aiming for the same kind of price. Its annoying that I am looking at getting a new laptop and having to spent a few hundred on one! Ah well, for a good cause I guess!
The thing that I like about this project the most is that it is technology based. As a techie, and a Christian, I often think how can I help people in Developing Countries or similar situations with the skills I have. If I was a doctor or nurse, then my skills would obviously be useful. But i thought that coding and making websites would not really be very useful. Maybe soon, techies like myself will be able to go over and teach these children how to code, breaking the cycle of poverty in these countries.
OLPC is not, at heart, a technology program, nor is the XO a product in any conventional sense of the word. OLPC is a non-profit organization providing a means to an end—an end that sees children in even the most remote regions of the globe being given the opportunity to tap into their own potential, to be exposed to a whole world of ideas, and to contribute to a more productive and saner world community.
Amen to that.
