Loosely Coupled

I was glad to hear mention of OLPC (One Laptop Per Child) in a podcast I listened to early this week. OLPC (a.k.a. the $100 laptop) is an organization whose goal is to provide inexpensive laptops to children for education. Integrated collaboration is one of the key features offered in these laptops. The belief that information and ideas are meant to be freely and openly shared is a core principal of open source software... and it's revolutionized the software industry. Allowing children to learn the value of this openness firsthand, will hopefully lead to a more open and collaborative environment in other fields (government for one) when these children enter the workforce as adults. To help foster these ideals away from school, children will need access to the Internet at home. Fast and cheap, widespread Internet penetration needs to improve. In the neighborhood I live there is one broadband provider and it's rather expensive - making it out of reach for many lower inco...

One Laptop Per Child ( OLPC ) is a movement to create inexpensive, full featured laptops to be used by children for education. The design of this machine is geared at promoting creativity and collaboration. Each system features wireless capabilities for students to connect and communicate with teachers and other students. The user interface centers on activities that children participate in to learn. This differs from a traditional UI which focuses on tasks and applications. The laptop is enclosed in a durable case with a kid friendly handle. It also includes many power saving features, including the ability to charge the battery using human power (like turning a crank or pulling a string). This is an important consideration for areas with little or no access to power. The price of the hardware is very low (around $100). In addition, much of the software for this system is being developed in an cost friendly, open source model. I'm excited about the possibilities this ...

Chrome OS I'm excited about Google's announcement to release what sounds like an ultra lightweight OS to basically surf the Internet. I'm hoping this device will allow me (and others) to breathe new life into old, underpowered laptops, allowing them to essentially work as netbooks. This could also open up new and inexpensive opportunities for schools to recycle or prolong the life of expensive computing equipment and expand horizons of their students. I've been watching the One Laptop per Child (OLPC) movement for some time and I see this as another avenue toward their goal. I don't share the optimism that this OS will somehow replace Windows. Sometimes you need extra horsepower and functionality. I edit a lot of photos and create some simple video, but the web tools I've tried to do either task can't hold a candle to the four-year-old version of Photoshop Elements I own. I'm not sure CPU intensive apps like this will port very well to the web....