One Laptop Per Child News

Hello, this is Alan Bell again. You may remember me from the "Help I haven't got an XO for BETT" post a few weeks ago. Well I can now report that this story has a happy ending.

The day after the article appeared on OLPC News we got a call from Tomi Davis, of OLPC Nigeria. Roughly speaking the conversation went "Would you like to borrow some laptops?" to which we replied "Hell yeah!"

Pre-BETT Prep

We (Tomi, The Open Sourcerer and myself) arranged to meet up the night before the BETT show, the laptops were pre-production Beta 4 models with rather old software so we worked with Tomi to upgrade them using a hastily purchased USB stick from a dodgy looking local shop (cash only - no change - lets just call it twenty quid - no, you can't have a receipt).

After a little while we had five happy laptops meshed up and we were familiarizing ourselves with the activities on offer. Initially there was a problem with the keyboard mapping in the new image, the H and U keys were both mapped to "u". After a bit of head scratching (key maps are under /usr/share which didn't help) Tomi got some help and a patch from the developers and we were soon up and running.

The laptops had a Nigerian keyboard layout (which in no way resembles the Konyin keyboard) and Nigerian power supplies which (thanks to the colonial history of the British Empire) happen to be exactly the same as the 240V 3 pin British power supply. For demonstration purposes we had to rename the laptops, so we settled on naming them after countries where the OLPC foundation is working. Knowing our stand at BETT was quite small, and that it would be rude to take all of Tomi's toys away, we borrowed three, "Nigeria", "Thailand" and "Uruguay".

As we were going to be passing IKEA our wives had kindly provided us each with a long shopping list, so we amused the other late night wardrobe shoppers by tapping out tunes with TamTam and measuring the restaurant with the acoustic tape measure. I typed up my shopping list whilst munching meatballs and then used an XO in tablet configuration as we hunted down our assigned items of inexpensive Swedish style. Next day was BETT.

Never a BETT-er Reception

We got there at ridiculous o'clock in the morning with the bag of laptops and found the Open Forum Europe stand. We were just about to arrange a small wager on who would be first to spot a teacher wearing sandals and a tweed jacket with leather elbow patches when the first delegates started to arrive.

"Wow, is that really an OLPC laptop? I have just seen it on BBC breakfast news! That is so cool, can I hold it? really?"

As far as we know we were the only stand at Bett to get pre-show publicity on the BBC. In the afternoon Tomi joined us at the show and we were interviewed on camera by the show publicity people (no idea if it was broadcast anywhere, but it felt to us like our first TV appearance).

Everywhere we went at the show people spotted the XO and started talking to us:

"Wow, that is so cool, can I hold it? really? It was worth coming all the way to BETT just to see that".

I took one of the XO laptops on a grand tour of the show, taking in such delights as the Special Educational Needs zone where we tried the XO with some interesting peripherals like a chunky keyboard and a Braille reader. The XO does work with various assistive technologies, it is ready for use by the whole class including SEN students.

The RM stand was very big and impressive, they had lots of the Asus Eee PC laptops on display, I noticed that they were all locked down to the desks, it seems you just can't trust a room full of teachers! The XO stopped here for a cheeky photo, then I ran away.

One of the big news items at the show was the new report from Becta (the UK advisory body to the UK educational community) on Microsoft Vista and Office 2007. From reading the report it would seem that schools should welcome Office 2007 and it's OOXML file format with about as much enthusiasm as they welcome head lice. OOXML - as welcome in schools as a head lice infestation

I visited the Becta stand and was instantly mobbed by the stand staff when they recognised what I was holding. They had loads of questions about the laptop and the OLPC mission, they were talking to someone from RM (or possibly Asus) about the Eee PC and he had quite a lot of questions about the XO. Suddenly a big camera arrived and we were told that the CEO of Becta was doing a live interview for BBC News 24 right now.

They wanted some people in the background chatting and looking busy so I grabbed the XO and moved to where the bloke from the BBC was directing us. The chap from RM (or possibly Asus) quickly joined our little crowd of extras and then stood with his long coat held out wide like a flasher directly between the XO and the camera. I smiled and carried on answering questions from the Becta guys.

Building a BETT mesh

On Friday we were very pleased that Francois Brutsch (who commented on the previous article) joined us on the stand with his G1G1 XO, he attached to the mesh and made friends with the other laptops in no time and worked with Frank Margrave to get several shared activities running. There was a constant stream of visitors to the stand including teachers, ICT coordinators, head teachers, Ofsted officials, other exhibitors and the occasional Minister of state.

Everyone had questions, generally starting with "Can I hold it? Really?" then moving on to the "what was that Intel thing all about?" question and the "can I buy lots and lots right now?" question. (answers: yes, yes, they stormed off in a huff but we don't care, no).

Several teachers told us that over the last few years UK schools have drifted from "teaching" to "training" and they want to move back to getting kids excited about exploring the world using computers rather than "preparing them for the workplace".

Big thanks go to Tomi Davis, Stephen Aitkin, Bob Blatchford, Nick Wood, Alan Cocks, Frank Margrave, Mike Banahan, Alan Lord, Francoise Brutsch and OLPCNews.com for working together to make this happen.

Do you have an OLPC-related activity too? Want to have the support of five thousand global readers? Then be sure to write a Guest Post for OLPC News today.

Tags: Alan Bell | Asus | BETT | Braille Reader | Francois Brutsch | Frank Margrave | OOXML | Open Source | Tomi Davies |

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SlashDot is jealous of me! SlashDot hates OLPC News because I, not they, lead in One Laptop Per Child information and influence. And so CmdrTaco dredged up a stale conspiracy theory from January 2006 and gave it a big twist on my wedding night, just to screw me when I wasn't looking. It was a personal attack!

Crazy talk, eh? A fanciful conspiracy theory with just a touch enough logic to sound legit. But total crap when you give it a good think. Well so are the OLPC News conspiracy theories.

Back January 2006, those jealous of OLPC News' growing influence got the wild idea that there is no way it could just be a loose association of writers and commenters myopically focused on the One Laptop Per Child program. That it was impossible for a simple blog to jump into the forefront of the international debate all by itself.

There had to be a puppet master!

So they went looking for a good conspiracy theory to soothe their egos, and like all good theories, there seemed to be just enough facts to make their fantasies reality.

Then, I was Director of Geekcorps, a NGO focused on bringing technology to the developing world. In fall 2005 Intel had convened a NGO Advisory Board - a grandiose name for a one day workshop with a dozen NGO technology leaders on Intel's product roadmap for the developing world.

Ah Ha! An Intel Link!

With that smoking gun, the conspiracy theories started, but they were so misinformed, I took them as a compliment. Why?

Because of what we told Intel in their one and only Advisory Board meeting. And kept telling them till they stopped calling and forgot the idea of a NGO Advisory Board:

1. The Intel Community PC was a dog.
2. The Classmate PC only a cheapened laptop.
3. Neither was a quality product anyone would buy.
4. Intel needed a low-power, high-durability laptop.

In essence, we told them Intel needed the clocking-stopping hot XO laptop from OLPC. And every time I've talked to Intel staffers since - at public meetings, not smoky back rooms - I've told them the same thing again: $5 Billion in Intel R&D and we get the Classmate PC?

Which is why I find the whole Intel conspiracy theory so outlandish it has to be a compliment. I've never personally got a dime from Intel. Or Microsoft. Or any other technology vendor. Not even a Classmate PC demo unit! To top it off, I don't work for Geekcorps anymore.

And yet conspiracy theorists are so amazed at OLPC News' success, they have come to the conclusion yet again that OLPC News cannot be the humble work of just yours truly.

I have to admit it. They are right.

OLPC News is your independent source for news, information, commentary, and discussion of One Laptop Per Child because of its impressive readership. Because of people like you, reading this sentence right now.

It's the 5,000+ daily readers of OLPC News, the dozen+ writers, and too many Guest Posters to count that drive this site. They are the ones I answer to every day. They are my boss, my drive, and if they ever actually clicked on a Google ads, my beer money funders.

So for CmdrTaco to insinuate that OLPC News is a front for anyone but them, insults you, dear reader, and every OLPC News contributor, commenter, and supporter personally. To do so with out of date and inaccurate information offends SlashDot itself.

And to do so on my wedding day? Worthy of a conspiracy theory all its own.

Tags: Classmate PC | CmdrTaco | Conspiracy Theories | Intel | NGO Advisory Board | OLPC News | SlashDot | Wayan Vota |

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Since its my wedding weekend, I'm a little busy with the people that matter the most to me to entertain stale conspiracy theories that are as out of date as they are out of touch.

So I'll let someone who matters the most to all of us speak for me instead:

Wayan doesn't carry a intel blue badge
by MaryLouJepsen

All Intel employees have to carry a blue badge. It's the only way to get into Intel buildings. I know: I used to work there.

I also took money from Intel in 2004: they paid my salary for the entire year. Then, when my division was closed, I joined with Nicholas Negroponte to start OLPC. Calling Wayan an Intel employee is like calling me one.

OLPCnews is a great forum for commentary on the OLPC project, they are sometimes critical of OLPC, and like all of us sometimes get things wrong, but they are mostly amazed by and very supportive of OLPC.

OLPCnews is certainly helping build the OLPC community that has expanded as a result of OLPC's "Give One, Get One" program.

I think Wayan is doing a terrific job.

- Mary Lou Jepsen
(former Chief Technology Officer of OLPC)

.

Tags: Conspiracy Theories | Mary Lou Jespen | OLPC | OLPC News | Wayan Vota |

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Do you want to connect with the five thousand daily readers of OLPC News? Express your thoughts on One Laptop Per Child and all the new XO-1 laptop progress? Or announce your own local user group?

Then don't be shy. Don't delay. Email Wayan a starter post today!

As you express your learned opinions and ideas blog-style, in on-topic posts of 200-400 words, complete with quotes, links, and photos, you'll be joining a distinguished group of talented writers, commenters and contributors that span the globe.

OLPC News authors also span a spectrum of thought, from fanboy to critic, striving to keep OLPC News your independent source for news, information, commentary, and discussion of the One Laptop Per Child endeavor.

Tags: Ed Cherlin | OLPC News | OLPC News Author | OLPC News Blog | OLPCNews Writer | XO Fanboy |

Spread the One Laptop Word: Write for OLPC News Today! | Comment (3) | Digg This | Add to del.ico.us | Slashdot It

Can you believe that your favorite independent source for news, information, commentary, and discussion of One Laptop Per Child "$100 laptop" is one year old this week?

Was it really just a year ago that we jumped onto the OLPC stage with the news of The Children's Machine 1 name change? Could we have grown from a handful of itinerant readers and three writers to over 1,500 decided viewers and a whole crew of contributors?

I am still in shock that OLPC News has propelled me into the blogging big leagues with this humble effort. Did I actually get on Radio Open Source with Christopher Lydon or 60 Minutes with Leslie Stall?

And can I count the following well-regarded personalities and experts as the newest wave of OLPC News participants? I am honored to say that I can and do, and introduce them with great respect and reverence:

Tags: $100 Laptop | Alec McLure | Dr. Robert Kozma | Duke Crawford | Leon Aaron Kaplan | Martin Woodhouse | OLPC News | One Laptop Per Child News | Robert Arrowsmith |

OLPC News One Year Anniversary | Comment (5) | Digg This | Add to del.ico.us | Slashdot It

My name is Roland from Switzerland and I am in no way connected to OLPC, OLPC News nor to the IT industry or education. I am simply privately interested in OLPC and its surrounding topics. And I occasionally post articles and comments in OLPC News.

You may ask why do I post on OLPCNews.com and not in wiki.laptop.org?

Well, first I did post in wiki.laptop.org but was dissatisfied with the uncritical and shallow attitudes of OLPC's disciples. It lacked independent thinking and most of all I was put off by sensing that discussing not only the bright side of OLPC but also its limitations and drawbacks were perceived as politically incorrect.

My critical but still moderate statements were dismissed and played down and pretty soon "edited for space saving" or in other words soft-washed. If somebody undertakes such a big endeavor as OLPC does they should be aware of and open about its limitations.

Tags: $100 Laptop | Laptop.org | OLPC Debate | OLPC News | OLPC Wiki | OLPC XO | XO Weakness |

Why I Contribute to OLPC News | Comment (11) | Digg This | Add to del.ico.us | Slashdot It

OLPC News is the combined efforts of talented writers, commenters and contributorsall focused on the One Laptop Per Child program and its impact on technology and education in the developing world. Profiles of the main contributors are listed in the posts below and new contributors are welcome to email a starter post and being the conversation.

For these professional geeks who have unchecked techno lust and a deep experience and love for the developing world, One Laptop Per Child brings both awe in the audacity of its goal, a laptop in the hands of every child, as well as a healthy skepticism that it will achieve that goal.

They are not associated with the One Laptop Per Child organization or any of its participants. In addition, the opinions the authors or commenters express here are theirs respectively and do not represent the views or opinions of their friends, family, neighbours, acquaintances, or employers. OLPC News is published by Wayan Vota, who develops and deploys international development programs that use information and communication technologies to promote prosperity and stability through private enterprise development.

Wayan celebrates the ability of One Laptop Per Child to bring technology to the forefront of economic development, and can't wait to have a OLPC XO himself, but he fears the lack of a defined implementation strategy and realistic cost estimates will create great waste and disillusionment with technology.

Wayan can be reached at: wayan at olpcnews dot com

Tags: International Development | OLPC | OLPC News | Professional Geeks | Wayan Vota |

About OLPC News (the Refresher Post) | Comment (2) | Digg This | Add to del.ico.us | Slashdot It

Are you amazed at the meteoric rise of OLPC News as the independent source for news, information, and commentary of One Laptop Per Child? How its predicted key changes in the OLPC XO platform, received exclusive audio of key events, and become the key resource for discussion of Nicholas Negroponte's Children's Machine? Then meet the reasons why OLPC News is so informative and influential, its core: contributors and commenters.

First, the new contributors who initiate though-provoking dialog with their exploration of OLPC impacts by writing for OLPC News:

• 
  Eduardo Villanueva Mansilla (eduardo at olpcnews dot com) is a Communications professor at the Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú, specialized in digital and new media; he's been working with technology since 1991 as systems librarian at the same university, and his interest in IT stems from that experience.
  
  Drawing on that experience and his publications about the Internet, technology, new media and the information society in Peru and Latin America, Eduardo writes for OLPC News, his own blog, and since the unveiling of the XO in Peru, the new Adversus OLPC.


• 
  Christoph Derndorfer (christoph at olpcnews dot com) is currently working on his bachelor in computer science at the Vienna University of Technology. Most of his spare time goes towards EPIACENTER.com, a website dedicated to small and power-efficient computer systems, where he has served as the Assistant Manager since the site was launched in 2003.
  
  His passion for computer technology, and his realization of technology's potential to change people's lives during a year spent in Peru, motivated Christoph to follow the OLPC initiative from the very beginning.


• 
  Luis Ramirez (luis at olpcnews dot com) is Professor at the Institute of Public Affairs of the University of Chile, focusing on e-Inclusion and e-Development policies. He is currently the Director of Futuro Digital (Digital Future), a recently created research group on the impact of new technologies in social development and the head of a web community focused on digital divide.
  
  Luis is a member of the committee in charge of the citizen-led campaign One Computer Per Child (Chile) and as such is one of the few people to have both a OLPC XO and a Classmate PC and blog about it. Better yet, he sees beyond the technology and examines the pedagogy of one to one computing.


• 
  Lee Felsenstein (lee at olpcnews dot com) has been designing electronic circuits and products for 35 years, including some of the first and most influential personal computer designs.
  
  Best known for designing the first portable computer (1981), Lee attempts to optimize the fit between the device and the user within society, applying concepts advanced by radical social thinkers like Ivan Illich ("convivality") and E.F. Schumacher ("intermediate technology").
  
  In 2000 Lee developed the "Jhai PC" for rural Laos villages to access local and internet telecommunications. Called "the pedal-powered Internet" the design won Lee the prestigious Laureate of the Tech Museum of Innovation award. Lee is the co-founder of the Fonly Institute, a consulting product development company that specializes in systems usable in developing countries.

Next up, we have commenters who enliven the debate with unique views, no matter if you or they agree on OLPC. From Winter, who has an optimistic outlook on one to one computing to Troy, who questions the implementation model espoused by OLPC Leadership, to Robert, who provokes thoughts on computer education, to Roland and another Eduardo, who both bring different global viewpoints, to all the rest who comment with their ideas, the comments sections are never dull.

Combined, the contributors and commenters are the core of OLPC News, a core that would love to grow to you include you - the OLPC News readership. Don't be shy, speak your mind, in comments, as a contributor, or in confidence to me.

Tags: Christoph Derndorfer | Eduardo Villanueva Mansilla | Lee Felsenstein | Luis Ramirez | OLPC News |

OLPC News Core: Contributors and Commenters | Comment (4) | Digg This | Add to del.ico.us | Slashdot It

While Walter Bender spends the most recent OLPC Current Events thanking all the talented developers working night and day on the Children's Machine XO, Jon, David, and I would like the thank the newest contributors to One Laptop Per Child News:

• 
  Tom (tom at olpcnews dot com) works as a studio manager for an international broadcasting organisation in the UK, with journalists and broadcasters from all over the world. He is interested in the OLPC project as born from his preoccupation with low-cost home computers in his own childhood.
  
  He is a regular contributor to the OLPC wiki, but has so far not managed to get his hands on a real laptop, instead having to rely on simulators to see how the project is progressing.


• 
  Shankar (shankar at olpcnews dot com) is President, One Laptop Per Child Nepal. Its goal is to create an environment for OLPC, take necessary steps to ensure every child in Nepal get the laptops and develop the Local Activities for OLPC laptops that could revolutionize how we educate the children.
  
  OLPC Nepal wants to provide every children of Nepal with new opportunities to explore, experiment, and express themselves, and unlike Tom, already has its own B1 Test units.

In addition to Jon, David, Thomas, Shankar, and I, OLPC News has occasional guest writers adding their views and opinions to the OLPC debate. We have Robert on OLPC technology, Tom S. on OLPC hacking groups, Christoph on OLPC videos, and coming soon, Toon on OLPC environment impacts.

Best of all, OLPC News has you, our vibrant readership which is stimulating the conversation around the Children's Machine XO. Thank you for making this site a lively discussion of all things OLPC.

Oh, and don't forget, you can always upgrade and write for OLPC News too!

Tags: Guest Writers | OLPC News | OLPC Wiki | One Laptop Per Child | One Laptop Per Child Nepal |

OLPC News Welcomes New Contributors and Guest Writers | Comment (3) | Digg This | Add to del.ico.us | Slashdot It

Do you follow the One Laptop Per Child program daily? Did you review the Sugar UI or dream about Chidlren's Machine XO educational content? Better yet, might you be current on Nicholas Negroponte's talks or live in an implementation country?

And can you express your learned opinions and ideas blog-style? In on-topic posts of 200-400 words, complete with quotes, links, and photos. Delving into OLPC community use cases or financial donors with unique insight and first-person knowledge. Best of all, can you defend your conclusions in the comments sections of your posts and whole other websites without falling prey to comment trolls?

Then its time you made your New Year's Resolution: Add your voice to One Laptop Per Child News!

Everyone from the OLPC leadership to national news media reads OLPC News. Leading websites regularly republish our scoops. Controversial posts have altered the conversation around the OLPC program and ideas and memes from the site have entered the vocabulary of other OLPC followers.

In fact, the site is so insightful and so influential, that key players can't believe that it's just the humble work of Jon, David, and I.

And we are looking for new voices, new views, new optimism about the Children's Machine XO to join our successful enterprise. Writers who can add to the commentary and discussion of One Laptop Per Child with clear, concise posts that need not agree with OLPC, Jon, David, or me.

Better yet, don't agree with our love of the technology yet skepticism about the implemention. Have your own views, logic, emotion, and when needed, controversy. Bring diversity to OLPC News.

And bring your writing to the forefront of the international OLPC debate. Email a starter post and being the conversation.

Tags: Blog Style | OLPC News | OLPC Program | OLPC XO | One Laptop Per Child | Sugar UI |

A New Year's Resolution: Write for OLPC News | Comment (18) | Digg This | Add to del.ico.us | Slashdot It

A laptop computer for only $100 sounds enticing, right? Better yet, a $100 laptop designed just for children. A computer students could use in the classroom and at home to study, learn, and explore. Now imagine these computers in the hands of children in the developing world, children who currently have little exposure to the power technology.

This is the dream of MIT Media Lab co-founder Nicholas Negroponte, a dream slowly becoming a reality in his One Laptop Per Child initiative. He has assembled the best and brightest in the technology world, and together they have redesigned the laptop computer from the CPU up, designed it for children in the developing world.

Backed my millions in funding by the IT industry powerful, his team is claiming amazing technological feats that will revolutionize computing at every level, not just laptops for students. He has also excited governments in several counties who are investigating buying these laptops for their next generation of students.

For three professional geeks who have unchecked techno lust and a deep experience and love for the developing world, One Laptop Per Child brings both awe in the audacity of its goal, a laptop in the hands of every child, as well as a healthy skepticism that it will achieve that goal.

• 
  David (david at olpcnews dot com) was a sales and marketing professional in the UK before moving to Western Kenya where his Internet addiction is interrupted by occasional East Africa blackouts and daily fatherhood responsibilities.
  
  David is struck by the challenges involved in helping young rural school children to access meaningful ICT skills and wonders how $100 dream machines will fit into traditional pedagogical teaching structures and integrate with current curricula.


• 
  Jon (Jon at olpcnews dot com) is a graduate student at George Washington's International Science and Technology Policy, focusing on ICTs in the developing world. Previously, he served in the Caribbean with Peace Corps on IT projects.
  
  Jon worries about the contrast between the well-designed OLPC laptop and the un-designed implementation plans, which focus solely on deployment and not on encouraging adoption at the local level, as well as the cultural impacts of the laptop.


• 
  Wayan (wayan at olpcnews dot com) develops and deploys international development programs that use information and communication technologies to promote prosperity and stability through private enterprise development.
  
  Wayan celebrates the ability of One Laptop Per Child to bring technology to the forefront of economic development, and can't wait to have a 2B1 himself, but he fears the lack of a defined implementation strategy and realistic cost estimates will create great waste and disillusionment with technology.

Together they've started One Laptop Per Child News as the physical manifestation of their personal obsession with this seemingly Quixotic goal. They are not associated with the One Laptop Per Child organization or any of its participants. In addition, the opinions they express here are theirs respectively and do not represent the views or opinions of their friends, family, neighbours, acquaintances, or employers.

They all hope One Laptop Per Child will succeed beyond their skepticism, for if it fails, it will be a waste of millions - millions of dollars of governments' money and millions of children's education.

Contact OLPC News: David: david at olpcnews dot com Jon: Jon at olpcnews dot com Wayan: wayan at olpcnews dot com

Tags: David | Jon | OLPC | OLPC News | One Laptop Per Child News | Wayan |

About One Laptop Per Child News | Comment (3) | Digg This | Add to del.ico.us | Slashdot It

A heads up for all those that quote this site or subscribe to its RSS feed. The Unofficial One laptop Per Child Website is now OLPC News. The URL remains the same, but please update your references and feeds accordingly. If you are using Feed Burner that means your feed should now be http://feeds.feedburner.com/OneLaptopPerChildNews Apologies for the inconvenience.

Tags: OLPC News | One Laptop Per Child News | Unofficial One laptop Per Child Website |

Website Name Change - OLPC News | Comment (0) | Digg This | Add to del.ico.us | Slashdot It