Buy 1; Give 1 XO Computer Project

[LuxLuthor]

This was on 60 Minutes about Nicholas Negroponte's project of trying to give a laptop to every child in the world. From Nov 12 to Nov 26 you can support this project by buying one for $400 USD, which will contribute a second one to a child.

They are pretty amazing, self-sustaining computers for such a low price, and quite a lot has been written about them, the project, competitors stepping in, etc. etc.

 

[havand]

This was on 60 Minutes about Nicholas Negroponte's project of trying to give a laptop to every child in the world. From Nov 12 to Nov 26 you can support this project by buying one for $400 USD, which will contribute a second one to a child.

They are pretty amazing, self-sustaining computers for such a low price, and quite a lot has been written about them, the project, competitors stepping in, etc. etc.

I was wondering if the program extends to underprivileged kids in the U.S.? Do they qualify to receive a free laptop?

 

[Mad1]

I was wondering if the program extends to underprivileged kids in the U.S.? Do they qualify to receive a free laptop?

Yes for a short period Americans can buy them however it's not exactly buy one give one it's more like buy 2 give one.

 

[havand]

Yes for a short period Americans can buy them however it's not exactly buy one give one it's more like buy 2 give one.

No, not what I meant. I was asking if any American children will benefit from the program. Ie, if I buy one, is there a chance it will go to a needy child in America? Or are those in poverty (legitimate poverty) in America excluded simply for fact of geographic location?

 

[Illum]

I don't know about them being in the US....
the key for "self sustaining" defines its design for countries where no power is on hand?

the US would pretty much come last...[so will China and all the super powers]...underprivileged is one thing, affordable but not willing to buy one is another

 

[havand]

underprivileged is one thing, affordable but not willing to buy one is another

True. That's why I added the qualifier 'legitimately'.

 

[Illum]

anyone can get a good laptop nowadays for around $400, Im more interested in the "self sustaining" part :huh:

 

[ABTOMAT]

If you take half the cost of a pair as $250, I wonder how far that would go towards improving a 3rd world child's quality of life or education, vs buying them a tech gadget. Children don't need laptop computers to learn.

 

[Diesel_Bomber]

If you take half the cost of a pair as $250, I wonder how far that would go towards improving a 3rd world child's quality of life or education, vs buying them a tech gadget. Children don't need laptop computers to learn.

I was thinking this too. In the neighborhood I grew up in (here in the USA) some kids would beg or steal money and buy glue, because sniffing glue would keep the hunger away longer than the food that could be bought by the same amount of money. Other parts of the world are AT LEAST as bad as this. These kids couldn't care less about a laptop, but $400 would buy a lot of rice and beans.

:buddies:

 

[hank]

There are as many (or few) geniuses born in the poorest as in the richest families -- it's the reshuffling that comes up with the very few truly brilliant kids. No rich family likes to know that, but there's plenty of evidence of brilliance coming out of obscurity, over and over.

Those few kids are the ones who are really going to be able to benefit because this kind of program gives them something no amount of rice and beans can offer.

Seems to me getting even an additional handful of super-smart kids online and able to take off into the world we all live in -- out of the poorest of the poor --- is worth doing this, even if a lot of them don't get used best.

There's an old principle that if you want a thousand experts, and have the time, the best way is to teach a hundred thousand children, fifty thousand college kids, and ten thousand grad students --- and from the best of those, you'll be able to get the people you wanted.

I agree with the concerns --- I once heard Stewart Brand of the old Whole Earth Catalog talk after he'd spent time in Africa and people asked him what to send for the children. He said --- send them pencils. They don't have pencils, and they are doing their schoolwork with sticks writing in dirt.

 

[LuxLuthor]

I was thinking this too. In the neighborhood I grew up in (here in the USA) some kids would beg or steal money and buy glue, because sniffing glue would keep the hunger away longer than the food that could be bought by the same amount of money. Other parts of the world are AT LEAST as bad as this. These kids couldn't care less about a laptop, but $400 would buy a lot of rice and beans.

:buddies:

If you had watched the 60 Minutes piece about the project, you would realize the many reasons they are doing this, and it's not in opposition to what everyone else is doing with other projects. You would also realize how much impact this has had in the areas that have had it distributed already....and how very much entire families & communities have been impacted positively, and see it as the self-empowering lifeline that food aid has not provided.

The intended kids are not in schools, because there are no schools where they live. These computers have internet access and are getting kids and families connected to the world, and beginning to learn for the first time. It is a voluntary project, so people are free to support it or not.

Giving them a bunch of bags of grain/food will temporarily relieve their hunger/starvation, and nothing wrong with that simultaneous approach. This project is about giving a tool that can allow them to pull themselves and their community out of the endless trap they are in by networking them with the world. Otherwise they are dependent on the politics and genocidal brutality as to whether they will ever see the next bag of food.

At least take some time to learn about this project before responding casually. If this guy doesn't deserve the Nobel Prize, noone does.

Edit: Here's a list of FAQ's that answer most of the questions posed in this thread.

 

[Illum]

Given the circumstances that these poor children are in, [to me] its conceivable to create something that is of use on a budget level in the hopes the user of the technology can enhance his/her understanding of the world...but what are the chances of that actually happening?

The last thing a goldfish will think would be fresher water...and if food is the main issue of being underprivileged, its more or less likely that whoever that may be granted the technology will simply sell it back out for food or other, more dire necessities...such as money, medical supplies, or heck....a trade for a mode of transportation

I'm not saying this to be mean...but I don't understand what made the entrepreneur so confident that this investment will bring aid to those who may not want help or help of this manner

I just hope theres no mofo that decies this is the perfect opportunity to target children with viral porn....like the crisis when ipod video first came out

EDIT: thank you LuxLuthor for the link

 

[LuxLuthor]

Given the circumstances that these poor children are in, [to me] its conceivable to create something that is of use on a budget level in the hopes the user of the technology can enhance his/her understanding of the world...but what are the chances of that actually happening?

The last thing a goldfish will think would be fresher water...and if food is the main issue of being underprivileged, its more or less likely that whoever that may be granted the technology will simply sell it back out for food or other, more dire necessities...such as money, medical supplies, or heck....a trade for a mode of transportation

I'm not saying this to be mean...but I don't understand what made the entrepreneur so confident that this investment will bring aid to those who may not want help or help of this manner

I just hope theres no mofo that decies this is the perfect opportunity to target children with viral porn....like the crisis when ipod video first came out

EDIT: thank you LuxLuthor for the link

Because it's pretty obvious that unleashing Sally Struthers and a gazillion other NGO's tossing craploads of grain is not solving their root problems of keeping them weak, worthless, and dependent.

My understanding from reading about this project is they are trying to figure out ways to have people who are totally hopeless and dependent on sporadic & political handouts be given some other ways to learn, become self-reliant, use tools to network, and to have them realize they are not mindless goldfish.

Like I said earlier, you have to spend some time reading about the results, impact, and hope for them finally having a tool to pull them out of their horrible situations. So far, the impoverished children who have gotten these laptops, and who have never been in a school value these about a million times more than little spoiled Johnny with his latest Halo-3 XBox toy.

Who knows what impact it will have....but one things for sure. This dude who started the project is a lot more engaged and dedicated than 99.999% of the monkeys staring down pitifully into a goldfish bowl...saying: "Gee, isn't that too bad...we should send them a slice of our pizza."

 

[havand]

This seems like one of those instances where you have to couple 2 innovation projects together for this to be really useful. I think they need to have a way to provide useful information on the device. Preloaded or by some long range (yet probably slow) wifi system. I see what illum_the_nation is saying. What's the point of having a laptop if you don't have anything to do with it. I think using it as a portal to disseminate information about farming, survival, math, etc would be about the best use for the device possible. It would most definitely need a revolution in wifi though. Some kind of extreme long range system, even if it was slower. Maybe offer prepackaged school 'lessons' so those that can't make it to school can learn with it easily. Maybe offer a whole package on a simplified network that almost everyone with one of these laptops could access.

 

[scott.cr]

Wow, you CPFers never cease to amaze me with the diverse replies on social issues such as this.

Personally, if I did want to donate one of these laptops, I'd have to see a complete spec sheet on the units, a sample to try out, and balance sheets of the organization that is responsible for putting these out on the "street." Too many for-profit companies are masquerading as non-profits imho, so whenever I see programs like this, they are guilty until proven innocent in my eyes.

 

[LuxLuthor]

All the information verifying the nobility, non-profit verification, motivations, and details like software on the Linux platform, network capability, delivery, etc. are readily available, and already a huge wave of international support in place. This was a thread about the short window of being able to get one and give one if you were interested. If you prefer to have Sally Struthers "pack mule" bags of grain as the best long term answer, don't let me stop you.

How could South Park not roast her after that great video, followed by this one? LOL! It was obvious what was happening to all that food aid.

 

[Illum]

with all this development being implemented in user friendly laptops with the effective application of present technology makes me wonder why we're still paying @#$% for something that does less work and more parts to break....and includes a "wall adapter" while the technology is exported for needs of other countries....

don't get me wrong here, I regard this as an act of generosity and kudos to them for the vision of helping others in this world.

for some reason I still say it would be best if one finishes digging his own foxhole before helping a neighbor dig his

 

[LuxLuthor]

with all this development being implemented in user friendly laptops with the effective application of present technology makes me wonder why we're still paying @#$% for something that does less work and more parts to break....and includes a "wall adapter" while the technology is exported for needs of other countries....

don't get me wrong here, I regard this as an act of generosity and kudos to them for the vision of helping others in this world.

for some reason I still say it would be best if one finishes digging his own foxhole before helping a neighbor dig his

Basically, this is being done as a Not For Profit endeavor. They want the cost to be $100/PC, but initial costs are higher, but they anticipating lower volume costs next year. This Buy1/Give 1 is a way to get a cash infusion they need from people here who can afford it, and also are intrigued by many of the clever designs.

You are seeing a Korean Samsung manufacturer, no operating software or other program expenses, and the net effect of engineers, and PC geeks donating all their time for testing and development. It doesn't have all the modern graphics, RAM, sound features, high end CPU, etc. that gives you more benefits...but the main thing is the profit is stripped out. Even still, there are a number of very unique aspects of this Laptop, such as clear visibility inside/outside in bright sun, totally waterproof, manual crank to generate power, attempt to make it tolerate crazy abuses, exposed to sandstorms, etc.

 

[Illum]

glad to see something outside of "corporate investments"

 

[Fallingwater]

I definitely want a OLPC/XO whatever, but I'll be waiting for them to show up on eBay and then I'll buy a single one.