Fred's One Laptop Per Child page

Fred H Olson email:  fholson at cohousing.org     Fred's Link Page   This page evolved from Fred's 2/24/08 blog entry about OLPC

Fred won a little One Laptop Per Child ( OLPC) laptop (an XO-1 model -- from G1G1 program)
that looks like a toy at the Penguins Unbound Linux Group meeting Feb. 23, 2008.
The goal of the OLPC education program is to get one of these kid friendly devices to
kids everywhere in the third world so they can have a powerful education tool that can
access the Internet.

Links used for Fred's May 32, 2008 presentation about XO

Nicholas Negroponte talk on the OLPC vision (video) 8/06
lays out the details of his nonprofit One Laptop Per Child project.
Speaking just days after relinquishing his post as director of the MIT
Media Lab, he announces that he'll pursue this venture for the rest of
his life. He takes us inside the strategy for building the & "$100
laptop" and explains why and how the project plans to launch & at scale,
& with millions of units distributed in the first seven countries. "This
is not a laptop project; it's an education project," he says.
Note that talk was given at TED -- Technology, Entertainment, Design conference
Note also that the video cannot be viewed on stock G1G1 XO-1 due to lack of flash (copyright
issues), similarly the MP3 version of audio offered at TED.com cannot be played (MP3 copyright
issues). However this Ogg Vorbis version should be useable: NN at Ted Aug 2006 (Ogg Vorbis audio)
To help follow the video presentation from audio here are Some of the text exhibits shown in the video

XO introduction by David Pogue of the New York Times (video) / Eric Pettifor review


A few highlights: Picture of OLPC 'XO-1' laptop      With features labeled
o hardware design goals:rugged, low cost, long battery life laptop.
  Modest performance accepted to get this.
o 433 MHz AMD Geode LX700 cpu
o no hard drive - 1 Gigabyte Flash drive, 256 MB ram (currently) 3 USB ports
o innovative dual mode (backlit-color/sunlit-monochrome) LCD display
o built-in wifi with ability to access / serve others
o rugged, downsized (about 9x9x1.25 inches), moisture resistant membrane useable keypad,
  low/flexible power requirements including solar and hand cranked options coming,
  relatively environmenatlly friendly
o Special Linux based evolving, upgradeable open source software that uses collaborative
  learning environment metaphor gui instead of just usual desktop metaphor with numerous
  built-in applications - "activities". Gui hides filesystem which is frustrating to experienced
  computer users since it seems (is?) less flexible.
o goal of mass production at $100 per laptop in 2008 in support of...
o goal is universal education of world's children via access learning to communities and
  to the Internet using purpose built laptops

Peripherals/Hand Crank - OLPC (Note takes 2 hours of cranking to recharge the battery and
is probably marginally practical with the XO-1.  The lower power XO-2 may be more reasonable for human power.

--- The future of OLPC ---
May 2008 Country Workshop Discusses many problems and future software developments for XO-1 as well as the next
version XO-2 (aka XOXO) which may have two touch displays and now conventional keypad;
one of the displays could be used as a keyboard. "Gen-2 Touch"

Blog about 5/08 XO-2 announcement
wiki.laptop.org on XO-2
Work on multi-pointer X, by Peter Hutterer video demonstrations YouTube
YT-ol  "Touch support"            (Related video: YT-Ar Multi Pointer X server (MPX) )

(end of 5/31/08 notes)

Wikipedia:Olpc

OLPC related links I bookmarked in the first 6 weeks owning an OLPC. March - April 2008

Some of the text exhibits shown in the Nicholas Negroponte video of the OLPC vision (video) 8/06
[Times in video in square brackets]

[1:34]
The basic principles
 Children are our most precious natual resource
 Solution to poverty,peace, environment is education
 Teaching is one but not the only way to achieve learning

[6:00]
One Laptop Per Child
 o Non-Profit Association with $20 million funding thru NRE
 o Scale, scale, scale
   Launch 7-10 million in 2007
   100-200 million in 2008
   7 large diverse countries
 o provided free to kids

[8:44]
Getting to the $100 Laptop
 Gross Breakdown of Laptop Costs 2005
 [Pie chart]  50% Sales, Marketing, Distribution
              25% Other
              25% Hdwe to Support itself
Display: $6-10 per diagonal inch

[12:54]
 Seven countries +
 Massachusetts (maybe) problem with bidding
 China
 India
 Thailand
 Egypt
 Nigeria
 Brazil
 Argentian

[14:06]
Timeline
Nov 17 announced WSIS
Dec 12 Quanta agreed to build
May 24 Learning Learning @ MIT
July '06 final country commitment
Q3 '06 developer prototypes
Q4 '06 education prototypes
Q1 '07 rollouts
Maybe free laptops at Ted 2008

[15:45]
Economics
  Initial and launch
   Central government funded
   Single Order
  Subsequent
   Philanthropic Organizations
   Child-to-child funding
   Commercial subsidy
   Adopt-a-village
       Etc.