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OLPC Geeks
I have been reading the OLPC News blog for a while now and frankly I'm kind of tired of hearing about how American geeks are complaining that it's hard to get an XO or that it has taken a while for them to get their XO laptop or that the box was empty when it arrived. Here's a clue for those who are wondering why OLPCs service is sub-par. The XO laptop is was not made for American gadget addicts.
 | Nothing irks me more than seeing staged photos of playful American geeks fighting over their new gadget that they have no business having in the first place. And then at the same time they complain that OLPC's service is not good. Boo hoo. My shiny toy is broken. I can't believe the silliness. The last person who needs an OLPC laptop is an American computer geek and yet they complain about OLPC and having to wait a long time on the phone to get service. Think about it. OLPC is not DELL. Grow a brain. |
If you will be doing OSS development (seriously, not just pretend) on the XO that will be used in developing countries, fine. But most will not. This guy even says that it's a toy and he doesn't know how he'll even use it. Most recieving an XO laptop would say that they are OLPC enthusiasts and that they think that OLPC is a great idea and that it would help the developing world a lot. I agree. But I am not itching to get an OLPC laptop. I will not do any development on one and I'm not a child in a developing country so I have no business having one. OLPC may have instigated the Give 1 Get 1 program themselves but think about it, Nicholas Negroponte said that having an XO if you aren't a child should be a badge of shame. I think that's true, whether you stole it or got it from the Give 1 Get 1 program.
| Those recieving an XO laptop might say they are donating to OLPC out of the goodness of their hearts and recieving an XO is just icing on the cake. BULLSHIT. If they cared about children in the developing world they would donate the the laptop they were going to recieve too. Forget the Give 1 Get 1. How about the Give 2 program? American geeks would drop OLPC like every other passing fad that crosses their impatient minds. THEY ONLY CARE ABOUT OLPC BECAUSE THE LAPTOP IS COOL. Period. No other reason. |  |
4 comments
I might have been a bit emotional when I wrote this blog entry but I nevertheless think it's true.
I could buy an XO on ebay for that.
I actually worked on LOGO and educational computing projects in college, one of them with Seymour Papert's group at MIT.
For me, G1G1 was a way to support the OLPC effort while I also get a test machine for software I'm working on. I could also show my local school board the benefits of rugged hardware that could be used by elementary students.
It's beyond imagination that these guys could devise such a badly broken process. Laptops have disappeared in the delivery system, due to truncated addresses, which cause them to be delivered to a building, but without the suite # specified. This happened with up to 10% of orders. So OLPC themselves 'wasted' far more laptops than 'geek trophy hunters' would have wasted.
It was a bit annoying for both of us the XO taking so long to get here but Oh well. I don't exactly expect six-sigma business processes from a bunch of do-gooder programmers. LOL
I for one wouldn't want this for myself but I think this thing is excellent for a kid. I've only played with it for a few hours but I think it IS cool as heck!!
I've also read some criticism of it's abilities and I think these people should step back and think about it for a while. What the heck do you people want? Here is a company selling you an excellent laptop for your child at $400 and giving one to a kid in a third-world country on your behalf.
Some of You probably had no problems plunking down $400 for the latest PS3 or Wii core systems. This is something good folks. An old business cliche made true: a "win/win situation". So stop complaining and go get yourselves an adult laptop - kids have no need for Crystal reports or MS Project.
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