One Laptop Per Child News Comments

Comment on Walter Bender to Talk About OLPC and XO 3.0 at mEducation Event in D.C. on February 10

2012-02-10T14:37:45Z

I sent an email to the address of the invitation, as I wanted to participate remotely. They answered: "Thank you for your interest in this month's mEducation Seminar. A link will be sent to you ahead of the seminar for participating through WebEx." Now the presentation is about to begin and I didn't receive such email and I find no links to see it. :(

Comment on Walter Bender to Talk About OLPC and XO 3.0 at mEducation Event in D.C. on February 10

2012-02-09T23:17:16Z

Alexandro, I just heard back from the organizers and they will record the presentation and subsequently make it available online. :-)

Comment on Walter Bender to Talk About OLPC and XO 3.0 at mEducation Event in D.C. on February 10

2012-02-09T16:29:55Z

Alexandro, I don't know if the talk will be recorded for later viewing but I'll ask about it.

Comment on Walter Bender to Talk About OLPC and XO 3.0 at mEducation Event in D.C. on February 10

2012-02-08T16:09:48Z

Would be great if the talk could be recorded for later viewing.

There is a mLearning summit happening in Brazil and his input would be very welcomed.

Comment on OLPC Improves the XO's Membrane Keyboard

2012-02-06T18:27:38Z

These will be a nightmare to clean. I have cleaned over 100 keyboards this school year. The existing keyboards are a breeze to clean --- swab with soap and water. These have places for dirt to fall in and "white" is not so easy to clean as "green".

Comment on OLPC Improves the XO's Membrane Keyboard

2012-02-06T18:22:23Z

I can see the advantages of this redesign, but I also have a concern. In environments with lots of dust/grit/sand, what is the possibility that such material will work its way between the shield and the hidden portion of the membrane? Could it then act like sandpaper as a user presses the keys and the nearby membrane deforms. Over time are you going to wear holes in the membrane underneath the shield? Admittedly, even if this is a real concern; it might still result in improved keyboard reliability.

Comment on OLPC Improves the XO's Membrane Keyboard

2012-02-06T18:20:00Z

But that is the case now, even back to the XO. The the only replacement keyboard available is the whole bottom section (exclusive of battery compartment). The cost is about $40 (in U.S). What is the new cost.

Is this new keyboard assembly compatible with the existing keyboard assembly for the XO-1.5 (which is now the replacement keyboard for the XO-1 ?

Comment on OLPC Improves the XO's Membrane Keyboard

2012-02-06T16:40:37Z

Paul, thanks a lot for the clarification, much appreciated!

Comment on OLPC Improves the XO's Membrane Keyboard

2012-02-06T16:29:04Z

unfortunately, the new keyboard isn't a simple drop-in replacement for the old. there are new screws from the underside of the laptop that go through the keyboard and firmly pull the grid down tight. so you're right that replacement involves changing out the whole bottom half of the laptop.

Comment on Isaac Asimov Speaks About Computer-Supported Education in 1988

2012-02-04T07:25:57Z

There's a direct connection between Isaac Asimov and one of the fathers of constructionism. Citing from the Wikipedia:

"Isaac Asimov described Minsky as one of only two people he would admit were more intelligent than he was, the other being Carl Sagan.[4] Patrick Winston has also described Minsky as the smartest person he has ever met. Ray Kurzweil has referred to Minsky as his mentor."

I've grown up eagerly reading dozens of Asimov's novels; his ideas greatly influenced my understanding of science, ethics, society and their interaction. The third part of the interview is also very instructive.

Comment on IIT Empowering Haiti Successfully Deploys XO Charging Station

2012-01-27T16:34:51Z

The use of a minumum number, inexpensive and readily available parts makes this a valuable contribution.

I personally prefer vertical mounting similar to blade servers in server racks. This provides for easy access and better convection cooling which allows higher density.

I have constructed one row charging stations having a low front retaining rail and separating pins on a high rear retaining rail. They were constructed with 1/2 inch cpvc pipe and "T"'s, and 3/4 inch pipe insulation as a cushion and anti-slide on the support rails. Multiple rows would require the larger pipe size.

Comment on Buy OLPC Laptops for $90 or less!

2012-01-26T22:38:47Z

Well, I'm SO thankful I bought my XO-1 right before they announced the XO-3. I only paid two and a half times more for mine than the one featured in this article.

Comment on Great Video of Haiti's Solar Installation For Powering 500 XOs

2012-01-23T17:51:54Z

Those without electricity can use a computer, internally converted, to use 12 v. directly from a battery with a solar charger [email for instructions at minifarms@gmail.com].

Comment on World's largest single-school XO laptop solar power deployment

2012-01-19T12:24:55Z

We have had few inquiries in Nepal from groups interested in using solar energy to power XO up in the mountains where there is no electricity. I was wondering if someone could let us know the total cost of equipment used in this implementation in Haiti.

Comment on Plan Ceibal's 4-Year Cost Increases From $276 to $400

2012-01-17T00:38:57Z

I agree that it's a challenge but as repeatedly discussed with different people within and outside of OLPC I think the lack of reasonably well defined metrics, terms, and calculations is really holding ICT4E back. And not just on the TCO front but also in other areas such as monitoring and evaluation.

Working on a common vocabulary and sharing data, imperfect as it may be, within the OLPC community would be a good and important step into the right direction in my opinion.