Joe, This is an intriguing idea!
>>Sony Clie's do all the same thing, including video, sound, mp3, text, still, flash, and even internet Can you help identify specific (low-cost) Clie models that have all the above capabilities? A recent check on eBay yielded a number of >$250 Clie models. We'd like to find more affordable options -- ideally in the $75-$100 range -- with the capabilities that you mentioned. The aim is for student teams to use them for eLesson creation/sharing at entrepreneurially-run schools for the poor. We're aiming to try them in grassroots learning initiatives such as the Virtual Academy in a Sri Lankan farming village (www.horizonlanka.org) and the microscholarship system at eCenters in Kyrgyzstan (http://tinyurl.com/q4aqv). Look forward to hearing from you... Best, Mark Frazier President Openworld, Inc. "Creating assets for grassroots initiatives" www.openworld.com -----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Joe Beckmann Sent: 07/13/2006 8:51 AM To: The Digital Divide Network discussion group Subject: Re: [DDN] Nicholas Negroponte- ISTE NECC Speech While I certainly sympathize with ipods as micro-supercomputers, much older - and thereby much cheaper - Sony Clie's do all the same thing, including video, sound, mp3, text, still, flash, and even internet. What they lack is phone, but that is what distinguishes the smartphones. In the meantime, I wonder that people haven't collected old Clie's from Sony and EBay and created whole computer classrooms able to do most of what a full scale lab can do, with much more flexibility, at much less than Negroponte's projected computer, with much more software capacity. Joe Beckmann On 7/12/06, Stephen Snow <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > Dave, et. al., > > I was directly involved in people learning to use and maintain a great > variety of equipment for a bunch of years, and I certainly don't doubt > that equipment has become simpler to maintain; that's often the case. > I also saw great frustration from people who used equipment and either > didn't know how or didn't want to learn how (a LOT of people do not > feel comfortable with fixing ANYthing. Anything.); they just wanted to > be able to DO things. > > I am sympathetic to the idea of kids connecting more intuitively to > the equipment...at least SOME kids. Remember, MANY kids aren't that > way! It's a brain development thing. > > So how do *the rest of us* manage? Remember when the Mac was created, > ostensibly for "the rest of us"? Even today, in my much more limited > connection to electronic technology, I field email from people who are > asking me questions such as, "Why is the web page on my screen bigger > than the screen? It won't all fit on there!" > > And this is not an uncommon level of question. My point is that we can > *pretend* all we want that people, especially "young people" (who get > everything!) will just "get it" and things will be fine. That is a > setup for failure designed to serve the limited view of people who are > designing something they want to have out there and they don't have a > solution for this other stuff, so they merely explain it away. I don't > buy it. It not only sets up such a project for failure, but the > message then is that the PEOPLE are failures for not being able to > figure it out. > > As for the limitations of the ipod as a training too, I agree. Part of > the appeal of it for me is its size. It is so small and easy to lug > around and you have dongles to connect to everything else. it is the > universal hard drive that connects to other less portable media to do > stuff. It's not the holy grail, by far. I also really like the mpeg > players that are built into wireless phones. They are a little bulkier > but they offer triple > functionality: phone, ipod and internet for web and mail. and they > don't require a wired network infrastructure. > > For the moment, I am wanting to see what can happen with a bunch of ipods. > they are cheap, light, small, etc. I mean, I don't even own one, but I > have seen enough to think there is more than coolness happening. It > feels a little like early Google. > > Steve Snow > > ----- Original Message ----- > From: "Dave A. Chakrabarti" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Subject: Re: [DDN] Nicholas Negroponte- ISTE NECC Speech > > > <stuff snipped for space> > > >> Stephen, > > > > The Ipod is definitely an intriguing tool for training (I should > > convince my boss to buy me one for, er, training purposes). I'm > > wondering how long it'll be before someone comes up with a Linux > > distro that'll run on it, or before Apple releases OSipod, adds > > wifi, and takes over the mobile computing market in one swoop. > > > > For the price, I'm actually not sure the Ipod's the best educational > > tool (though it has "cool" value in attracting users to it). A > > little more than a video Ipod will buy you a mobile tablet that will > > not only play audio and video but also connect you to the internet, > > handle office documents, email, etc. This strikes me as a more > > useful tool for all kinds of training... > > > <snip> > > _______________________________________________ > DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list > DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org > http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide > To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message. > -- Joe Beckmann 22 Stone Avenue Somerville, MA 02143 617-625-9369 and Search for a Cure 17 Worcester Street Cambridge, MA 02139 617-945-5350 [EMAIL PROTECTED] _______________________________________________ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message. _______________________________________________ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
