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-----Original Message----- From: Kevin Carmony [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: 14 October 2005 02:55 AM To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: LL: Field Trip If this message is not displaying properly, visit www.linspire.com/linspireletter to launch it in your browser. Field Trip by Kevin Carmony October 13, 2005 There has been a lot of talk recently about the "$100 laptop" that the MIT Media Lab is developing for students around the world. We applaud and support these efforts, especially since the laptop will use Linux. However, it's important to remember that this project is still in the conceptual stage, and it's not something that can be deployed today. Even if MIT's engineers succeed in building this device, there will be other problems to solve, such as distribution costs, support costs, and the $100 question...Will the laptop be powerful enough and perform well enough for students to even consider using it? (See a previous Michael's Minute about the $100 Laptop here.) Amidst all the attention the $100-laptop plan is getting, I wanted to make sure to shine some of the spotlight on other pioneers — the educators who are actually deploying computers in our schools today. Visiting Indiana schools already using Linspire I recently shared with you how the state of Indiana is using Linux to bring "one-to-one" computing to their schools as part of the Indiana Access Program (one computer per student in every classroom). A few weeks ago, I had the honor of going on my own "field trip", flying to Indiana to spend the entire day with Mike Huffman, Special Assistant for Technology at the Indiana Department of Education. Mike was kind enough to drive me from school to school to see firsthand how Indiana is using desktop Linux to put a computer on the desk of every student. I was so amazed and impressed at how far they've come in the few years they have been working on this program that I wanted to share with you some photos and stories from my field trip. For those of you who have had the privilege of driving through the wide open spaces of Indiana, you know that this literally was a "field" trip, as not only did I get to see lots of schools, but also plenty of farms and cornfields in between. =) Getting one computer on the desk of every student called for some creativity on the part of educators. Traditional student desks aren't the best fit for desktop computers — teacher/student interaction suffers because students practically disappear behind traditional monitor screens, and a keyboard and mouse can be difficult to fit on the student's desk. Special desks designed for using Linspire in the classroom After trying several different approaches, Indiana schools ended up having customized desks built at a surprisingly low cost, one that was comparable to what they paid for traditional student desks. These desks allow for a powerful, fully functioning computer, just like these students will use when they enter the workforce. (The price of these computers isn't all that much more than the $100 laptop, but it's available today and it comes with a lot more functionality and a lot more power.) As you can see, these special desks can be used as a normal classroom desk AND as a computerized teaching station. During my trip I learned how Indiana has had to work on all sorts of issues over the past three years to make their one-to-one computer program work. Beyond using Linux, low-cost desktop computers, and specialized desks, they had to deal with and find solutions to things I hadn't even thought about before my field trip. For example, they had to figure out how to get enough bandwidth into each school to support hundreds of Internet connections. They had to solve challenges with lighting, screen glare, and heat generated by the 30 computers and monitors in each classroom. One fascinating thing that I noticed was the difference having a computer made to the students. When we would barely enter the doorway of a classroom that had the special desks and computers, and the students were doing regular work with the computers off, we would completely interrupt the class — every student looked up and started fidgeting, wondering who we were and why we were there. However, when we would visit a class where the students were working on the computers, barely a single head would look up! We would actually walk in the room, start playing with the computer at one of the desks, and the students hardly even noticed we were there. I was blown away by this stark contrast - it showed me firsthand just how engaging "e-learning" can be. Students using the desks for normal & computer work One of my favorite parts of the Indiana program is that these same, low-cost systems will soon be offered to parents to purchase for use in their home. So, not only is desktop Linux making it affordable to have computers in the school for every student, but it is also making it affordable for students to have a computer waiting for them at home to help with their homework and studies. Mike Huffman (far right in top photo) and Indiana are now working on a website to share their findings so other schools can learn from Indiana's experience. In response to the success of the Indiana Access Program, Linspire has launched a new, low-cost licensing program for schools who wish to install a Linux desktop operating system as an alternative. Through the program, educators will be able to sign up for single copies or per-unit volume packs of Linspire at special educator rates. Educators interested in the program who would like to receive a free evaluation copy of Linspire should visit www.linspire.com/education. The educators, teachers, and even the students in Indiana are pioneers, leading the way in finding a viable and affordable way to have one-to-one computing in their schools. I'm proud the Linux world is part of the effort to help our schools better prepare students for the future. - Kevin The views expressed herein are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Linspire, Inc. Want to become a Featured Partner? Learn more Please visit support.linspire.com for answers to questions you may have about Linspire. About Linspire Linspire, Inc. (www.linspire.com) was founded in 2001 to bring choice into the operating system market. The company's flagship product, the Linspire operating system, is an affordable, easy-to-use Linux-based operating system for home, school, and business users. Linspire pioneered CNR (click and run) Technology, which allows Linspire users to download and install thousands of software programs with just one mouse click. The more than 2,000 software titles available in the CNR Warehouse (www.linspire.com/cnrservice) include full office and productivity suites, games, multimedia players, photo management software, accounting tools, and more. We are located at 9333 Genesee Ave, 3rd floor, San Diego, CA, 92121 Linspire, CNR and the CNR Warehouse are trademarks of Linspire, Inc. All other company and product names may be the trademarks of their respective owners. ©2005. All rights reserved. Please do not reply to this email. To contact Linspire, please visit support.linspire.com. If you do not wish to receive further communications you may change your mailing list options by going to www.linspire.com/update. This email was sent to [EMAIL PROTECTED] Please be sure to use this email address when updating your mailing list options. If you've experienced any difficulty in being removed from a Linspire email list, click here for personalized help. 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