[DDN] Intel, $100 Laptop program form new partnership

[Layton E. Olson]

The $100 laptop goal (with metric of impact in aiding youth/adults in
daily tasks in a variety of countries in which $100 means different
things) might have other linked goals in developed and developing
worlds, such as"
= Free learning card (memory card, library card, digital textbook) which
could plug into laptop, workstation or kiosks, and might cost around $10
with appropriate personal security  
= Free health records card, including immunization data for school
entry, which can also be added to learning card for use for school
registration and record keeping
= Value-added cards for purchase of many of the above services, and use
of
kiosks, vending machines

In Chicago, all of these are considered options for Digital Excellence
planning in the coming year.  E.g. A Goal -- "A learning card/electronic
library card in every pocket" ....

What's good about these systems, is that learning/consumer behavior
paths can be tracked and reinforced, including through multi-workstation
computer labs or telecenters, through "outreach and awareness" programs
and regular "town hall/consumer assembly sounding board" sessions, to
help bring consensus on "what works" in each locality, and for each
audiences (youth, adults, seniors).

Layton Olson
Attorney, Chicago
For Leadership for Revenue and Virtual Illinois network conversations

-----Original Message-----
From: digitaldivide-bounces at digitaldivide.net
[mailto:digitaldivide-bounces at digitaldivide.net] On Behalf Of Joe
Beckmann
Sent: Sunday, July 15, 2007 7:22 AM
To: The Digital Divide Network discussion group
Subject: Re: [DDN] Intel, $100 Laptop program form new partnership

In the 19th and 20th century we called this kind of merger "in restraint
of
trade," and made it illegal. The best way to lower the price is to watch
which prototype is now orphaned, and thereby drops its price to that
$100
level.

And there is no magic whatsoever in a $100 laptop. It seemed un-feasible
when the average cost was $2000, not so long ago, but it's a lot more
feasible when orphaned equipment aims for landfill rather than user
hands.
Anybody want my Newton? THAT was a $1000 laptop which is now worth dirt.

What the Intel/OLPC collaboration demonstrates most is the
entrepreneurship
of profit and nonprofit sectors, and how often good ideas get "owned" by
entrepreneurs from either sector, or any country, and they are willing
to
"sell out" to "get what they want." The nonprofit goal was NOT a $100
laptop, but One Laptop Per Child (ahem) and could/should/might be
achieved
in any of many different ways. Remarkable how such goals pervert the
strategic options of their proponents: are we talking about merging
protestant with catholic computing? Or are we talking about merging
islam
with christianity? My, how ideology makes business analogs so profoundly
uncomfortable.

j

On 7/13/07, Taran Rampersad <cnd at knowprose.com> wrote:
>
> tom abeles wrote:
> > And the price for the units are coming down so that OLPC and the
> > current smart phones will meet in the middle- not at the desired USD
> > 100. So we should stop, now, using the term, $100 lap top. I believe
> > current suggested price will be closer to $200 than $100 and even
more
> > in inflation adjusted dollars.
> Agree with the 'options are better' comments - just kicking in here
that
> the minimum order of a million is really the issue for me. Plus, if we
> consider the shifts in the global economy - is $100 US really a good
> target? How about let's try for 'affordable'... what I mean is that
cost
> of living, etc, plus the relative value of the US dollar may increase
or
> decrease. Since the machine(s) themselves aren't necessarily made in
the
> US, this really makes this an interesting thing to look at
economically.
> > But, and this is a big BUT, no one talks about the cost of access,
the
> > main reason that the wireless providers practically give away their
> > phones. The connection costs are coming down, but they are constant
> > even if one owns the machines. And then there is the question of
> > service and support. This part of the package is never discussed and
> > yet it is the major life cycle expense to having one of these
devices
> > and using them to greatest benefit.
> >
> > Perhaps it is time to stop slavering over the non-existent device
and
> > its purported "cure" for the digital divide, like some miracle drug
> > and look at the systems cost and see who has worked that into their
> > development budgets.
> >
> > thoughts?
> I'm of two minds on all of this. Mobile phones have become more
> ubiquitous than Microsoft ever was (or ever will be). But mobile
phones
> are not the solution either - access to hardware, except in very
extreme
> cases, exists. This leads back to policy and infrastructure, which is
> where there have always been problems that have reinforced the
hardware
> access problem. Now it is about service.
>
> So yes, the mobile phone has and will continue to demonstrate the most
> promise for leveling technological access. But no, it will not change
> service level disparity. One reason is economics, which can be fixed -
> some say it already is being fixed. But policy. Policy.
> Telecommunications service. A bunch of other stuff that technology
> hasn't been able to fix for the last millenium. :-)
>
> --
> Taran Rampersad
> Presently in: San Fernando, Trinidad and Tobago
> cnd at knowprose.com
> http://www.knowprose.com
>
>
> Pictures: http://www.flickr.com/photos/knowprose/
>
> "Criticize by creating." - Michelangelo
> "The present is theirs; the future, for which I really worked, is
mine." -
> Nikola Tesla
>
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-- 
Joe Beckmann
22 Stone Avenue
Somerville, MA 02143
617-625-9369
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