<span class="HcCDpe"></span><br><div class="gmail_quote">---------- Forwarded message ----------<br>From: <b class="gmail_sendername">Bibek Paudel</b> <<a href="mailto:eternalyouth@gmail.com">eternalyouth@gmail.com</a>><br>
Date: Thu, Apr 24, 2008 at 6:33 PM<br>Subject: {OLPC Nepal} Re: [FOSSNepal] Re: Report: OLPC may eventually switch from Linux to Windows XP<br>To: <a href="mailto:foss-nepal@googlegroups.com">foss-nepal@googlegroups.com</a>, <a href="mailto:olpcnepal@googlegroups.com">olpcnepal@googlegroups.com</a>, <a href="mailto:nepal@lists.laptop.org">nepal@lists.laptop.org</a><br>
<br><br><br>
Hi all,<br>
While I personally think it is bad for OLPC to switch to Windows XP,<br>
here a few observations that I have made:<br>
<br>
1. Any development/education project meant for third world countries<br>
is best when it is natively grown. A top down approach where some guy<br>
in Boston teaches us how to change things in our neighbourhood is<br>
never likely to understand and respect our situation and problems. He<br>
has other priorities. A bottom-up approach should be devised where<br>
grassroot organizations from different parts of the world collaborate<br>
to form a mother organization that works in their benefit. Compare<br>
this to Nepal's political situation where every other politician/media<br>
claims to represent the people and be working for them. Things won't<br>
that way in technology too.<br>
<br>
2. Nicholas Negroponte is a man hungry of some position in history of<br>
business and humanity, both. He thinks increasing the sales of laptops<br>
is more important than the growing impact it is creating. Selling a<br>
qarter of a million of laptops is a success by any means for any<br>
profit-organization. I don't understand how it is not sufficient in<br>
case of a first-of-its-kind project by a non-profit organization.<br>
<br>
3. Nicholas Negroponte doesn't care. Using Windows in XOs has many<br>
implications. Besides cost and the performance of the laptops, it<br>
means you are forcing a company's products on all children. Compare<br>
that to a government policy whereby it makes every school going<br>
children mandatory to wear dresses from a certain dress-designing<br>
company or study books from a certain publisher (eg. Ekta publishers).<br>
Thats why we have a government book publisher and curriculum designer<br>
in Nepal and government can't recommend any other books. I don't<br>
understand how someone can impose the monopoly of using a<br>
vendor-specific software on all kids. And why governments all over the<br>
world should abide by that.<br>
<br>
4. The issue of "amorphic" development of XO as said by Negroponte is<br>
at best ridiculous. Having the best of the world's technology,<br>
engineers and money at MIT, it shocks me how he allowed a project of<br>
OLPC's scale fall at the hands of people who neither could have a good<br>
architect for the software or the capacity to develop them<br>
"morphically". Had he never heard of the term "software engineering"<br>
before? Why was the decision taken in first place?<br>
<br>
5. What are all the people spread all over supposed to make of the<br>
recent developments? At the behest of a single man or a group of such<br>
men, should they be forced to change their working style, philosophy<br>
and way of seeing things?<br>
<br>
6. I wish someone starts a fork of Sugar and everything OLPC. Why not<br>
Walter Bender? Start a fork. Or else the people at OLPC, if you have<br>
all the democracy and its powers, why don't you remove such people who<br>
are moving away from the OLPC's original principles? I just hope<br>
something of similar nature happens.<br>
<br>
If you agree with me, please forward this message to other mailing<br>
lists of OLPC where people are likely to respond to this issue.<br>
<br>
Cheers !<br>
Bibek<br>
<br>
On Thu, Apr 24, 2008 at 5:50 PM, sarose <<a href="mailto:sarose.joshi@gmail.com">sarose.joshi@gmail.com</a>> wrote:<br>
><br>
> hey dude! your grandpa is great but you know my uncle Negroponte is<br>
> fool nonsense because he now hate Linux.<br>
><br>
> About Ubuntu, i don't know how to pronounce it. Please teach me as<br>
> well.<br>
><br>
> Try a survey with your friends or co-workers around. The answer<br>
> screams cries utterly. Don't forget to submit back to Uncle<br>
> Negroponte.<br>
><br>
> On Apr 24, 4:12 pm, Zico <<a href="mailto:mailz...@gmail.com">mailz...@gmail.com</a>> wrote:<br>
><br>
><br>
> > On Thu, Apr 24, 2008 at 3:42 PM, sarose <<a href="mailto:sarose.jo...@gmail.com">sarose.jo...@gmail.com</a>> wrote:<br>
> ><br>
> > > yes its bad news and a good lesson for the gnome/kde that has not come<br>
> > > up with user friendly UI till this date.<br>
> ><br>
> > You are very wrong, brother! Don`t you see the *blinking things* of<br>
> > gnome/kde? And, how do you define "friendly user interface"? What more do<br>
> > you expect from Gnome/KDE? Please point out, we will be really glad to hear<br>
> > that.<br>
> ><br>
> > just stop saying linux is ready for desktop.<br>
> ><br>
> > Why should we do that??<br>
> ><br>
> > > neither its ready for my<br>
> > > dad nor its ready for my little brother.<br>
> ><br>
> > I don`t know about your dad or younger brother, but Ubuntu is ready for my<br>
> > grandfather. Now, i am teaching my grandmother to use computer ( in one<br>
> > word, Ubuntu ).<br>
> ><br>
> > all its ready<br>
> ><br>
> > > for is server only.<br>
> ><br>
> > Very wrong.<br>
> > By the way, which distro do you use?<br>
> ><br>
> > --<br>
> > Best,<br>
> > Z<br>
> ><br>
><br>
<br>
<br>
<br>
--<br>
Bibek Paudel.<br>
<a href="http://blog.bibekpaudel.com.np/" target="_blank">http://blog.bibekpaudel.com.np/</a><br>
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