One Laptop Per Child - Give One/Get One. Right now, between November 12 and November 26, if you make a $399 donation, you donate one XO laptop to a child and receive one yourself. $200 of the donation is tax-deductible.
This is tempting. I'd like to have computers for my kids. But I'm not sure I can afford it... and not sure I could figure it out well enough to teach them, since I don't know Linux.
The thing is that it's designed to be easy enough for kids themselves to hop in and figure out on their own - you don't need to get into the Linux if you don't want to. It's got a GUI (graphical user interface) like Windows or the Mac, so the user just points and clicks to use the stuff on it.
Of course, it uses software written specifically for it, not anything written for Windows or the Mac or anything else like that, so you're basically left with using the programs it comes with, or what the open-source developers are working on now. (http://wiki.laptop.org/go/Activities)
Also, the keyboard is sized for a child's hand, not an adult's. (I believe in part to avoid having corrupt educational officials sell them on the grey market instead of providing them to children as planned.)
But I bought one anyway to see what it was like, and to donate one elsewhere. Since it's small and green, maybe I'll call it Yotsuba (http://www.amazon.com/dp/1413903452/).
I'm tempted, just for the programming possibilities in developing for it. Not that I'd actually do that - I'd put the laptop somewhere and every time I saw that I'd think "I really should get on that" and never get around to doing so. XD
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Of course, it uses software written specifically for it, not anything written for Windows or the Mac or anything else like that, so you're basically left with using the programs it comes with, or what the open-source developers are working on now. (http://wiki.laptop.org/go/Activities)
Child-sized keyboard
But I bought one anyway to see what it was like, and to donate one elsewhere.
Since it's small and green, maybe I'll call it Yotsuba (http://www.amazon.com/dp/1413903452/).
Re: Child-sized keyboard