Linux for Tots? 23
ecliptik asks: "My mother works at a nursery school and she asked me to setup some old 486's that had been donated for the children. I figured this would be an excellent scenario for Linux since it wouldn't cost anything to set up. My dilemma is, how exactly should I accomplish this? Anyone have any suggestions for distros to use, maybe some open software that would be good for kids ages 4 to 7?"
Re:LOGO (Score:2)
hmmm (Score:1)
I would use Red Hat. (Score:1)
LOGO (Score:2)
-- Eat your greens or I'll hit you!
Linux on everything (Score:1)
This seems to be the kind of question my mom would ask "Can we put linux in the car? its running rough, i thought linux might be able to fix it. linux works for everything, right?"
Seriously, what is wrong with Windows for children to use? These 486s probably already have an OS on them now. there are probably many abandonware programs available for it. My neice is only three years old and she knows how to use her mom's computer. She likes the Dragon Naturally Speaking software and the Magic school bus and Barney programs that are available for Windows. I'm not sure what programs would be available for linux that she would be interested in using. Maybe there are some platform independent websites that use Flash or Java that the kids could use to play games or for learning.
I found DOS tough to use when i was 6 or 7 years old, but back then the computer booted right up into IBM Basic 1.0 and my dad taught me how to program basic. I would've been lost without that help... I could only see how 4-7 year olds would fair with an unsupervised Linux box.
Isn't this impossible? (Score:3)
Also, Linux is hard enough for adults to use (like me), how can it be translated to children? I fear that this is just too premature for children.
I would really like it if there were good childrens programs for linux though. But I'm afraid that Windows will be better in this way for some time to come. Thats just the plain & honest truth!
Re:Isn't this impossible? (Score:1)
At the same time though, I think that children need to be exposed to something challenging and difficult at whatever level they're at.
I'm not saying that they should all have homework on what type of files go in the
BBC Micro (Score:1)
What an excellent idea (Score:1)
as for software, there's tons of stuff you can give the kiddies to play with. Like gcc. And emacs.
bah (Score:4)
--
Windows Time! *hides* (Score:1)
Re:Isn't this impossible? (Score:1)
Linux for kids (Score:1)
linux for the kiddies (Score:1)
Re:LOGO (Score:2)
Favorites... (Score:3)
There are quite a few sticker programs, a new 'paper doll' program (check Freshmeat.net), and some simple games that would work well. Favorites are Potato Guy in KDE 2.x, and a few of the puzzle games in Gnome.
Any Java program should work as well, such as KidPad.
Since you're talking 486s, you might want to look at a /. article a couple weeks ago on using 486s and other low-powered machines as X stations, with one beefier machine running the applications.
Wine or a DOS emulator can be used in a pinch, though for this age range it's not necessary.
try debian for kids... (Score:3)
This is an internal project to make Debian an OS that children of all ages will want to use. Our initial focus will be on producing something for children up to age 8. Once we have
accomplished this, our next target age range is 7 to 12. By the time children reach their teens, they should be comfortable with using Debian without any special modifications.
http://www.debian.org/devel/debian-jr/
Re:LOGO (Score:1)
-- Eat your greens or I'll hit you!
a related market (Score:1)
Re:Linux on everything, old licenses fees (Score:1)
even more, old (which will run on 486) M$ OSes aren't sold anymore, but they'll still get mad at you if you don't pay the licenses fee.
Quite entertaining policy, isn't it? You MUST pay for something you cannot have. Cool
Popmail (Score:2)
A fantastic educational site for kids (Score:4)
posters are missing the point (Score:1)
I think the point here is not "what is the best distro to use?" but is there currently software appropriate for the age range in question. The answer is yes and no. Yes there is a limited amount of software, but of course more is available for windows.
personally as a software developer I would look more towards the non-X spectrum with these 486's as they will run quite slowly with X. You might look into running FreeDos (the operating system) or DosEmu under linux without X. Some of the best Educational software was written for Dos, not Windows, and up until a couple years ago most of the good stuff was still Dos software. Or if you feel like playing with code you could write your own console linux apps.