One Desktop per Child - miniPCs for Schools?

gwjenkins asks: "I'm a teacher in charge of IT in a small school. We would like to bust out of the computer lab model but don't want a trolley of laptops wheeled from class to class. I've drooled over wi-fi PDAs but just can't afford a set for class (and the batteries drain too fast). In a classroom, space is at a premium and teachers won't use a technology that takes too long to set up. Most of the time the kids are just researching (Google), or typing (Google Docs), the rest of the time they can go to a lab. I would love to have a desk-based solution. Can you run a wi-fi mini-pc (sitting under the desk) from a 12-volt rechargeable battery (also sitting under the desk) with a 7" LCD (sitting on the desk), that boots from flash card into FireFox? No wires! No setup time! Has anyone done this? How? Alternatively can anyone say why this is silly?"

It would work

[Kevin143]

Sure. Built it and sell it. I'd buy one. Or thirty-five.

Re:

[networkBoy]

Ditto here.

Really, a VIA with one of those mini power supplies that is almost the size of the ATX connector (they take 12V and convert to all the voltages the board needs), not too sure how tolerant they are of battery voltages though.

Build the whole thing into a tuffbox style case and you're good to go. Kids will still break it though :-)
-nB

Re:

[emj]

And that's exactly what the article does, it says the children need away to search data in the class rooms, they only need firefox for this. So, Lets build a cheap wifi computer that they can easily use in classrooms, and that are mobile enough that you don't need 30 computers per classroom.

Good lord...

[tomstdenis]

They're called laptops. But that said, little kids don't need laptops or desktops at their desks. They can use them just fine in a computer lab.

What do you think kids of yesteryear did? Sure we had a computer in the classroom. It was an Apple ][ and you had to share it with 23 other classmates. OH NOES!!!

I just don't think a kid in school will learn "more" or "better" by spending money putting computers at their personal desks.

Tom

Re:

[basic0]

I want to agree with this, I really do, but things have changed since you and I used computers in school. You're talking about an Apple II, so you've got a few years on me, but I remember having maybe two 286 systems available to a class of 30 students when I was in grade school, and you know what? Some of us grew up to be pretty handy with computers despite that.

The major difference is that back in the days of Apple IIs and 286-en, we were using computers in school to learn about computers. I remember lear

Re:

[tomstdenis]

grade school == small kids == not exactly best use of computers. Think about it, your short stories in grade 2, were what? Maybe 100 words long at most? That exercise wasn't just to get your grammatical syntax juice flowing. It was to also get your hand used to handwriting, etc.

Same thing with math. We had "mathblaster" [with the gamepad thingy] back in my day. But we were expected to know how to add 17 to 23 by long hand. Why? So we could understand the mechanics of arithmetic. Sure kids have comp

Re:

[ajs318]

Exactly.

Microsoft's paid shills -- and a few people so stupid, they even shill for Microsoft without getting paid for it* -- will constantly tell you that "Open Source isn't the answer to everything". That's only half right; computers aren't the answer to everything.

Basically, you need to understand how a process works before you can think about automating it. There's no point having the ability to produce a neat typed document, if you can't construct a proper sentence. And you don't need a computer

Re:Good lord...

[i_should_be_working]

What do you think kids of yesteryear did? Sure we had a computer in the classroom. It was an Apple ][ and you had to share it with 23 other classmates. OH NOES!!!

Yeah, but life back then sucked compared to now. I wish I had been born a decade later just so that I would never have had to deal with:
trudging to the library to get info for a report
hand writing essays
typewriters
not to mention non-school related things like:
snail mail
print newspapers
lack of instant free porn

Just because we had to put up with this crap doesn't mean kids should still have to. Or maybe they should... lil' bastards.

Re:

[tomstdenis]

I dunno, we had lawn darts, slip and slides, and other "fun" activities.

School will be boring most of the time, with or without computers.

Hell, work ain't that much fun and I have *two* computers at my desk (omg wowwowwee!).

Tom

Re:

[imboboage0]

I dunno, we had lawn darts, slip and slides, and other "fun" activities.

You know, you're completely right. I am a sixteen year old and a junior in high school. I'm just about the age where everyone (myself included) is getting a driver's license - freedom to do what you please. I have realized that times just don't sound as fun as they used to. Just last night I was talking with my stepfather and his friend after working on a car about 'the good ol days.' They talked about how they would go out with frie

Re:

[tomstdenis]

Kids have "raves" and other fun trance related activities. Don't you think I feel odd as a 25 year old to be hanging out at afterparties with a bunch of 18 year olds... hey wait a minute... :-)

You can still do crazy things nowadays. They're just less dangerous. My brother and I used to drive all around upperstate new york [we live in Ottawa] when we just got our licenses. Was a "big trip" to drive the hour to the US, then another two or so to syracuse. Lots of fun to be had.

The trick is not to do what

Re:

[Steinfiend]

I went to school in the UK, and didn't have the luxury of one computer per classroom, we had 3 BBC B Micros (with floppy disk!) between the entire student body, up to the age of 11. We were lucky to get 30 minutes a week on the computer, and usually in groups of 3. Despite that, some of turned out to be quite handy with computers!

To address your list one by one;

'trudging to the library to get info for a report' - Gives children exercise, a certain amount of social interaction, as well as increasing readin

Re:

[nurb432]

Just remember this in 20 years when a local terrorist group takes out all the electronic devices in your city with an Improvised EMF device and no one remembers how to cook dinner without a microwave.

How soon does OLPC ship?

[Animats]

Sooner or later, OLPC will actually ship, and some commercial vendor will license the hardware design and sell it commercially without any nonsense. Probably before the big deals involving governments actually get very far.

exactly-the OLPC machine

[zogger]

That is exactly what the person in the article is looking for, a small mesh network capable self powered cheap and tough laptop designed for kids.And seeing as how it is for a school, have the school apply and see if they can get them in quantity. It might have to be the elected schoolboard though, the project only deals with governments. And I don't think they could get anything like that at that price anyplace else, in the 100-150 dollar range, not that is a complete machine, wireless, self powered so you

i know the answer

[User 956]

I would love to have a desk-based solution.

Ah, then you want one of these. [extremetech.com] And don't even tell me that's not practical. Because it totally is. And by practical, I mean awesome.

Why it's silly

[Baricom]

We would like to bust out of the computer lab model?

What's wrong with the computer lab model? It's cheaper because desktops are almost always cheaper than comparably-equipped notebooks. Besides, childhood obesity in the U.S. is at staggering levels - a short walk to a lab won't hurt.

but don't want a trolley of laptops wheeled from class to class.

What's wrong with a trolley of laptops? It's portable, easy to set up, and inexpensive when you factor in educational discounts.

I've drooled over wi-fi PDAs but just can't afford a set for class (and the batteries drain too fast).

Wi-Fi PDAs don't run Firefox and they don't run Office/OpenOffice.org/Google Docs.

In a classroom, space is at a premium and teachers won't use a technology that takes too long to set up.

MacBook setup: 1. Hand out notebook. 2. Open screen.

Most of the time the kids are just researching (Google), or typing (Google Docs), the rest of the time they can go to a lab.

So you have a lab, but you don't want to use it? I'm confused.

I would love to have a desk-based solution. Can you run a wi-fi mini-pc (sitting under the desk) from a 12-volt rechargeable battery (also sitting under the desk) with a 7" LCD (sitting on the desk), that boots from flash card into FireFox?

How do you propose to get the signal from the computer to the monitor and A/C to the battery? More importantly, why not a laptop? It's a computer with a built-in battery and screen. It sits on the desk, but doesn't take up much space at all.

No setup time!

I can't see how setting up two pieces of equipment is faster than setting up one piece of equipment.

Alternatively can anyone say why this is silly?

Okay, here's why it's silly. Unless there's something you're not telling us, you've just proposed to throw away the two best solutions to your problem (a lab and a laptop cart) for no reason other than the geek factor. I'm sorry, but I just can't see what your aim is.

Re:

[iMaple]

So you have a lab, but you don't want to use it? I'm confused.
Unless there's something you're not telling us, you've just proposed to throw away the two best solutions to your problem (a lab and a laptop cart) for no reason other than the geek factor. I'm sorry, but I just can't see what your aim is.

Well, I can. First of all a lab is probably (time) shared amongst 5 or 6 classrooms. Hence its impractical to use the lab as a classroom.

The laptop cart, is obviously expensive and more time consuming to set up than a fixed desktop class room (albeit with a smaller monitor).

I have used a classroom with CRT monitors beneath a glass table , tilted at a proper angle, with full powered computers. (This was ~ 7 years ago, and financed by a huge grant by a big corporation). And this was incredibly useful, espe

Re:

[gwjenkins]

I have used a classroom with CRT monitors beneath a glass table , tilted at a proper angle, with full powered computers. (This was ~ 7 years ago, and financed by a huge grant by a big corporation).

What an excellent solution to the problem of having a computer desk without losing valuable desktop area. School desks are about 1 sq m so a standard affordable laptop with 15" screen takes up most of the usable space.

I dont really get the point of having a battery operated machine at each desk, I would rather go

Re:

[mabhatter654]

she wants something more user friendly than laptops. First, I think the poster is planning to use the PCs in more than 1 classroom... they like the cart idea but it's impractical to pass them all out, boot them up, get the students started... Remember these are kids so even a 5 lb laptop is bulky and cumbersome. The macbook guy says just "open the lid" if that's the case then you have to have 8 hour batteries! remember they plan to share these so you can't just run them down... also SOMEBODY has to plug

Re:

[Baricom]

I'm not necessarily pushing MacBooks. I only brought it up because the submitter was complaining about setup and boot time, and I wanted to illustrate that the technology we have today is up to the task. Apple offers an integrated solution, and I think Dell does too.

If the submitter wants to use the PCs in multiple rooms, how is a separate computer and monitor going to help? As I said, it does take more time to set up - at least twice as much. Remember, if you're using a "desktop" PC rather than a lapto

Re:

[r3m0t]

OLPC is dead cheap, but it's hand-powered (instead of some laptops coming up from hibernation or sleep while you take the register, imagine kids pulling ripcords for 6 minutes).

Re:

[gozar]

What's wrong with the computer lab model? It's cheaper because desktops are almost always cheaper than comparably-equipped notebooks. Besides, childhood obesity in the U.S. is at staggering levels - a short walk to a lab won't hurt.

Research in West Virgina [mff.org] has shown that computers in the classroom are better than in computer labs. Students perform better and get more computer time.

Re:

[timeOday]

Does your workplace have a "computer lab" where you can go to access a computer for 40 minutes per day? Mine either. The computer is so integral to real workflow, I think it's suspicious that schools aren't that way at all.

First, haven't we all experienced the frustration of all class members being forced to move at the same pace? It's bad if you're bored, and bad if you're falling behind. At work I have an email inbox and an Outlook task list. I take one task, do it (usually resulting in more tasks

one laptop per child

[AeiwiMaster]

Have you checked the one laptop per child project ??
http://www.olpc.com/ [olpc.com]
http://www.laptop.org/ [laptop.org]

Or else try a search for
tablet thin client

Battery $ wire $

[gregmac]

It's silly because the cost of a battery is more than the cost of running power to each desk. This includes the cost of a laptop (on batteries) over a desktop - if you're going to buy a laptop, you pay a premium for the fact that it's portable, and happens to require a battery to do so. Not to mention, even if you have batteries, you still have to charge them somehow.

And once you run power to every desk, you might as well run ethernet. The cost of a switch and the cable (and the fact that ethernet jacks are not on-board pretty much every motherboard) is still lower than a good quality access point and PCI wireless cards.

So basically you end up with a lab, which, of course, is not portable from classroom to classroom.

    $ of Lab in every classroom > $ of laptops on a trolley from classroom-to-classroom > $ single lab shared by every classroom

And anyways, I agree with other posters here for the most part, learning computers is important, but you still have to learn the basics by hand/on paper first. If a generation of kids STARTS learning addition and subtraction using a calculator/computer, I can't imagine what they'll be like later in life, and later when doing real math.

Re:

[DerekLyons]

It's silly because the cost of a battery is more than the cost of running power to each desk.

I take it you've never actually paid a professional to install (and wire) a distribution center, then run the wire to each desk, then to wire an outlet at each desk?
 
Not to mention that doing so locks the classroom into a single configuration.

Re:

[iamhassi]

"I take it you've never actually paid a professional to install (and wire) a distribution center, then run the wire to each desk, then to wire an outlet at each desk?"

The only way the battery idea would work is if they used large batteries, like car batteries, and even those would likely need to be charged after 8-16 hours of use. The teacher really wants to run around swapping out 20 lbs batteries every other day?

Also i'm a little confused why this is on /. since it's obvious the teacher didn't even [google.com]

Re:

[bgman]

I can "imagine what they'll be like later in life, and later when doing real math." I taught high school math and computer science for 6 years. I'm now teaching high school physics. When not teaching, I've been an aerospace engineer and a programmer. Calculators came into common use in the mid-70's (at least that's when I purchased my first calculator). Since then, we have raised a generation of students that use a calculator for simple arithmetic. In my experience, that would be single digit addition

Sealed Lead Acid

[sporkme]

If the typical current draw of a system is known, discerning the required battery is pretty straight forward. Sealed lead acid batteries are the least expensive and best performing way to go when it comes to relative performance. I cannot recommend any specifically efficient hardware, but I suspect that 'new' and 'mobile' will be the operative words in portable all-day systems, and those two usually indicate 'pricey' as well.

The largest sealed lead acid standard out there is 80 amp-hour. 80AH batteries

Re:

[gwjenkins]

If your systems have a known average power consumption, all you need to do is multiply current at 12V (amps) by desired run time (hours), and add 20% to allow for battery aging or heavy use. Round up to the next highest battery capacity in amp hours.

I was starting to suspect that the power supply would make this a silly idea. But it would have to be batteries because if you wire desks to the mains you lock the classroom configoration. Reading about mini-itx they seem to draw about 20W. Power=volts x amps

Re:

[sporkme]

The beautiful thing about SLA AGM is that if you draw from them reasonably and you use a shallow cycle they just last and last and last. SLA AGM are the type used in UPS (Interruptible Power Supply) systems, but they are unfortunately taxed by inefficient inverters, which gleefully provide ~100AC to computer power supplies, which in turn provide 12V and less DC. Much of my time is spent changing swollen SLA AGM batteries in UPS systems. Laptops can be efficiently run on SLA, as wireless repeaters are (wi

Re:

[sporkme]

*parallel is positive to positive* sorry for the typo

Re:

[brent_linux]

I think the solution to all of this is to put the batteries on there and then install a treadle with a small generator on it. Then when the computers are one, the kids run the treadle. Burns some calories while also helping with power.

Origami

[skinfitz]

You sound like you are describing 'Origami', or the 'Ultra Mobile PC' (UMPC). [microsoft.com]

They are expensive now, but the idea is to get the price down to (I believe) around $500.

Alternatively you could just let the kids join their PSP's to the school wireless network.

CS in schools

[VincenzoRomano]

CS should be a mandatory item in schools, even elementary.
We cannot think about 21st century without serious CS courses in schools.
But I'd prefer to spend more money in having more motivated teachers and better programs.
Then you can build a wired CS classroom (or two) with the usual desktop PCs that are becoming cheaper and cheaper. And I'm sure pupils would love the idea to do a walk to a different classrom.

Re:

[lukas84]

I disagree.

CS, as in computer science, is the wrong thing to teach to all pupils. Cars are everywhere, and we aren't teaching combustion engine theory to kids either.

Basic IT skills, on the other hand, are important. Especially the distinguishing between concepts and implementation. And how to help yourself in problems.

The problem with most people vs. IT today is, that they don't even have a basic grasp on how their computer works. And i don't mean theory about hard disks, cache, etc.

Many users don't unders

Re:

[dosius]

Call me a luddite, but I just don't see the use for "computers for everyone".

I learned fine, mostly the old-fashioned way. We had an Apple //e and an Apple IIgs, but for the most part it was just the //e we used and really it was only for teaching the basics of arithmetic, in a way that tried as much as possible to simulate writing one's work out on paper. And one computer for the 12 students in my special ed class was all we needed. And to be honest, I think children need to be first taught the hard man

Re:

[Shinra]

I totally agree, CounterStrike should be an essential skill
to learn at an early age. It will teach teamwork, anger management,
and social skills. Plus all the kids can be reward for the number of kills
per month, and the student who scores the highest can be known as the
"Fragger of the Month".

"And I'm sure pupils would love the idea to do a walk to a different classrom."

Better yet, have each classroom be a different server/level, make
3-B "Dusk", and 4-A "Office".

Computer Literacy shouldn't be a separate course

[davidwr]

We don't have separate courses on how to use pens, how to use pencil sharpeners, how to use crayons, or how to use backpacks.

We do have courses in the mechanics of writing, composition, and art.

We don't need a class in "computers." Word processing mechanics can be taught in the English class. Spreadsheets and databases can be taught in math class or any class that uses data collection or statistics. We browsing and using encyclopedia software can be taught in any class that uses research methods. High-l

Thin-clients and mini-itx

[WarJolt]

We used to use sun rays at our old school. They cost like $250 bucks a piece and we were able to remote login to a windows server through solaris. I also would be curious to know if anyones ever tried to use some of those mini-itx boards. I think you could probably build a system for under $250 and those things have at least a 1ghz processor. If you ran Linux thats plenty.

Re:

[CTYI_Student]

Problem, if one sunray goes down they all do.

Re:

[CTYI_Student]

i.e. if the server goes so does everything else.

Go with a laptop Cart

[ssand]

A Laptop cart would probably be your best option. The cart will allow you the portability to bring the computers to other class rooms, rather than being in a static place, offers a place for them to charge when not in use, as well as offers a secure place to lock away the laptops when not in use. In addition to the portability, you don't have to worry as much about the systems, since you can lock them away when they are not in use. Setting up mini PC's would either make it much more difficult to set up to

Rechargeable batteries

[Kuvter]

are going to be a pain in the butt considering how many laptops you'll have in the classes. Keeping track of this on top of the students worrying about saving before the battery dies or it dieing during class and they can't take notes anymore. It'd be a whole lot easier to run power cords to all of them, which don't take up too much space as they could be run just under the desk, where you planned on having the batteries anyways.

Printing is something to think about too. You could have them all wirelessly

This is what I would do....

[CTYI_Student]

I just think that you could get a really cheap "Damn Small Machine", goto here http://www.damnsmalllinux.org/store/Mini_ITX_Syste ms [damnsmalllinux.org]
really cheap computers with usable hardware AND you can get LCDs here
http://www.damnsmalllinux.org/store/TFT_LCD [damnsmalllinux.org]
LCDs are 7 Inches! And run on only 9w.
I would think this is a pretty good solution.

Re:

[gwjenkins]

I just think that you could get a really cheap "Damn Small Machine", goto here http://www.damnsmalllinux.org/store/Mini_ITX_Syste [damnsmalllinux.org] ms really cheap computers with usable hardware AND you can get LCDs here http://www.damnsmalllinux.org/store/TFT_LCD [damnsmalllinux.org] LCDs are 7 Inches! And run on only 9w. I would think this is a pretty good solution.

Ha, the damn small linux mini-itx system was what sparked the idea. They just seem so suitable for dumping in a desk and forgetting they are there. A compact flash card booting da

Re:

[CTYI_Student]

if you want firefox in kiosk mode then I suggest this linux MorphixLiveKiosk 0.03. Goto here http://www.morphix.org/index.php?option=com_conten t&task=view&id=80&Itemid=59 [morphix.org] the 7" lcd screen is actually 800*600 but I think that would be good enough, it would cause more I strain if it was a higher resolution(1024*768 for example) on the same screen size.

Re:

[Locutus]

I've not messed with it but the Edubuntu project mentions something about having builtin support for the LTSP thinclient stuff. What that would mean is that you'd have one computer in the room feeding the OS and apps to the clients( no OS installed on the clients ). And if all you were loading was the OS and a browser, that shouldn't put too much load on the bootup traffic.

Or you might just use that to load the OS to the clients so there's no need to install anything on those clients initially. I'm not s

One PC / Projector

[ReidMaynard]

I think a better solution is a single PC and a projector. The teacher could either drive the PC, or get a student to. This is much like previous technology (film strips, movies, record players...) in the classroom.

Also, it's a lot like the real world (meetings).

Re:

[CTYI_Student]

But I think that what is wanted is to get the students involved and for them to learn word processing skills etc.

IT

[Anonymous Coward]

"Most of the time the kids are just researching (Google), or typing (Google Docs), the rest of the time they can go to a lab."

That won't be what they are doing most of the time when computers are in the classroom, trust me. My school has a cart of laptops to every classroom as well as a smartboard and projector (it's a DoD school; they sickly waste immense amounts of money). Virtually none of the time we use the computers are we actually doing work.

However, with that said, the best solution is laptops. A

Re:

[couchslug]

"If an EMP blast ever hit our nation, the people that can write without spell check, compose without an electronic thesaurus, do math without calculators, and research without the internet would become gods of society."

AssUming EMP gives a 100% mort rate on all our toys, including the computers I have stored (not plugged in) in a grounded 40ft steel shipping container. (I'm not a survivalist, I just like cheap, dry, gasketed shop space.)

Maybe it's time for an "Ask Slashdot" on EMP...

Re:

[that this is not und]

An EMP blast takes out all the control logic at every layer of the power distribution and communications network. Your steel shipping container of hardware might survive, but what will you plug it all into?

I envy your shipping container, BTW. Where do I get one? I have the un-zoned land to put it on already.

Re:

[couchslug]

I'll have to plug into an inverter/battery setup (got those) and get off my arse to setup a pedal-operated alternator (have parts) to charge 'em with.

Shipping containers are usually easy to find, especially when you are near the coast. They are SWEET structures, and cheaper by far then the conventional equivalent. I lubs me watertight, comfortable, vermin-proof workspace. Adding power is easy. Use a bimetal holesaw and an electric drill to cut conduit holes, and use heavily galvanized hardware or stainless

Ugh... too geeky for your own good

[ap0]

First off, I don't fully understand what this guy is proposing: having a set of small desktops and monitors to drag between classes is hugely inefficient compared to laptops. You'd need keyboards, mice, the boxes themselves, and the monitors, and then have to power them. A laptop "cart" would save space since they'd all be the same size and could fit in a slotted arrangement that would be much easier to transport.

Another thing you could do with the laptops is have some sort of charging station for batteri

Desktops are better than Laptops

[CrazyJim1]

Welcome to first grade! Here's the laptop you'll use for the next 6 years, it will save the school money on books. Don't drop it, or get paste stuck in the keys, or you automatically fail.

You've not thought it through...

[kenh]

The model you are proposing is based on an environment with no infrastructure, and no need to train users in any "modern" applications.

To walk into a room with wired Ethernet (thanks President Clinton/Vice President Al Gore), in-exhaustable power (thank you Mr. Edison), and decide to deploy computers in a 1:1 ratio with their own power supplies and tiny displays makes no sense. The vast majority of the day students will have their computers turned off, so they can listen to the teacher and learn. To deploy

"why this is silly"

[wonkavader]

"Alternatively can anyone say why this is silly?"

Because students learn less when there's a computer in front of them. There's a place for computers, and computer education, and learning to use them as tools. It's not in most classrooms.

Re:

[Jrabbit05]

Then make it part of they're learning experience. You can't say they won't be using computers later in life. And thats what education is for is to teach the skills required to function in the modern world.

Re:

[Ritchie70]

My step-son is in an "all laptop" highschool. They issue (well, sell) ThinkPads to all of the students, and replace them/fix them as they fail. As far as I can tell, a major use of them is to sit in class playing various sports and first person shooter games.

I can't fathom why they didn't lock these laptops down as tightly as possible, with only academic, approved software installed. At work, we're working to deploy Windows to our retail locations, and the user environment is going to be locked down so tig

Well thought out

[Half-pint HAL]

Then make [computers] part of they're learning experience.

1. schoolkids
2. computers
3. ???
4. learning

So, if you'd like to share your unique insights on educational psychology, I'm certain the other experts in the field would love to learn how to do this.

HAL.

Check out Damn Small Linux

[MercuryMan2000]

They sell a silent diskless computer that could probably with little modification fit your needs!

It sounds like students will need laptops

[GWBasic]

It sounds like your students will eventually need laptops so that they can do their homework on computers. It's going to take a few years for such a reality to occur.

My suggestion is to start turning more classrooms into inexpensive computer labs. You could try bolting cheap laptops to desks and rely on wireless networking to ease wiring expenses. (For example, you might be able to buy refurbished centrinos that are good enough for web browsing.) It's going to take a few years before the computer indus

Theft is a problem

[jayrtfm]

Are you thinking on how to secure those little boxen? Cause if it's not secured in a steel cage (datamation [pc-security.com]) it's gonna walk.
What I've done at my school was use Betwin [thinsoftinc.com] to have one tower serve 4 stations. That is, one tower, and 4 monitor/keyboard/mouse. Most students don't realize that they're sharing one computer, and it's fun watching outside techs try to figure out what's going on.

One iPhone Per Child

[gig]

> Most of the time the kids are just researching (Google), or typing (Google Docs), the rest of the time they can go to a lab

iPhone. It has the full Web, including modern Web applications, and it has rich HTML email with styles and photos. It replaces the PC the school wants them to have, the phone their parents want them to have, and the iPod that the kid themselves wants to have.

How much work are you going to do to put Google and text-editing in front of a kid? That is ridiculous when we have the CPU p