OLPC project readies first large-scale XO test
By Paul Miller 
posted February 14th 2007 1:09PM
posted February 14th 2007 1:09PM
The OLPC project has shipped a few test units here or there, but it's finally ramping things up in the lead-up to July, when they'll start producing five million of the lime-green things. This shipment, however, is quite a bit more modest than that: 2,500 laptops are heading to Brazil, Uruguay, Libya, Rwanda, Pakistan, Thailand and possibly Ethiopia and the West Bank. Soon after that will come Indonesia and a few other countries. Strangely, this Reuters report still seems to imply that the pull-string "salad spinner" generator is new on the scene, or perhaps not even ready yet, which doesn't bode well for the project that is no doubt in need of finalizing designs. But no matter, all we needed to know was that these things were finally getting into the hands of OLPC clients around the world that are the ones that will actually be committing these absurd amounts of dollars to their children's education, who cares if they work![Thanks, Sparky]
If you'd like to get your hands on one (and we all would), check out the One Laptop Per Child Game Design Challenge where you can win a OLPC XO laptop when you design a game for it.
http://www.olpcnews.com/content/games/win_olpc_xo_laptop_game.html
Wasn't there going to be a purchase plan in which you could buy a OLPC for three times the price, so you got one and poor children were given the other two. This seemed to be a good way to give a charitable contribution and still get something in return rather than only waiting on nations to place 1 million+ unit orders. Seemed more realistic to get the ball rolling and help kids faster.
I think its really a genuine effort...
Although I really dont know what they could do with 1 GB , and no hard disk, they will rely solely on the internet
and, where is the fast and free internet connection the people will have especially in devoloping countris and especially for the under privilaged.