OLPC head of software and content resigns, possibly over transition to XP

The recent shakeups at the top of the OLPC hierarchy have apparently claimed another victim, as OLPC News is reporting that Software and Content chief Walter Bender has just left the project. Rumor is that Nicholas Negroponte is going to transition the OLPC XO entirely to Windows XP to spur sales soon, and Bender is reportedly unhappy about that. What makes this all the more interesting is that when security director Ivan Krstić left the OLPC project last month, he specifically said he was unhappy that the restructuring no longer required him to work with Bender, and said that he could no longer "subscribe to the organization's new aims or structure in good faith." Looks like something's afoot at OLPC, and the old guard isn't happy about it. What say you, NickNeg?

[Lowest Ranked @ Apr 21st 2008 3:34PM]

First things I noticed on the projector in the picture were, "A Child's Laptop is: ...Safe to ... look at."

Are we really talking about portable computer's here?

[MEAT! @ Apr 21st 2008 3:50PM]

You mean:

"* Safe and robust
* Light to c?????? ????t look at
..."

[Hamilton @ Apr 21st 2008 4:27PM]

I believe that to be light to carry easy to look at

[LondonConsultant @ Apr 21st 2008 4:57PM]

It's actually "Safe and robust; Light to carry; vibrant to look at;"...

[luzzio @ Apr 21st 2008 5:18PM]

Light to carry. Pleasant to look at.

[Bobs @ Apr 21st 2008 3:37PM]

Unrelated comment, but needed
Why do votes only go highly and low ranked? what happend to highest and lowest?

[Lowest Ranked @ Apr 21st 2008 3:39PM]

I'm not sure if we were offered an explaination or not but its been this way since last week.

On another note, I refuse to change my name to conform to Engadget's new standards!



lol, ok. I'm sorry.

[Ethan @ Apr 21st 2008 4:07PM]

Maybe it's just really high. Like, say, MLK's 'I have a dream' would be highest ranked and Hitler's Nuremberg rallies would be lowest ranked.

...I imagine not. A lot of decent points get whited out on joystiq, but it's more nominal here, so I don't mind either way.

[Abuzar @ Apr 21st 2008 4:09PM]

You're not such a contradiction to the existence of life anymore.

[jdang @ Apr 21st 2008 3:37PM]

This project is still alive? I haven't heard any good news since the beginning.

[Todd @ Apr 21st 2008 3:41PM]

Sadly the OLPC is dead. Destroyed by The Empire. There was a glimmer of hope there for a second, that poor kids could learn to think for themselves by using Linux. But alas they'll just be good little pod people now, only able to do what their told ( XP ) and spend most of their day asking Clippy to search for their long lost ( and most likely corrupted ) home work assignments, locked in the Word file format...

[linumax @ Apr 21st 2008 4:02PM]

Wow! That was really touching and informative. I never before realized that Operating System is the actual source of provoking thought in one's mind and how Windows XP heartlessly murders the brain cells of its users...

[Lars @ Apr 21st 2008 6:54PM]

Todd is confused. OLPC's are not designed to be full-featured machines for normal PC use. They're supposed to be educational tools. We're talking about educating third-world countries here, not giving them access to myspace and youtube. (although it does have a browser, but you get my point)

Linux was just a means to an end. XO needs a kid-friendly and secure OS that's lean and mean. They actually NEED something that's limiting, an OS that only lets them do what their parents/teachers want. That's the only way to make educational Laptops work. These are supposed to be a tool for poor countries. They want to distribute something like this to a whole bunch of kids and just copy assignments, textbooks, etc. onto them when needed. Plus give them the ability to be productive without breaking the bank. But teachers and parents need to know that kids won't be sitting there playing games on their laptops instead of doing assignments or whatever.

[kevin_ho @ Apr 21st 2008 3:42PM]

Yeah Microsoft prevails once again!
Ha ha ha!

[iPriest @ Apr 21st 2008 4:34PM]

Again? Looks like the only place Microsoft still can prevail is in the third world countries (USA not included). Soon we will be hearing of relief funds for expensive lawyers instead of water.

[Allan @ Apr 21st 2008 3:42PM]

Guess when one giant company wants in on something bad enough, they'll get it. I give these guys credit for getting out if they don't like the direction. Get out now before it burns.

[Thomas Arnold @ Apr 21st 2008 3:46PM]

Also probably has something to do with switching the OLPC's marketing from a 'deserts of africa, humanitarian effort' to a 'chairty- gone-pop-culture, fashion-statement-esque, college-dorm-room EEE-killer' type of effort..

REMEMBER- charity is a business, guys!

[LiqwidZero @ Apr 21st 2008 3:49PM]

Negroponte should had accepted the free licensing of OS X from Apple when he had the chance.

[Jesse S @ Apr 21st 2008 4:09PM]

Why, so that it would be even harder for first time computer users to use a computer?

[Loonie @ Apr 21st 2008 5:30PM]

Jesse, Windows is only an easier OS for people already familiar with Windows.

[LarryLarryLarry @ Apr 21st 2008 6:59PM]

There's no way the OLPC could run OS X. It could run the iPhone OS, which is a subset. A *form* of OS X could probably be created to work on the OLPC - but Apple would never allow it.

Good OS, wrong platform.

[Lars @ Apr 21st 2008 7:00PM]

That's a moot point if I ever saw one. Both Windows and MacOS are dumbed down for new users.

[Ethan @ Apr 21st 2008 4:13PM]

If XP is going to be put on a laptop for kids it's got to be a non-branded version.

[Odimerus @ Apr 21st 2008 4:17PM]

ONE LAPTOP PER HAMSTER!

[ethana2 @ Apr 21st 2008 5:24PM]

FTW

XD

[ccox @ Apr 21st 2008 4:23PM]

If it is true that OLPC only works/sells if using Windows XP it simply means that all of these "supposedly" third world or underprivileged countries are better off than anyone could imagine... in fact, there's no need for OLPC at all then.

[lordmorgul @ Apr 21st 2008 4:43PM]

Brilliant market strategy... transition from a fully operational, low hardware requirement, free and secure operating system, which has already had an astounding level of development work on embedded and low resource hardware platforms...

And go to an insecure operating system that is only a few months from end of life, with an extended lifecycle of security updates left of 2 years... then plan on sending these machines all over the world to low income areas where access to network resources is very scarce.

Wasn't the idea here to 'enable' children to learn about technology in a world that is increasingly leaving them behind in an information vacuum with no hope of escape? How exactly is Windows XP going to help achieve that again? One more good idea completely failed.

[luzzio @ Apr 21st 2008 5:23PM]

I think cloud computing is a much more efficient way to get children from developing countries (I come from one in fact) to get connected.

Build centers with decent computers and an okay connection, and hook everyone up with a Jooce.com account.

Hardware, even at 100$ per child, is just too expensive for worldwide charity.

[Sean @ Apr 21st 2008 5:54PM]

Is schadenfreude over NN's disaster wrong? Can I enjoy the downfall of hubris despite recognizing good intentions?

[comp2 @ Apr 21st 2008 6:06PM]

Yeah sure go for it, chuckle to yourself contently. But the war is far from over.

[justindz @ Apr 21st 2008 6:04PM]

lordmorgul raised the point that I intended to raise: isn't XP approaching retirement, with Microsoft's "reputation" hanging on their ability to get people off of their 8,000 year old OS? Why start a new generation on this?

A few reasons:

1) XP support will be extended a LOT longer.

2) Vista is too hefty for OLPC, which is why OS X or Linux probably would have been a better choice anyway.

3) MS plans to very shortly charge all these charity-case kids in under-developed countries to upgrade to Vista. Just kidding. That would only happen if the target user really *has* shifted significantly to hipsters. Or, wait... hipsters don't like XP... hrm.

[markatlnk @ Apr 21st 2008 6:49PM]

They don't need to charge for the OS, in fact I believe if they pay to put it on the machines, Microsoft will benefit in the long run. As these kids grow up they will only know about how to work with Windows. So they win. They can also by holding onto the OS, prevent the open document formats from taking hold. They don't need money from these kids now, they can wait. I am sure if XP is headed to replace the OS on the XO they will give away for free so they can tell the world that they are doing wonderful things. Once everyone uses it they will use their monopoly to influence the market.

The best predictor of future activity is looking at the past.

[mike @ Apr 21st 2008 9:27PM]

If the kids haven't used PCs before, who's going to be able to teach them Linux? Who's going to be able to fix something if it goes wrong?

More importantly, who's going to 'buy one, give one' if the rich buyer has no understanding of how to use Linux?

It shouldn't be that hard to transition, but there are so many version of Linux out there that all these people are thinking of command lines and not being able to play Windows games.

[Peter @ Apr 21st 2008 10:49PM]

Negroponte is a criminal just like his brother.

That said, I thought this decision was made last year when they doubled the price of the thing to put XP on them. What did I miss?

[ongre09 @ Apr 22nd 2008 2:38AM]

I own an OLPC XO computer, it just hasn't happened right for what ever reason. I would put a version of XP on it immediately if it was available.

[c.Lake @ Apr 22nd 2008 4:25AM]

It sounds to me like Negroponte has taken more then a few dollars from Microsoft, in exchange for bending over and dropping his pants.

And you all know what we call that?

[c.Lake @ Apr 22nd 2008 4:37AM]

It's not the fact that OLPC is going with Windows for the OS. It's how it's going with Windows --- now after 4 years into the project. Here comes Microsoft, trying to push their way in (as usual), after laugh about the project from the beginning.

How many developers worked on the "Suger" software? For how many years? Just for MS to swoop-in at the last minute and steal the show?

Fine, whatever, have a Windows OS, but where hell were they 4 years ago? And what's with big change and employees leaving? It all smells fishy -- like some one's on the take.

[David @ Apr 22nd 2008 4:42AM]

"And you all know what we call that?"

Good business practice?

[Oinquer @ Apr 22nd 2008 5:32AM]

i will be laughing when 2 months after XP is shipped in OLPC computers start to get full of virus...
at least in linux is almost impossible to mess up with spyware and virus.

[ae86takumi @ Apr 22nd 2008 11:50AM]

Bender = Futurama??? lol...that's the first thing I thought

[archangel @ Apr 22nd 2008 7:51PM]

If your a drone, use windows and have the daily updates.
If you WANT to learn how to use a computer , use linux.

Open source is the future. Bill Gates has enough money.

Lets think for ourselves and stop lettign him be the richest man in the world.