Todd Seal says important things about public and private computers:
<<Why does this have to be an "either - or" problem? Those communities that have the population of those that can afford the "personal," well, that's probably what they will buy. For those without that luxury, then certainly the "public" is the best option. A computer in a public space is better than no computer at all.>> Clearly there should not be either-or. I wonder, however, about basing the outcome on community wealth alone. There are reasons for advocating public transportation even for communities than can afford private autos. Perhaps there are similar reasons for advocating "social" and "public" computing. <<Interesting idea, though, about "public" and "personal" computing. I like the distinction and think it deserves a future investigation as to the applications of both uses of technology. Does this open a realm of different software for each application? Are there "public" and "personal" uses that are completely outside each other's domain? Can a computer have a "public" and a "personal" profile that will make available different facets of the computer? Since logging on to your computer is inherent in most operating systems, it wouldn't be too far a stretch to set up those distinct profiles and keep them secure.>> I, for one, have not encountered this idea of software designed for public computing, and it seems like an important road to follow. <<I think the "right road" is not universal and can only be determined based upon the inner workings of the community deciding. Perhaps there's a needs survey that should be developed to determine "personal" or "public" computing, so that donating organizations have a better idea what to donate.>> The ubiquitous Internet Cafe is one step toward public computing. Although the proposal raises the eyebrows of some civil libertarians, churches, with their commitments to community service as well as service to their own congregants, can be another vehicle for public computing. In some of the ealtheir nations public libraries are already involvedin public computing. The proposal that donor organizations might consider using their funds to encourage public computing is an important one. <<Wouldn't it be possible, though, to use the computer for both needs? While in a public location, can't I use my computer personally? Does the distinction really matter to a community without computer access?>> When I use the computer at my local public library--which I do from time to time--or at an Internet Cafe, I am using it personallly. The distinction, I think, matters a great deal. If a donor agency gives me a computer I can use it personally, but you cannot. If it's put in a public setting, we both can use it personally. Steve Eskow [EMAIL PROTECTED] _______________________________________________ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
