It's definitely an interesting idea...I wasn't aware that CLIEs with those capabilities could be found for less than the $100 price tag Negropointe's initiative is aiming for. If so, I'd buy one myself...what's the cheapest handheld with a wifi card? Most of the options I've looked at are in the $300 - $400 range.
Dave. ------------------- Dave A. Chakrabarti Projects Coordinator CTCNet Chicago [EMAIL PROTECTED] (708) 919 1026 ------------------- Mark Frazier wrote: > Joe, > > This is an intriguing idea! > >>> Sony Clie's do all the same thing, including video, sound, mp3, text, > still, flash, and even internet > > Can you help identify specific (low-cost) Clie models that have all the > above capabilities? A recent check on eBay yielded a number of >$250 Clie > models. > > We'd like to find more affordable options -- ideally in the $75-$100 range > -- with the capabilities that you mentioned. > > The aim is for student teams to use them for eLesson creation/sharing at > entrepreneurially-run schools for the poor. > > We're aiming to try them in grassroots learning initiatives such as the > Virtual Academy in a Sri Lankan farming village (www.horizonlanka.org) and > the microscholarship system at eCenters in Kyrgyzstan > (http://tinyurl.com/q4aqv). > > Look forward to hearing from you... > > Best, > > Mark Frazier > President > Openworld, Inc. > "Creating assets for grassroots initiatives" > www.openworld.com > > > > -----Original Message----- > From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Joe Beckmann > Sent: 07/13/2006 8:51 AM > To: The Digital Divide Network discussion group > Subject: Re: [DDN] Nicholas Negroponte- ISTE NECC Speech > > While I certainly sympathize with ipods as micro-supercomputers, much older > - and thereby much cheaper - Sony Clie's do all the same thing, including > video, sound, mp3, text, still, flash, and even internet. What they lack is > phone, but that is what distinguishes the smartphones. In the meantime, I > wonder that people haven't collected old Clie's from Sony and EBay and > created whole computer classrooms able to do most of what a full scale lab > can do, with much more flexibility, at much less than Negroponte's projected > computer, with much more software capacity. > > Joe Beckmann > > On 7/12/06, Stephen Snow <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: >> Dave, et. al., >> >> I was directly involved in people learning to use and maintain a great >> variety of equipment for a bunch of years, and I certainly don't doubt >> that equipment has become simpler to maintain; that's often the case. >> I also saw great frustration from people who used equipment and either >> didn't know how or didn't want to learn how (a LOT of people do not >> feel comfortable with fixing ANYthing. Anything.); they just wanted to >> be able to DO things. >> >> I am sympathetic to the idea of kids connecting more intuitively to >> the equipment...at least SOME kids. Remember, MANY kids aren't that >> way! It's a brain development thing. >> >> So how do *the rest of us* manage? Remember when the Mac was created, >> ostensibly for "the rest of us"? Even today, in my much more limited >> connection to electronic technology, I field email from people who are >> asking me questions such as, "Why is the web page on my screen bigger >> than the screen? It won't all fit on there!" >> >> And this is not an uncommon level of question. My point is that we can >> *pretend* all we want that people, especially "young people" (who get >> everything!) will just "get it" and things will be fine. That is a >> setup for failure designed to serve the limited view of people who are >> designing something they want to have out there and they don't have a >> solution for this other stuff, so they merely explain it away. I don't >> buy it. It not only sets up such a project for failure, but the >> message then is that the PEOPLE are failures for not being able to >> figure it out. >> >> As for the limitations of the ipod as a training too, I agree. Part of >> the appeal of it for me is its size. It is so small and easy to lug >> around and you have dongles to connect to everything else. it is the >> universal hard drive that connects to other less portable media to do >> stuff. It's not the holy grail, by far. I also really like the mpeg >> players that are built into wireless phones. They are a little bulkier >> but they offer triple >> functionality: phone, ipod and internet for web and mail. and they >> don't require a wired network infrastructure. >> >> For the moment, I am wanting to see what can happen with a bunch of ipods. >> they are cheap, light, small, etc. I mean, I don't even own one, but I >> have seen enough to think there is more than coolness happening. It >> feels a little like early Google. >> >> Steve Snow >> >> ----- Original Message ----- >> From: "Dave A. Chakrabarti" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >> Subject: Re: [DDN] Nicholas Negroponte- ISTE NECC Speech >> >> >> <stuff snipped for space> >> >>>> Stephen, >>> The Ipod is definitely an intriguing tool for training (I should >>> convince my boss to buy me one for, er, training purposes). I'm >>> wondering how long it'll be before someone comes up with a Linux >>> distro that'll run on it, or before Apple releases OSipod, adds >>> wifi, and takes over the mobile computing market in one swoop. >>> >>> For the price, I'm actually not sure the Ipod's the best educational >>> tool (though it has "cool" value in attracting users to it). A >>> little more than a video Ipod will buy you a mobile tablet that will >>> not only play audio and video but also connect you to the internet, >>> handle office documents, email, etc. This strikes me as a more >>> useful tool for all kinds of training... >>> >> <snip> >> >> _______________________________________________ >> DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list >> DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org >> http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide >> To unsubscribe, send a message to > [EMAIL PROTECTED] the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body > of the message. > > > > -- > Joe Beckmann > 22 Stone Avenue > Somerville, MA 02143 > 617-625-9369 > and > Search for a Cure > 17 Worcester Street > Cambridge, MA 02139 > 617-945-5350 > [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. > > _______________________________________________ > 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. > _______________________________________________ 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.
