It's horrible when truth finally comes out. Microsoft really does want to take over the world. Are we sure that Steve Ballmer isn't just a large suit inhabited by Brain (and Pinky) for just this purpose? All joking aside, Microsoft now wants to put their Windows on the OLPC. I can see why they would want to "educate" the world's children on the finer points of using Windows (the bottom line, community goodwill), but it doesn't seem feasible or cost-effective. Windows has certain requirements that are a bit above what the OLPC can support, and isn't the whole idea to use something that works well for the hardware, the form factor, the user? I'm not saying that Linux is the best choice for a beginner to start using right off the bat unless it is extremely dumbed down and pre-configured, which it would most likely be. Would windows be a good thing for the OLPC, you tell me. On one hand, I feel like Microsoft should leave well-enough alone, but on the other hand, isn't Windows the thing all these OLPC kids will be using in the future when they grow up anyway?
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
12-06-2006 @ 2:51PM
Todd said...
The part that says "...It's horrible when truth finally comes out. Microsoft really does want to take over the world..." reminds me of that scene in the first Matrix where Neo wakes up in the organic battery for the first time - yes things are THAT bad.
Everyday another "Neo" wakes up to find Microsoft hates their users, they have no interest in helping people, they only want to make money for the shareholders.
There is no greater irony than the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, who stated mission is to help children, forcing starving little kids to use Windows.
Reference:
http://www.engadget.com/2006/12/05/microsoft-attempting-to-stuff-windows-onto-the-olpc/
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12-06-2006 @ 2:53PM
DiRT said...
It's like when schools teach kids to use computers by showing them a Mac, and then they get to a real job and look at the Windows PC and go: "What the hell could I possibly use a second mouse button for?"
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12-06-2006 @ 8:08PM
Greeface said...
"On one hand, I feel like Microsoft should leave well-enough alone, but on the other hand, isn't Windows the thing all these OLPC kids will be using in the future when they grow up anyway?"
The future, my friend, is Linux :)
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12-06-2006 @ 10:55PM
Disco Science said...
"...but on the other hand, isn't Windows the thing all these OLPC kids will be using in the future when they grow up anyway?"
Not if they aren't brainwashed to use Windows from an early age, it isn't. Microsoft is, regardless of what its few fanboys might say, firstly and lastly a morally and ethically bad company. I realize how extreme this example is (so take it with a truckload of salt if you must), but MS intends to teach children to accept its products, and by extension its values, without question from a young, impressionable age. Was the Hitler Youth all that different?
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12-07-2006 @ 12:53AM
Aalaap said...
I believe that Windows XP Starter Edition would be a much better OS to start these kids off with, when compared to the radical OLPC UI. Imagine how thrilled they will be when they finish school and get to work on a PC that can run more than three applications and goes beyond 800x600!
Jokes aside, that's still a better thing than being used to the OLPC UI and then coming face to face with a Start button that you've never seen before.
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12-07-2006 @ 1:48AM
T_R_J said...
I'm sure in Microsoft's eyes they're investing in the future - their future. If these children grow up on Windows then they're going to prefer using windows over another OS (most likely). Like cigarettes, start 'em young and they'll be hooked for life.
It's easy for MS to use this opportunity to say make themselves look better as well. They look like they're helping people in "need" and in turn they get something on the back end.
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12-07-2006 @ 12:42PM
Naveen Roy said...
Wow....good to see so many comments support the OLPC and the idea of not letting the children learn Windblows.....Windblows is basically a lousy piece of "stitchware" that constantly is ripped apart by the wind....the future is indeed LINUX!!
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12-08-2006 @ 10:11AM
Mosh Jahan said...
How many people have worked in an enterprise where the desktop runs a variant of the Linux platform? I've been to many large enterprises and never seen a Linux desktop. I've also never seen anything but MS OFfice. Big companies don't mind paying for software, they are rich and can afford it. It's just a business overhead.
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12-25-2006 @ 9:53PM
André Roux said...
I am a Mac user.
I had a chance to use the UI on the OLPC. It is simple and it does the job. It is built to have users work in cooperation. A principle dear to Linux and the OpenSource Community.
I am convinced that Microsoft will never go that way.
Oh... by the way... I also use a Palm Treo.. this does not prevent me from using a Blackberry when I want to. Why shoud it be different when time comes to switch interfaces, going from the OLPC UI to Windows, Mac or KDE Linux ?
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