[SWLUG] Laptops for primary-school kids (was 'Tesco selling Linux PC's')

[Dafydd Walters]

Rhys Jones wrote:
> This news report doesn't mention Linux either, but if you unpack it,
> it suggests that every primary schoolchild in Wales be given a
> sub-£200 RM/Asus Linux-based minibook:
> http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/7061021.stm
> 
> (I'm assuming that the 'laptop' being talked about is this one:
> http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2007/10/09/rm_asus_launches_minibook/ )

I've got one of those mini laptops (the Eee PC 701 model) on pre-order 
myself, as I think it looks like an excellent (and inexpensive) tool 
that I can take with me pretty much anywhere (it's not much bigger than 
a typical novel).

Having viewed the Flash-based product "quick guide" on the Asus web 
site, I have to say that I think this mini laptop looks like it might 
also be a great tool for kids. It appears to come with built-in 
educational and art software, and integration with interactive learning 
web sites.

   http://eeepc.asus.com/en/guide.htm

If Adam Price's proposal to supply laptops to primary schoolchildren in 
Wales was done right, I think this could be a good thing.

I don't think that giving an OLPC XO laptop to every Welsh schoolkid 
(Plaid's original idea) was a good idea. The XO, which I'm sure is fine 
for children in underdeveloped countries with little or no previous 
exposure to technology, is probably too basic for children in this 
country. The Eee PC is closer to a "real" laptop, and if the right 
software was put on this device, is could potentially provide a real 
advantage to Welsh primary-school children.

If this is to go ahead, I think it's very important that all the 
software should be available in both English and Welsh languages from 
the start. With a fairly limited set of pre-installed software, it 
shouldn't be difficult to make sure that everything is properly translated.