One Laptop Program Extended Until Dec 31st
Holidays are a weird time. We think about what we want, and/or what to get people. Here’s a great opportunity for you to give to the larger world, and/or to get something interesting in return. The Give 1 Get 1 program has been extended until the end of 2007, so there’s still some time to order one of these to arrive before your upcoming holiday of choice. Here’s how it works.
Give 1 Get 1
Pay $399 USD and you purchase TWO of the famous One Laptop Per Child computers. One gets shipped to someone in a developing nation who can use this to change their future. The other gets sent to you (or, if you want, donate BOTH to the program).
The computer, the XO, is built for kids. It’s a lightweight, flexible, feature-filled computer running a flavor of Linux, and with all kinds of crazy learning experiences built in. For one thing, EVERY application toggles such that your child can view the code behind the application. Meaning, if they are so inclined, they can figure out how every little bit of the computer works. For another, the computers have a built-in mesh network that allows for collaboration with other XOs in the vicinity. This means that if someone’s working on a text document or editing a song, other people with the XO can be invited in to share in the experience.
Tax Write-Off and More Value
You can deduct $200 for one of the laptops, and further, if you keep the other XO (we’re giving ours to my daughter, who’ll turn 6 in June), T-Mobile has decided to make all their hotspots open and free to XO computers. So you can sip Ethiopian coffee at a Starbucks, and use the same computer Ethiopian children might be using to advance their futures.
Between those two values alone, the thing pays for itself.
Giving For Those Who Have Everything
Another way you can do this is to buy someone ELSE the gift of helping children, by making the purchase in their name. If you’ve got someone on your list worth $399, then buy one in their name. It makes a great statement, sharing the gift of giving to others (Anyone wanting to buy ME something worth $399 is certainly encouraged to buy into this program, that’s for sure).
Learn What They See
Forever the pragmatic strategist, Christopher S Penn points out that if all these developing nations are getting trained on XOs, he wants to see what their seeing and experience the device from their perspective, so he can have that leg up on his competition. So if nothing else, buy one to know what the developing world will see in the coming months as these become more ubiquitously deployed.
There. That’s all I have. I support this project. I think it’s a way to bring new value solutions to entire sectors of the earth that are currently struggling to find ways to contribute and drive value to their regions. Yes, feeding the hungry is important, but this is teaching a village to fish, and I support it.
Will you consider checking out the program for yourself and seeing if it’s of interest?
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Comments
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I did this a few weeks ago- awaiting the arrival- my brother, the tech guru from Buffalo did as well. We’re both excited to kick the tires on this thing, as well as pass it on to those in need.
I still wish there was a program to get these things in the hands of kinds in inner city schools, or the immigrant families around here. But I am very glad to be able to give a child somewhere else this experience as well. It’s an ambitious project, but certainly worth every penny.
I got one and gave one too .. great idea.
This could also be a teachable moment for your kids - if you plan to get one for your child — about giving to others.
Here’s some other ideas
http://beth.typepad.com/beths_blog/2007/11/encouraging-phi.html
The second laptop — after it comes here for a while, will be taken over to Cambodia for the Sharing Foundation’s computer school.
The guy who founded it was on CSPAN Q&A last night. The video is up on: http://www.q-and-a.org/Program/?ProgramID=1156
Funny. I was hesitant to ask Anand if we could spend this much on the girls, he was hesitant to ask me. Lucky for us, there’s peer pressure, and all the cool kids were doing it. So now we know. Shhhh, nobody tell S & Z what they’re getting from Santa.
I ordered one a few weeks back (actually two). The unit I’m getting is going to my six year old daughter. I’m very curious to see what she does with it.
Haven’t heard anything about a ship date yet.
[…] One Laptop Program Extended Until Dec 31st » This Summary is from an article posted at [chrisbrogan.com] on Monday, November 26, 2007 [ XO […]
We should be buying these also for the kids in the US who don’t have access to computers. Most of my students do not have computers at home and this would be a great opportunity to teach kids and parents the value of these kinds of cognitive skills.
Why can’t we buy two and give two?
I’m a volunteer with the OLPC project and I agree with everything that Chris is saying. It’s an amazing piece of hardware, it already has some incredible software (linux and sugar), and is quickly becoming an incredible repository of content: books, music, audiobooks and video.
Dave LaMorte: You can buy two and give two. I’ve seen a few people receive 10 or more laptops via Give one Get one.
Whitney: I strongly agree that these things should be worldwide, US and abroad. The current limitation seems to be two-fold: one, keeping on message as an education project for developing nations (and not an american toy); and two, ramping up production to produce the 100,000 some odd computers going to south america in the next three months.
Seth Woodworth
Interesting. I have a memory of hearing about this computer a long while back. Had not heard of the project here in the UK.
One Laptop Program Extended Until Dec 31st : [chrisbrogan.com]…
I found this page interesting and linked to it from my blog….
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Thanks you Chris for your continuous and exceptional support of the OLPC initiative. You are one of the most valuable partners in raising awareness within the digital front.
I got one for myself, and I’ll be getting one for my niece, who will be entering school for the first time. I’m hoping that for her, it will be of more educational use than a regular Windows laptop would be.
I’m planning on using it as my writing laptop, PLUS using it as my ebook reader. (You can keep your fancy Kindles…my XO won’t have a DRM.)
Thanks for the tip on the date extension, Chris. I, too, have made a contribution. Not sure whether I will be keeping my laptop for myself or giving it away (perhaps both?).
Cheers!
Connie
Give me a freaking break. Tell you what. Take your $400 and buy textbooks for every student in the entire class.
I’m sick of these tech-morons who think a computer is the answer to education in countries where your top priority, when not dodging bullets and U.N. rapists is finding clean drinking water.
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