[kictanet] My Take: Affordable computers

[Gakuru Alex]

On Sat, Aug 29, 2009 at 8:59 AM, Bildad Kagai<billkagai at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>
> I do not see any problem with supporting large, rich, local or foreign
> computer vendors. That is the nature of capitalism but you sound like you
> are opposed to untrammeled workings of the economic market. You probably
> need a constitutional amendment to augment this logic.

Capitalism and democracy - they often sound similar BUT they are quite
different.
We must avoid handing 'economic market' to a few by taking away
communication rights of all others. Why structurally punish the
majority poor (lives on 1$ /day) with additional taxes, 'passed on' to
them those that you state you support? Equitable development is
need...

> If your actions and business in any way support making Kenya a green economy
> then, that is the best gift we can give to our children for posterity. WE
> have messed the economy, tribalised ourselves and cannibalized the wetlands.
> Can we at least not add the headache of dealing with dumped e-waste we
> received as donations??

hmmm... reads like symptoms of excessive capitalism greed did it, and
you are not individually to blame my friend.

> I don't know why you have put me in this foul mood!!!!

Why Bill, when all I am doing is to protect those your rights you used
to sell every one of your previously owned computing/internet
connection equipment that you 'dumped on innocent souls':-)

>
> On Aug 29, 2009, at 5:51 AM, Gakuru Alex wrote:
>
>> Bill,
>>
>> I have a problem with generic 'demonising' of all second-hand/used
>> computers.
>>
>> My question is? when you sold your last "as-good as new" computer or
>> device did you then not commit the grave e-dumping crime as defined by
>> some here?
>>
>> If all are reading this and *all* their past emails ever from brand
>> new computing devices they are excused.
>>
>> Would the "short version" of the problem solution be that *everyone*
>> supports large, rich, local or foreign computer vendors to grow their
>> enterprises because they are "environmental friendly" - all else
>> notwithstanding? Just a question....
>>
>> Alex
>>
>>
>> On Fri, Aug 28, 2009 at 11:26 AM, Bildad Kagai<billkagai at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>
>>> On Aug 28, 2009, at 8:12 AM, Victor Gathara wrote:
>>>
>>>  I am thinking here of donations of used computers that can
>>> make their way into the country through a regulated and monitored
>>> channel (such as ComputerAid) who will also have responsibility to
>>> ensure EOL disposal according to WEEE standards to prevent dumping of
>>> electronic waste.
>>>
>>> Victor,
>>> In your position, you know very well that these second had computers are
>>> not donations. You can ask Tony Roberts how much he is paid to dispose a
>>> computer from Barclays in UK, that eventually finds its way to a school in
>>> Mau. And the Mau school pays for shipping and other costs....but besides all
>>> these politics......DFID
>>> might consider to fund a specific study comparing the final 'landed' cost
>>> of
>>> a dumped computer versus a 'clone' assembled with new parts at Crescent
>>> Technologies or JKUAT taking into consideration the kazi kwa vijana
>>> created....if it has not been done already. PS. I am speaking as a
>>> 'contributor' to this mess here, because I also have problems disposing
>>> my
>>> old computers and printers in the office. Most of the times, its easier
>>> to
>>> take them to a school in shags that cannot afford the electricity bills
>>> of
>>> running them...and... just live with the guilt like everyone else despite
>>> being labeled as The Hero who brought us computers.
>>> One reason IBM sold its hardware unit was because Moores Law states over
>>> time, the cost of hardware approaches zero and the cost of power
>>> consumption
>>> and capacity of the hardware doubles every 18 months.  Thus, bringing 5
>>> year
>>> old computers to Kenya only drains too much power when we should strive
>>> to
>>> bring consumption per watt down. At least, just based on power
>>> consumption
>>> alone, dumped computer should never see the 'light of day' at the Kenyan
>>> port if locally assembled computers will consume half of the wattage
>>> today....especially now when everyone is striving to go green.
>>> http://www.codinghorror.com/blog/archives/000868.html
>>> Google, for example, has watched its energy consumption almost double
>>> during
>>> the past three generations of upgrades to its sprawling computing
>>> infrastructure. It recently unveiled a major new datacenter site in a
>>> remote
>>> part of Oregon, where power costs are a fraction of those at Google's
>>> home
>>> base in Silicon Valley. But cheap power may not be enough. Last year,
>>> Google
>>> engineer Luiz Andr� Barroso predicted that energy costs would dwarf
>>> equipment costs -- "possibly by a large margin" -- if power-hungry
>>> datacenters didn't mend their ways. Barroso went on to warn that
>>> datacenters' growing appetite for power "could have serious consequences
>>> for
>>> the overall affordability of computing, not to mention the overall health
>>> of
>>> the planet."
>>>
>
>
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