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<div class=Section1>
<p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";
color:#1F497D'>Sir Francis Hook,<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";
color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";
color:#1F497D'>I understand from OLPC, that a project is underway in Kenya.
Been directed to one in Watamu, Kibwezi, Bura and Pokot…<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";
color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";
color:#1F497D'>Access this link to see some photo ops from the project <a
href="http://wiki.laptop.org/go/OLPC_Kenya">http://wiki.laptop.org/go/OLPC_Kenya</a>.
Am trying to touch base<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";
color:#1F497D'>to get further details. Will definitely update those interested.
For instance, you might be curious to know when to expect<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";
color:#1F497D'>the squadron of choppers that are supposed to make a round trip
of the country as they parachute the tablets. And so I <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";
color:#1F497D'>suppose we will get to hear shortly of the dates and times and
locations( gps co-ordinates, as you said)… In the meantime,<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";
color:#1F497D'>stay tuned..<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";
color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";
color:#1F497D'>Harry <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";
color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";
color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<div style='border:none;border-top:solid #B5C4DF 1.0pt;padding:3.0pt 0in 0in 0in'>
<p class=MsoNormal><b><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif"'>From:</span></b><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif"'> Francis Hook
[mailto:francis.hook@gmail.com] <br>
<b>Sent:</b> Thursday, November 10, 2011 11:29 AM<br>
<b>To:</b> harry@comtelsys.co.ke<br>
<b>Cc:</b> KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions<br>
<b>Subject:</b> Re: [kictanet] Lets all move to remote parts of Africa - The
laptops are coming :)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal>When you get his address - I'd also like to give coordinates
of where such weapons of mass instruction can be rained down...I think as as
social experiment this could be intriguing and worth watching...(if anyone can
picture the opening scenes of 2001 A space odyssey)...<o:p></o:p></p>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:12.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></p>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal>On 10 November 2011 10:07, Harry Delano <<a
href="mailto:harry@comtelsys.co.ke">harry@comtelsys.co.ke</a>> wrote:<o:p></o:p></p>
<div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><span
style='font-size:11.0pt;color:#1F497D'> </span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><span
style='font-size:11.0pt;color:#1F497D'>I have been/am looking for Mr.
Negroponte’s email address. Anyone who can hook me up…? I
will update, if and when tablets</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><span
style='font-size:11.0pt;color:#1F497D'>start raining down in the skies of
Ebusiekwe…</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><span
style='font-size:11.0pt;color:#1F497D'> </span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><span
style='font-size:11.0pt;color:#1F497D'>Harry</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><span
style='font-size:11.0pt;color:#1F497D'> </span><o:p></o:p></p>
<div>
<div style='border:none;border-top:solid #B5C4DF 1.0pt;padding:3.0pt 0in 0in 0in'>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><b><span
style='font-size:10.0pt'>From:</span></b><span style='font-size:10.0pt'> Harry
Delano [mailto:<a href="mailto:harry@comtelsys.co.ke" target="_blank">harry@comtelsys.co.ke</a>]
<br>
<b>Sent:</b> Wednesday, November 09, 2011 11:02 AM<br>
<b>To:</b> 'Agosta Liko'</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal><br>
<b>Cc:</b> 'KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions'<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<p class=MsoNormal><b>Subject:</b> RE: [kictanet] Lets all move to remote parts
of Africa - The laptops are coming :)<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><span
style='font-size:11.0pt;color:#1F497D'>Hey all,</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><span
style='font-size:11.0pt;color:#1F497D'> </span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><span
style='font-size:11.0pt;color:#1F497D'>Don’t we want these tablets?
Whether they are meant to rain from the skies, or wash up on the shores
of</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><span
style='font-size:11.0pt;color:#1F497D'>Mombasa, I believe we can persuade Mr.
Negroponte to start with us. Who can make contact, Agosta..?</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><span
style='font-size:11.0pt;color:#1F497D'> </span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><span
style='font-size:11.0pt;color:#1F497D'>Harry</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><span
style='font-size:11.0pt;color:#1F497D'> </span><o:p></o:p></p>
<div style='border:none;border-top:solid #B5C4DF 1.0pt;padding:3.0pt 0in 0in 0in'>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><b><span
style='font-size:10.0pt'>From:</span></b><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>
kictanet-bounces+harry=<a href="mailto:comtelsys.co.ke@lists.kictanet.or.ke"
target="_blank">comtelsys.co.ke@lists.kictanet.or.ke</a> [mailto:<a
href="mailto:kictanet-bounces%2Bharry" target="_blank">kictanet-bounces+harry</a>=<a
href="mailto:comtelsys.co.ke@lists.kictanet.or.ke" target="_blank">comtelsys.co.ke@lists.kictanet.or.ke</a>]
<b>On Behalf Of </b>Agosta Liko<br>
<b>Sent:</b> Monday, November 07, 2011 5:52 PM<br>
<b>To:</b> <a href="mailto:harry@comtelsys.co.ke" target="_blank">harry@comtelsys.co.ke</a><br>
<b>Cc:</b> KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions<br>
<b>Subject:</b> [kictanet] Lets all move to remote parts of Africa - The
laptops are coming :)</span><o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'> <o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;margin-bottom:12.0pt'><a
href="http://arstechnica.com/gadgets/news/2011/11/the-sods-must-be-crazy-olpc-to-drop-tablets-from-helicopters-to-isolated-villages.ars"
target="_blank">http://arstechnica.com/gadgets/news/2011/11/the-sods-must-be-crazy-olpc-to-drop-tablets-from-helicopters-to-isolated-villages.ars</a><o:p></o:p></p>
<div>
<div>
<p>The One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) project has devised a bizarre plan for
deploying its new XO-3 tablet. The organization plans to drop the touchscreen computers
from helicopters near remote villages in developing countries. The devices will
then be abandoned and left for the villagers to find, distribute, support, and
use on their own.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p>OLPC founder Nicholas Negroponte is optimistic that the portable devices—which
will be stocked with electronic books—will empower children to learn to
read without any external support or instruction. The strange scheme reflects
the OLPC project’s roots in constructivist education theory, which
emphasizes self-directed learning.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p>The OLPC project was originally founded to produce low-cost
education-focused laptops for children. The organization planned to sell the
devices in bulk to governments in developing countries, which would then
distribute them in classrooms. The plan was to leverage economy of scale in
manufacturing to bring the costs down, making the laptop cheap enough that
governments would be able to supply one to every child.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p>Although the ambitious project sold several million laptops, it fell far
short of its lofty goals and has been on life support for the past few years.
In addition to fundamental <a
href="http://arstechnica.com/hardware/news/2008/01/olpc-angering-donors-give-1-get-1-some-day-probably.ars"
target="_blank">logistical</a> and technical failures, OLPC also suffered from <a
href="http://arstechnica.com/hardware/news/2008/04/negroponte-developers-at-odds-over-future-of-olpc-platform.ars"
target="_blank">internal friction</a>, <a
href="http://arstechnica.com/hardware/news/2008/04/exodus-of-key-figures-from-olpc-a-troubling-sign-for-project.ars"
target="_blank">ideological conflicts</a>, and <a
href="http://arstechnica.com/hardware/news/2008/03/olpc-project-looks-for-new-leadership.ars"
target="_blank">poor management</a>. OLPC was forced to <a
href="http://arstechnica.com/open-source/news/2009/01/g1g1-failure-and-reduced-sponsorship-behind-the-olpc-layoffs.ars"
target="_blank">downsize half its staff</a> and <a
href="http://arstechnica.com/business/news/2009/01/olpc-downsizes-half-of-its-staff-cuts-sugar-development.ars"
target="_blank">discontinue its software platform</a> in 2009 (a separate
organization called Sugar Labs was founded to pick up where OLPC left off on
the software) after its second give-one-get-one fundraiser fell through the
floor.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p>After the staff cuts, OLPC dropped its plan to produce a dual-touchscreen
laptop and instead decided to focus on tablets. The organization showed off
glossy concept art of an impossibly thin XO-3 tablet at the end of 2009. Last
year, it announced a <a
href="http://arstechnica.com/gadgets/news/2010/05/olpc-partners-with-marvell-gets-into-the-tablet-game.ars"
target="_blank">partnership</a> with hardware component maker Marvell. OLPC
pragmatically chose to adopt Marvell’s off-the-shelf reference design
instead of trying to pursue the unrealistic form factor that was shown in the
original XO-3 mockups.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p>The tablets that Negroponte intends to fling from helicopters are based on
that Marvell design, but with a few enhancements, such as solar powered
batteries that will allow them to be used in regions without access to
electricity. It’s not clear yet if the organization was able to
successfully meet its target $75 production price.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p>Negroponte described the helicopter drop plan at the Open Mobile Summit
event in San Francisco. According to <a
href="http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2395763,00.asp#fbid=yj2DHk4jyPG"
target="_blank">a PC Magazine report</a>, he compared the project to the
classic 1980 film, <em>The Gods Must Be Crazy</em>, which depicted how an
isolated tribe in the Kalahari Desert might react to discovering a Coca-Cola
bottle that fell from an airplane.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p>“We’ll take tablets and drop them out of helicopters into
villages that have no electricity and school, then go aback a year later and
see if the kids can read,” Negroponte <a
href="http://www.theregister.co.uk/2011/11/02/negroponte_tablet_airdrops/"
target="_blank">told The Register</a>. He reportedly cited Professor Sugata
Mitra’s <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HiWEL" target="_blank">Hole
in the Wall</a> experiment as the basis for his belief that dropping the
tablets will encourage self-directed literacy.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p>Among the major challenges that the OLPC project was never able to fully
overcome during its laptop days were supporting the hardware in the field and
providing teachers with the proper training and educational material. In light
of the cost and difficulty of tackling those issues, it’s not hard to see
why the eccentric stealth drop approach looks appealing to Negroponte.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p>The obvious downside, however, is the sheer improbability that a majority of
the dropped devices will ever serve their intended function. It seems unlikely
that Negroponte will find governments that are willing to fund such an odd
boondoggle, though Marvell has provided some <a
href="http://arstechnica.com/open-source/news/2010/10/olpc-gets-56-million-from-marvell-to-build-android-tablet.ars"
target="_blank">financial backing</a>. Perhaps somebody needs to air drop
Negroponte a healthy dose of common sense to go with his change-the-world
ambitions.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'> <o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
</div>
</div>
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<p class=MsoNormal><br>
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<br>
The Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet) is a multi-stakeholder platform for
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The network aims to act as a catalyst for reform in the ICT sector in support
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<p class=MsoNormal><br>
<br clear=all>
<o:p></o:p></p>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p>
</div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:12.0pt'>-- <br>
Francis Hook<br>
+254 733 504561<br>
<br>
<o:p></o:p></p>
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