[SLL] Zonbu? also OLPC

[Nicholas Bodley]

On Sun, 12 Aug 2007 13:20:40 -0400, Glenn Stone <technoshaman at liawol.org>  
wrote:

> http://www.zonbu.com/home/index.htm

> It's apparently a Flash-based PC that's sort of a semi-thin client....  
> all the apps are local, and there is local storage, but it is backed up  
> across the net "continuously" on a subscription-based service...

Intriguing! I read the FAQ, and wonder about an external HD box. The list  
of apps looks quite good.
Wonder how many will let their monthly service lapse and hack the box?

> I don't care for my data being somewhere I don't trust...

Indeed. Fwiw, I lost all respect for Verisign when that company  
temporarily tried some significantly unethical business practice a while  
back. Trust? Hah!

> [...]   the ultimate target to be leaned on for data by anybody with  
> enough lawyers, one really good one being sufficient.
Indeed, again.

> (Still want a grownup model of the OLPC. [...] )

I subscribe to the OLPC newsletter from Walter Bender (it has oodles of  
unfamiliar initialisms and acronyms). I'm quite enthusiastic about it -- I  
love it! It's quite rugged, and tolerant of extreme heat. In many  
respects, it's well ahead technically compared to just about any other  
laptop. They work hard to extend battery life, improve the display, make  
it more rugged, speed up suspend/resume, speed up boot time, and work on  
countless other items. Afaik, a group of them automagically set up a  
wireless mesh, apparently peer-to peer. Apparently, a server on the mesh  
connects to the Internet. It's a very interesting project that cheers one  
up.

Some weeks ago, I went to an open house they had at MIT, and took a few  
photos. Seeing it "live" was a surprise. Even though I'd seen photos,  
somehow my mind compensated unconsciously. When I saw it "live", it was a  
shock. It's child-sized -- *of course*, dummy!

They call it the "XO". That refers to the stylized-child logo* rotated a  
quarter turn.
*<http://laptop.org/>, rightmost icon

Walter said that their org. has been trying to create an equivalent for  
elders for a decade.

-- 
Nicholas  B o d l e y
Waltham, Mass.