OLPC Looks More And More Like A Normal Technology Company
from the and-thats-a-good-thing dept
The One Laptop Per Child project has announced that its Chief Technology Officer, Mary Lou Jepsen, is leaving the project to focus on commercializing the display technology she developed as part of the OLPC project. Computerworld describes this as a "blow" to the OLPC project, but I don't think that's necessarily true. It's hard to say without an insider's perspective, but it may be that this is just a natural development for an organization that's transitioning from a (non-profit) tech startup to a more mature technology organization. Traditional for-profit startups often see some of their early technologists leave the firm once the initial technology-development phase is completed. The skills required to develop cutting-edge technology are different from the skills needed to run a large technology company, and so people who don't want to do the latter often leave companies once they're off the ground. What I think this does illustrate, though, is that despite large differences in rhetoric, there's not that much difference between a non-profit technology organization and a for-profit technology company. Both are trying to develop cutting-edge technologies that will be useful to a lot of people. Both face challenges with holding down costs and finding the right market. As I've said before, OLPC might be more successful if it thought more like a technology company, looking for paying customers and ways to cut costs. Having former employees commercializing OLPC-based technologies can only help nudge the organization in the right direction.Thank you for reading this Techdirt post. With so many things competing for everyone’s attention these days, we really appreciate you giving us your time. We work hard every day to put quality content out there for our community.
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Filed Under: $100 laptop, mary lou jepsen, olpc
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A Bigger Problem (I know, it's a little off topic)
Once we solve this problem, then we'll talk about giving them computers.
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Re: A Bigger Problem (I know, it's a little off to
With more wealthy nations, we will have more resources to help out with humanitarian aid.
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Re: Re: A Bigger Problem (I know, it's a little of
Not according to the OLPC folks. There are places in the US like that but they don't qualify for the OLPC program.
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Re: Re: A Bigger Problem (I know, it's a little of
I didn't think so.
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Re: A Bigger Problem (I know, it's a little off to
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Re: Re: A Bigger Problem (I know, it's a little of
That might apply here. How many of these kids would be better off doing something other than playing with some toy-like laptop?
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Re: Re: A Bigger Problem (I know, it's a little of
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Re: T Mobile offer w/OLPC
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malthus
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Replace 'laptop' with 'education'
There's a lot of adults and children dying every day, orphaned children on the streets over there because people just don't understand how AIDS is transmitted, or how easily it can be prevented. They don't understand that a person can be HIV positive for years and not show any symptoms. They don't know, because nobody has ever told them.
People are dying every day in Zambia and many other countries not through lack of food, but almost purely through lack of education.
One family of volunteers can only reach so much of the population, and right now they're teaching almost nothing but AIDS awareness because that's the biggest and most immediate problem. One Laptop Per Child can start teaching a whole new generation about preventing AIDS and other epidemics, about how to drill a well and get safe drinking water, about sustainable farming, and who knows what else..
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Re: Replace 'laptop' with 'education'
So can books, and a whole lot less expensively. That leaves money left over to actually drill that well and plant that crop.
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