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From: Clocky on 9 Apr 2010 08:51
Rod Speed wrote:
> Rob wrote:
>> On 6/04/2010 9:51 AM, SG1 wrote:
>>> "Clocky"<notgonn(a)happen.com> wrote in message
>>> news:4bba756c$0$27875$c3e8da3(a)news.astraweb.com...
>>>> John Tserkezis wrote:
>>>>> Don McKenzie wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>>> One Laptop Per Child delivers 200 laptops to Territory kids in
>>>>>> Yirrkala Non-profit outfit continues to roll out budget XO
>>>>>> laptops to children in remote areas
>>>>>
>>>>> This brings up another somewhat related point. What's the appeal
>>>>> of laptops?
>>>>>
>>>>> My 10yo niece was whining to me that they were originally told
>>>>> they were getting laptops, but her school had taken delivery of a
>>>>> bunch
>>>>> of brand spanking new desktops instead.
>>>>>
>>>>> The laptops were to be permanently tethered (presumably via a
>>>>> Kensington lock) and never intended to be moved at all. Like the
>>>>> desktops will be.
>>>>>
>>>>> Perhaps this was a 10yo's over-active perception here, but the
>>>>> reaction was akin to expecting 15 PCs, but actually taking
>>>>> delivery of two second hand pocket calculators instead. The
>>>>> non-scientific
>>>>> kind.
>>>>>
>>>>> It's not just her either. Family friends upgrading, are looking
>>>>> at laptops to replace their aging desktops. They don't need the
>>>>> portability, they tether the machines to one spot, but they appear
>>>>> happy to make do with a smaller screen, smaller keyboard, limited
>>>>> upgraded potential, a F%#king trackpad instead of a more useful
>>>>> mouse, AND a generally higher price to boot. On top of that,
>>>>> because they'll never cycle their batteries, it's almost
>>>>> guaranteed to bed dead within the year. I'm expecting them to
>>>>> whine about the few-month warranty on batteries for this exact
>>>>> reason. What makes people do this? I understand the "flavour of
>>>>> the month" attraction, but this is way past silly.
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> Don't get me wrong, lap/note/netbooks have their purpose, I have
>>>>> three myself, (seven if you count the broken ones), but I have a
>>>>> higher end desktop, a server, another server (that I only use for
>>>>> destructive testing), another server that will go into service
>>>>> when I get some time, and another two PCs that are quite old that
>>>>> I haven't found an embedded purpose for yet.
>>>>> I do the *vast* majority of my work on the one desktop simply
>>>>> because it's the ideal hardware base for the work.
>>>>>
>>>>> The lap/netbook(s) are good for portability where I need a wintel
>>>>> box while I'm on the move. I certainly don't do (or try hard to
>>>>> avoid doing) any heavy duty work on them. And for that they serve
>>>>> nicely.
>>>>
>>>> Kids would be better off learning stuff like long division
>>>> multiplication tables and actually learn to use their brains to
>>>> work stuff out. My nephew is an top level student yet I'm
>>>> astounded more about what he doesn't know then what he does.
>>>
>>> Try asking a kid to do maths in their head. What a radical idea
>>> today. When I am having a good day the brain gets used if not then
>>> silicon.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>
>>>
>>
>> School kids are sick of using computers all the time.
>
> Like hell they are compared with doing long division in their heads.

They don't now how to do any kind of division, subtraction, multiplication
or addition in their heads, that is the problem.





From: L.A.T. on 9 Apr 2010 15:42

> They don't now how to do any kind of division, subtraction, multiplication
> or addition in their heads, that is the problem.
>
>
"Things were better in our day." Aristotle, or Plato, or Maimonedes, or
somebody.


From: Clocky on 9 Apr 2010 19:35
L.A.T. wrote:
>> They don't now how to do any kind of division, subtraction,
>> multiplication or addition in their heads, that is the problem.
>>
>>
> "Things were better in our day." Aristotle, or Plato, or Maimonedes,
> or somebody.

Is replacing the ability to think and remember with a reliance upon
technology to do it for you is a step forward? Not so judging by the lack of
motivation and initiative these days, coupled with a widespread lack of
literacy and numeracy skills after over a decade of schooling. IMO it
doesn't bode well for a country that is trying to be competitive in a world
economy.

Still, I guess reading and writing isn't required to dig minerals out of the
ground.





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