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Bill gates Mocks Linux Laptop

I don't think the link was posted there, but there has been a bit of discussion in this thread.
 
“If you are going to go have people share the computer, get a broadband connection, and have somebody there who can help support the user, geez, get a decent computer where you can actually read the text and you’re not sitting there cranking the thing while you're trying to type” Mr. Gates was quoted as saying.
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He makes an excellent point. After all, with his solid reputation for high quality, well-functioning computers with exceptionally intuitive design he is the most likely forerunner to pioneer this area. And what about price? Let's not forget about the great deals Microsoft provides to new customers and established business partners.

</sarcasm>
 
He's been pretty consistent in his criticism, but I really don't buy what he has to say. He loves to mock the crank on the $100 laptop, but doesn't want to address the fact that electricity is not a universally abundant resource.

That he's supposedly so committed to social justice (via his foundation), yet simultaneously so angry about this initiative (which IS social justice at its core) -- ugh.

Look. I don't know Bill Gates, and he's done a lot of good. But this makes him look awfully petty.
 
I can't believe he said that. This laptop was meant for poor children in undeveloped countries and he's basically saying "don't be such cheap bastards and buy yourselves real laptops" :(
 
I hate how he mentions broadband as if it is a birthright. Not everyone in the US has access to BB, and in the countries that this laptop is aimed at, there is no universal access to electricity even.
 
I just think Bill cannot grasp the concept of the $100 laptop. Which doesn't make sense to me at all seeing all the charity work he does. The demographic for these is poor kids in Africa who can't afford laptops. Its no where near the same type of situation with our poor. Quite a few in Africa don't have access to power and thus features like the handcrank for power.

What are they suppose to use? A Dell?
 
ugg, it baffles me that such smart people can completely miss the point of a $100 laptop.

This isn't about having a machine for business or personal use, this is about putting computers in the hands of people who have never sent an e-mail before. People who have never held a computer, or typed the epic "hello world" on a keyboard.

Get off your high horse and embrace it for what it is, for all you know one of these kids picking up a $100 laptop may well revolutionize the technology industry.
 
Man Bill Gates is so cool :cool:
sarcasm sarcasm sarcasm sarcasm sarcasm sarcasm sarcasm sarcasm sarcasm sarcasm sarcasm sarcasm sarcasm sarcasm sarcasm sarcasm sarcasm
 
Most people have said what I'm thinking.
I don't know why he's against this so much. something doesn't feel right about it. maybe he was misquoted?
 
raggedjimmi said:
Most people have said what I'm thinking.
I don't know why he's against this so much. something doesn't feel right about it. maybe he was misquoted?
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Ye.. that quote really makes him look like a bastard. I whouldn't be suprised if he's a bit pissed that they don't use any MS tech (like WinCE), but I'm suprised if this is what he's really said.
 
Dr. Dastardly said:
I just think Bill cannot grasp the concept of the $100 laptop. Which doesn't make sense to me at all seeing all the charity work he does. The demographic for these is poor kids in Africa who can't afford laptops. Its no where near the same type of situation with our poor. Quite a few in Africa don't have access to power and thus features like the handcrank for power.
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I completely agree with what the initiative is doing: trying to get computers into underdeveloped societies. And I am shocked about the comment Gates made considering the charity work he does. It all just seems really odd.

I'm trying to start a similar ministry at my church. There are a lot of people who don't have computers at all, and I'd like to take some old(er) computers and fix them up, put Linux (probably fedora core 4, Open office, firefox, etc) and a free ISP on them, and give them away to people in the community for free or donations. Using a paid product on such a large (charitable) scale is too expensive, and cost prohibitive for what I have in mind.
 
I think what Gates and Barrett trying to say was that they think the project's product is not significant enough to be worth the trouble and expense. I don't really know, having not looked into this too much, but I'd hate to jump straight to assuming that Gates and Barrett are wrong.
 
dornoforpyros said:
Get off your high horse and embrace it for what it is, for all you know one of these kids picking up a $100 laptop may well revolutionize the technology industry.
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That's exactly what he's worried about. Someone born without a $1m trust fund might just show him up. Comments like this make me think that however much money his B&MG Foundation gives, he still doesn't get what it's all about.
 
I started a thread about this back when Barret first made his comment....they're both missing the point. The $100 laptop is cheaper than any alternative Gates & Co. came up with, it isn't reliant on commercial software and it has a fricking hand crank, which is a great feature and I don't understand why they disagree. They're just mad because they didn't think of the crank first. :rolleyes:

Gates complains about lack of features etc. on the $100 laptop, but in reality it is his devices that are the "gadgets": too expensive for developing countries and full of features that will be useless to the intended market.
 
Bubbasteve said:
Man Bill Gates is so cool :cool:
sarcasm sarcasm sarcasm sarcasm sarcasm sarcasm sarcasm sarcasm sarcasm sarcasm sarcasm sarcasm sarcasm sarcasm sarcasm sarcasm sarcasm
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I agree! (and obviously with the sarcasm as well), bill needs to get rid of some more $$$ even with his charity donations he's still *much* worse than Steve Jobs (who offered them OS X for free...)
 
I think this is hilarious, considering Gates is coming out with a similar product (small, tiny touch screen) and that he was trying to get Windows on the thing and Linux won out. He's being a sore loser, and showing it.

However, like others said, the comment itself is totally inappropriate. It's meant for poor children.


A few things to note:

1) Microsoft offered Windows for the sub-$100 laptop (Apple offered too IIRC), but they turned it down because they didn't want to lock developing countries into a proprietary OS and company.

Billy is just mad because they wouldn't use his OS. Seems very childish.

2) The hilarious thing is his criticism...to quote Gates:
'The last thing you want to do for a shared use computer is have it be something without a disk ... and with a tiny little screen,'
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Sound familiar? I'll give you a hint: Project Origami.

Seriously Gates, don't mock things for having a tiny screen when you're currently hyping a portable mini-computer.
 
Lord Blackadder said:
and it has a fricking hand crank, which is a great feature and I don't understand why they disagree. They're just mad because they didn't think of the crank first. :rolleyes:
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I'd much rather have a solar panel than a hand crank.

Someone needs to develop a cheap solar battery. Make the surface of the laptop absorb light, and just leave your laptop in the sun to charge. They already have a screen that's visible in direct sunlight anyway.

But the hand crank is brilliant for a cheap laptop.
 
killuminati said:
I can't believe he said that. This laptop was meant for poor children in undeveloped countries and he's basically saying "don't be such cheap bastards and buy yourselves real laptops" :(
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Because the statement is coming from a man (Gates) who gives MILLIONS upon MILLIONS of dollars to charities and underprivalliged groups, I don't quite think that's what he is 'basically saying.'
 
GFLPraxis said:
I'd much rather have a solar panel than a hand crank.

Someone needs to develop a cheap solar battery. Make the surface of the laptop absorb light, and just leave your laptop in the sun to charge. They already have a screen that's visible in direct sunlight anyway.

But the hand crank is brilliant for a cheap laptop.
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A solar panel is a more elegant solution ergonomically, but the crank will work anywhere, in the dark, no matter what orientation the laptop is in etc. It is also a more durable soution. With that being said, and assuming the efficiency of solar panels increase as predicted, we are set to see them show up on laptops in the not-to-distant future.

Josh said:
Because the statement is coming from a man (Gates) who gives MILLIONS upon MILLIONS of dollars to charities and underprivalliged groups, I don't quite think that's what he is 'basically saying'
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I agree, but I do think that he is bashing a perfectly good solution for reasons that appear to have no basis in fact.
 
iphil said:
You know why Gates' dissed the $1 C note laptop

because its not a M$ft product or idea :eek: :eek: :eek:
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Right on...I think you're 100% right here. Don't forget that both Apple and Microsoft offered to provide free OS's for all of these computers. Instead they're going to be learning on Linux. Eventually millions of people who have exclusive Linux skills. Personally I think this is a great thing.
 
savar said:
Right on...I think you're 100% right here. Don't forget that both Apple and Microsoft offered to provide free OS's for all of these computers. Instead they're going to be learning on Linux. Eventually millions of people who have exclusive Linux skills. Personally I think this is a great thing.
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I knew that Jobs' offered the free OS deal because it was on the national news and such .. the Gates' offer is kinda shocking to me :eek: :eek: ..
 
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