D&C GLug - Home Page

[ Date Index ] [ Thread Index ] [ <= Previous by date / thread ] [ Next by date / thread => ]

Re: [LUG] $35 Linux Laptop

 

On Fri, Sep 24, 2010 at 10:55 PM, tom brough <tombrough@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> On 24/09/10 06:16, Henry Bremridge wrote:
>> On Thu, Sep 23, 2010 at 09:23:08PM +0100, Eion MacDonald wrote:
>>> Regret, Indian Export control does not allow tax subsidised devices to
>>> be exported. You won't see it any where outside India at Indian price or
>>> only smuggled out ones.
>>> Also how does politician or civil servant on this project  get his
>>> income from this low price. As one who has dealt in India with Indian
>>> States and Federal government  servants and politicians I had an
>>> automatic 'admin cost' [which is not low!] which was put into our
>>> costings on any transaction so we could ensure delivery of product.
>>
>> As a cynic?
>>
>> 1/  Get the money, tax rebate, whatever
>>
>> 2/  Don't deliver a useable product but in the meantime jobs will be made
>> available for a select few with help from suppliers who need to be
>> shown to be supporting India
>>
>> 3/  Bank the profits and the votes
>>
>> 4/  In a few years, scrap everything unsold (ie all bar maybe one or two) and
>> complain bitterly and very publicly about "foren" competition.
>>
>> (I admit that I started the assumption on the basis that the goods could
>> not be delivered, equally Ministers could ask large firms to help with
>> design etc, in exchange for said help Ministerial assistance could be provided
>> with the interminable paperwork)
>>
>>
>>
>
> I know that I tend to look at the world with rose tinted glasses when it
> comes to initiatives like this but ....
>
> I don't think the Indian Government would do that in this case. Indian
> culture takes education very seriously and not for granted....
>
> The Government is subsidising this project. And whether it is a success
> or a failure, I think in this case the Indian Government is following a
> determination to get some sort of ICT infrastructure into the classroom.
>
> Remember that if you based initiatives on previous track records Moon
> landings and rocket flight would have been abandoned long before they
> started.
>
> Accepted that OLPC has flopped due to some wobbles at the top with
> regard to installing MS products, which subsequently doubled the price
> because of the extra grunt needed in the hardware to cater for XP(ired).
> But I would really hope that Microsoft arn't going to be allowed to
> interfere with this one.

Me too :-)

>
> Tom.
>
>

Roly

-- 
The Mailing List for the Devon & Cornwall LUG
http://mailman.dclug.org.uk/listinfo/list
FAQ: http://www.dcglug.org.uk/listfaq