It’s been a long time since I took notes by typing during a talk. I usually just record things as a podcast, and maybe scribble down a few key points and their time codes for later reference. For the Vilna Shul event last Tuesday night I brought my new OLPC XO computer to share with people. I hoped someone else would have one so I could try the multi-machine programs, but I was the only one. Several people looked at it and played with it, as usual when you bring it somewhere.
Since it was sitting there on my lap, I thought I’d try taking notes. As anybody who’s read about the XO probably knows, the keyboard is designed for young children and isn’t easy to touch type on for us adults. I have, though, learned to use one finger on each hand pretty well. The notes in the post above are slightly edited from what I typed into the text editing program. It’s easy to copy things to a USB flash drive to transfer to another computer, which is what I did. I wasn’t too diligent about taking notes, deciding to depend upon my recording.
[On the original post on Dan Bricklin’s Log there is a photo looking down at the XO on my lap]
Some observations: The machine is very small and light (a little over 3 pounds) so carrying it in my little shoulder bag places “just in case” is no problem and it fit easily on my lap for use. I knew from previous testing (and watching the battery meter that night) that I could get 3-5 hours of use, so there was no problem leaving it on all the time. I usually left the backlight off (which saves a lot of power) knowing that (a) I can still read it even in the low light in that room, and (b) I can turn on the backlight with one key press (the screen powers off in any case after a while of non-use). To my surprise, I found that in that room the lowest brightness level was more than appropriate. This display is great — I often use it in backlight off mode with a table light pointing at it even when plugged in because it looks good and sharp. The machine does not get too warm, and even then it’s the back of the display, not the bottom under the keyboard.
As the two people on either side of me took some notes (or did email?) on their Blackberries, I noticed something else I hadn’t thought about: The XO’s rubber keyboard is not only waterproof, it’s also basically silent, quieter than the Blackberries and in a different league from a normal “real” laptop. Duh! Of course, another good design choice: Who wants a room full of 30+ kids typing away on a normal keyboard? It would be awful.
The more I use the XO, the more I see the good design choices made. This is one awesome machine for its intended use. You really have to be thinking about that use when you evaluate it. Given how early the software is and how fast it’s progressing (e.g., some of the main power saving techniques have not been put in released code) you can’t help but be optimistic about the wisdom of choosing this as a platform for educational use. I’ll write more about it at some later point, I just wanted to get this observation out there.…more
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