[Foundation-l] OLPC & Windows?

[Gerard Meijssen]

Rory Stolzenberg schreef:
> On 12/5/06, James Hare <messedrocker at gmail.com> wrote:
>   
>> If these computers were to be equipped with Windows, they wouldn't be the
>> $100 laptops, they'd be the $400 laptops.
>>
>> On 12/5/06, Gerard Meijssen <gerard.meijssen at gmail.com> wrote:
>>     
>>> galwaygirl schreef:
>>>       
>>>> Hi,
>>>>
>>>> I just came across this worrying news item:
>>>>
>>>>         
>> http://www.vnunet.com/vnunet/news/2170209/microsoft-looking-windows-olpc
>>     
>>>> Does anyone know more about this? Is it really true?
>>>>
>>>> Galwaygirl
>>>>         
>>> Hoi,
>>> There are two sides to this story. The standard hardware that runs the
>>> OLPC software nicely will not run the Windows software. Consequently
>>> many of the advantages of using this system go out of the window (pun
>>> intended) because extra hardware will require more power and it is
>>> exactly the low power functionality that makes this system shine. The
>>> only "dark" side that I see, is that as the system can be made to run
>>> such extended services, it will become more of an object people are
>>> willing to steal. The bright side is that when it can run Windows, there
>>> is room for extending the functionality of the hardware. This may make
>>> the system also more interesting for the western market where the superb
>>> ability to run with limited power is less relevant.
>>>
>>> Thanks,
>>>     GerardM
>>
>
>
>
>
> Presumably, if the OLPC project actually agrees to run Windows, Microsoft
> would have to have donated it anyway.
Hoi,
There is a difference between the hardware being able to run Windows and 
the OLPC project running Windows. What the OLPC project develops is 
hardware that runs Linux and software that runs on top of Linux.

Pro memore, the standard OLPC hardware needs a hardware extension to run 
Windows in the first place.
Thanks,
    GerardM