I want a new computer. The new solid-state jobs look great; now I just have to justify the purchase. My biggest problem is my current machine, a beautiful Macbook Pro. It works too well.
I love my Macbook. The apostles of Bill Gates & Microsoft may goggle at this, but they're just easier. Yes! Quick eg: You want a new application. Step 1: copy into the Applications folder. Finish. That's all you do. To remove: delete it. That's it. And I've got Windows running simultaneously on a "virtual machine" platform-in-a-program. Why on earth? Work needs it. But back to solid-state computers.
The Register has an excellent article on small, cheap computers. One of their recommendations is the Asus eeePC. (I'm so glad they agree with me!) It's got a 9-inch screen, it weighs less than 1kg, it's about half A4 in size, and the battery lasts up to 8 hours. The secret is the hard disc... it hasn't got one, just a row of flash-memory chips. Yours for about $A500.
Imagine a school of these, connected wirelessly. Students carry them easily, they're economical, light & sturdy, batteries last a school day. Web, word process, spreadsheet, all there, & more. The money saved buys a Photoshop computer, a video edit computer for each class, and employs a local techie.
The computer, with the help of the Read/Write Web, becomes a tool, to do something wonderful with.
Showing posts with label computers. Show all posts
Showing posts with label computers. Show all posts
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Saturday, August 30, 2008
The Virtual & the Real
Primary school homework is online. Well, at this stage it's a case of: find your class page, click on the links, do the interactive page from the BBC or whoever. Look, it's a start! And congrats to the chalkies for being so brave. I mean that.
What interested me was the Integrated Studies link, learn to play Mah Jongg. Mah Jongg is an ancient Chinese solitaire game??? My only proof this is total nonsense is a Chinese friend seeing the computer game & not linking it in any way to true Mah Jong - which is in fact a 4-handed game, similar in many ways to poker & rummy, & played everywhere there are 4 Chinese in one spot. Here's a discussion of computer Mah Jong, which goes back to the "ancient" days of the early 80s! It finds no good evidence of an old, real, version.
And what started this? A long time ago I played Mah Jong against my sister, over many years. It sort of works 2-handed, but with fewer chance throw-ins. So by checking my own age (don't ask), I know I pre-date any personal computer toy. Ah, I remember my dad starting up his "Macintosh" 128K, like it was yesterday. 1984 I think? The Happy Mac. The piece of paper, corner folded, on the desk. The little dustbin "under" the desk, that bulged. I distinctly recall the thought, "This is the future, from now on, all computers will work like this..."
Sorry, where was I.
There are two lessons here: internet is often mistaken, or plain wrong; it's strength (& weakness) is the ease any old stuff goes up there. And don't confuse computer-based, virtual & real: computers can do things nothing else can; but real is real, and "virtual reality" is in fact "imitation reality".
What interested me was the Integrated Studies link, learn to play Mah Jongg. Mah Jongg is an ancient Chinese solitaire game??? My only proof this is total nonsense is a Chinese friend seeing the computer game & not linking it in any way to true Mah Jong - which is in fact a 4-handed game, similar in many ways to poker & rummy, & played everywhere there are 4 Chinese in one spot. Here's a discussion of computer Mah Jong, which goes back to the "ancient" days of the early 80s! It finds no good evidence of an old, real, version.
And what started this? A long time ago I played Mah Jong against my sister, over many years. It sort of works 2-handed, but with fewer chance throw-ins. So by checking my own age (don't ask), I know I pre-date any personal computer toy. Ah, I remember my dad starting up his "Macintosh" 128K, like it was yesterday. 1984 I think? The Happy Mac. The piece of paper, corner folded, on the desk. The little dustbin "under" the desk, that bulged. I distinctly recall the thought, "This is the future, from now on, all computers will work like this..."
Sorry, where was I.
There are two lessons here: internet is often mistaken, or plain wrong; it's strength (& weakness) is the ease any old stuff goes up there. And don't confuse computer-based, virtual & real: computers can do things nothing else can; but real is real, and "virtual reality" is in fact "imitation reality".
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