Re: Microsoft to limit capabilities of cheap laptops

I've been following the development of the "One Laptop Per Child" because it puts a tool in the hands of children that could revolutionize the way they learn. The device would be used for curriculum, books, assignments, test, communication with teachers, and perhaps even programming.

Analysts predicting unit sales in the tens of millions per year sounds credible to me. Students would be a new market for ultra low-cost PCs.

Low-cost PCs are an ideal client for Web applications, where most of the complex computing runs on servers, which is where computing is headed. If there were a need for local applications and data, they could be stored on a plug-in USB drive.

If Linux were to gain the hearts and minds of school children, it's likely that they'd keep Linux as they upgraded to mainstream PCs.

I wasn't prepared for Microsoft trying to extend their monopoly to this emerging market, because Windows and particularly Microsoft Office applications don't run well on scaled-back hardware, but now it's more clear how aggressively Microsoft is going to fight for it.

I don't know if there's any legal remedy to stop Microsoft from extending their monopoly. Microsoft killed Netscape by embedding their browser in Windows. But as a consumer, I plan on going with Linux when I get a low-cost laptop.