The Go-Anywhere Cyber Cafe In a Shipping Container

nk497 writes "UK IT charity Computer AID has come up with a clever idea to use shipping containers to house thin-client-based, solar-powered cyber cafes, which can be used to bring connectivity to rural communities in Africa. The £20,000 boxes use a single Pentium 4 PC split out using thin client devices to offer computing to 10 people via local wireless access or mobile broadband. The solar power created from a single panel is enough to power the PC, 10 monitors, lighting, and also to charge mobile phones. Computer Aid founder Tony Roberts notes, 'The power of this idea is that we can drop that container anywhere in the world, literally in the middle of the Sahara desert.'"

Comments

that much!?

[wisdom_brewing]

20 grand?! Must be some pricey solar panels... Containers aren't that expensive...

Pentium 4?

[NaCh0]

They should have went with a more power efficient (and faster) core 2 duo. It's not like the cost difference would have been noticeable given the cost of the shipping container, solar panels, etc.

why not use amd??

[Joe The Dragon]

why not use amd?? more cores at less power then intel.

and a P4 with HT? Dual core? doing 10 VM like systems?

How much ram does it have 256? 512? 1g 2g 4g?

Cargo cult

[ugen]

Dropping this container in the middle of Africa is a good way to establish a new cargo cult.

Seriously, though - why are these people so intent on providing Internet access to countries and people that need many more basic things in life first (including proper hygiene, medical care, food, clothing, development of civic society, business, infrastructure, etc etc). Providing internet without these other things results in proliferation of "Nigerian scams" and very little else.

Re:Cargo cult

[fiannaFailMan]

I was just wondering how far down I'd have to scroll to see this traditional response to this type of story:

Dropping this container in the middle of Africa is a good way to establish a new cargo cult.

Seriously, though - why are these people so intent on providing Internet access to countries and people that need many more basic things in life first (including proper hygiene, medical care, food, clothing, development of civic society, business, infrastructure, etc etc). Providing internet without these other things results in proliferation of "Nigerian scams" and very little else.

You're responding to a post about a:

( ) Technical innovation in a developing country
(*) Product shipped to a developing market
( ) General discussion about IT in the developing world

The location is:

(*) Africa
( ) India
( ) Bangladesh
( ) China
( ) Somewhere else in Asia
( ) South America
( ) Central America
( ) Other _unspecified_

You're objecting to it on the basis that:

(*) Poverty hasn't been eliminated in that country yet
( ) American jobs will be lost

Your argument is bogus because:

( ) Poverty hasn't been eliminated in the developed world either, that doesn't mean we should halt all technological research
( ) This will not adversely affect any efforts to alleviate poverty
(*) This will help to alleviate poverty
( ) Poverty in that country isn't as widespread as you say it is
( ) The US does not have a divine right to keep all the cool jobs

OK... I'll bite...

[denzacar]

How in the hell will this alleviate poverty?

Let's take Nigeria for example.
I KNOW FOR A FACT that they've got both Internet AND a working postal system there. I've seen the evidence.

How will the "Internet in a box" magically alleviate poverty there? You can't just have the whole country running 419 scams.

Re:I could see $20k

[tomhudson]

Used shipping containers are dirt cheap. They're piling up because it's cheaper to make new ones than to ship the old ones back.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UvcUe_yPHdg

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2006/jun/15/20060615-122003-3483r/

But then you have to finish the insides. I could see $20k, especially with insulation.

I bet you've never seen the inside of a shipping container. You can get them with wooden interior walls, floor, and ceiling. Air them out, slap on a coat of paint, and you're good to go. People are buying them to make work sheds, etc., you can get a 40' for $1500 0 $1700 without even trying,

Re:Lovely examples those...

[NeutronCowboy]

Notice that the problem in the first article had nothing to do with internet access, but with a certification process attached to their new crop.

Furthermore, what you fail to understand in your analysis of cell phone usage is that it takes only one person in the village to make one call to figure out what to do. The way it actually works is that someone who already has some money buys a used phone, and then resells phone calls to an entire village, or entire area. The costs are indeed spread out among many people, which makes the system work - as demonstrated by profits going up, not just revenue.

Seriously, if you want to critique something, at least know the systems in place. Not to mention that it is a straw man of epic proportions to argue that because neither technology was a silver bullet, it should never be used by anyone.