The Simputer is a sexy idea, but $214 is way too much dough for rural India to afford (or so I've gathered from the other posts here). Assuming the availability of electricity (and the Simputer folks seem to make this assumption as well), it would be much smarter to salvage used equipment from large multi-nationals (there is no shortage of used computers out there) and hook them together with cheap 10mbit/s cards and ethernet cables.
I mean, really, a used Pentium 90 might as well be worth nothing in the United States. Yet I remember compiling Linux kernels (1.2.13 on Slackware... ahhh memories...:-) and doing timesharing on a 486SX/33, while connected to the local BBS over a modem. It didn't seem too bad back in '95 and '96; nowadays we're all a little spoiled.
Pentiums can do decent multimedia, text-to-speech, and can handle fairly large hard drives. 10mbit/sec ethernet can do remarkable things over fairly bad--i.e. cheap--cabling (in fact will go over two-pair phone cable in a pinch, if you don't mind a little RF noise). A 286, ISA NIC, a packet driver with IP stack, and SSH for DOS makes a great terminal. How much are 286's going for these days? You could hang 10 of these things off a Pentium, easy. Shell accounts for everyone!
It could be "One Nation, Under Bugs Bunny(TM)" instead of "Under God," for all I care. Both are equally imaginary (imho), except Bugs generally has a better sense of humor (as some of the worst parts of the Old Testament suggest:-).
We can speak of God in the hypothetical. For example, when I say "damn it!" I actually mean "if there were I god, I would have him/her/it damn this particular person/place/object!" But that's so much extra verbiage... and I can't normally think that straight after dropping something heavy on my big toe.
Likewise, it would take some pretty fine print to fit "in fairness of government and proper treatment of individuals and preservation of freedoms and destruction of Micro$oft (erm, sorry... scratch that last one:-) do we trust."...on the dollar bill, if you catch my drift.
But yes, you're right. I'm well aware that cap 'g' means the "supreme being." I was being silly, and I apologize. But this whole thing is a little wacky, don't you agree? What judge in his right mind...?
I would argue that the usage of the term "God" in U.S. currency and within the pledge refers to a system of morals and fairness more than it does the religious aspect. "God" can interpreted as a generic term, somewhat like "Acme" except refering to Greek, Roman, Norsk, and Judeo-Christian mythological figures (among others).
I don't disagree with its use in the pledge, acting as a reminder that this country is about more than "enhancing shareholder value."
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The Simputer is a sexy idea, but $214 is way too much dough for rural India to afford (or so I've gathered from the other posts here). Assuming the availability of electricity (and the Simputer folks seem to make this assumption as well), it would be much smarter to salvage used equipment from large multi-nationals (there is no shortage of used computers out there) and hook them together with cheap 10mbit/s cards and ethernet cables.
:-) and doing timesharing on a 486SX/33, while connected to the local BBS over a modem. It didn't seem too bad back in '95 and '96; nowadays we're all a little spoiled.
:-)
I mean, really, a used Pentium 90 might as well be worth nothing in the United States. Yet I remember compiling Linux kernels (1.2.13 on Slackware... ahhh memories...
Pentiums can do decent multimedia, text-to-speech, and can handle fairly large hard drives. 10mbit/sec ethernet can do remarkable things over fairly bad--i.e. cheap--cabling (in fact will go over two-pair phone cable in a pinch, if you don't mind a little RF noise). A 286, ISA NIC, a packet driver with IP stack, and SSH for DOS makes a great terminal. How much are 286's going for these days? You could hang 10 of these things off a Pentium, easy. Shell accounts for everyone!
Just don't make me pay the power bill, umkay?
It's all in the interpretation.
:-).
:-) do we trust." ...on the dollar bill, if you catch my drift.
It could be "One Nation, Under Bugs Bunny(TM)" instead of "Under God," for all I care. Both are equally imaginary (imho), except Bugs generally has a better sense of humor (as some of the worst parts of the Old Testament suggest
We can speak of God in the hypothetical. For example, when I say "damn it!" I actually mean "if there were I god, I would have him/her/it damn this particular person/place/object!" But that's so much extra verbiage... and I can't normally think that straight after dropping something heavy on my big toe.
Likewise, it would take some pretty fine print to fit "in fairness of government and proper treatment of individuals and preservation of freedoms and destruction of Micro$oft (erm, sorry... scratch that last one
But yes, you're right. I'm well aware that cap 'g' means the "supreme being." I was being silly, and I apologize. But this whole thing is a little wacky, don't you agree? What judge in his right mind...?
I would argue that the usage of the term "God" in U.S. currency and within the pledge refers to a system of morals and fairness more than it does the religious aspect. "God" can interpreted as a generic term, somewhat like "Acme" except refering to Greek, Roman, Norsk, and Judeo-Christian mythological figures (among others).
I don't disagree with its use in the pledge, acting as a reminder that this country is about more than "enhancing shareholder value."
Even better, there's this thing called encryption. Let them record all the blowfish encoded data they want... they'll never get my session key. :-)
I see a bright future for off-shore encrypted proxys and mailhosts.