[UI] OLPC review

[Karl]

Michael Haupt wrote:
> Hi,
>
> On Jan 19, 2008 7:53 PM, Bill Schwab <BSchwab at anest.ufl.edu> wrote:
>   
>> You might find this interesting: ...
>>     
>
> um. All rightly mentioned annoying facts aside, this reviewer made
> some of the common mistakes, making direct comparisons between XO and
> Eek (scnr), applying his 1st-world-nation spoilt view on the technical
> requirements (cf. what he writes about multimedia support and tabbed
> browsing).
>   
I agree. But the interface has some quirks that get annoying, The 
"frame" pops up way to easy, maybe because I use a mouse :-) I never 
liked the little touch stylus thingies.

The Journal is really slow and big files grind it to a halt. I had 
problems copying over files from a USB and a few times the whole 
internal flash memory gets corrupted and I have to reflash the whole 
machine :-(

The ebook reader is a bit slow rendering pages, and it does not seem to 
remember where I left off reading. Reader should have some annotation, 
maybe there is but I have not seen it.
> Most reviews (and, unfortunately, most people's opinions and attitude
> towards the XO) are driven by requirements they believe are crucial
> for a low-cost sub-notebook today, instead of what the idea of OLPC is
> all about. The project's goals are what should drive the reviews.
> Regarding said goals, the reviewer certainly has some points...
>   
I was thinking about the issue that a "slow" computer like XO could use 
some heavy optimization in software, but that would break the source 
code readability, which is kind of important on a platform like this. I 
guess one have to weight the pros against the cons.

I think most tabbing and multimedia etc. will be solved by additional 
Activities and they don't matter too much on a "slow" third world 
internet connection.
> All that aside, what made me smile is that an experienced sysadmin
> couldn't manage to open the thing without consulting the manual. Maybe
> I'm still thinking like a child in this regard, but it took me about
> 30 seconds. No manual needed. :-)
>   
I had to look at the web as well :-)
Overall I like the machine. It's a really good ebook, and Etoys are 
getting better and better every day on it.

Karl
> Best,
>
> Michael
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