Tech Support In Nigeria, It’s Childs Play
 | by Diego on February 13th, 2008 |
A five-year-old girl in Nigeria sets up shop to troubleshoot and repair broken XOs (i.e. the One Laptop Per Child laptops). The infamous One Laptop Per Child initiative has developed a laptop that was designed for children in developing countries who live in some of the most remote areas. The laptop, naturally, has to be able to withstand harsh conditions — not unlike those of rural Nigeria.
The laptop is designed to be easily repairable since the consumer can’t just pop into a Fry’s Electronics to buy replacements, much less call MinuteFix. The computer components can be easily changed with nothing more than a screwdriver, and the PC even comes with embedded extra screws. The backlight for the LCD is only a $1 replacement, otherwise worth thousands where we live.
Fixing these computers is so simple that a five-year-old Nigerian girl took it upon herself to troubleshoot and fix her classmates XOs. With her teacher’s support, they started a “Laptop Hospital.”
Talk about taking tech support into your own hands. More power to the people.
February 13th, 2008 at 11:56 am
What an awesome story, Diego! Good for her! Thank you for sharing. (I won’t go into the “male vs. female” debate
But indeed, she is a special little girl.
February 13th, 2008 at 12:33 pm
WOW! Excellent post Diego. A 5-year-old. That is very inspirational. Thanks for sharing with all of us.
February 13th, 2008 at 2:07 pm
Do I smell a new reality show…”Are You Smarter Than A Five-Year-Old”???
February 13th, 2008 at 2:38 pm
hahahaha.
I have been doing a little reading on the OLPC program. While I do not totally agree with it for a number of reasons, I do find it an interesting initiative. For anyone who wants to know all about the actual computer, you can visit their wiki here.