OLPC is all the Rage

The One Laptop Per Child project has been all the rage lately, from the infamous split with Intel to reviews of the Give One, Get One systems now arriving to users — including one by our own David A Lane. Now there's even more news, and as usual, it's wild.

The first to hit the radar was OLPC founder Nicholas Negroponte's announcement Tuesday that OLPC is working closely with Microsoft to create a dual-boot XO with both Linux and Windows. He even revealed having spoken to Bill Gates and Craig Mundie, Microsoft's chief researcher, that morning about the process. But of course, nothing is ever smooth sailing, as Microsoft issued their own announcement today refuting the claims, saying that while there would be an XO that runs Windows, it won't be a dual-boot machine. It is — interestingly enough — the second time this week that someone has called the philanthropist a liar.

In more positive news, it was announced Wednesday that Mary Lou Jepsen — OLPC's power behind the throne, who resigned two weeks ago — has put together a for-profit venture called Pixel Qi to produce a $75 laptop, based on the work done by the OLPC. The system will be sold as a commercial version of the not-for-profit OLPC, and Pixel Qi will continue to support the OLPC by providing products at cost.

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