One Laptop, two systems

THE GOAL of the nonprofit One Laptop per Child project has always been exciting: build a cheap, sturdy laptop and give it to poor children in developing countries to improve their educations.

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Getting from this idea to reality has been tough, but One Laptop has been making progress. The result is the small, green XO laptop. The machine used the free open-source Linux operating system, which users can modify and customize. Mexico, Peru, and other countries have already ordered 600,000 of the XOs.

Still, there have been bumps. Countries have been asking a nagging question: Does the XO run Microsoft Windows?

Because the answer had been no, some countries hesitated, saying Windows would give their children more practical skills and access to more software. But Microsoft wouldn't participate in the project.

Now the adults have settled their differences. One Laptop and Microsoft are going to team up, offering laptops that will have both Linux and Windows. This way, children will be able to swim in the same ocean as most of the computing world. And Microsoft will be closer to its goal of reaching "the next 1 billion people who are not yet realizing the benefits of technology" by 2015.

Not everyone thinks this is good news. As American users know, Windows can be a glitchy affair not to be wished upon the world's children.

And while One Laptop's early commitment to open-source software will remain intact because Linux will still be available on its laptops, one of the nonprofit's executives left because he says he can be more effective developing open-source educational software outside the organization.

Ultimately, though, One Laptop is not about the adults but the children, and they will benefit. With an XO they can learn to launch their own computing revolutions.