Blog feedConnected Live Video 010: Easy EeePC
22nd November
The Asus EeePC is a tiny, open source and highly affordable wireless laptop computer, no bigger than a paperback, which could open new possibilities for learning in Scottish classrooms.
Andrew Brown, one of Learning and Teaching Scotland new technologies team, has already blogged about the potential of the wee EeePC, and here takes us on a tour of this brilliant new machine. You can also see some of the photos of this machine, compared to some of its larger computer cousins.
Inserting some of these into a classroom won’t be an easy task, with plenty to think about in terms of connectivity as well as culture.
You can view the video on the Connected Live Blip.TV channel, and embed it into your own blog, or view below:
Categories: Connected Live Podcast, Technology, Video
Comments
Comment from John Connell
Time: November 22, 2007, 5:08 pm
Great piece, guys! Well done. Andrew is a star……just a pity about the Rangers supporter in the background 
…only kidding, Jack!
Comment from OllieBray
Time: November 22, 2007, 9:18 pm
This looks great - I’m really interested in this. OB
Comment from Ian Lynch
Time: November 22, 2007, 11:32 pm
If only Psion had taken this approach with the series 7. About 7 years ahead of their time. I’d also like to make a direct comparison with the One Laptop per child machine which looks more toy-like but is much more technologically innovative supporting mesh networking, longer range wireless and a screen that can be used in bright day light.
Comment from Andrew Brown
Time: November 23, 2007, 10:42 am
John - em… thanks …em… the only problem with …em …no script is …em …how many …em …pauses I seem to put in!
Ian - we’ve been following the XO with great interest - it was easier to get out hands on an Asus though! As soon as we can, we’ll do a similar feature on the XO - I too am really interested in the mesh networking, and would love to see how our pupils collaborate using such a device.
Comment from Mark Berthelemy
Time: November 23, 2007, 1:11 pm
Andrew (and Ewan) - Thanks for pulling this together. It’s really informative & well presented…
The potential for a device like this is huge. Small enough to pack away easily, but with real (not mobile specific) software and a real keyboard. Give it the 3G module and we really are talking about ubiquitous connectivity.
Comment from Stuart Lennie
Time: November 23, 2007, 2:58 pm
Ive got two on order just now- looking forward to getting them.
All ready prepared a USB key with a slimmed down boot image of Windows XP image ready to hoof Linux off one of them for a comparison.
Ive read some bad things about compatibility with the dumbed down version of Linux that comes with it, so it’ll be interesting to see how it goes.
I’ll pre-empt some of the groans about putting XP on it, but Im keen to make use of the existing server infrastructure and freeware we already heavily invested in.
Good info guys- thanks for bringing it to the masses…
Comment from Andrew Brown
Time: November 23, 2007, 6:08 pm
Mark - there’s a wee panel on the bottom that unscrews where you can slot in 3G - brilliant, eh? This is one of the things we’d be really keen to evaluate.
Stuart - keep us posted about how your XP trial works out - I completely understand about compatibillity and existing investments - it must be said though - at £169 + your MS bill, it’ll still work out to be a really interesting proposition.
Comment from Stuart Lennie
Time: November 24, 2007, 9:41 pm
Ive seen lots of great videos on sites showing XP running quite sweetly on it. You can use nLite to strip your Windows disk down to the minimum size and still leave lots of room for programs. 99% of the applications on the Linux version also have free Windows Versions, plus you get the added advantage of it working with existing infrastructure without requiring a bunch of nerds with Linux knowledge.
Remember that £169 is the entry level model, spend a little extra and get the bigger drive version. Also remember that RM are not the only stockists of this- Ive already managed to undercut their price through another Education supplier.
Comment from Mark Berthelemy
Time: November 26, 2007, 12:37 pm
Looks like the T-mobile, 3, and Vodafone USB modems all work on this OK (see: http://forum.eeeuser.com/viewtopic.php?id=1323).
Hmmm. It’s soooo tempting….
Comment from Jim Henderson
Time: November 27, 2007, 3:58 pm
There have various reports of folk loading Mac OS X onto the Asus PC as well.
See http://uneasysilence.com/archive/2007/11/12654/
I’ve just ordered a couple to evaluate for Highland
Comment from Robin Wylie
Time: November 27, 2007, 6:49 pm
Great job, Andrew! I love the way it integrates some webapps right into its desktop. It’s technically trivial yet it represents such a big shift in the way we think about web apps/sites - and it can make that shift very real for the average punter, not just total nerds like me. Good times. On the same subject: http://labs.mozilla.com/2007/10/prism/
Pingback from » The EeePC, The XO and Beyond… Changing Practice Part 2 Change bLog
Time: November 29, 2007, 2:02 am
[…] integrating the EeePC into our setup should be reasonably painless. More details are available here from the LTS blog or you can watch the embedded video below. The EeePC is currently being distributed in the UK as […]
Comment from Dave
Time: December 6, 2007, 3:31 am
Anyone got Solaris x86 running on it? I assume it will work, or if not the drivers will be written very soon.
Comment from John Connell
Time: December 13, 2007, 1:45 pm
In case you’re on commission, Andrew - you just sold an EePC! see:
Pingback from California school district getting 1,000 Asus Eee PCs « Jim Henderson’s Blog
Time: December 15, 2007, 12:46 pm
[…] the higher spec machines as they have these in stock. From various reviews I have read around the blogsphere they seem capable little machines for schools. They could be a cheap way to provide easy access to […]
Pingback from Connected Blog » Asus EeePC: not so easy peasy?
Time: January 28, 2008, 3:15 pm
[…] Brown has had more time to play with the Asus EeePC, on which we gave a video tour last month. He’s started to find a few challenges for using this in a classroom […]
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