Correction @Ngigi, 

The touchscreen as an Input device is inconvenient for writing code. It is however a self contained Input / Output device in a small enough form factor, The only thing missing is a physical keyboard and the difference between that and a laptop for instance is negligible. 

When my laptop was out of commission, I remained conpletely productive on an Ipad and an external keyboard, doing everything on codeanywhere.com and ssh into my servers, which is more or less what I do anyway on the laptop. You just cant beat the flexibility of having everything in a small package like you get on a tablet, and the ability to move round with your computer withour extending cables and ethernet. 

I guess the question is, Should they get cheap laptops? or Tablets? I think we should disocciate the need for hackable hardware from the type of hardware needed for a learning environment that would give in the broadest sense as much value. 




On Wed, Jan 25, 2017 at 1:03 PM, Ngigi Waithaka <ngigi@at.co.ke> wrote:
Collins,

Yes, you can program on a tablet, but that's fitting a square pole into a round hole. If you hack code, try working on a Tablet a whole day :-)

Tablets , Phablets, Phones were never meant for programming. Their form factors just don't work very well for programming and/or learning. They are consumer devices.

I think the biggest advantage Raspberry et.al have over everything else, including desktop computers, they are meant to encourage someone to open them up and learn how to put it together. 

Also, with a different SD Card, you could load a different OS (environment) altogether. So kids just keep on loading different things as they learn from them.

Computers on the other hand are getting more & more closed. You buy, it breaks, return to dealer. forget even about opening it up just to play around.

Rgds

On Wed, Jan 25, 2017 at 12:23 PM, Collins Areba via kictanet <kictanet@lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote:
I think the problem is not the tablet, its what runs on the tablet. There is amazing software that can run on tablets and deliver the same learning experience as on a desktop or laptop. The problem is the ecosystem.

On Wed, Jan 25, 2017 at 12:20 PM, Erick Mwangi via kictanet <kictanet@lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote:
Ngugi,

Touche my 5 year old daughter understands the inner working of a comp and we do have intelligent conversations and frankly sometimes I draw blanks as my core background is not IT. She started coming with Rasberry PI's home since she was 4. This is how they are taught programming in school.

I also don't get the Tablet façade!

Eric

E Njoroge Mwangi
Technology| FINTECH | Big Data

Cell +44 7539372742
Skype: Erick.mwangi

On Wed, Jan 25, 2017 at 8:41 AM, Ngigi Waithaka via kictanet <kictanet@lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote:
Tony,

I still think the Raspberry Pi would have made a much better alternative than Tablets.

Tablets IMO do not inspire deep learning, they are more entertainment devices than work devices (Try programming with a Tablet). 

They are also at greater risk of getting spoilt due to their mobility. And if a kid drops one, that's it! Completely dead unless someone gets a replacement screen.

Now, look at the Raspberry Kits out there. Cheap, even cheaper to replace incase anything goes wrong and much hardier than tablets. Most importantly Raspberry inspire learning, starting with a kid seeing how a computer gets put together.

For mobility, how about a kid could even carry the Raspberry home and connect to their home tv?

At these costs, and adding a Ksh 5K monitor, you have a 10K machine that's very versatile.

Have a look at some sample kits from here ( https://www.raspberrypistarterkits.com  )



What I also find interesting is how developed economies are pushing their Kids to Raspberry Pi-type devices which are ideal for learning, as we push our kids towards consumer type devices (Tablets)

Regards
Waithaka Ngigi

On Tue, Jan 24, 2017 at 4:52 PM, Tony White via kictanet <kictanet@lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote:
Eric,

I'm in full agreement with your suggestion - but this should be in
addition to the '40 tablets'.  Raspberry Pis, whilst low cost, also
need TVs as monitors, keyboards, mice, power supplies, cables.  It
would be a maintenance nightmare!

So - there should be 'maker space' provided in addition for mebbe 5
Pis, with breadboards, components, and a RasPi teacher following the
recently released curriculum for the RasPi.

We can but dream ;)

Cheers,
Tony


On 24/01/2017, Eric Mwangi via kictanet <kictanet@lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote:
> While this cool - I was fortunate to sit with his team and talked about
> Ajira and this particular project. However my suggestion then and still is -
> why not install Rasberrry PI's to create a development culture and cost a
> fraction to tablets?
>
> Eric
> www.vaultglobal.co.uk
>
> Sent from my iPhone
>
>> On 24 Jan 2017, at 12:59, Collins Areba via kictanet
>> <kictanet@lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote:
>>
>> Interesting read, I actually have a question:
>>
>> What is the current state of Business Process outsourcing in this country?
>> I remember there was a time when this was a tune everyone was singing as
>> justification for landing five (or is it six) submarine cables. A few
>> years down the line, have these industries taken off? Is there
>> quantifiable lessons to learn from these? Do the same , or more business
>> opportunities exist for the same or different kind of platforms?
>>
>> On making access affordable and available, Would it make better sense to
>> expand the mandate of Kenet? To somehow tap into their experience to have
>> them extend internet to schools, polytechnics, etc, and provide more
>> funding (government, USF, Private sector) in a single channel to manage
>> delivery of connectivity to academia.
>>
>> My $2.
>>
>> On Tue, Jan 24, 2017 at 3:43 PM, Ali Hussein via kictanet
>> <kictanet@lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote:
>>> Listers
>>>
>>> An interesting article penned by our very own CS. Insightful and needed.
>>>
>>>
>>> Taking the digital dividends to the constituencies for prosperity
>>>
>>> I'm hoping that the Abdis, The Kamaus, The Karisa, The Poghishios, The
>>> Omaris, The Nyachaes...(You get the drift..) in the farthest corners of
>>> Kenya - From Wajir to Kakuma to Lamu will access Broadband everywhere and
>>> anywhere sooner rather than later.
>>>
>>>
>>> Regards
>>>
>>>
>>> Ali Hussein
>>> Principal
>>> Hussein & Associates
>>>
>>> Tel: +254 713 601113
>>> Twitter: @AliHKassim
>>> Skype: abu-jomo
>>> LinkedIn: http://ke.linkedin.com/in/alihkassim
>>>
>>> 13th Floor , Delta Towers, Oracle Wing,
>>> Chiromo Road, Westlands,
>>> Nairobi, Kenya.
>>>
>>> Any information of a personal nature expressed in this email are purely
>>> mine and do not necessarily reflect the official positions of the
>>> organizations that I work with.
>>>
>>> _______________________________________________
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>>>
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>>> for people and institutions interested and involved in ICT policy and
>>> regulation. The network aims to act as a catalyst for reform in the ICT
>>> sector in support of the national aim of ICT enabled growth and
>>> development.
>>>
>>> KICTANetiquette : Adhere to the same standards of acceptable behaviors
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>>
>>
>>
>> --
>> Regards,
>>
>> Collins Areba,
>> Kilifi, Kenya.
>> Tel: +254 707 750 788 / 0731534124
>> Twitter: @arebacollins.
>> Skype: arebacollins
>> _______________________________________________
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>>
>> The Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet) is a multi-stakeholder platform
>> for people and institutions interested and involved in ICT policy and
>> regulation. The network aims to act as a catalyst for reform in the ICT
>> sector in support of the national aim of ICT enabled growth and
>> development.
>>
>> KICTANetiquette : Adhere to the same standards of acceptable behaviors
>> online that you follow in real life: respect people's times and bandwidth,
>> share knowledge, don't flame or abuse or personalize, respect privacy, do
>> not spam, do not market your wares or qualifications.
>


--
Tony White

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--
Regards,

Waithaka Ngigi
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T +254 20 525 0750 |Office Mobile: +254 716 201061 | M +254 737 811 000

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--
Regards,

Collins Areba, 
Kilifi, Kenya.
Tel: +254 707 750 788 / 0731534124
Twitter: @arebacollins.
Skype: arebacollins

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--
Regards,

Waithaka Ngigi
Chief Executive Officer | Alliance Technologies | MCK Nairobi Synod Building
T +254 20 525 0750 |Office Mobile: +254 716 201061 | M +254 737 811 000



--
Regards,

Collins Areba, 
Kilifi, Kenya.
Tel: +254 707 750 788 / 0731534124
Twitter: @arebacollins.
Skype: arebacollins