High on laptops.THE MARCH 2004 ISSUE ON THE MAINE Maine, ship Maine, U.S. battleship destroyed (Feb. 15, 1898) in Havana harbor by an explosion that killed 260 men. The incident helped precipitate the Spanish-American War (Apr., 1898). Commanded by Capt. Charles Sigsbee, the ship had been sent (Jan. AND MICHIGAN LAPTOP Same as laptop computer. laptop - portable computer PROGRAMS ["A Tale of Two Laptops," p. 32] was very timely. Texas is about to jump into the laptop pilot arena. I was especially pleased to see the positive remarks by the Maine legislative members, teachers and administrators. I would like to point out one item that keeps being missed in the pilot programs: the unrealistic cost of laptop computers A portable computer that has a flat LCD screen and usually weighs less than eight pounds. Often called just a "laptop," it uses batteries for mobile use and AC power for charging the batteries and desktop use. Today's high-end laptops provide all the capabilities of most desktop computers. . In Maine and Michigan the systems are running at $400 to $500 per unit. These prices are heavily subsidized sub·si·dize tr.v. sub·si·dized, sub·si·diz·ing, sub·si·diz·es 1. To assist or support with a subsidy. 2. To secure the assistance of by granting a subsidy. by the hardware and software vendors competing for market share. They are willing to lose considerable amounts of money on the pilots in hopes of gaining even larger purchases in the future. I have heard legislatures state, "If we buy for the entire state, we could drive down the cost even further." I don't think that is a realistic expectation. At some point the vendors will charge a price that allows for a profit, of they will abandon the educational market because it is not profitable. It would be an interesting article to see what the true cost would be for a statewide buy that would be sustained over time. Given these costs, you have to question the long-term sustainability of the programs period. Grants paid for the pilots. In Michigan there was not even enough state money to fund the initial pilot. How will you fund a program that will require new computers every year. forever? Laptops are not like a classroom desk. Buy it once and you are done. You will be buying new machines every year. Today's laptops have a three- to four-year life expectancy Life Expectancy 1. The age until which a person is expected to live. 2. The remaining number of years an individual is expected to live, based on IRS issued life expectancy tables. that will not change in the near future. If you issue a laptop at fifth grade and again at ninth grade you will have to buy new laptops every year for one-sixth of your student population. In Texas that would mean 662,000 laptops annually. Somehow I don't think a vendor would be willing to Iose $200 to $400 per machine when the quantities are this large, regardless of market share. Ted Jongbloed, Director. Instructional Technology There are two types of instructional technology: those with a systems approach, and those focusing on sensory technologies. The definition of instructional technology prepared by the Association for Educational Communications and Technology (AECT) Definitions and Terminology Services, Region IV Education Service Center, Houston, Texas “Houston” redirects here. For other uses, see Houston (disambiguation). Houston (pronounced /'hjuːstən/) is the largest city in the state of Texas and the |
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