Brown's free computers

[anotheoldgit]

http://news.bbc.co.uk...education/8449485.stm

Is it wise to spend £300m on this scheme, when the country is almost bankrupt?

/// Families who would qualify for the full package would be those on incomes of less than £15,500 or on benefits such as Income Support or Job Seekers' Allowance.///

I may be generalising but aren't some of these families, those who already have the latest large wide-screen Televisions along with the latest games machines?

[another-view]

", her lad was given one over 12 months ago by tameside council. all he does with it is play games on it every night. "

Exactly! What a waste of money

[ChuckFickens]

Computers ending up in skips??

Not heard of the wee directive then? it's against the law to just dump old electrical equipment these days.

As for "why laptops"

Are you suggesting that the pupils pack up a desktop computer and monitor and carry that to and from school every day then?

[DrFilth]

the laptops are supplied with a dongle thing to connect up to the internet, no landline in house.they have certain sites blocked no access allowed.

keeps him out of trouble and the kid from next door.

[anotheoldgit]

/// The debt can only be addressed by having as many people in employment as possible - this is exactly what projects like this are working towards ///

Hardly it would seem that given benefits and free computers along with all the other perks one gets by uttering those magic words 'On Benefits', who wants employment?

[DrFilth]

anotheoldgit if you had to live on benefits you would want employment believe me

[anotheoldgit]

ChuckFickens

/// As for "why laptops" ///

/// Are you suggesting that the pupils pack up a desktop computer and monitor and carry that to and from school every day then?///

So they are to carry these laptops to and from school every day, isn't this going to be a muggers paradise?

We are talking young school kids here, how many of these delicate instruments are going to survive these hazardous journeys?

[LeMarchand]

I work in a school where the pupils were provided with laptops. Let's just say: bad idea.

[DrFilth]

not if they use them for school work,

[ChuckFickens]

"So they are to carry these laptops to and from school every day, isn't this going to be a muggers paradise?

We are talking young school kids here, how many of these delicate instruments are going to survive these hazardous journeys? "

They will be perfectly safe in the mothers 4x4's

[Iggle Piggle]

I have given my 5 year old son a small laptop which he uses with supervision, he loves lego.com
I believe it is a good idea to start them young as computers are a central part of life and business.
I do not agree with us financing the supply of computers to be used in the private home, this is open to abuse.

There are websites that link to other websites, allowing kids to get round site blockers....

[tamborine]

Y not free use for kids of PCs in library. Kids would learn to socialise in a public place and libraries would be more used.

[mollykins]

There giving them out in my area, if they are giving them out they could save money by only giving one per houseold thats on benefits, i know a family with thre children and they got one each, plus the recycling old comps from companies upgrading is a good idea aswell.

i don't think i want to be a marine biologist anymore i think i should be prime minister and sort this mess of a country out.

see a thread in the law section for my policies.

[DrFilth]

mollykins the company that i used to work for had over 100 computers from one building alone . all the hard drives had to be cleaned then removed and broken up
the computers , monitors etc went into a skip for special destruction.
they would not risk sensitive information getting into the wrong hands.

[anotheoldgit]

/// They will be perfectly safe in the mothers 4x4's ///

Diamond, Chuck.

Obtained of course under the 'Mobility Scheme'

[mollykins]

i supose so filth.

[DrFilth]

mollykins i had to walk past the skip to my place of work and did not have a computer at the time so it made me sad to see them all just thrown in the skip.

[Old_Geezer]

If a laptop at home was necessary because the schools can no longer pass on information without the pupils having a PC at home, then all kids should have one, not just those from poor families, and those from well off families whose parents decide they are needed. An underprivileged kid is an underprivileged kid regardless how it comes about. No one chooses their parents (as far as I am aware).

But my suspicion is that it is not necessary, that teachers are not incapable of teaching PC related subjects during the school day. (And that is without considering whether the PC would really be used for schoolwork or for MSN and Pirate Bay.)

However, were I cynical I might note that prior to an election governments do like to be seen to be being generous to the voters.

[DrFilth]

don't know about MSN and Pirate Bay but a lot of sites are blocked

[LeMarchand]

"not if they use them for school work"

A very large proportion ended up damaged physically or having the system messed up by unauthorised software etc that they couldn't use them for school work. Others were commandeered by siblings/parents for their own use.

"don't know about MSN and Pirate Bay but a lot of sites are blocked"

For the time it takes them to ask the school computer whiz to show them how to avoid the proxies. (If they even need to - I wonder how many of these "underprivileged" kids have a wireless connection for their games console?)