Tuesday, October 31, 2000

Bill Gates and the World's Poor -- 9:35 am CST, Update by A.T. Hun

Bill Gates and Microsoft get (justifiable) flak on this page from time to time, but I have to give him credit when credit is due. He gave a speech at the Creating Digital Dividends conference, whose goal seemed to be making the world better via technology. Gates makes the valid point (which is quickly lost on so many Americans who have too much money for their own good) that computers alone will not make the world a better place. Here's a quote:

Do people have a clear view of what it means to live on $1 a day? ... There are things those people need at that level other than technology. ... About 99 percent of the benefits of having (a PC) come when you've provided reasonable health and literacy to the person who's going to sit down and use it.

I'm always amazed at the theoretically smart people who think that any problem can be solved by throwing computers at it. The Minnesota government was considering a project to give EVERY family in the state a computer. News flash: if they can't eat and aren't healthy, computers won't make a difference. We've been throwing computers at our schools for years, yet students' test scores are still dropping. Computers are tools, not solutions in and of themselves. Unfortunately too many people assume that if you throw enough money (or equipment) at a problem, the problem will go away without us having to get directly involved. Thanks Ars Technica.

News for 10/31/2000

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