If the hardware nerd in you has been eyeing the One Laptop Per Child program's XO computer, good news, you'll be able to buy one in the very near future. The OLPC has announced a "Give One Get One" program in which, for $400, you can buy two XOs, one of which will go to a child in a developing country and one of which is yours to keep or donate to a local school.
The program is a way of kick-starting the OLPC XO production since some of the contracts seem to be falling through.
Nicholas Negroponte, founder of the OLPC project, tells the New York Times: “I have to some degree underestimated the difference between shaking the hand of a head of state and having a check written. And yes, it has been a disappointment.”
The OLPC has set up a new website, XOGiving.org, which will have more details about the program when it launches on November 12. But don't dally too long, the program will be short lived, it ends November 26, giving you just two weeks to grab an XO. You can sign up on the XOGiving site to be notified by e-mail when the program launches.
XOGiving is also currently accepting more traditional donations; $200 buys one XO for a child in a developing nation. And naturally all money donated is tax deductible (it's not clear whether or not the give one get one program is tax deductible, presumably $200 of it is, but check with your tax expert)
The OLPC has also announced that the first countries to receive the donated laptops will be Cambodia, Afghanistan, Rwanda and Haiti.
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