Message-ID: <E326A084737@bss2.umd.edu> Date: Mon, 20 May 1996 18:45:54 EDT From: Jill Boberg <mailto:jboberg@BSS2.UMD.EDU> Subject: Re: Computers in Africa To: Multiple recipients of list DEVEL-L <mailto:DEVEL-L@AMERICAN.EDU>
Susan McLoughlin said: > First, if you want to check out old technology, go into the
> average business or professional office in your North
> American town or city. I guarantee that most of the
> equipment will be AT LEAST five years old, most of it older
> than that. Many offices are still using DOS for Petes sake.
> The point is that these computers still work just fine for
> the requirements of most small businesses. Granted Windows,
> colour monitors and pentiums are preferable but the older
> machines still do the job.
I would like to concur. In our Geography Dept. here at the University of Maryland, some professors are still using 286's and DOS. In the sociology dept, they all have old computers, You can't surf the web on them but they deal with it -- we don't have the money to replace them at the moment. So even here in the horribly affluent US, there are people who are "forced" to use old computers. It's not ideal, but you do what you can. BTW, this is a big University, not some tiny remote one.
This is an old argument everyone is having here. The proponents of Appropriate Technology fought this one 25 years ago, for example. Obviously, some people have to have new fast computers, here and in Africa. Even UNIX systems, rather than PC's, are necessary for certain types of work. But some things can be done OK on an older computer, just as a 3-speed bike works for some trips while a racing bike is necessary for others.
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Dr. Jill Boberg, Asst. Professor e-mail: mailto:jboberg@bss2.umd.edu Univ. of Maryland, Dept. of Geography voice: (301) 405-4158 LeFrak Hall 1113 fax: (301) 314-9299 College Park, MD 20742-8225