Zero Dollar Laptop Manifesto

Contingut de la comunicació

Prefatory Note

This text is intended for discussion by the 'e-waste management' work group at the Congress of Cybersociety 2009. However, I should like to make it clear that this document covers issues that move far beyond those of waste management, and that, as is becoming increasingly clear in this age of ecological and financial crises, there is no such thing as an 'externality' - everything relates to everything else.

Introduction for The Congress of Cybersociety 2009

Digital technology, as it currently manifests itself, is problematic. While it has huge potential for development (we have seen the huge economic advantages that have been made in the developed world) we must remember that digital processing and communications technologies serve as an amplifier; they amplify opportunity and potential, but they also amplify division and exclusion. Networked technology, in its present social, political and educational contexts, will make the powerful yet more powerful, and will help the excluded, the illiterate, the disconnected, only marginally.

An implication of this document is the suggestion that e-waste (in fact, any waste) is not a characteristic of matter itself, it is a definition which we give to objects when we decide that we will no longer be creative with them. In the case of computers, when our desire for convenience and novelty (and sometimes a mistaken belief in promises of 'empowerment' touted by marketeers) outweighs our desire for persistence, learning, and ingenuity, then we declare our formerly useful tools 'obsolete' and acquire a new machine. A bad workman blames his tools.

Looked at through this lens, we may begin to percieve that the problem of e-waste is located, not in objects, but within ourselves; our knowledge is inadequate, our desires for instant gratification are too intense, our creativity lies dormant. These are issues which span education, critical media awareness, holistic thinking, innovation, politics, economics, personal autonomy and creativity. I submit that e-waste is merely a symptom of a more profound malady which has been facilitated and amplified by networked technology. That malady is one of centralism in the service of efficiency.

As you will see from this short manifesto, I'm not someone who believes that technology is an automatic "quick fix". However, at the same time I'm enthusiastic about the massive potential of spreading the culture and personal habits of ultra-localised technology renewal and re-use. My suggestion is that the same technology we already have can effect society in a profoundly different way if the networks that deliver it tend towards decentralism.

Originally I addressed this document to the sort of audience likely to engage with an online manifesto written in English, and published by an artist and educator working in the field of digital culture: technologically engaged workers, educators, researchers, artists and activists, probably working in the more developed parts of the world.

There are, of course, many more people who may read this - perhaps people in underdeveloped regions (or people in the developed world who are outside the charmed circle of education, employment and skills) who have yet to acquire their first computer. To them, the vast majority, I must issue an apology - far more than 99% of the laptops to which I refer in this manifesto are still sitting on the shelf, unused. This document has not precipitated action by thousands (or hundreds of thousands... or more!). It is, alone, utterly inadequate. However, if it helps us better to understand what the situation is, and to start to form some feasible, practical, localised approaches to developing our consciousness as well as our digital communications, then perhaps those small steps, however tiny, can start to make things better.

The Zero Dollar Laptop Manifesto

The zero dollar laptop is here!

The zero dollar laptop is widely available to individuals in the developed world. It's also available to businesses, governmental organisations and NGOs. It's also available in the developing world. Distribution is ramping up.

The zero dollar laptop comes in a variety of specifications.

The current typical specification of the zero dollar laptop in the UK is around 500mHz, with 256mB RAM, a 10 gigabyte hard disk, a network card, a CD-ROM, a USB port and a screen capable of displaying at least 800x600 pixels in 16-bit colour. Many zero dollar laptops are better specified. (Its close cousin, the zero dollar desktop typically runs at 1000mHz or faster.)

The zero dollar laptop is constantly being upgraded - so by next year its specification will be even more powerful.

The zero dollar laptop is powered with free, open source software. Users can get involved as deeply as they want - the software packages available include easy to use graphical applications, more complex professional applications, and expert level programming languages.

Free software upgrades for the zero dollar laptop are constantly being made available, from a huge variety of software producers.

The zero dollar laptop is not intended simply for multimedia entertainment. Though it can an educational playground, it can also be a genuinely useful production platform.

The zero dollar laptop allows kids to learn and adults to produce. (Only when people are able to use computers to produce their own data does information communication technology become genuinely empowering.)

The zero dollar laptop has already been distributed. (You weren't told about it at the time of distribution.)

Individuals, businesses and non-profit organisations can all have a say in how the zero dollar laptop is rolled out in their local area. It's not up to government think-tanks, multinational NGOs or national policy boards.

The zero dollar laptop is available to individuals, education organisations, NGOs and businesses alike.

The carbon footprint of the zero dollar laptop is zero.

You, as an individual, may already own a zero dollar laptop.

What's it doing? Sitting on your shelf, unused, because you've already upgraded?

Your employer or your school may own a large number of zero dollar laptops.

What are they doing? Are they getting recycled responsibly (i.e. destroyed) by the company that supplied them? (That's often the company that just happens to be supplying the next generation of laptops.)

Perhaps surprisingly, you may not know how to install or operate the zero dollar laptop.

You may never have installed a free, open source operating system. You may never have installed any operating system.

Nowadays it's quite easy. You can download a full version of the Linux operating system appropriate for the specification of your zero dollar laptop for free. It's entirely legal.

Many versions of Linux are user-friendly[1]. There are lots of help resources online, and there are likely to be local people who'll be happy to give you advice.

You may be unaware of lightweight window-managers that use memory more efficiently[2]. You may never have used powerful, compatible free office and productivity software[3]. It may surprise you to discover that free software can be better than software you can buy.

You may be reluctant to invest time, of which you may only have a little, rather than invest money - of which you may have plenty.

Think about the longer-term consequences: buy software and you'll have to pay again and again. Invest time learning about free software, and you'll never have to pay for software again.

For the sake of the planet, and for the sake of a fair, just, and cohesive society, isn't it about time you learned? Then maybe you could teach someone else.

You may ask, “Why isn't someone doing something to roll out the zero dollar laptop?” In developed-world economies and cultures we're familiar with centralised solutions. We're less familiar with localised, decentralised, do-it-yourself solutions. In this case, that “someone” is you.

Decentralised solutions like the zero dollar laptop may not seem to be as efficient as centralised solutions. However, efficiency isn't everything. Solutions of this character are more robust, more responsive to local circumstances, greener, more flexible, and they encourage local skill development and independence.

You may have to spend unpaid time learning about and implementing the distribution of a few zero dollar laptops in your area. Think about the contacts you'll make and the skills you'll learn. Think about the skills you'll help to develop, the lives you may transform, the fun you'll have.

The emergence of the zero dollar laptop as a key computing platform for empowering individuals, stimulating creativity, overcoming poverty and enriching our shared culture is entirely feasible without any additional research, design, or manufacture.

We already have all the tools we need - all we need to manufacture is the will to act locally; all we need to replace is the software on our hard drives; all we need to develop is the content of our minds.

James Wallbank, Sheffield, September 2007

Zero Dollar Laptop Manifesto Notes

In 1999 I wrote the Lowtech Manifesto[4]. That small document has been widely circulated, quoted and translated, and seems to have influenced (and encouraged) a large number of people concerned with developments at the cutting edge of digital culture. It's become clear to me that sometimes, all that's needed is for someone to state what's needed with call for action. Think of this methodology as a “WhyTo” rather than a “HowTo”.

At the time I proposed a creative approach to technology re-use. As a result of my decision to re-use technology, I haven't needed to buy a computer in the last decade. I've been involved in the development of a whole series of innovative digital artworks and the establishment of “Access Space”[5], an open access space for the local community to learn, create and communicate using recycled computers running free, open source software.

At the time of the Lowtech Manifesto, Professor Nicholas Negroponte pointed out (and was quoted in “Wired” magazine) the pressing social need for an accessibly priced computer. He reflected that the industry simply wasn't interested in engaging in the low profit, “commodity computing” market, and set about campaigning for the production of a $100 laptop.

At the time, laptops cost around $1000 or more[6] - but as we know, the price has been falling. Now new, generic, no-brand computers (and Dell workstations) are available for less than $500.

To avoid the early emergence of commodity computing, in the last few years manufacturers have been encouraging consumers to switch to laptops. Laptops are great for the industry, because they often use fiddly, proprietary spare parts (only supplied by the manufacturer), they're difficult or impossible to upgrade, and their lifespan is much lower than that of a desktop (if only because people drop them more often!)[7].

However, the industry hasn't been able to resist the trend for long - in the UK you can sign up for some broadband packages and get a new laptop for nothing - in very much the same way that you can buy a mobile phone contract and get an expensive handset apparently for free[8].

Although the industry doesn't like to acknowledge it, the age of commodity computing is now here.

Meanwhile, the Linux free operating system and associated free software packages, have developed hugely[9]. Linux is now very straightforward to use and provides a powerful suite of software which many experts agree is superior to the software you can buy.

Linux is very compatible with other systems, and research conducted on behalf of the UK government[10] suggests it make much more efficient use of a given hardware specification. Effectively, it doubles the useful lifespan of a computer. It's the key to unlocking the potential of the zero dollar laptop.

So at last, the industry has agreed to assist with Professor Negroponte's plans, and the $100 laptop has started to be produced.

The $100 laptop has transformed into the “One Laptop Per Child” project[11]. The price point has not been attainable - at the time of writing (September 2007) the price is about $176. There's also a “Give One Get One” deal - for $399 you buy two, and you get one to keep, while another is shipped to a poor country[12].

Very sensibly, Professor Negroponte has pointed out that the vision isn't about laptops - it's about education[13]. Don't get me wrong! I'm very positive about some aspects of the vision of the One Laptop Per Child Foundation. Distributing information technology may have hugely positive educational and empowering effects.

However, I've got some major issues with the “One Laptop per Child” $100 laptop project.

• It's ten years too late.

• It's $176 overpriced[14].

• The project is limited to laptops for children in poor countries.

• Even if you “Give One Get One”, nobody who's the wrong side of the digital divide in developed countries gets help.

• Whatever they say, the industry has become involved on terms still hugely orientated around consumerism, not empowerment.

• It's still a top-down process, by which rich, powerful institutions determine “the solution” and distribute it to poor, less powerful institutions, who distribute it to recipients whose role is essentially passive.

This manifesto talks about a laptop, but it isn't concerned with technology for its own sake. The issue is whether technology has an educational, empowering effect.

Technology has the power to amplify opportunity - but it also has the capacity to amplify social division: to make the rich richer, and the poor poorer.

For technology to be a force for good, it should genuinely make its users more independent, autonomous, fulfilled and happy.

Bibliografia/Referències

• Ubuntu Linux is a prominent and popular example - http://ubuntu.com

• dyne:bolic is a great example of a lightweight Linux distribution optimized to run on slower computers - http://dynebolic.org. Other solutions include minimal Debian Linux installations running lightweight window managers such as xfce, icewm, or twm – http://debian.org.

• The OpenOffice.Org free office software suite is highly compatible with proprietary office packages and does much the same things – http://openoffice.org. Gimp is a powerful graphical image processor that competes directly with Adobe Photoshop. Many users suggest Gimp is a superior product for originating RGB mode graphics - http://gimp.org.

• Lowtech Manifesto (1999, March 12th) Redundant Technology Initiative , [online], Sheffield, United Kingdom, Wallbank, J. Recovered September 6th 2008 from http://lowtech.org/projects/n5m3

• Additional resources about Access Space (opened Sheffield, UK, 2000) are available at http://access-space.org

• Numerous examples of historical laptop pricing data are available, but this illustrative historical overview of the contemporary artists' favourite, the Macintosh G3 Laptop, may amuse: “February 12, 1999 - PowerBook G3 prices are lowered again from $2,499 to $2,299 on the low-end and $4,399 to $3,699 on the high-end.”. Recovered October 13th 2009 from http://www.designedinca.com/1999/

• An introductory comparison is available from http://velocityguide.com/laptop-vs-desktop.html. Wikipedia has an excellent overview, citing disadvantages of laptops to include deficiencies in updrageability and durability. Recovered October 13th 2009 from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laptop#Disadvatages

• A comparison of UK commercial offerings of mobile broadband packages which include apparently free laptops is available at http://www.broadband-expert.co.uk/mobile-braodband/free-laptop/

• Wikipedia has an excellent overview of the development of Linux: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linux_adoption#Timeline

• Open Source Software Trials in Government (2007) Office for Government Commerce, [online], London, United Kingdom, Recovered October 13th 2009 from http://www.ogc.gov.uk/documents/CP0041OpenSourceSoftwareTrialReport.pdf

• One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) - http://laptop.org.

• “$399 to give a laptop to a child in the developing world and get a laptop.” The “Give One Get One” scheme seems to be episodic, not a continuing offer. The 2008 offer is documented here: http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/sj/g1g1-2008-give-a-laptop-change-the-world/

•  “One Laptop per Child is not about a machine, it’s about a movement; and we’d love you to be a part of it.”. Recovered October 13th 2009 from http://laptop.org/en/participate/index.shtml

• This figure is now a significant underestimate. At the time of writing (October 2009) you can give an OLPC XO laptop for $199. http://laptop.org/en/participate/ways-to-give.shtml However, asking price for a consumer in the UK is now as much as £389 (currently more than $600) Recovered October 14th 2009 from  http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=150304137897

• While I haven't referenced these texts directly (I hadn't read them at the time I wrote the manifesto!) I earnestly direct the reader's attention to these excellent works which have a close bearing on the change in relationship with technology which the Zero Dollar Laptop Manifesto implies, and seeks to precipitate:

• FEENBERG, Andrew, 1991,  Critical Theory of Technology, New York: Oxford University Press Inc.

•  PIRSIG, Robert M., 1974, Zen & The Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, USA: William Morrow & Company

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