Why the One Laptop Per Child devices are white and green

January 28, 2013

The white case and bright green trim of One Laptop Per Child's laptops have made them among the most recognizable in the world, but what's the story behind the choice of colors? Last week, Nicholas Negroponte, former head of the OLPC project and co-founder of the MIT Media Lab, explained the backstory. The newest version of the OLPC is a 7-inch tablet, announced at CES earlier this month. Like its predecessors, the unit is a bright green and white, durable device with flexible power input and charging functions. The inexpensive OLPC units are designed to bring computing and education to children in developing countries. The origin of the color scheme dates back to late 2005, just after the first OLPC prototype was shown to reporters at the World Summit on the Information Society in Tunis. OLPCNicholas Negroponte "After the Tunis meeting, I was asked to go to Nigeria and present to President Obasanjo and his cabinet," said Negroponte. The MIT professor arrived and was ushered into a meeting room with a large table. Seated along one side were many of Nigeria's government ministers, and on the other was a lone Negroponte, he recalled. The former president's seat was empty, as those gathered awaited his arrival. To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Link: http://www.pcworld.com/article/2026230/why-the-one-laptop-per-child-devices-are-white-and-green.html