In an age where everyone is talking about the ‘digital divide’, its nice to see a developing nation being first to benefit from the latest use of new technology. Well, not latest, the idea has been possible for a decade but nobody has tried it until now. The basic principle is, that instead of textbooks, which detereorate rapidly and in some cases are out of date before they reach the school, one school in Kenya has given its pupils linux-based PDAs that connect wirelessly to the school computer system, which in turn downloads e-textbooks from a one-way satellite link. That way, they get the most up-to-date information possible, and can take it home with them. So why exactly has this not been done in the UK? Well my last sentence contained the phrase ‘linux based’. Local authorities in particular are so devoted to their bulk-buy deals with Micro$uck$ (hmm, a 5% discount for M$ or a 100% discount for linux?) that hell will freeze over before they make technology decisions based on educational benefits rather than corporate allegiance. Come on guys, get with the program.