South Asia: Computer Technology
By Kamala Sarup
"We bought a new computer yesterday. I am also ready to purchase a new desktop computer and your advice will be
appreciated," my sister in Kathmandu, a wonderful woman and about to be married, told me over the phone.
"I expect that all members of your family will become proficient at the computer, including your son. Enjoy your new
computer and learn from it. I learn much by it every day." I told her.
"I can't advise you on the manufacturer since I know nothing about it. Quality is extremely important because you want
to avoid repairs, which are expensive. If you buy a cheap computer with poor quality, then you will spend a lot of money
buying replacement parts and paying for the labor to have them installed."
"Here in the US, I buy only the DELL brand, which is more expensive, but it has an excellent reputation for quality
(reliability), which means I rarely have to buy new parts and pay to have them installed. In the US, the reliability
ratings of different manufacturers are given in PC Magazine, a weekly publication. Maybe you have a magazine there that
provides reliability ratings for the computers sold in India?" I advised.
I think buying the 3.0 GHz microprocessors is also important so the computers will not soon become obsolete. In India
and in Nepal 1.44 MB including 250 MB internal or 250 MB external Drive can be found. The sellers understand that what
is 250 MB internal or 250 MB external Drive.
There are so many computer sellers in the market and one of them is Merchantiles company which sells only the original
parts imported from high qualified company and country.
Additionally, I offered this advice:
1.Please verify that the computer has a sound card; otherwise, you cannot hear the sound from the speakers. This is to
listen to videos and music.
2. There must be some kind of larger internal or external drive than the 1.44 MB floppy so that large amounts of data
can be transferrred between computers. The 1.44 MB is too small a storage for large amounts of data.
3. There must be software available in Nepal that allows people to write letters on the computer. We call that a "word
processor". Also, there must be software that allows for columns of data, e.g., in accounting. We call that a
"spreadsheet." Check these out again.
Finally, buy a highly rated (superior) surge protector. This device protects the computer against a lightning strike on
the house that would be transmitted to the computer. Without the surge protector, the electricity would destroy the
computer.
According to i4d "The technology has been tested and trained for variations over a large number of speakers from
different regions of the country. The technology could be also useful in voice- enabling ATM kiosks and in car
navigation systems. It also converts Unicode text into ISFOC fonts to enable a user to import the text to any Windows
based application". Source:i4d.
The biggest advantage of technology in education is its ability to provide each student with information at a pace that
is effective to his/her learning ability and motivation without increasing the number of teachers and school expense. In
other words, it provides the most effective learning at reduced cost.
Specific technologies are the following:
(1) Multiple videos of lectures and experiments located in libraries that can be taken out by each student and studied
at a pace that is commensurate with his/her ability and motivation.
(2) Internet lectures by a competent teacher that can be viewed by students with computers simultaneously in many
locations, thus reducing the number of teachers. Questions can be forwarded to the teacher for individual responses.
(3) Computer examinations of student learning in supervised laboratories, thus saving teacher time.
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Journalist and Story Writer Kamala Sarup associates and writes for http://www.mediaforfreedom.com/
. She is a regular contributor to United Press International - Asia News. She is specializes in in-depth reporting and
writing on peace, anti-war, women, terrorism, democracy,and development. Some of her publications are: Women;s
Empowerment in South Asia, Nepal (booklets); Prevention of Trafficking in Women Through Media, (book); Efforts to
Prevent Trafficking in for Media Activism (media research). She has also written two collections of stories.