Global Policy Forum

By Frederick Noronha

If all works as planned, Simputer or Simple Inexpensive Multilingual People's Computer, could go a long way in taking computing within the reach of the common man in not just India but across the developing world.

Slated to cost below $200 the device is now just weeks away from its prototypes being made. "Response has been phenomenal so far. We have got some 30 to 40 mega bytes of e-mail just discussing this project," says Vijay Chandru, an Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)-educated computer scientist, who is one of those involved in the project at the Indian Institute of Science here.

It's not only that it costs less than $200 (Rs. 9, 306) but also what the Simputer will be able to do. Put together by several academics and engineers -- in their spare time -- this Internet device will have the potential to help even non-literate users to surf the Net and e-mail.

Once commercialized and put out in the market -- its designs will be freely released to companies for reproduction -- the Simputer can not only be used as a device for individuals to access the Net, but also by communities through kiosks. A smart-card interface is being worked on to facilitate micro banking.

Proving skeptics wrong so far, the Simputer team has put together a working model of the device, which was showcased this week at the Banglinux Conference, held in this software capital of India early this month.

Simputer is built around Intel's strong CPU and is based on the Linux operating system, with 16 MB of flash memory, a monochrome liquid crystal display (LCD) and a touch-panel for pen-based computing.

What's more interesting is the manner in which the product is being released, through what is called open hardware licensing. To promote hardware innovation in India -- a country that doesn't have a reputation in this field, unlike in software -- its design will be provided at a nominal license fee to manufacturers.

"Companies can go ahead and create an improved Simputer. But, after a one-year 'window of opportunity' the hardware they create will then come back into the public domain. This will avoid the creation of monopolies and give people an incentive to innovate," said Swami Manohar, another key person who is part of the newly-setup Simputer Trust.

For what would this keyboard less computing device be used? "We don't expect someone to browse the Net with this for two hours. But a villager could quickly log on to the Net, get the information like the latest prices being offered for commodities in nearby markets," Manohar said. He also clarified that it would be simple to operate so that people wouldn't need "Rs. 200 per week training" to use it.

Since open source software based on Linux was used, a whole host of people would be able to create suitable software for it, he said. One problem still remaining was that nobody was prepared to give them the technology to create Smart Card readers, which would be openly available to future developers. "We cater to four languages as of now, including English, Hindi and Kannada. If this device could speak to you in your own language, it would be really nice," said Manohar.

Chandru told IANS that in some "four weeks" time about 400 to 500 prototypes would be developed and then employed for field trials. The cost of Simputer was kept low simply because the "development team was just not claiming any recompense," he said. Devices with somewhat similar potential were being sold at prices of $400 plus. "Then, you have to keep in mind that there's nothing really comparable," he said.

He disagreed with the suggestion that the Simputer would be difficult to maintain in rural India. "Transistor radios are a great analogue. In spite of having fairly complex electronics, they've worked," he said. He added that the durability too would be high, since there are no large moving parts in the Simputer and it did not have to cope with power-surges from the mains.

"It's bound to work now," he smiled nervously, after obviously putting the most trying periods behind him. Some 10 to 12 people, on average, have been working on this project since December 1999. He said this computing device could also have implications in fighting illiteracy in a country like India. "One of the best ways to teach people a script is to have it recited," he pointed out.

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