A non-profit group in India has created a simple, inexpensive, multilingual handheld device aimed at bringing computing to developing nations. Dubbed the "Simputer", the PDA-sized handheld computer will run on the GNU/Linux operating system.
The idea was to create a low-cost, mass-access device that could bring local-language computing to the masses.
The device is the creature of the Simputer Trust, a non-profit group comprised of academics and technologists from India's computing industry. Their vision is to create not only a computer, but also an "evolving platform for social change" throughout the world by bridging the digital divide. They wanted a device that could be used by literate people in Third World nations who lack computer skills, as well as by illiterate people.
To do this, the Trust has created an alternative to the PC -- a device with interfaces based on sight, touch and sound.
The first working prototypes of the Simputer were revealed last month. The Simputer is a PDA-sized handheld computer that runs on the GNU/Linux operating system. Simputer's creators are quick to point out that it's not a PC but more like a pocket computer. But it's not a Palm -- it's much more powerful.
The Trust has created a special browser, Imli, using something it has dubbed Information Markup Language (IML), based on XML. The Trust says it created IML "to provide a uniform experience to users and to allow rapid development of solutions on any platform". The IML's biggest plus is that it is Smart Card aware.
