Their goal is to "cut off the air supply" to Google… just like Google's goal with ChromeOS (and the $249 Chromebooks) is to cut off Microsoft/Apple's profits.
As consumers, sometimes we get a nice deal out of the infighting.
I'm not saying that Microsoft is motivated purely by altruism - however, Microsoft could probably offer everybody (not just students) ad free search and still be massively profitable and there's not a damn thing Google can do about it.
Privacy issues are a potential long term limitation on Google's business model and kids grow up fast.
Computer: no.
Before that I functioned just fine on a Samsung chromebook ($199) for 6 months.
I can assure you, Chromebooks are most definitely a computers. (They cover far more than the needs of the average user)
If it is a ChromeOS device, I don't believe you. You cannot be an effective sysadmin administrator on a ChromeOS machine unless you're propping up Google Apps and nothing else.
If you have installed something else, the value proposition of a pixel is flawed and your education district shouldn't have paid for it.
And, I would think that for most school work, having a computer that the kids can't break would be an admin's dream.
So, the ChromeOS notebook should work as good as anything for that job.
About 50% of my administrative tasks (documentation and architecture) are entirely offline tasks?
My kids can't break their windows machine, because I know what I'm doing and have set up a strong security policy.
In my experience, I find that regardless of policy, windows computers are more likely to break down at one point or another. Curious though, what do you do different to mitigate that inevitability?
1. Secure by default. The default windows configuration is not secure by default - it's a compromise that is used to make it usable for people. You can (with Group Policy) lock the machine down heavily then allow things as they are required. I do this.
2. Good hardware. They have a Dell Precision T3500 rather than some shitty disposable piece of crap. I expect this will last around 8-10 years.
Windows is perfectly fine if you understand it. We have 377 Windows machines and 205 Linux machines in total. Reliability statistics are approximately the same. The only issues we get is with hardware packing in occasionally (usually the HP mid-range stuff and their laptops).
For offline tasks, use offline apps, like Google Docs.
I wait until the end of my commute, and then use the network there. All places I work form have internet access.
As others have mentioned: -I can ssh into any linux box I need.
As others haven't mentioned: -I can RDP via chrome app to any Windows server I need (Or more commonly I RDP to a "command" server and do all my other work from there.) This gives the added benefit of keeping my device outside the general workflow of things. I still have a windows laptop loaded with the same image as the average user, but there's really only for dogfooding.
We are a Google Apps heavy shop - so there's that.
I'm missing the logical connection you make between what my school district should and shouldn't pay for... Should your employers not buy Macbooks?
Oh and the Lenovo T400 I bought last week (Core 2, 2.4, 8Gb RAM, Radeon HD, 128Gb Samsung 840 pro) lasts 8 hours only cost $25 more and doesn't break if you cough near it.
I don't get the value proposition.
HOwever, the school district should buy a pile of shit dell desktops and bolt them to the desks like they probably did before rather than succumb to a low priced promotional Trojan.
Someone probably gets a promotion for saving the cash but do they realise how inflexible the machine is and how tied onto the vendors' platform it is.
Selling out is the only description.
That's an interesting use of "give."
Anyway, the idea of an ad free search engine hits right at the heart of Google's business. While I know many adults who are unconcerned about their own online privacy, many of them have serious concerns about their children's.
Google is entangled with Schmidt's creepy line.