"David Schmenk"  wrote in message 
news:Bu8gk.16694$89.7001{at}nlpi069.nbdc.sbc.com...

> I'm in Incline Village, at Lake Tahoe.  Like many, we struggle with the 
> influx of Spanish speaking residents (was that politically correct 
> enough?) and their children who arrive at school without speaking any 
> English.

In Canada, we are struggling with Multi-culturalism and growing discontent 
with a government policy that avoids anything resembling the "Melting-pot" 
that the US is so famous for. We still accept the "tired and the
poor" with 
open arms but little effort is made for many who becomes isolated as a 
result.

> I think having the programs in English is desired.

As you see by my country's policy, I am thinking like a Canadian:) Of course 
English is desirable and it is the simplicity of the Apple II and indeed 
programs like mine that makes these useful in Lake Tahoe.

> The large, easy to read fonts are also important.  No 7 pt micro-fonts, 
> please. The teacher uses the Apple II programs as aids to introduce 
> English.

Gotcha!

> Eveything I have on cd I downloaded from the new and asimov.  Offering the 
> ISO image that auto-runs AppleWin available would be easy enough, though.

I was actually thinking of a mail order CD for teachers. David you probably 
have your hands full and don't need me adding to your list so ignore that 
comment:)


> I think there has been a shift away from the basics.  The Apple II is 
> really no more complicated than a tape recorder for a kid to use - and 
> about as robust.  Stick a disk in the drive and turn it on.  The hardware 
> requires simple, big and bold graphics.  Damn near indestructible. 
> Perfect for the educational market.

Agreed.

> What other computer can withstand the use by grade-school kids for ten 
> years and still work like it was new?  It's hard to argue that a Dell 
> running XP is a better environment, IMHO.

FORM=FUNCTION:) There was a damned good reason that IBM-PC programmers like 
me never criticized the use of the Apple II by our children in the schools 
even when they were already over a decade old. That is the reason. It was 
common sense back then.

> I know, all the kids are used to whiz-bang graphics (of which I'm partly 
> guilty) and 5.1 surround sound. You can't keep their ADD brains in front 
> of a boring old computer for long.

Everything has its place. I was writing talking kisok systems with 
true-color graphics during the same years as I wrote my Apple II stuff. 
Different audience.

> Another goal I had for my java vm02 project was to be an advanced high 
> school computer curriculum tool.  Schools used to have all the Apple IIs 
> stuck in a closet.  Image using them for teaching basic aspects of 
> hardware design using a relatively modern language - one that they would
most likely be learning in high school or college.  So what if one gets 
fried (which is kind of hard to do anyway), just pull another one out of the 
closet.  Add NadaNet to learn about networks and grid computing, all using 
stuff that was going to be thrown away.

Very good idea and very practical.

> But, I'm a few years too late.  Most of the Apple IIs have been tossed. 
> There was still so much learning potential in those machines, from 
> kindergarten through high school.

I too am too late. Hindsight is 20/20...

> Maybe we can keep the old-skool vision going for a little while longer,

Apple II Forever? I think so. We have antique car clubs as well. And kids 
like to sit on the old steam tractors and walk through the old airplanes so 
why not?

Bill
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