The Simmtronics Simmbook will initially be available in South Africa and emerging markets. In addition to African countries, the Simmbook will also be available in India, Thailand and Vietnam.

The Simmbook will come preloaded with IBM Client for Smart Work, which includes IBM software like Lotus Symphony and access to IBM LotusLive cloud collaboration services. The Simmbook will run Ubuntu from Canonical as its operating system

http://www.readwriteweb.com/enterprise/2010/03/ibm-partners-to-offer-190-clou.php

See also http://www.ibm.com/developerworks/linux/library/l-solarnetone/

Africa Embraces Linux, Cloud through IBM Client for Smart Work

Organizations of all types from business, government, and academic to philanthropic across the emerging markets of Africa are rapidly adopting Linux and cloud computing services just one month after a package, the IBM Client for Smart Work (www.ibm.com/lotus/openclient), was launched in South Africa, Nigeria and Kenya.

The IBM Client for Smart Work, the first cloud and Linux-based software package offered by IBM and Canonical, can be installed on netbooks and other thin client devices or even existing personal computers, eliminating the need for new hardware. By comparison, it could cost companies up to $2,000 per seat to migrate using other proprietary software, according to some market estimates, much of it in higher hardware requirements.

“The ability to make personal computing lightweight, inexpensive and flexible on an open base is a key to bypassing the proprietary legacies of established markets and to bridging the digital divide in Africa,” said IBM sub- Saharan CTO, Clifford Foster. “All types of organizations, whether business, government, academic or philanthropic, are adopting this new computing model,” he adds.

http://www-03.ibm.com/press/us/en/pressrelease/28759.wss

See also some earlier analysis

http://appfrica.net/blog/2009/09/24/netbooks-for-africa-ibm-and-canonical-team-up/

T-Mobile’s now reporting that personal data stored on Sidekicks has “almost certainly has been lost as a result of a server failure at Microsoft/Danger.” They’re still looking for a way to recover it, but they’re not giving users a lot of hope — meanwhile, servers are still on the fritz and customers are being advised not to let their devices power down because anything that’s still on there will be lost the next time the device is turned on.

http://www.engadget.com/2009/10/10/t-mobile-we-probably-lost-all-your-sidekick-data/

http://forums.t-mobile.com/tmbl/?category.id=Sidekick

Update: Looks like recovery is happening after all

The tech press is full of people who want to tell you how completely awesome life is going to be when everything moves to ‘the cloud’ — that is, when all your important storage, processing and other needs are handled by vast, professionally managed data-centers. Here’s something you won’t see mentioned, though: the main attraction of the cloud to investors and entrepreneurs is the idea of making money from you, on a recurring, perpetual basis, for something you currently get for a flat rate or for free without having to give up the money or privacy that cloud companies hope to leverage into fortunes.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2009/sep/02/cory-doctorow-cloud-computing

From C Wright Mills to Bruce Sterling… what can I say.