The first batch of $100-computers pioneered by Nicholas Negroponte's 'one laptop per child' project is expected to be ready to be shipped out by July this year.

The scheme is part of a project at Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Media Lab, which Negroponte launched in 2004 to bring low-cost computers in the hands of people in developing countries.(See:  Nicholas Negroponte designs a sub-$100 laptop)

Among the first countries to signup to buy these low-cost computers include Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, Nigeria, Libya, Pakistan and Thailand, with more expected to join in January 2007.

The idea of a cheap computer first occurred to Negroponte while visiting a Cambodian village some years ago.

The laptop has been designed to withstand the rigours of developing markets. Tough and foldable in different ways, it even has a hand-crank generator for power where there is no electricity. Power is a big problem in developing nations, which is why the hand crank will be fitted where it is needed.

Known as the XO, the Linux-based laptop is powered by a 366-megahertz processor from Advanced Micro Devices and has built-in wireless networking. It has no hard disk drive and instead uses 512 MB of flash memory, and has two USB ports to which more storage could be attached.

Instead of information being stored in folders or the desktop, users of the low-cost laptop work on an electronic journal, a log of everything the user has done on the laptop.

The machine comes with a web browser, word processor and RSS reader, for accessing the web feeds that so many sites now offer.

The project is being backed by Google and has invited derision from Microsoft founder Bill Gates. (See: Bill Gates pokes fun at MIT's $100 laptop project).

Negroponte has been critical of the fact that elementary school computer labs as they exist in trained children to work on Word, Excel and PowerPoint. "I consider that criminal, because children should be making things, communicating, exploring, sharing, not running office automation tools," he says.

The computer runs on a cut-down version of the open source Linux operating system and has been designed to work differently to a Microsoft Windows or Apple machine from a usability perspective.

Negroponte himself says, that very soon he would give up using his own computer and use only XO. "It will be far better, in many new and important ways," is his claim that also seems to be in concurrence with volunteer organisations trying that takes technology Teaching to developing countries.