Parents fight a California school district's decision to make $1,500 laptops mandatory

Parents in Fullerton, California are up in arms over the to make $1,500 Apple iBook G4 laptops a mandatory requirement for elementary students.  Many school districts are joining the trend of making available laptops for students, but the funds/hardware are usually provided by the county, state or a third party.  While the schools may see a benefit in making their students more connected, some students would tend to disagree:

It was fun to have around and to use for my own purposes, but it didn't make school any better or more challenging. ... A lot of it at school was to show off what you know about computers.

www.anandtech.com/