Qimo: an operating system for kids
Qimo is a free operating system designed for kids aged 3 and up. Have your kids tried Qimo?
Qimo – pronounced kim-oh – is a completely free operating system designed especially for kids. It’s based on the Ubuntu Linux distribution. It’s the brainchild of husband and wife team Brian and Micelle Hall, the couple behind QuinnCo – “a not-for-profit charitable organization, designed to help special needs children and low-income children by giving them fully-functional computer systems.” The operating system comes bundled with a set of educational games and has been designed to be easy to use by kids aged 3 and up.
Qimo can be run from a LiveCD meaning that you can try it without actually having to install it. Simply download the ISO file, burn it to a CD and reboot while the CD is in the CD drive. And, if you decide that Qimo is worth keeping, you can install it on pretty much any old computer (the minimum requirements are 256MB of memory, 6 GB of hard drive space and a 400MHz CPU).
I haven’t actually tried Qimo – my child is a little too old! – but I do love the concept. And I particularly like the idea of providing kids with a taste of an alternative operating system at an early age.
Have you or your kids used Qimo or some other child-friendly operating system? If so, I’d love to hear about your experiences.
This is a terrible idea. So when the kids go to school and need to use a windows pc or Mac OSX they will have no idea how to. I like the free part but still.
my son always used linux he ad no problems with windows when he goes to school only to fix other kids computer when theirs crash because of windows 7 A lot of the brighter kids at his school are now switching over to Ubuntu which is really great. why don’t the schools switch to linux, Its free and friendly to use . what is everyone scared of ??? Qimo is a great way for kids to start and break away from costly windows
Hey mac,
that’s sort of like saying that kids shouldn’t learn to ride bikes with training wheels because then they won’t know how to ride a bike without them. Full OSs like Mac OS and Windows don’t offer a “training wheels” mode (although there was an excellent program for earlier versions of the the Mac OS that did just that – the name escapes me). If Qimo can get kids comfortable with the basics of computing, they will be much more likely to pick up a full OS rapidly when they’re ready for it.
I can’t help but partially agree with mac. I don’t understand why kids can’t use an existing operating system. I know plenty of really younge children who operate a PC just fine without a special OS.
3 year olds?
Oh, they can use them. The question is, how often do you want to fix them.
Why would using a non-Windows operating system make kids unable to use Windows?
personaly i would just get ubuntu because its free and can run almost every windoes app and some mac one and the odds of getting a virus on ubuntu are .01 of 100
I agree
I think some of the commenters are missing the point. This operating system is designed for kid as they pointed out. Linux, Windows, and Mac have not provided an OS for kids that I know of. They all have programs that can run children’s games etc. but no actual os for children. As far as the point about virus is concerned, there should be none on this either at present as it is so new. I think I will try it on an older computer I have and give it to a neighbours 4 year old. Once a child has used any computer with any OS, they can very quickly adapt to another with no difficulty. It is us aged persons who have difficulty adapting.
I agree with Mike. I assume that this operating system protects the kids from some of the hazards present on the web. If it allows internet activity at all. I will find out though. Bob’s comment is strange, I know 2 year olds that are savy enough to tackle computers, what’s so surprising about 3 year olds.
Upload a video of a 3 year old navigasting windows to You Tube and make me a believer.Better yet,have the 3 year old upload it.
My grandson uses win7 and he is only 4.
David, Qimo is based on Ubuntu 10.04.
The operating system is irrelevant! A good operating system should be invisible, it is the interface that’s important. My grand kids use any thing thrown at them. Win XP Win 7 MAC etc. In fact when my daughter was in elementary school she used my Radio Shack Color Computer, an IBM clone and an Apple at school. She was only interested in what the computer could do.
Bob you must be living in the dark ages!!! My children both have been using the computer since they have been 2.5 and yes they can download and upload pictures all on there own. Of course I monitor what they are doing at all times but children learn quick as we are in a computer age not the stone age. I like the idea of os for children and will likely give this one a try on my old system
Downloading and uploading pictures is fairly simple.That is not computing.At that age kids are still learning to form proper sentences.Justin said he knew a lot of 3 year olds who operate a pc just fine.I don’t believe most 3 year olds can even read the instructions.The most important thing to them is learning to use the potty.I guess you could teach a 3 year old to do very basic things through repitition,but that again is not computing.Qimo is a great idea because it uses language that toddlers can understand.I will show it to my two and a half year old grandaughter.
Whyever not! What a good idea. We have kids TV and DVDs and educational programs…so why not an OS. As for starting with Linux and not being able to use Windows (or Mac) later….well…I was born to speak Kannada, went to school and learned Tamil, Hindi and English. On to French now. So there….! And yes my 9 month old will have, one day, his own laptop with its own kiddy OS so he can play and learn.
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Some people posting on here are completely missing the point (I completely agree with Mike E). It’s not like these people are teaching kids a totally different language instead of english. My boy has been able to use a windows computer since he was about 2 and a half years old, which is awesome, but the virus thing is one of my main concerns. I own a computer business, and if I had a dime for every time I had someone come in saying that they had porn images pop up on their screen randomly (due to a virus), I’d be a rich man. Full grown adults have a hard time keeping their computers virus clean. Having a non-mainstream OS for kids just adds to the protection from nasty stuff like that. I think this is a wonderful idea, and I will be setting it up for my boy (he’s 5 now). He should be able to adapt just fine, and I agree with the other person when I say that it’s us older people that have the hard time adapting to something new. And many people that have used computers for awhile either have an old one sitting doing nothing or can get their hands on one for this purpose. Anyone that thinks this is a dumb idea is completely wrong.
i have been using computers since i was five and every time i came in contact with a computer i wanted to learn more and more, kids have the ability to suck up information so fast as long as you dont overload them at some point the real thing needs to be introduced have a few games you think they will like and the transition should be pretty smooth
Like Simon was talking about: “that’s sort of like saying that kids shouldn’t learn to ride bikes with training wheels because then they won’t know how to ride a bike without them”
i totally agree, and i think there should be a step by step ladder to learning computers.
all home user operating systems have the same features, functions, and buttons… they are just moved around…once the child has mastered the idea of: Oooo to close the window its the big [X] at the top, or maximizing the windows or minimizing them. its simple to show that these small steps are same in that home user operating system.
to those thinking of just installing real operating systems.
this would be a good idea except you may have to reinstall windows several times, unless you know all the areas to lock down…or if not then there is a chance the little monsters get to system folder and start change files or deleting…which will make your operating system un-bootable. now just thinking you can use programs to restore the operating system every time it reboots: deep-freeze or drive vaccine to name two, im sure theres more.
We have this OS on my 7 year old daughter’s computer and we are very happy with it. She figured out how to use it quickly and I like that it limits her online activities. She has no problem using a windows OS either, she uses one at school.
I think it’s a great idea that there are operating systems for children. I don’t care if it’s windows, ubuntu, or mac because the more OS your children get familiar with, the more flexible and they will become. Who wants to only know how to use ONE OS? I definitely would hire someone who knew multiple OS versus someone who only knew one. I prefer one OS over another, but I would still like to learn how to use each one to at least be familiar with. My kid is 6 and I want him involved with computers. I know in my heart that he could operate Windows 7, but with all the things he could get into and change is going to be a disaster to fix all the time (even if I set restrictions). So, for the negative nancys, keep your minds open and don’t be afraid to explore new things.
I believe the biggest point missed in this discussion is the ability of Qimo to boot from a live CD. That means you can even boot it in a diskless PC. That alone wipes away any worries about viruses.
Now, if only I could make it boot in 640×480 to the TV out in that video card, I would be all set!!!