[Sugar-devel] The future of Sugar on XO-1s

[James Cameron]

On Sun, Apr 10, 2016 at 09:58:15PM -0400, Dave Crossland wrote:
> 
> Hi James!
> 
> Brilliant answer, thank you :) 
> 
> On 10 April 2016 at 18:26, James Cameron <[1]quozl at laptop.org> wrote:
> 
>     On Sat, Apr 09, 2016 at 08:47:35AM -0400, Dave Crossland wrote:
>     >
>     > On 9 April 2016 at 06:31, James Cameron <[1][2]quozl at laptop.org> wrote:
>     >
>     >     The XO-4 is in production.
>     >
>     > What's the minimum order from OLPC? :) 
> 
>     You are asking for the minimum order quantity (MOQ) of the XO-4.
> 
>     I don't know, it's not my task, and I don't feel I can escalate the
>     question for you. 
> 
>      
> 
>     I'm an engineering contractor with specific tasks,
>     not an office bearer or manager.
> 
> Sure, I don't intend for you to feel any pressure to "speak above your
> paygrade." I'm perfectly happy with "I don't know" or "I'm not authorised to
> say" :) 
>  
> 
>     The XO-4 MOQ could change day by day, as exchange rates, shipping,
>     metal prices, component prices and their MOQ shift and change.
> 
> For sure. And so I expect finding out precise answers has a cost, and if it is
> just me as some rando on a mailing list throwing out questions, that cost isn't
> worth paying. But if SL is committed to becoming a reseller, maybe it would be
> worth it. 
> 
> So, would you feel comfortable escalating the question if a SL Member submits a
> motion to SLOB's 2016-05 meeting as follows, and it passes?

My preference is for Sugar Labs to approach OLPC more directly than
through me.  It really isn't something I need to be involved with.

>     Sugar Labs intends to become an XO-4 Reseller to (a) raise funds (b) raise
>     awareness of Sugar (c) promoting the development of more XO-enhanced
>     activities (d) nurture new local labs. SLOB will appoint a Member to liaise
>     with OLPC Association to find out relevant facts (including but not limited
>     to: possible ranges of viable minimum order quantities, prices, delivery
>     schedules, etc)

OLPC, Inc.  Not OLPC Association.  Anybody who has referred to
Association is talking about a previous organisation.

I'm not a Sugar Labs member, but if I were I'd be concerned about
constraining the scope of that motion to XO-4.

>     Two of my tasks are firmware based production testing and first
>     article inspection (FAI) approvals.
> 
> Great! [3]http://wiki.laptop.org/go/User:Quozl is scant on such
> details ;) 

Yes.  That's fine.

>     Here's how some of the process works:
> 
>     A configuration is a set of component specifications; e.g. keyboard
>     type, language, model, peripherals, storage, CPU, RAM, camera,
>     wireless, battery.
> 
>     A stock keeping unit (SKU) is a unique configuration to be
>     manufactured and tested.  We have a list of SKUs on our Wiki at
>     [4]http://wiki.laptop.org/go/Manufacturing_data#XO-4
> 
>     An order comes in from a customer with a configuration.  When the
>     configuration is in our list, we use that SKU.  Otherwise, a new SKU
>     is added.
> 
>     An FAI occurs once for each SKU.  After that, the SKU can be
>     manufactured for other orders.  Changes to the source of components in
>     a configuration may trigger another FAI.  An FAI does not list
>     quantities.
> 
> That all makes sense and is good to know :) I'm not sure where it should live
> on [5]wiki.laptop.org though?

I don't think it needs to.  wiki.laptop.org is primarily for technical
support now, not for organisational stuff.

>     Quantities inform my customer support task.  To provide support, my
>     lab has representative SKUs.  Having a sample of each component is
>     critical for support.  Having one of each SKU would be perfect, but
>     prohibitive.
> 
>     So I have to get an idea of the quantities to keep the cost of the lab
>     down.  In the past two years there has been production of as few as
>     100 units of an SKU.  The lowest XO-4 MOQ observed.
> 
> Cool! 100 units is a lot less then 10,000. Perhaps you don't know or can't
> tell, and if so then no worries, but what was the price per unit of the 100 SKU
> order? 

I'm not authorised to answer that question.

>     But, as I said at the outset, that doesn't always hold true, and it
>     isn't a number to be taken as a promise.  If there is a serious
>     purchaser, they should be talking to OLPC directly, not to some random
>     stranger they meet on a public mailing list.  ;-)
> 
> Per [6]http://wiki.laptop.org/go/Buying_XOs to talk to OLPC directly I'd need
> to email [7]countries at laptop.org right?

Yes.  When doing so, specify the quantity, configuration and where you
would want them shipped.  Usually the units are made to order.

-- 
James Cameron
http://quozl.netrek.org/