How to be a green computer user
It’s Blog Action Day, and the question you need to ask yourself is how you can make your computing more environmentally friendly.
TECH.BLORGE.com is taking part in Blog Action Day, and since each blog is supposed to talk about how you can improve your relationship with the environment in relation to its subject, we’re doing green computing.
So, how can you improve your computer’s relationship with the planet? There are some very simple steps you can take that may surprise you.
Monitor – Do you know that not only does your flat panel monitor save you valuable real estate on your desktop, but it also consumes less power than your old mammoth screen? LCD monitors still use a cold-cathode fluorescent bulb, which contains some mercury, but it is still easier to recycle than the old CRT (cathode ray tube) models.
The newest models are using LED style screens to emit their light, and are even more environmentally friendly than the LCD screens while consuming less power.
And ask yourself when you order that new system if you really need another monitor. Is your old one still working? Even if it’s a CRT, it’s best to use a display as long as you can to save it from having to go to recycling.
Hard Drives – The new solid state drives, while expensive, can also save you money in they require less energy since there are no moving parts. There are disadvantages in their lifecycle, but power consumption wise, they offer a large savings and less carbon footprint.
If you want to stay with traditional platter-style drives, you can still be eco-friendly. Western Digital has introduced a line of drives that will help companies to be Energy Star compliant that, while consuming less power, could save you as much as $10 a year on your electrical bill.
Energy Management – Do you ever let your system hibernate? Why not? Because you MIGHT need it on a moments notice? Well, computer power supplies are one of the most notoriously wasteful parts of a computer. If you are running a fairly new one, it can be as high as 80% efficient, but you are still wasting a lot of power.
When going to bed, if your computer isn’t on for something essential go ahead and turn it off for the night. If you feel the need to leave it running, at least put the energy saving mode on so it will hibernate.
Recycling – When it’s time to dump that old system, don’t simply send it to the landfill. All the major computer companies now offer recycling programs of one form or another. We’ve provided links to the most common manufacturers, but be sure to check for your manufacturers details. Most of them offer you credits and coupons towards future purchases for recycling your old system.
Remember, every little bit helps, and a lot of the suggestions we’ve provided you with can also help save you some money. So no matter how you may feel about the subject, isn’t it nice to at least save a few dollars also?
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October 15th, 2007
Excellent advice above.
A little extra advice for those in control of energy consumption at an office with a lot of computers: if your building has interval electricity metering (this typically records energy consumption every 15-minutes or half hour), analyze that energy data once a week or so to actually see how much energy is being used by equipment left on standby during lunch hours, overnight, and on weekends.
You can do this in Excel, or you can use a software product like the one my company makes: http://www.energylens.com/ – either way it’s a great way to figure out how much energy is being wasted, and it’s an easy way to see if the staff are actually turning computers off like you’ve told them to (without wandering the building in the dead of night).