Save Money With PC Power Management

Going green can save greenbacks, which is a welcome notion at Washington Mutual, which suffered heavy losses in the subprime mortgage crash.

The bank has cut its PC-related greenhouse gas emissions by 65 percent and is on track to save $3 million on electricity costs this year, says Debora Horvath, WaMu's CIO and head of the bank's environmental council. Horvath has set the bank on other Green IT initiatives, including a big to get the legal department to use less paper.

The savings from this bankwide PC project, though, will come from Verdiem power-management software, which WaMu installed on its 44,000 PCs last year, after a 100-machine pilot last spring. The software monitors activity on the computers, powering them down when they aren't in use. Less electricity used, more money saved. Cost-cutting drives most green IT initiatives, followed by efforts to be more socially responsible, according to our survey of 280 technology executives.

At WaMu, Horvath's team set up the system so that during business hours of 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., PCs and monitors in WaMu's retail branches remain on. At WaMu's back-office locations, monitors turn off after 20 minutes of inactivity and green PC go into standby mode after 30 minutes of inactivity. At 6 p.m. every night, if there is no activity, PCs go into standby and the monitors turn off. Employees working after hours can delay the software from powering down.

Laptops were removed from the rollout because ROI wasn't as great as on desktops, a spokesman says, adding that that assessment was based on a study performed by the vendor. The entire project, from pilot to enterprisewide rollout, took a few months.

Source:cio.com
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Dell Launches Super-Small 'Green' Desktop PC Line

Dell has announced a new line of mini desktop PCs that are 80 per cent smaller than the average desktop computer, and they consume about 70 per cent less energy. The "Green" mini PC also features some beautiful design features.

Digital Journal -- It's Dell's smallest and most environmentally friendly consumer PC on the market. The Dell Studio Hybrid was announced today and the units show off impressive features and refined design. Gone are the days of clunky, grey desktop towers.


“The design and craftsmanship of the Studio Hybrid alone are enough to cause you to do a double take,” Phil Bryant said Dell's vice president and general manager, Americas Consumer Sales, in a news release. “Combine that with the performance of this little beauty and its environmentally smart DNA, and you’ve got something truly unique.”

Dell's new Studio Hybrid allowed the company to reduce packing materials 30 per cent by weight; packing materials are also 95 per cent recyclable; and printed documentation was reduced 75 per cent by weight.

The PC boasts an Intel Pentium Core 2 Duo processor and runs on Windows Vista. You can also get up to 4GB 667MHz Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM.

Summer is traditionally a quiet period for tech companies, when few major products are announced to the industry. But with the Green movement in full swing, Dell is cashing in on the trend and the upcoming back-to-school surge.

The Studio Hybrid is about the size of a "collegiate dictionary," according to the company's news release. A "collegiate" dictionary? Could they not have found a better comparison? For those of you wondering, it is bigger than Apple's Mac Mini.

The PC can be set up both vertically or horizontally and comes in seven colours (Bamboo, Emerald, Quartz, Ruby, Sapphire, Slate, and Topaz).

The new PC starts at $529 CAN ($499 USD), and Dell's launch of this new line is in step with its aggressive pursuit of HP. Dell trails HP in the desktop PC market at number two.

The PC also comes with optional Wi-Fi networking capabilities, Blu-ray, and a TV tuner.

"Our goal was to design a desktop that fits in the office or in the living room, or anywhere space is at a premium,” said Bill Tyrrell, consumer product marketing, Dell Canada. “We’ve created a desktop PC category that combines style, performance and a high degree of energy efficiency.”

Source:digitaljournal.com/article/257988
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Dell Introduces Slick Studio Hybrid PC

Desktop PCs are, to be blunt, not particularly eye-catching. But Dell's new Studio Hybrid does just that, making an impression with its style and decidedly un-PC-like design. And its price will make you take note, too: A basic configuration starts at $499, without monitor; with monitor, $689.

The first thing you'll wonder about the Studio Hybrid: Where'd they put the computer components that make this gracefully curved, ovally shaped device a bonafide PC? The Studio Hybrid's physical dimensions put it in line with what a typical external DVD burner (with a half-height, desktop-sized drive inside) would require. Except in this case--you get a whole PC, as well as a DVD burner.

Dell bills the Studio Hybrid as being 80 percent smaller than a typical desktop. The company also says the Energy Star 4.0-compliant system uses about 70 percent less power than a typical desktop.

The system can be set in a vertical or horizontal configuration; the glowing blue Dell logo is on the top and bottom (or left and right, if vertical) of the unit, and the name "Hybrid" will automatically orient itself depending upon whether you stand the computer vertically or horizontally. The unit comes with a stand; the stand's two tabs help the Hybrid stay upright.

The Hybrid's clever design packs tons of functionality into its compact package. The ports (HDMI, DVI, gigabit ethernet, a Kensington lock, SP/DIF, and line-in and line-out; a 4-pin FireWire 400 port and three USB 2.0 ports) are all neatly arranged in the back, which helps with cable management. And up front, you'll find a slot-loading 8X dual-layer DVD burner at left (if vertical), and a headphone jack, two more USB ports, and an 8-in-1 memory card reader at right. Come August, you can upgrade the DVD burner to a slot-loading DVD burner/Blu-ray Disc reader, instead.

Dell achieves this feat of miniaturization by using notebook computer components, including Intel Pentium Dual Core and Core 2 Duo CPUs, and 2.5-inch, 5400 RPM notebook hard drives (160GB, 250GB, and 320GB capacities). You also get a choice of 1GB to 4GB of shared system and video memory; options for built-in draft 802.11n Wi-Fi, a TV tuner, or a wireless keyboard and mouse. But, since the system is not expandable (or user-serviceable), you have no graphics option beyond its integrated Intel graphics.

The unit comes with a smoky gray plastic sleeve that sticks out about an inch beyond the chassis itself; this means that the cables coming out the back are mostly tucked within this sleeve. Want a different color to better match your setting or personality? Dell will be offering seven colors in all, including green, red, blue, and orange.

What's most notable about this system is that you're not paying a gigantic premium for the miniaturized design--prices start at $499. This is a first--and a testament to the mainstream status of notebook components.

The physical size, aesthetics, and basic specs of the Studio Hybrid have whet my appetite. The idea of having a stylish, unobtrusive system like this to connect to my television is particularly enticing; suddenly, using a PC as a digital video recorder feels plausible (though I'd want remote control, too, if I were to use the PC that way). But first, I look forward to seeing how this unit performs on our PC WorldBench 6 tests. Stay tuned for our results.

Source:pcworld.com
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Artificial DNA = Green PCs?

Japanese boffins have created artificial DNA that could one day be part of green computers running on little or even no power. Datamonitor's Ruchi Mallya suggests the Univeristy of Toyama's research could bring to reality a computer that ditches traditional silicon and works on DNA instead.

Mallya says the DNA would work as the software and the enzymes would act as hardware. The green bit comes in from the DNA running on internal energy "produced during cellular reactions." The result would be a very low PC or even a laptop that didn't require batteries.

Sound far fetched? Mallya admits that "DNA computers will not be replacing today's standard PCs anytime soon" but is confident it could one day become reality.

While my SmartPlanet money is still on Al Gore saving the planet faster than DNA computers, a switch from silicon PCs to DNA ones could have one unexpected side effect: cheap solar panels.

Since most solar panel cells use silicon to convert the sun's energy into electricity, a fall in demand for computing silicon might dramatically cut the price of solar panels. And that *could* save the planet.

Source:smartplanet.com/news/tech/10001533/artificial-dna-green-pcs.htm
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Netgear Switch Awarded Certified Green Status

A Netgear switch designed for use by small to medium-sized businesses has been awarded Certified Green status by Miercom.

The ProSafe 48-port Gigabit Smart Switch (GS748T) was praised for its energy efficiency in recent testing by the consultancy.

Meircom evaluated more than a dozen switches for power consumption and found Netgear's innovative switch to be one of the best performers.

It said the ProSafe 48-port Gigabit Smart Switch consumed 90 watts or less when all ports were utilised, one of only a handful to do so.

"We were pleased to find that the Netgear GS748T used even less energy than its specifications stated," said Miercom's chief executive Robert Smithers.

Netgear said its switches are attractive to small businesses looking to reduce the cost of running office networks because they are specifically designed to consume less energy.

Last month Netgear's ReadyNAS Duo Home Media Server won a PC World 100 Best Products of 2008 Award. It wasthe second consecutive year that a ReadyNAS product received the accolade.

Source:comms-express.com/news/switches/netgear/netgear-switch-awarded-certified-green-status-18689516/
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Green technology high on IT agenda

In the wake of global warming and concerns over environmental degradation, companies are integrating green agenda into their business models. The concept of Green-IT is awakening India Inc to IT’s responsibilities towards environment conservation.

More than 500 million computers became obsolete worldwide by the end of 2007, while energy consumption from data centers touched 123 kwh. “The concern is now to make IT infrastructure energy efficient,'' Suresh Menon, head, storage business, Dell India, observed at the IT conclave.

In a green data center, mechanical, lighting, electrical and computer systems are designed for maximum energy efficiency and minimum environmental impact. The construction and operation of a green data center involve advanced technologies and strategies.

Large data centers are one of the most significant energy consumers in an organisation's IT infrastructure. Following pressure from environmentalists, IT operations are ensuring the delivery of environmentally sound solutions.

He commented on the indifference of users and pointed out that power consumption wastage can be brought down from the current 60-70 per cent to 20-30 per cent by simply keeping systems switched off.

"The solution is to optimise energy utilisation, reduce desired emissions through reasonable strategy and reduce fossil fuel based electric use," pointed out Menon. Well designed and optimised racks of servers at green data centers can save up to 28,000 watts of energy per year and reduce CO2 emissions by up to 18 tones.

He stressed on 'the Lifecycle approach to green' that encourages steps towards energy efficiency at each level of company operations.

Simple methods such as cost reductions, better management and judicious planning can help the organisation in becoming eco-friendly.

There's a need to devise ways to increase component optimisation- in terms of design, software to monitor and implement operational policies, he added. Nearly 60 per cent energy is consumed for power delivery and cooling systems at the data centers in the country.

Source:infotech.indiatimes.com/
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Make Your Company Go Green

7 ways in which you can encourage green initiatives for your company
If you think it’s not up to you to make your company start green initiatives, think again. Maybe you cannot bring in an enterprise-wide change from the word go. But you can effect some change in your immediate workspace, among your colleagues and friends. Start now.

1.Switch off monitors when not at the workstation: This saves about 75W of power, says Tufts University’s Computing Initiative.

2. Going for a training?: If you are going to be away at a workshop or training in the conference room for more than one hour, switch off your PC. Worried if your boss will not be pleased at the dark screen at your table? Tell him you are saving electricity.

3.New PC purchases: Capex time, and your boss asks you for the equipment you and your team needs. Do some research, and come up with options that save energy. Look for computer power supply units that deliver over 80% efficiency, devices with Energy Star ratings, and other devices that help in reducing power consumption. This needs exploration, and might need the help of your IT people.

4. Go easy on the printer: Before you take a print, see if you really need to do so. If you can manage without it, don’t print. You save ink and paper this way. For draft prints, use paper already printed on one side. In fact you can start a ‘Be kind to the printer’ week to make your colleagues aware of the mindless printing that might be the practice in your company.

5. Switch off lights where not required: Someone is absent today. Do you really need the light in his workspace to be left on? If switching off that light makes no difference to the surrounding environment, go ahead and do it.

6. Push for telecommuting options: While there are companies that resist the telecommuting option for their employees, it’s a good idea to start discussing the option in your team. This cuts down on travel related costs, and can bring down electricity and real estate other costs for the company in the long run.

7. Set up a green team: Collect a set of like-minded individuals and start a green initiative for the company. Set up car pools, run tree plantation campaigns, and create a ‘best practices to go green’ manual.

Source:computing.in.msn.com
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