Reader Aaron keeps his computer on for easy remote access and for nightly scheduled tasks (like backups and defrags), but didn’t want to waste the energy an always-on computer would. So he hacked together a network setup that uses power-saving settings and Wake on LAN technology to get both energy efficiency AND constant availability. He estimates this new setup saves him almost $200 a year in energy bills and reduces his carbon emissions by 234lbs. (!!) Here’s how he did it:
I used the open source DD-WRT firmware to set up a wireless bridge between my access point and my PC which is in another room. That allowed me to use Wake On LAN (WOL) to power up my computer remotely. I then changed the settings in my computer’s BIOS and in Windows to allow WOL to start my computer from whatever state it was in. Lastly I used a BIOS setting to power my computer on every night at 3AM for scheduled maintenance tasks.
If you want to take the plunge into smart wakeups with Aaron’s setup, be sure to check out Adam’s take on installing the DD-WRT firmware on a compatible router. Power Saving Remote Computing [Instructables]
How To: Save Energy With An Always-On Computer
Ed Hammer, inventor of the compact fluorescent light bulb (the spiral-shaped energy-saving ones that are more expensive and less pleasant than incandescents) looks back on his world-changing invention in an interview with ZDNet news. As is often the case, his employer, GE, paid him to design, develop and perfect the idea, and then sat on it until a competitor beat them to the market after learning of the technology.
“That’s how it became widespread,” Hammer said. Still, “it has been a big hit for GE.” Hammer hasn’t done badly either. He has published more than 40 papers and was awarded the Edison Medal by the Institute for Electrical and Electronics Engineers in 2002.
Now a runaway success, this was ready for action as long ago as 1976, according to Hammer, who added that he was told it would never work as an alternative to standard bulbs. Now, thirty years later, the ingenious design is itself under pressure from an even more efficient competitor: panchromatic LEDs.Father of the compact fluorescent bulb looks back [ZDNet]
Ed Hammer, Creator of Energy-Saving Light Bulb, Remembers
Reuters – Hundreds of climate change protesters marched near London’s Heathrow airport on Sunday and pledged civil disobedience to draw attention to the impact of aviation on global warming.
Climate protesters march at Heathrow airport (Reuters)
Go Google!
Google founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin have tossed quite a bit of money at Tesla Motors, but they did so as private individuals. Now there?s word that Google itself could get behind another automotive effort.
Don?t get too excited; the focus of these rumors, a vehicle dubbed the Think, is nowhere near as sexy as the Tesla Roadster, and as admitted by the Think?s official website, its top speed is under 65 mph. The Think is not, by any stretch of the imagination, an electric Ferrari. It?s not even an electric Hyundai. But the Think would fall in line with the sort of environmentally sound thinking that Google supports.
According to Pandia, Dean Kamen (of Segway sorta-fame) ?would like to use the Th!nk as a mobile generator that can draw energy from the power grid when needed and send electricity back during periods of peak demand . . .?
Now, nothing?s decided yet, but ?[f]or that to happen he needs a partner that can handle large amounts of data over global networks. The most obvious choice for that kind work is, of course, Google.? And Google actually had the Think people over for a little sit-down.
I can?t get too excited about this little vehicle, but, even as a car guy, I?ve got no objections to seeing it entering the market. I?d even be interested in seeing Google support the Think – that could bring those electric Ferraris here all the sooner.
Google May Support A Small Electric Car
Well, there are a few “Street Team” members of Environmental Action outside of my office. After a brief conversation, I’d like to share some key factors of what they do:
- Trying to push all Presidential Candidates to double the current MPG Standard from 22 to 44
- They are NOT Lobbyists
- They do not have Major Corporate Sponsorship
They also have a great well maintained blog, check it out!
The goal is simple, on October 15th (or the ides of October, as I like to call it), all the registered blogs will do 1 of 2 things:
Publish a post on their blog which relates to an issue of their own choice pertaining to the environment.
Commit to donating their day?s advertising earnings to an environmental charity of their choice. There is a list of “official” Blog Action Day charities on the site, however bloggers are also free to choose an alternate environmental charity to donate to if they wish.
Environmental Resources
There are many great places to find information on the web about the environment, some of our favorite are:
- Treehugger – Easily the best environmental blog on the web, Treehugger has a great section called How to Go Green as well as tons of other useful stuff. It’s manned by some 40 writers around the world and contains no less than 14,000 posts!
- Wikipedia’s list of environmental issues – With enough links to keep you busy for hours, Wikipedia should easily set you off on your environmental web travels.
- Digg’s Popular Environment Stories – lists tons of popular posts and articles on all sorts of subjects. Looking forward to seeing some Blog Action Day posts appearing here and on reddit on October 15th!
- Green TV – If you need visual stimulation, Green TV has a lot of videos to get you going, divided up into channels of content, it is eminently watchable.
- We can live green – A lot of things boil down to practicality and We Can Live Green will help you find actual products and consumables that are environmentally friendly.
- IMDB’s Highest Rated Environmental Movies and Documentaries – Al Gore’s Inconvenient Truth isn’t the only environmental DVD to watch, check out IMDB’s list of features ordered by user ratings.
Join in and Support Blog Action Day!
Download the 100% Free LocalCooling Application and it automatically optimizes your PC’s power consumption by using a more effective power save mode. You will be able to see your savings in real-time translated to more environmental terms such as how many trees and gallons of oil you have saved.
Local Cooling will:
- Cut your energy bills.
- Reduce the amount of Greenhouse Gas CO2 emissions as a result of your reduced PC power consumption.
- Give you full control over your power mode settings.
- Improve your overall computing experience and efficiency.
- Show you in detail how much you have saved since installing the software.
Learn more about the LocalCooling Application and how it will help you save energy!
Streetlights aren’t really necessary when there’s a full moon out, what with it bouncing all that sunlight down at us and everything. But your average streetlight isn’t smart enough to know when it isn’t needed, so it sits there, dumbly shining away for no real reason. That’s not the case with the Lunar-Resonant Street Lights, conceptual LED-based lamps that dim down and turn off completely as the moon waxes. When it’s a new moon, it’ll be fully lit up, showing you your path. What results is an energy savings of 90-95%. Not a bad idea. [Civil Twilight Design Collective via Sci Fi Tech]
