October 14, 2008

Steve Jobs to Greenpeace: Bite Me

Engadget's picture says it all. The new MacBook Pro has earned a nice EPEAT Gold rating. Check out that environmental checklist. Nice!

More on the new MacBook Pro here.

Update: The Apple Store is back up and the MacBook Pro's product page now proudly displays the score card. Here are the relevant bullet points:

• Highly recyclable aluminum and glass enclosure
• Mercury-free LED-backlit display
• Arsenic-free glass
• BFR-free internal components
• PVC-free internal cables
• Meets ENERGY STAR requirements
• EPEAT Gold rating

Posted by phernandez at 1:53 PM | Add Comment

October 13, 2008

GPS Is Critical to Airline Industry's 'NextGen' Plans

In cars, GPS helps save fuel by getting you to your destination using the most direct route possible. The same may soon be true for airliners if a plan to overhaul worldwide air traffic systems ever gets off the ground (pun intended).

The benefits range from better airspace management and fewer delays to improved safety. But airlines have something else to consider: massive fuel savings. USA Today reports:

U.S. airlines could save $10 billion a year in fuel costs by 2025 if the FAA upgrades to a satellite-based air-traffic control system, The Associated Press reports. But, AP says that proposed upgrade "has languished in the planning stages for more than a decade" while the U.S. aviation system currently relies on "a World War II-era air traffic network that often forces planes to take longer, zigzagging routes" that cost carriers "billions of dollars in wasted fuel while."

As for the upgraded "NextGen" plan, AP says it would cost $35 billion and "would replace the current radar system with the kind of GPS technology that has become commonplace in cars and cellphones. Supporters say it would triple air traffic capacity, reduce delays by at least half, improve safety and curb greenhouse gas emissions. An Associated Press analysis of federal and industry data found that if the new system were already in place, airlines could have saved more than $5 billion in fuel this year alone."

If you want more information on NextGen, the FAA has got you covered.

Posted by phernandez at 2:58 PM | Add Comment

October 9, 2008

Tsk, Tsk Telecommuters

Way to go, bad apples.

After reluctantly digesting those glowing reports about energy savings, improved productivity, and happier employees, management went against their instincts and finally started to loosen the leash.  But then you go do stuff like this:

24% admitting they've altered security settings

23% saying they delay security updates on devices

Now, that's mature. On the bright side, an overwhelming majority seem to be playing by the rules.  Or they at least had the sense not to admit to their foolishness.

In any case, like my colleague Chris Nerney said, STOP IT!

Because if I end up getting hauled back into the office, so help me...

Posted by phernandez at 11:43 PM | Add Comment

Bloated Software Is Straining Servers

The concept of green code seems to be catching on, or at least it's starting to register with IT managers.

The reason? Servers are being unnecessarily subjected to inefficient software packed with *features* they companies wind up not using. Computerworld UK reports that during the Environmental IT Leadership forum in London, panelists were put on the spot.

Matt Deacon, DPE chief architect at Microsoft, agreed that bloated software is inefficient software and explained that Microsoft has environmental sustainability in mind when designing code.

Deacon said 'sustainability' sits within Microsoft's Trustworthy Computing Initiative, alongside security and interoperability. The mantra of the Initative is that products are secure and interoperable by design. By positioning sustainability within that framework, software can be "sustainable by design", according to Deacon.

Explain Vista then! I kid, I kid...

Anyway, not everyone is buying it. But one panelist had an interesting observation about some budget software and their tendency to run amok on a system's resources.

Posted by phernandez at 9:32 PM | Add Comment

October 7, 2008

PSE&G Bullish on Greentech (Yes, Even in This Economy)

I know, the Dow just shed another 500 points. Hardly the time to fell bullish about anything. Like everyone, I might drop dead at my keyboard if I start looking at the financial damage done to me personally.

But you'll find one somewhat upbeat fellow in these times, Public Service Electric and Gas' (PSE&G) president and COO, Ralph LaRossa. PSE&G is the utility that serves New Jersey.

He feels that despite the downturn, and what's shaping up to be an extended period of economic malaise, now is the time to invest in cleantech to better reap the rewards. New Jersey & Company tells us...

"The temptation at times like this is to hunker down, to take no risks, to delay investments until the economy somehow recovers on its own. But that, in my view, would be exactly the wrong path," LaRossa said.

"When we invest in energy efficiency, homeowners and businesses can save money for years, even decades. When we invest in solar power and wind power, we create green-collar jobs and answer the need to combat climate change. When we invest in modern transmission lines, we help to contain electricity costs and improve reliability. In each case, we are building a stronger and more productive economy," LaRossa said.

Pretty interesting to read.

You see, my home state of New Jersey (go ahead, I'll let you get some knocks in) is already in a tough economic spot. Nonetheless, PSE&G is going ahead with a pretty big (for us) offshore wind project which is expected to generate more employment once a couple of hurdles are cleared. And according to his calculations, any expenditures now will result in a net positive in more ways than one.

"Statewide, we believe there is room for $2 billion in efficiency investments over the next five years," LaRossa said. "That would create 2,200 good jobs. It would reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 7 million tons over that period. And it would lower bills."

Here's hoping he's right.

Posted by phernandez at 11:50 PM | Add Comment

Witness a Hyper-V Server Install

Todd Muirhead at Dell Tech Center went ahead and installed the free, standalone edition of Hyper-V Server that Microsoft recently released. Here his description of the setup involved:

This video shows the installation of Hyper-V server on a Dell PowerEdge R805. The installation was done through a Dell Remote Access Card (DRAC) using the Virtual CD-ROM and remote console features. This enabled the installation to be done remotely and for the entire install to be captured as video.

The whole thing took 90 minutes. Luckily he edited it down to 5 watchable minutes (if you like that sort of thing). And the funky colors? That's a byproduct of the remote desktop console.

Watch it here or catch the YouTube video by clicking onward.

Continue reading "Witness a Hyper-V Server Install"

Posted by phernandez at 2:26 PM | Add Comment

Google's Guide to Green Datacenters

Energy efficient servers are all well and good, but Google tackles the datacenter first when it comes to power savings. In an InternetNews article, Andy Patrizio examines their way of thinking.

Every hardware vendor out there, from IBM on down is frantically looking for ways to cut power and heat in their products, but the datacenter building has not gotten as much attention. IBM has tried with its green datacenter efforts, but by and large, the building remains an overlooked issue.

Big mistake, because for every watt of power used by the computers, you will spend 0.96 watts to run the datacenter - in other words, requiring 0.96 watts of power for the facility itself for every 1 watt of power for computers. Google datacenters, on the other hand, are 21 percent of the cost. In some cases, it's as low as 15 percent.

Several elements work together to achieve these results, including maximizing airflow and water management. And at the end of the day, retired servers are repurposed, scavenged for parts or recycled.

More details here.

Posted by phernandez at 11:07 AM | Add Comment

October 3, 2008

Kindle 2: Let's Try That Again

Boy Genius Report has what it claims are spy photos of Amazon's Kindle 2. If indeed real (they do look pretty convincing) then it's a major improvement over the polarizing design of the first one.

Here are just some of the updates:

Our ninja didn’t have a pocket ruler, but he said that the size of the display is approximately the exact same as the original Kindle even though at first glance it looks a little smaller. What might be a little troublesome is the fact that the battery does not look to be user-accessible, and there’s no more SD card slot. In the top left corner of the device, it gives you a display of how much memory is left, and our guy’s unit showed 1403 MB.

Head over to Boy Genius Report for more on the device and a gallery of fuzzy cameraphone-like pictures.

[via Gizmodo]

Posted by phernandez at 11:42 PM | Add Comment

Google's $4.4 Trillion Clean Energy 2030 Plan, Emphasis on the 'Trillion'

$4.4 trillion in any headline is a scandalous amount to read, especially nowadays. It leads to automatic skepticism, nevermind that it represents an amount spread over 22 years with payback trickling in as soon as some of the plan's elements come online.

It's ambitious, there's no denying that. But now that Congress is wrestling with $700 billion bailouts -- or rescue plan, whatever makes it easier to swallow -- those amounts don't seem to put the same scare into people that they once did.

So Google, well aware of the politics and economics of the times, is proposing ways to drastically cut carbon emissions by weaning America off oil and coal. But first, it helps to have some goals:

• Fossil fuel-based electricity generation by 88%

• Vehicle oil consumption by 38%

• Dependence on imported oil (currently 10 million barrels per day) by 33%

• Electricity-sector CO2 emissions by 95%

• Personal vehicle sector CO2 emissions by 38%

• US CO2 emissions overall by 48% (40% from today's CO2 emission level)

Getting there runs the gamut of familiar methods, including expanding alternative energy production, increasing vehicle fuel efficiency and overhauling the grid. And that costs money, a lot of it. But Google's financial analysis claims that the benefits outweigh the outlay.

The financial bottom line: Although the cost of the Clean Energy 2030 proposal is significant (about $4.4 trillion in undiscounted 2008 dollars), savings are even greater ($5.4 trillion), returning a net savings of $1.0 trillion over the 22-year life of the plan.

Another topic the plan touches on is the creation of green collar jobs. It can be debated that transitioning to clean energy is likely to just shift workforces around. But coal plants won't just disappear overnight, and during the multi-year transition, widening opportunities in the energy sector will expand payrolls.

According to the US Department of Energy, an additional 293 GW of of wind in 2030 will provide 476,000 jobs in the US (equivalent in size to about 25 Googles):

• 259,000 construction jobs each year
• 217,000 permanent operations jobs
• Broken down as:
• 150,000 direct employees
• 100,000 jobs in associated industries (e.g., accountants, lawyers, steel workers, and electrical manufacturing)
• 220,000 jobs through economic expansion based on local spending

Now, is it even achievable? Who knows.

Numbers, graphs, studies and analyses, even by the best and brightest, often get ripped to shreds in the grinding gears of socio-political systems. But if it makes economic sense for a conglomerate like the newly Buffett-backed GE to get behind Google and its smart-grid vision, it shows that industry, or some players at least, are willing to give it a go.

Posted by phernandez at 12:04 PM | Add Comment

October 1, 2008

More Caviar? Western Digital Updates its Green Drive Line

Hard drive maker Western Digital today announced that the company has begun shipments of its second-generation Caviar Green 3.5-inch hard drives in capacities of 500GB to 1TB.  What's more, they continue to drive energy efficiency.  The new drives consume 20 percent less power than their predecessors, just 5.4W during drive activity, 2.8W during idle and 0.4W during sleep and standby.

And it looks like the company's GreenPower products have been good for business.  In the twelve first months, Western Digital's green drives have surpassed 10 percent of their 3.5-inch drive shipments and have deemed them their fastest growing segment.

Western Digital's Caviar Green 1TB (WD10EADS) drive with 32MB cache sells for a cool $220.

Posted by phernandez at 11:13 PM | Add Comment