How To Save Energy on Any Computer
With fossil fuels running out and adoption of nonrenewable energy sources moving along slowly, it is important to conserve energy. One large consumer of energy in our homes is the personal computer— what you're more than likely reading this article on. Thankfully, we can easily save energy there.
For free…
1. Don't use unneeded hardware
Why keep speakers? Sound isn't vital. Mouse? You can learn to use the keyboard for everything. Printer? Just read on screen. Just remember that every extra piece of hardware is drawing out some power, except for maybe some older mice and keyboards. Also, if you really want to go the extra mile, try to get rid of duplicate hardware inside your computer- you don't need two RAM sticks or two optical drives.
2. Abandon the GUI
GUIs are unnessicary. Most, if not all, computers can be made to use only the command line. On Windows, you can start your computer into DOS mode. On Linux, you can remove the X server entirely on most distros. If this isn't possible, just press Ctrl+Alt+F1 to get a fullscreen terminal. On Linux there is also a good amount of terminal software. No more extra energy usage in that respect!
3. Use Sans-Serif Fonts
Why do you need to waste the extra energy to generate the serifs on the top and bottom of each letter? Simply set your font to a sans-serif font such as Arial or Bistream Vera Sans. For bonus energy savings, you can even use a small font size (5 or 6 works great) and/or a thin sans-serif font such as Arial Narrow which is included with Windows.
For a small expense…
Minimize the Necessary
Even hardware that is absolutely necessary should be minimized. Have a rechargable USB keyboard? Opt for an older PS/2 model. As far as monitors go, make sure that you go for an energy star LCD. If possible, you should try to find the smallest possible monitor as well. I'm sure you can find at least a 7″ LCD somewhere.
For the complete energy savers…
Downgrade
Surely if you truly care about the environment you wouldn't care if you had to downgrade a little bit. I recommend trying out a type of computer known as the "abacus." These devices have gone through a lot use throughout the centuries and are proven to be very dependable. You can get abaci at several places online.
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> 3. Use Sans-Serif Fonts
Monitors ( LCD or CRT ) don't consume energy for displaying black. Since most text is black on white and serif fonts contain more black then sans serif it would make more sense to USE serif instead.
Sans serif would make more sense on paper but not on monitors.
@Patches and Hacks: "So if you're still toiling away in front of a hefty CRT monitor…, then black screens will save you some energy. For those who've graduated to thinner LCD models, black screens are actually sucking up more energy then their white counterparts." -Fact or Fiction?: Black Is Better than White for Energy-Efficient Screens (Page 2)
I would just go for one of those super-efficient mini-itx motherboards. I found one that is the size of a playing card and only uses 15 watts. That's compared to my big, fast desktop at almost 500. The only problem's the price.
@Nick: I saw one of those on StumbleUpon the other day. It may be worth it in the long run for being green, but I think I'd rather just have an energy efficent laptop such as the XO.