End User

Energy Saving in the Office - for the Impatient

Our advices might look trivial to insiders, inspite of this they may not be missed out here.
The principal consumer in the internet after all is the own desktop, hence the potential of energy savings are notably huge!

1. multiway connectors

2. DSL-router, switches, modem, WLAN, bluetooth-base-stations etc.

3. energy saving lamps

4. software-fax

5. office-server

6. air convection and fans

7. monitors

8. screen savers

9. laptops and mobile devices

10. USB hardware

11. forgotten plug-in cards

12. idle drives

1. multiway connectors

Use a multiway connector with an on-off switch. Connect all pc-desktop related appliances to this one frame connector. Cut all devices off after work, with this one switch (after you have shut down each device individually) just to avoid any standby consumption of one unit. A multiway connector with an overvoltage protection (DIN-certified protection class III, class D, T3 or type 3) lessens the hazard through lightning and voltage peaks.
A certain indication for a consuming device on idle is, if something still glows, hums and stays hand-hot.

2. DSL-router, switches, modem, WLAN, bluetooth-base-stations etc.

Router and modem can be switched off riskless after use of the computer, it does no harm to them. If you are not using the network or the internet, don't even switch the router or modem on, respectively pull their plugs (the power supply unit)

3. energy saving lamps

Employ energy saving lamps, which are in use since at least 20 years, but in no case use halogen lamp or other bulbs. Today a fairly good range of economical LED-lights, with a long durability and low heat build-up exceed the old energy saving lights using illuminating gas. Those LED-lights have a whole cluster of white shining LEDs and are sufficient for PC work stations. This technology is mature enough, that car-manufacturers switch over to use them for their products.

4. software-fax

The fax in a PC. To leave the computer on, because upon its running a virtual fax machine, has been a terrific idea. Some computers therefore get never switched off anymore! Please think about, wether it is not more competitive to book a virtual fax-server from an internet service provider, than leaving your PC on always (electricity bill). This would have the advatange, that you can download and send your faxes with your laptop fom any location.

5. office-server

Your servers runs at times? It is used night and day and backups are made in short periods successively? An office server, which is not in duty at night or on weekend, can be shut down, if it is a PC like device, as usual. From the physical view, it's nothing else.

6. air convection and fans

Place your PC and all their peripheral equipment with blowing fans in this way, that the air can enter and can leave the box. It is no wonder if devices running on full load will create a tremdeous background noise, while their exhausts are pointing to the wall.
All loaders which are qualm heating along like it if some air is blowing around them.
Do not place PCs or any other computer-hardware close to radiators and heating pipes. The PC will try to keep itself as cool as possible.

7. monitors

Monitors have to be switched off (not even in standbay-mode) when the associated PC is not on. Monitors connected to servers have to be switched off generally and should not only dimmed to avoid to burn in. Only in case someone needs to work directly (without the network) at the machine, it is used.
Adjust the brightness of your desktop-monitor (regardless which technology it is) only as intense as it is good for your eyes, or rearange your work place in a manner that your screen has not to compete with the sun in the long run.

8. screen savers

The tale from the screen saver. "screen savers" are animations which demand a lot of energy for beeing processed. Configure the "screen saver" that way, that it leaves the screen just dark, without any pictures and animations. This then takes care for the screen, eventually your ears too and saves money.

9. laptops and mobile devices

Make use when ever it is possible with the mains adaptor. Every charging and every discharging uses up extra energy. Like with every conversion of energy the performance rate lowers per kilowatt hour. Energy which not has been accumulated can be used more effectively.

10. USB hardware

Remove any non used USB-devices from your computer which most of them not even possess an on-off switch, because the manufacturer thought of it would be totally superfluously. Even a keyboard on a server is a consumer.

11. forgotten plug-in cards

Has your computer plug-in cards, which you never use? A check up is worth while. A "heirloom" sometimes can hold a high-capacity graphic card, which formerly served to help to reach the climax of game lust. If you don't need a graphic card for real time animations of your spreed sheets, thus you expect only office work and websurfing to the apparatus, then dismount the card. The same is true for forgotten ISDN-cards, video-grabbers, sound-cards, double ethernet-ports, USB-cards etc.
You have to feed them all and heat the box mindless.

12. idle drives

Like in item 11 it could happen, that your implement is endued with an elephant like memory, that you don't need at all. Every dispensable hard disk, every CD writer, ZIP drives and other technic relics from bygone days please mothball, if you do not make use of those components. You cannot believe how much you can haul out of such an appliance and even so it will answer the purpose.

By the time you have waded through this list up to this point, then you have accomplished a VERY big contribution for the ecologic internet and we may congratulate you!
We would not be ecolog^eenet, if now there won't be cumulations. This was just the tip of the iceberg and the website blurts out the truth to you how you can reduce the internets consumption of energy to a minimum.