| PlastiCrap Button Turns Off Your Computer For You |
| Written by Matt James | ||
| Wednesday, 13 February 2008 | ||
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Even better, the Eco Button is illuminated, the better to remind you that you're wasting more of the planet's resources unnecessarily just by keeping it plugged into your computer's USB port. While it would make saving energy easier, I can't help but wonder how much energy it would take to manufacture, advertise, package, sell, ship, and (hopefully) recycle one of these... and how long it would take to recoup the "investment." The main advantage to having one of these around would be having a constant reminder to reduce energy use. The package includes software to track how much you're saving, so it's a great way to learn to feel good about reducing energy use (if not consumption). This might be a good way for companies to encourage green thinking, and save some dough while they're at it. At my last job, they left the computers on 24/7 - as a policy - and it drove me crazy... they could be saving hundreds a year (and tons of CO2) with these in place. Going Green is as much about changing minds than saving energy, so perhaps there's a place for these. There won't be a place for these in twenty years, though... we'll either have figured out how to conserve energy without oversized plastic buttons by then, or be competing over the last few drops of oil in the Thunderdome. There's a more friendly review on GeekSugar. Rather than pick sides, I'm going to open source my own low-power alternative - a piece of scrap paper with the words "Turn It Off and Plant a Tree" stuck to my monitor.
Comments
(2)
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written by Magnulus , February 13, 2008
There are other ways of doing it.
written by Carl Foner , February 13, 2008
I'm all for getting people to be aware of their energy usage, but I think there are other ways of doing it. In a large company, there could be company wide training. Someone could send out an email message or a newsletter every once in a while.
One could also setup a departmental energy czar which is responsible for cutting their department's energy use. Or better yet, find some way to charge each department for how much energy they use. There is also software which can manage power management settings on a company wide basis, such as Verdiem's Surveyor product. This does cost money, and it doesn't really train people, but it is effective at reducing energy usage. | ||
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Science, technology gadgets and...baby seals. We're in a bit of an eco-mess, but we've got the brains to lick any problem. And that's why EcoGeek.org publishes up to ten stories daily about innovations that are saving the planet.
And if that sounds interesting to you, then congratulations, you're an EcoGeek.
There's a searing review of the EcoButton, a USB-powered button that sends your computer into power-save mode, up on 
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I just etched it into the face of my iMac and then sent the plastic shreds in for recycling. THAT'S environmentally friendly for ya!! ^_^
But yeah, you bring up a good point about the button being more about changing the way people see things rather than the direct savings. We might not need it, but I can think of plenty of people who COULD use one of those big green buttons.