Computers and computer peripherals consume dramatic amounts of electricity every year, draining your budget and contributing to greenhouse gases.

But for little or no money, you can reduce the number of watts your system and peripherals use, saving cash and limiting the environmental damage.

What’s the easiest way to go green?
Too often, grand concepts like “green computing” are like the weather: everyone talks about it, but nobody does anything. Like it or not, the construction and use of computers still involves hazardous materials and the production of greenhouse gases. Is there anything you can do now without waiting for the perfectly constructed, solar-powered, recyclable computer? Fortunately, the answer is yes. (more…)

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One of the most frustrating moments of my morning is getting to work and sitting there for 10 minutes while my computer boots up. Most mornings, I can get a cup of coffee and visit coworkers while my computer starts and Outlook, IE, and the other applications I use regularly open. My wait time is even more frustrating when I have an early meeting and need a document, but spend the first half of the meeting waiting for my computer to start.

One way I’ve learned to save time in the morning is to put my PC into hibernation mode in the evening. By putting my PC into hibernation mode, all the applications and documents I had open
will be exactly the same as they were when I left the previous evening. Hibernate saves an image of your desktop with all open files and documents, and then it powers down your computer. (more…)

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