The Money Thing

Sometimes you have to play catch up in this business. Take this one from IT Week (of all places, right?), where they postulate that green IT is really about the money. Quotes please:

'We heard two reasons why green matters: efficiency and corporate responsibility. Most IT decision-makers told us that a green purchase would only happen in the context of cost reduction.'

"We would do green because it makes business sense, not because it’s green. It would have to show cost savings."

Man, if this is where we are at right now, we are in deep trouble. It's not the sixties, no more yogurt bombs. Yes, it's about the money, it's about the survival of your business. I know that that means nothing to many businesses - your brother-in-law needs a job after all - but the sound of fingernails on chalkboard is too much for me.

The only saving grace is that they must be reading ecoIron:

'Technology marketers today will find increasingly receptive audiences for green evangelism,' he said 'Slowly, that receptivity will translate into action on the part of enterprise IT organisations.'

Green evangelism? Hey, I invented that term...

Telecommuting, A Must Have

I've mentioned before that you should probably stop showing up for work because it's just too darn expensive (time and money) to get there. There are some other motivators; a bill that encourages telecommuting, and the fact that the commute is downright debilitating. But the biggest incentive has just hit the fan - really expensive gas.

A survey conducted at FSU has just confirmed that sixty percent of employees say the price of gas has significantly reduced the amount of money they have to spend on other things, while 45 percent reported the need to pay off debts more slowly or not at all. Finally, 26 percent indicated that the cost of gas has necessitated going without basics such as heat or air conditioning, or even cutting back on food purchases, over the past few months.

Plus, there's the added niggling issue that these stresses spill over into the workplace, causing folks to not be as motivated, and never put in overtime. Bullhorn, bullhorn - you need a telecommuting program in your organization. And not one where the manager says 'ok, just this once' on a case by case basis, but one that coordinates with public transportation, allows career advancement (even to CEO), and takes advantage of co-working facilities.

This Router is Not Gray

Didja ever wonder why there wasn't a bigger demand for used computer equipment? This stuff is solid state; the internal hamster doesn't die on the wheel, it's just power flowing through silicon.

Turns out there's more than meets the eye to this issue, particularly with Cisco and their routers. In 2004, they were actively reselling used gear at a 25 to 30 percent discount as compared to new equipment. The problem is that other second-hand dealers were undercutting them, by marking it down 50 to 75 percent. So, about 2005, Cisco begins to refer to these other vendors as the gray market. Now, usually gray market means "fell off the back of the truck", not "reselling used equipment". Others might refers to that tactic as a little FUD campaign. Did I call it that? No, but others did, like this guy you has seven ways to say used router.

It is clear that Cisco certainly has problems with gear being stolen out of the supply chain, and that there are numerous Cisco fakes around. But now Cisco is going after everyone - aftermarket sellers and the ripoff artists - with equal vengeance. This is is bit blatant; clearly they are afraid of that 7 percent aftermarket share increasing. The United Network Equipment Dealer Association (UNEDA) is trying to debate with them on the issue, particularly on the issue of the moon-high fees Cisco charges to inspect and re-register used gear. Let's hope some progress is made; while that is happening, try and sell it yourself.

Good, Better, Bad Ink

HP has devised a new scheme for vending printer cartridges. First, why are these schemes always using the primary colors; how about the purple, teal, and burnt umber scheme? Oh well, let's continue.

Instead of the one-size-fits-all model (which HP had for 25 years), the new model has three different cartridge types. I'll cut to the chase - “Standard” cartridges (in the blue) are going to be cheaper to buy, “Value” cartridges (in the green) will be cheaper per page, and “Specialty” cartridges (red) will be the expensive, high end ink.

On the face of it, the scheme seems ridiculous - you have to choose between low cartridge price or low cost per print? (Note: I'm just completely forgetting about the red ones.) Kodak agrees, who saw the announcement, and mentioned it was a great marketing campaign for them because it endorses their own strategy :

"Volume discounts aren't new," Kodak added. "Kodak believes consumers will be more delighted with its approach because they will get both a low cost-per-page AND an inexpensive cartridge - $9.99 for premium black ink and $14.99 for premium, five-ink color cartridges. This will generate real Kodak lab-quality prints for as low as 15 cents apiece. Unlike HP customers, Kodak printer owners won't have to search for special cartridges or pay in advance to get a great value."

Yeah, that's it. Product differentiation is usually a scheme to try and soak up residual value, and my neck is getting a little hot when I have to choose between two different forms of cheap. :: LetsGoDigital

Boxmaker Dell Stops Making Boxes

A few weeks ago I posted an ecoGeek interview detailing Dell's environmental program. At that time, it seemed like Dell was in a holding pattern and there was little more to write until something new happened. Well, now there's a little more to write.

According to the Register, Dell recently revealed "project Multipack", a strategy to pack large numbers of systems in fewer boxes. Customers can now receive up to four 1U systems or 10 blades in a single box. As bonus, each box has a built-in corrugated pallet, which removes the need for a wooden one. And you only get one set of product manuals and CDs per box. All told, Dell thinks this plan will result in 2,000 tons of cardboard savings per year, plus a lot of other material savings.

The sardonic wit of the Register is well known; as they grind our forlorn, billion-dollar Dell to pieces, even they eventually acknowledge that "project Multipack" is a good idea. Albeit with a questionable name. But I'm going farther; streamlining product delivery systems is not an easy task, and Dell surely invested a lot a people-hours and dollars to make this happen. Can we please reward the people who are doing the work. :: The Register

The Parable of the Donkey and the Japanese eWaste

There's is a funny Mexican proverb that goes like this; if one person calls you an ass, take no notice. If two do, be worried. And if three, buy a saddle.

Let's see if we can apply this logic to Japan, who has been suspected of trying to dump their eWaste in other countries as part of self-started 'economic development programs'. For starters, in March Hong Kong sent 131 tons of eWaste back into Japan; they probably were getting some arm twisting to take it. Japan did take it back, but that's one.

Now Basel Action Network (BAN) is announcing that the Philippines is accusing the Japanese of trying to start 'waste colonies' in their countries under the auspice of overseas trade development. That's two. Finally, India is accusing Japan of doing the same thing - dumping eWaste - except there it is under of the pretext of offering 'expertise in recycling' services. That's three; where's the tack shop?:: BAN :: India eNews

Thanks

Ecoiron dropped under 5,000 on Technorati today, just a month and a half after dropping under 10,000. Thanks guys, you're the best. I'll keep cranking it out.

Plethora of Options for Green Web Hosting

The number of green web hosting options has expanded quite a bit in recent months. Which one should you choose?

Well, right now it appears that the primary discriminator is the method by which they power their operation. One group buys Renewable Energy Certificates; these insure that the power they use is generated in an ecofriendly manner. This is typically wind or solar, but it could also be biogas or geothermal as well. Dreamhost is in this category. The second group actually generates their own power directly from renewable energy; AISO, for example, is in this category; they are 100 percent powered by solar that they generate themselves.

A few offer other deal sweeteners such as carbon offsetting, discounts to non profits, letting their employees telecommute, etc. Some, such as Acorn and ecoSky tout only free software for their hosts. And Green web host combines a bunch of them; they will plant a tree on your behalf, have solar powered offices, and are also paperless. Finally, let's not forget about the money; prices for green hosting services vary widely.

So, which one? It's a simple answer - any one. Because any of these guys are better than any web hoster that hasn't announced a program. Select a price point and options, and make the switch.

Corporate Culture Can Lead to IT Waste

Ted Samson at Infoworld raises an interesting question - why do organizations continue to purchase more computers whenever there's a perceived need for more processing power? Furthermore, according to a report from Gartner (a well respected IT research and advisory company), why are these machines only used at 10% of their capability? Samson argues that this is because computers are inexpensive, and organizations, much like people, seem to be creatures of habits. And habits can be bad.

It's easy to relate this to the environmental movement as a whole; besides the obvious implication for IT shops, it's almost a given that it's easier to do the environmentally wrong thing out of habit, then to do the right thing that might take a little work. Sampson correctly observes that this kind of short-sightedness is now forcing companies into a mad scramble for space in their increasingly cramped data centers, as well as coming up with more dough to pay for increasingly growing energy bills.

Unless companies are willing to tolerate this kind of costly wastefulness, the Gartner report is a real wake-up call. Someone at your company needs to take charge - maybe (as I have suggested) by hiring a chief sustainability officer. Business as usual just isn't an option.

One Hand Clapping for Steve Job's Apple

Steve Jobs has posted a response to the muffled whalesong that Apple doesn't have a green agenda. Frankly, I shrieked a little about it myself (it's showtime), but I'm glad Steve responded. And he responded as only Steve Jobs could.

Slowly, lovingly, Mr. Jobs dissects the frantic accusations being thrown at Apple's green computing program for months now into their constituent parts. His retort is measured, beautiful; you get the sense of a Zen master talking to a petulant schoolboy. And lo, after the lesson, you find that there is really nothing there. Like the fact that Apple stopped making CRT's in mid-2006, and eliminated all the associated lead problems that go with them. Or that Apple was RoHS compliant before the law went into effect. Or, by 2010, that Apple plans on recycling 28 percent of their eWaste by weight (almost three times more than current rates by other vendors), and they never ship it out of the US. Steve names names, but he doesn't do it often; he doesn't need to. And neither do I.

The beauty of Steve's writing (can I call you Steve?) is that you always get a chance to unite with whatever he's saying, and then go together into the void. You can see it with every author; Thomas Claburn from Information Week, Ken Barbalace from Environmental Chemistry, Zdnet, our avid Scuttlemonkey. Thank you Steve, for bringing up those results in my lackluster googling for this story; as you know, I used to work with one of those guys. Bless you. And fake Steve Jobs, eat your heart out; even though you are hilarious, you just don't exist.

Britons Waste £1.25billion on Annual Gadget Giving

Yeah, gadgets are cool, but I never said buy them. And I particularly never said buy them for people who won't use them. Preposterous, right? Who wouldn't want a digital camera? Or an iPod?

Well, the answer, according to a recent survey of 500 adults in Britain, is that a full 22 percent of electronic gadgets that are given as gifts are never used. The average price for each unused gadget in each unopened box is around £120. And this is not just chuckable stuff, like Coleco-like handheld games and obtuse computer games. Number one is the Apple iPod, followed by digital cameras, computer software, satellite navigation systems and mobile phones.

The survey states that the reason people don't use this stuff is that they are 'scared of technology', 'have no time', and/or 'can't read instruction book'. Okey-dokey; these would be three good questions to ask a giftee ahead of time. Occam's razor rules the day here - when you don't know what to give, give money, or gift cards. Gifts are fun, but (adults), please drop the pretense and reserve gift-giving for the kids, who have undoubtedly been screaming about getting some particular gadget since their last birthday.

Compressed Air Dusters Should Be Blown Away

The Sightline Institute has some revealing information on those handy computer air dusters. You might have used one of these things at some point in your life to clean your computer innards; more nefarious uses include making cool 'ice rods' in a sink of water by upending it, and making a compressed air gun. Oh, these things are versatile.

Turns out the contents are also horribly bad for the environment. Some of them use 100 percent tetrafluoroethane, a known greenhouse gas that is roughly 3,300 times more effective at trapping heat than carbon dioxide. Nice. So, according to Eric De Place, a 10-ounce can of cleaner will have the same climate-changing effect over the next 20 years as burning at least 100 gallons of gasoline. That's one can. The other common gas in these things is difluoroethane, which has about 10% of the impact as other variety. Eric states that that is still about 330 times the impact of CO2.

Further irony is that gas dusters are often billed are safe for the environment, citing that they are 100% ozone safe, with no CFCs or HCFCs. These statements are in fact true, but skirt the issue of climate change. It's obvious that these dusters are yet another technology, like portable yogurt or plastic bags, that we can do without. The hunt for the perfect duster has begun, and Giotto's Rocket (pictured above) has received excellent reviews. If you are a big shop or need to blow a lot of air around on a regular basis, you probably should be using an air compressor.

The Energy Tree

This just in from Yanko Design - the Energy Tree. Apparently in an effort to truly unite technology with the physical environment, designer Ben Arent has created a system that contains a real tree connected to a microprocessor. The device controls the watering and feeding of the tree depending on your energy usage, and also monitors your appliances, heating/cooling, and recycling habits. It uses this information to feed and water the tree, but only if you are efficient with your energy use. If you aren't, the Energy Tree will poison and malnourish the tree, eventually killing it.

The system will also be online, using something known as "the collector." The collector is there to encourage people to recycle; Once at the depot the collector will unit will be radioed indicating that you did your job. This system has the added benefit that someone can take your recycling to the facility, while you can still get the credit. You know, to keep your tree alive.

It's a visceral idea, and (natch) still on the drawing board. According to the article, "The EnergyTree will change the perception and view of how power is being used, implementing a complete system looking at device consumption, home consumption and long term sustainability." If you got this far, I think it just did that.

On the Radio Tomorrow

Hey, catch some ecoIronites talking about the Emergy-C web palette on the head on radio network tomorrow at 11:30 AM EST.

Oh, You Need This

Ninja pirate summarizes the 'when to buy' argument. Take this Angstrom blade server cabinet for example; here's what our man-in-black has to say:

With this PC, you can simultaneously chat, check your myspace, type a Word document, listen to music, and crop an image without any problem. It's costly, but a worthy investment because you won't have to upgrade for at least half a year.

Specs:
435.2Ghz (64 x 2 x 3.4Ghz) P4 CPUs, 1MB Cache, 800mhz FSB
256GB (64 x 4 x 1GB) ECC RAM
18.5TB (64 x 250GB) HDD and 64 x 40GB HDD

Pros: Very fast. Looks cool. Free Intel sticker.

Cons: Loud. Relatively pricey.

Price: $75,000.00

It gets funnier.

You Want Some Carbon With That?

Engadget pushed for change with Dell's Plant a Me for Me Campaign. I've wrote about carbon offsets myself, and I do agree that they draw on your heartstrings to give money to businesses to fix their environmental problems.

Do they help? In one way, it helps - when you drag a tarp across a landfill in South Africa, capture the methane and then set it ablaze, yeah, it doesn't go into the atmosphere. I guess that not my idea of offsetting carbon. Nor am I crazy about funding these for-profit business to fix the environmental problems that they created.

My Green Little Bird?

Is Linux eco-friendly? Let's see. Most of Asia has switched, as least in part, to Open Source Software (OSS); some countries, such as Indonesia, also think that Linux changes scofflaws into legit users. Cuba has reported a 500 percent increase in Linux installation in two years; of course, they can't really get Windows due to export restrictions. Big Blue is giving a specific tutorial to switch from Windows to Linux, and two out of three Dell customers are now demanding that the bird be pre-installed. None of these really answer the question though - it the bird green?

It's surprisingly hard to find a definitive answer. It seems like it should be, but fact is the only clear thing Linux has going for it is that it can extend the life of your desktops dramatically; most versions of Linux will run on a Pentium 1 with 128MB of RAM, while Slackware can run on a 486. It's also generally free, so you don't have to chew up resources generating the congealed energy ('cash') to buy it. I give it a weak yes, but I wish I could raise my voice.

Where the Druids Use Slide Rules, and They Use Them Well

With all this talk about Spinal Tap reuniting to do a Live Earth concert, it brought to mind the fact that druids still exists. And they have some revealing insights on the appropriate use of technology.

Similar to the Beachy Amish, it appears that there is a electro-schism in the Druidian movement. Some sects, such as the New Order of Druids have web sites (warning: druid music), even television stations. Other are more austere; take this piece from the Archdruid of the Ancient Order of Druids in America, where he speaks out on sustainable technology. The picture pretty much 'sums' up what he feels is appropriate.

All joking aside, there are some interesting points and quotes in this article, including one from Arthur Clarke - "“Every sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.”" It reminds me of the movies Waterworld or Beyond Thunderdome that are loaded with gadgetry people are struggling to use. Is this the answer to our woes? Who is ready for the rule to rule?

Planet Tells IT Managers to Do Their Jobs (or Become Irrelevant)

So says Peter Sondergaard, speaking at the Gartner Symposium ITXPO 2007. His keynote was on emerging IT trends and how they will affect IT on a personal and professional level. Peter highlighted four major trends; green IT was one of them. Score one for the good guys.

Peter thought that this would play out in a few ways; he mentioned that "by 2009, organizations will be required to deliver scaled down versions of applications, content, and value added services to a customer's personal, virtual, or home computing environment", suggesting a lighter, "just enough" approach when it comes to computer use. He also warned that the strong public and political interest around environmental issues will affect all suppliers and users, and IT organizations need to be cognizant of its environmental impact. "IT directly impacts the amount of CO2 emissions and can impact the reduction of CO2 emissions." Green is big, and it is unpredictable," said Sondergaard.

Gartner has been promoting this sort of crazy talk for some time, where the IT industry needs to fully recognize how much waste they are creating (more than the airline industry.) Sondergaard ended with a quixotic warning; IT managers had better select and purchase IT technology on the basis of improving business performance, or else they will quickly become irrelevant. Aha - essentially revealing what every IT pro knows, that the trillions we blew on IT up and into the early 21st century was mostly a waste. Maybe he was going for a laugh at the end, but it really was a revelation.

Bio-Optic Organized Knowledge Review

Here's a technology that will really change your life - Bio-Optic Organized Knowledge (BOOK). No wires. No electric circuits. No batteries. Nothing to be connected or switched on. So easy to use, even a child can operate it. Compact and portable. Can be used anywhere - even sitting in an armchair by the fire - yet it is powerful enough to hold as much information as a CD-ROM disc.

Amazingly, there are a lot of these BOOKs available on sustainable computing, some of which were written over ten years ago! One of these is The Squandered Computer, written in 1996 by some 'author' (that's what bloggers were called back then) who showed up for breakfast when the words 'Paul Strassman' were shouted. Frankly, I don't know how he got away with writing about this stuff; sure, he was CIO at General Foods, Kraft, and Xerox. Big deal; so he had a few billion to play around with annually.

The Squandered Computer is full of little horror stories about waste in the IT industry. Like in 1995, U.S. corporate spending for computers was about $500 billion - that exceeded the sum of 1995 corporate profits by $175 billion. Or that computer magazines have the tendency to popularize examples of excellence in computer usage, and disregard financial results (good thing that doesn't happen today!) Or, despite a 67% growth in computer spending, overhead costs of U.S. firms grew faster than their growth in revenues or profits. If you want a good footing as to why mountains of eWaste are piling up in China, and why every employee still gets a desktop computer, reading this BOOK is a good start.