Beware the Power Drain of Technology

It's very interesting how a little casual conversation can bring to light an issue that is generally less than obvious to most of us, but which really is a great cause for concern to us all. Let me explain.

In the midst of having a quiet gathering with a few nice friends, we had turned down the lights so we could better see out the window to the beautifully lit trees across the street. It really was a great sight, which added a wonderful ambiance to the atmosphere of the holiday season.

Inside, sitting around a small table in the dim light of a single candle, we began to talk about how quiet our surroundings seem to get whenever electrical items are turned off. For more than a few moments we were all drawn back to the memory of the almost deafening silence of the "Great Blackout" of 2003, when not a single hum from a fan, nor the lulling vibration of a motor or pump, nor a single white noise or light existed.

Most of us are very much aware that in this day and age we rely very heavily, not only on technology and its myriad of devices, but also on the electricity needed to power them. In fact we almost take it for granted, day in and day out, until we experience that instance of clarity which gives us reason to pause and think for more than a fleeting moment - and so we should!

Ironically, this issue was recently related to by one of the largest consumers of electricity in the technology industry today - GOOGLE! A recent article sited an engineer at Google who warned that "if the performance per watt of today's computers doesn't improve, the electrical costs of running them could end up far greater than the initial hardware price tag." Let's look at an example.

Only a few years back the typical home computer system had only a 150-200 watt power supply. Today power supplies are available in up to at least 680 watts (a 450% increase), with the average size being 400 watts in a typical pre-built computer system. Faster and more powerful processors, more fans to cool those processors, higher maximum memory configurations, faster CD/DVD drives for burning, nearly unlimited USB ports for external device connections (drawing their own power) and expansion cards like those used for high-end graphics, have all been contributing to this power drain.

If Moore's Law were to be applied to this inevitable growth and expansion of computer components, it would hardly be undeniable that the warning of Google's engineer should be heeded seriously, and within the next few years. Not only is there a "performance per watt" concern here, but more important is the environmental impact that carries a social responsibility.

I've always firmly believed in educating the public, and even though there are some technological advancements and new technologies in development that promise to address this power draining "crisis", they are not yet widespread enough within the mainstream media to have had much affect on the social conscience of the world's technology users. As computing power consumption grows, the awareness of its consequences dwindle into near obscurity. This has to change, and this change needs to start now.

One of the questions I get asked most frequently is the controversial "should I leave my computer turned on all the time?" My answer is simply "no". Why? Well, in the past there was the sound argument that turning your computer on and off frequently kept repeating the cycle of heating and cooling the computer into a short circuit. Computer chips, cooling devices and temperature controls have all advanced quite far since this school of thinking existed, and though it may still be an issue, the bigger picture today is that leaving a computer on all the time simply uses up electricity. With the increasing growth of computers into every home, consuming much more power each year, the hydro bill has become THE mitigating factor over the years.

It is almost an optical illusion that keeps the awareness of this power drain problem hidden from many of us. Over the years computers have gotten smaller, more powerful, faster, and capable of connecting to many more devices, but smaller does not always mean lower power consumption. In fact, the combined advances of technology going into home computers have conyinued to increase their power consumption, and so to should our understanding of this illusion.

Please Power Off!

Regards,

Troy Roach
OnSite Technology
519-40-GEEKS
519-404-3357
www.onsitetechnology.ca

758/2571