Survey: Do You Power Down?
by Lloyd Alter, Toronto on 09.28.07
So many peripherals. This writer has two power bars with nine scanners, chargers, printers and sound systems plugged in. Most draw phantom loads but the strips are hidden under the desk, out of reach. We showed the USB ecostrip that turns everything off when the computer is turned off, but that may not be the answer for everyone.
Most polls leave me in between one category or another. I power down every night, and when not in use, but sadly, I forget about the power strip the majority of the time. Alas, I will try to do better.
I leave the computer on, but I have a power strip for the unneeded peripherals that I flip off every night. I also have turn-off-able power strips for the microwave, my tv and stereo, and my cell charger. The only thing I have running is my computer, cable box (it'll lose the schedule info otherwise) and refrigerator.
My 24/7 computer is a Mac Mini without a connected monitor or keyboard. Combined with the external hard drive and printer that's usually in power-save mode, It's usually less than 100W.
And it's running ClimatePrediction.net and SETI@Home, so no processor cycle goes to waste.
I'm hoping to build a small solar power system to run my networking equipment, which all seems to run on 12V DC, my refrigerator, and Mac Mini. This will lower my electric bills and have the added benefit that I won't lose my network or my food if the power goes out.
Sure, Windows takes a long time to startup, too, but I use a Mac. And I put it to sleep to save power and rarely shut down. Mostly, it's on all the time, though, maintaining itself and downloading/uploading my entertainment.
No need to re-start windows each morning--use "hibernate" which uses as little power as being turned off, but is quicker to restart from.