[LINK] Little Carbon Neutral Linux Computers, Sydney, 29 February 2008

[Tom Worthington]

At 10:02 AM 28/02/2008, Bernard Robertson-Dunn wrote:
>... The last thing a CIO wants is radical change. Change equates to 
>risk and the bigger the change, the greater the risk. ...  the 
>existing model of corporate IT (ie a desktop with grunt running 
>local personal apps, with access to centralised corporate systems) 
>will be around for quite a while. ...

The model I am suggesting is not as radical as it sounds: it still 
allows for local PC applications, just limits the processing power 
and local storage they have. But I made it sound radical, as no one 
is going to get excited by a talk which says: "Slight change required 
to IT strategy".  ;-)

>Very low power and green systems are not compelling enough. ...

One half to one third the purchase price should make a compelling 
case, without considering environmental benefits.

>It is much less risky and complicated to reduce the power 
>consumption of lighting, heating and cooling in offices, warehouses 
>and factories.  ...

It is a lot easier to buy a new computer and plug it in, than refit a 
building for energy efficiency.

Changing the lighting, heating and cooling of building requires 
extensive modifications. I had the architect and the interior 
designers who did the green renovation of part of Trevor Pearcy House 
in Canberra talk at the ACS Green Technology Group. It was not an 
easy process: 
<http://austethical.com.au/company_information/about_us/offices_-_trevor_pearcey_house>.

ps: Trevor Pearcy House is next to the hypothetical Don Overhue Data 
Center I created for the Canberra 2020 study in 1993: 
<http://www.tomw.net.au/1993/cnbfut.html>. Don was amused by the 
idea, but the Foreign Minister was less amused by my promoting him to 
Secretary General of the UN. Perhaps it is time for a new 2020 
hypothetical  for the Summit.


>Tom Worthington wrote:
>>I will be demonstrating some little low power Linux computers at 
>>the Sydney Linux Users Group (SLUG), in Sydney, 29 February 2008. 
>>Free and all welcome: <http://www.slug.org.au/node/90>. ... My 
>>notes at: <http://www.tomw.net.au/technology/it/networked_organisation/>. ...



Tom Worthington FACS HLM tom.worthington at tomw.net.au Ph: 0419 496150
Director, Tomw Communications Pty Ltd            ABN: 17 088 714 309
PO Box 13, Belconnen ACT 2617                      http://www.tomw.net.au/
Adjunct Senior Lecturer, ANU