1st Edition

Green Computing Tools and Techniques for Saving Energy, Money, and Resources

By Bud E. Smith Copyright 2014
    260 Pages 61 B/W Illustrations
    by Auerbach Publications

    260 Pages 61 B/W Illustrations
    by Auerbach Publications

    Explaining how going green can pay for itself, Green Computing: Tools and Techniques for Saving Energy, Money, and Resources ties the green agenda in IT to the broader corporate agenda in risk management, brand management, and reputation management. Written by a leading author in the IT field, this authoritative reference provides easy access to quotable budget justifications that readers can use to place IT stakeholders on the same page for this new agenda that can save valuable resources and the planet.

    Bringing together everything IT professionals need to know about green computing, the book embodies a new philosophy on how to deploy IT devices, software, and services in a way that makes people more effective with fewer resources. It presents helpful tips on how to maximize energy savings as well as how to present information gradually to allow peers and stakeholders to absorb it.

    The book’s comprehensive coverage includes various types of hardware and software, including the changes currently happening, underlying trends, products currently on the market, and what to expect—or, in some cases, what organizations should ask for—from suppliers in the future.

    On the hardware side, the book considers tablet computers—examining the iPad® and Android®-based tablets. On the software side, it examines the general trend toward cloud computing. It provides important examples of this rapidly emerging trend as well as guidance on how to use the cloud to make software available and to store large amounts of data.

    Demonstrating the savings and increased business resiliency that can result from green computing, this book offers C-suite executives, senior IT management, project managers, suppliers, and market analysts with the tools required to understand why you need to act, how to act, what to buy, when to do it, and who should act.

    Green Computing and Your Reputation
    Key Concepts
    Reputation as Motivation
    Avoiding Greenwash
    Social License to Operate
    Green Computing and Your Career
    Green Computing and Your Department
    Green Recruiting and Retention
    Getting the Word Out Inside the Company
    Getting the Word Out Outside the Company
    Summary

    Green Computing and Saving Money
    Key Concepts
    Why Saving Money Is Green
    Getting Focused on Money-Saving Efforts
    Implementing Energy Efficiency
    Changing How Current Devices Are Used
    Moving to Cloud Services
    Digitizing Non-IT Functions
    Greening Your Energy-Saving Moves
    Some Big Thinking About Money-Saving Efforts
    Summary

    Green Computing and the Environment
    Key Concepts
    Environmental Drivers for Green Computing
    What Drives the Green Agenda?
    Key Roots of Environmentalism
    Environmentalism and IT
    The New Imperative of Climate Change
    A Brief History of the Climate
    Al Gore and Climate Change
    The 2°C Warming "Limit"
    Climate Change and IT
    What’s Next with Climate Change?
    What It Means to "Go Green"
    Why IT Is a Climate Change Solution
    Career Development and "Going Green"
    Summary

    A New Vision of Computing
    Key Concepts
    Cloud Computing Emerges
    The End of the PC Era
    Some New-Model IT Challenges
    A Few Examples from a Multinational
    How a Company Adopted the iPhone
    A Mental Model for IT Simplicity
    Why Green Computing Fits the New Model
    Is Cloud Computing the Whole Answer?
    Disadvantages of Cloud Computing
    Managing Disadvantages of Cloud Computing
    What to Do Besides Cloud Computing
    Efficiency and Cloud Computing
    Greenability and Cloud Computing
    Responsibility, Usability, and Cloud Computing
    The Philosophical Implications of Green Computing
    The Zen of Green Computing
    Summary

    Building a Green Device Portfolio
    Key Concepts
    Introduction
    Why Green Works for Device Purchases
    Pushing Computing Down the Device Pyramid
    Another Dimension of Device Pyramid Greenness
    Green Computing and Embodied Energy
    Green Computing and Running Costs
    Planned Obsolescence Isn’t Green
    Green Computing and Device Disposal
    The Greenpeace Guide to Greener Electronics
    Support Employees’ Device Choices
    Publicizing Your Process
    Summary

    Finding Green Devices
    Key Concepts
    What Makes a Device Green?
    What Makes a Supplier Green?
    Case Study: HP vs. Dell
    Giving Suppliers and Vendors Feedback
    Publicizing Your Selection Process and the Winner
    A Sample Statement of Green Buying Principles
    Desktop Computers
    Laptops
    Sustainability and Failure to Supply
    The Case of Windows 8
    Tablets
    "Less Computer" and "Computer-less" Solutions
    Summary

    Green Servers and Data Centers
    Key Concepts
    Choosing and Creating Green Data Centers
    Green Data Centers as a Model
    The Last Shall Be First
    What Makes a Data Center Green?
    Building and Power Supply Considerations
    Servers, Storage, and Networking
    Data Center Suppliers
    Summary

    Saving Energy
    Key Concepts
    Saving Energy Serves Many Masters
    Cost Savings through Energy Savings
    Risk Reduction through Energy Savings
    Carbon Footprint Reduction through Energy Savings
    Improving Your Reputation and Brand
    Why Energy Prices Will Stay High
    Embodied Energy
    Analyzing Your Energy Usage
    A Recipe for Energy Savings
    Understanding the Unique Energy Needs of IT
    Focusing on Solar Power
    Saving Energy and the Supply Chain
    Energy-Saving Pilot Projects
    Selling Energy Savings
    Summary

    Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions
    Key Concepts
    Why Greenhouse Gas Emissions Are Important
    Sources and Sinks of Greenhouse Gases and Warming
    Is There Still Doubt About Climate Change?
    Why Are There Still Doubters and Deniers?
    What If I Work for Doubters and Deniers?
    So What’s Next with Climate Change?
    Reducing Emissions I: Embodied Energy
    Reducing Emissions II: Daily Energy Use
    Reducing Emissions III: Taking Steps to Use Different Sources
    Reducing Emissions IV: Supply Chain Success
    Summary

    Reducing Resource Use
    Key Concepts
    Why Resource Use Is Important
    A Resource Use Checklist
    Planned Obsolescence and Resource Use
    The Story of Apple and EPEAT
    Case Study: Computer Hardware and RSI
    Summary

    Green Computing by Industry Segment
    Key Concepts
    Evaluating Greenness
         The Newsweek Green 500 Approach
         Looking at Industry Segments
    Analyzing Your Own Initiatives, Company, and Sector
    Summary

    The Future: Deep Green Computing
    Key Concepts
    Green Computing and the Future
    Megatrends for Green Computing
         An Increasing Need for Sustainability 
         The Continually Decreasing Cost of Core Computing Capabilities 
         The Ability of Computing to Do More and More
    Telepresence Instead of Travel
    Telecommuting Instead of Commuting
    Toward Deep Green Computing
    Platforms for Deep Green Computing
    Selling Deep Green Computing
    Summary

    References
    Index

    Biography

    Floyd (Bud) E. Smith is one of the most accomplished authors of computing books around—and a green writer and activist as well. Bud has written about technical topics, such as microprocessor programming and video cards; online subjects, including Internet marketing and Web usability; and social media, from Google Plus to Facebook for business. His writing career parallels his work for some of the biggest names in technology. Bud has worked for search engine pioneer AltaVista, Web browser pioneer Netscape, and computing and electronics pioneer Apple, among other technology leaders.

    Recently, Bud has focused on environmental concerns. He has become active in the international Transition Towns movement and is a member of the Initiating Committee for Transition San Francisco.

    Bud wrote his first book about climate change, Runaway (published by Business and Technical Communication Services [BATCS], in 2008) and has written a book on green roofs. Green Computing gives Bud the opportunity to bring together his two strongest interests: technology and the environment.

    Bud’s next book will describe the impact of climate change on the San Francisco Bay Area.