Tag: homework

Six tips for greening your PC

When you consider that computers now consume about 10 percent of the electricity generated in North America and that a great many PCs still end up in landfills, leaching deadly chemicals, it makes sense to adopt more eco-friendly computing options.

John Hiddema, technical consultant for Nerds on Site, is one of the many people making a conscious effort to go green. He recycles, buys organic produce, uses cleaning products less harmful to the environment, owns energy-efficient appliances, and has configured his
PC to use less energy. He’s also going green on the job. Some of the work he does for clients’ computer systems can be done remotely from his home office, drastically reducing his need for a car.

Here are some tips for making your technology use more eco-friendly.

1. Manage power consumption

Did you know that approximately 40 percent of the energy used for home electronics is consumed while these devices are turned off or idling? Techies refer to computers and related gadgets that draw power while not in use as vampire load. Turn off and unplug everything when you’re not using it. Even simpler: shut down everything and then turn off the power bar. Read More»

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5 tips for getting your e-mail on vacation

If you’re going on vacation, you’re probably looking forward to getting away from the phone. But e-mail is less intrusive, and many of us want to bring it with us.

That used to be a real chore. But accessing e-mail from anywhere has become easier over the years. Today, it’s not much more difficult than downloading it at the office.

The key is finding decent PC access to the Internet on the road. Most hotels offer such access. Even a dial-up account is OK for downloading e-mail. And with Wi-Fi hotspots all over urban areas, fast access is a snap.

Of course, you have to find a way to access your e-mail server. So let’s look at how that can be done. Read More»

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