HP's Five Steps Towards Energy Efficiency

Energy efficiency makes good sense not only for your bottom line, but for the planet as well. Follow these steps, and you’re right on track towards implementing energy efficient measures in your environment.

Step 1
Choose a system that has power management technology and enable the technology on your systems.

EIST (Enhanced Intel SpeedStep Technology) and AMD Cool’n’Quiet were created to lessen power consumption when software activity does not require the full capabilities of the processor. Diminished power consumption means operating costs and heat production are lowered. HP ships all systems with Intel’s EIST and AMD’s Cool ‘n’ Quiet enabled.


Step 2
Choose a system that has a BIOS offering a wide range of configurable power management options. All HP Business Desktops ship out of the factory with all system states enabled to achieve maximum power efficiency.


You probably don’t think much about your BIOS settings, but the HP BIOS offers a range of configurable power management options, including a Standby state (S3) known as Suspend to RAM, in which all devices in the system are powered down, except for computer memory. Recovery is almost instant (approximately 2 to 3 seconds) and power consumption is very low (typically <5W).

Step 3
Choose a system processor that provides the maximum level of power efficiency.

AMD and Intel both offer processor configurations that provide power savings.

AMD: An X2 3800+ 35w processor configuration will yield the best energy efficiency. The dc5750 with this processor is HP’s most energy efficient business desktop.

Intel: An Intel system with a Core 2 Duo processor configuration will yield the best energy efficiency vs. other Intel processors.

Step 4
Choose a system configuration with an 80% efficient power supply. 80% power supplies reduce energy consumption, provide peak reduction and provide improved power quality.

What exactly is an 80% efficient power supply? When a power supply converts AC power from the wall to the various DC voltages that the computer needs, there is always a loss of power. The power loss varies with how busy the computer is. An 80% efficient power supply is designed to lose less than 20%. Currently, power supplies for desktop computers range from approximately 65 to 75% efficiency. You can save up to 52% on your PC power1 consumption with HP’s new energy star 4.0 compliant desktops featuring 80PLUS power supplies and energy efficient components.

Other benefits include:

* Increased product reliability
* Improved worker environment due to use of quieter fans
* Lower air conditioning cost
* Quieter working environment

80% efficient power supplies are available as an option on select Business Desktops. HP is the first to provide this energy saving solution to customers. When thinking of energy savings, configuring your system with an 80% efficient power supply is a great way to save on your energy bill while helping the environment.

Step 5
Replace CRT monitors with LCD technology. LCD technology provides up to 70% power savings and provides up to twice the lifespan of CRT monitors.

Replacing CRT technology with LCD technology can provide substantial power savings. For example, a floor with 100 CRT monitors requires an approximate energy consumption of 9,000 Watts per hour (W/Hr), versus only 1700 W/Hr when equipped with comparable 15-inch LCD monitors.

EnergyStar 4.0 – What’s changed?

Currently, all HP Business Desktops meet Energy Star 3.0., which was based mainly on Standby power ratings. The new, exclusive standards to be introduced July, 2007 for Energy Star 4.0 center around a system’s power performance while running in idle mode. One of the other major requirements of Energy Star 4.0 is the inclusion of an 80% efficient power supply.

If your organization is serious about Energy Star compliance, you can get a head start with HP. HP is already shipping systems that meet the new criteria, well in advance of the implementation date. HP’s 5000 and 7000 series Business Desktop PCs are available today in select models with Energy Star 4.0 compliance, and you can even get them at special SmartBuy pricing for a limited time.

1. NOTE: This example is for illustration purposes only. Savings calculations based on PCMark 05 benchmark testing results. Internal testing, customer results will vary. Variables include customer determined percentage of sleep state, idle state, productivity state, and peak usage state. Also, manufacturing variability will effect the savings a customer may see. HP advises customers to test a system with an 80% efficient power supply in their environment to determine potential savings. Customers not using a sleep state should see higher savings as idle state draws more watts.

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YouTube Make Moves to Pacify The Thai King

In an attempt to pacify the Thai King, paving the way to the ban on the website being lifted, YouTube is likely to remove all video clips deemed insulting to Thailand's king.

The popular video-sharing site, owned by Internet giant Google, has been blocked to Thai users since early April, when clips showing digitally-altered images of revered King Bhumibol Adulyadej began appearing.

Asked whether Google would remove the clips, Vissanu Meeyo, a spokesman for the information ministry, said: "It is likely."

He was responding to reports on the Bangkok Post newspaper's website that the information minister has received a letter from Google's vice president vowing to delete all clips considered offensive to the monarch.

Vissanu told AFP that information minister Sitthichai Pookaiyaudoom would hold a press conference on Friday to disclose the details.

Thailand's army-backed government had considered suing YouTube over charges of lese majeste -- insulting the monarchy -- a serious crime here that carries up to 15 years in prison.

The government, which came to power after a September coup, has been blocking YouTube since the first clip showing the king next to a photograph of feet, considered deeply offensive in Thailand, appeared in April.

The number of clips lampooning the king mushroomed after news spread around the world that Thailand had reacted by banning YouTube.

Thailand's 79-year-old king, almost universally adored by Thais, is the world's longest-reigning monarch, and one of the few who is still protected by tough laws that prohibit any insult against the royal family.

The YouTube ban came a week after a Thai court jailed a Swiss man for 10 years for insulting the monarch by vandalising his portraits.

But the king later pardoned the man, who was then deported from Thailand.

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NYC Taxi Cabs Going High-Tech.

Despite objections from some drivers that the technology was too intrusive and expesive, the city's Taxi and Limousine Commission unanimously approved a plan Thursday to install touch-screen monitors in all 13,000 city cabs.

The monitors, already in 200 cabs as an experiment, allow riders to pay by credit card, map out where the cab is going and find information about restaurants and bars.

Taxi officials say the monitors will help passengers make the most of the 13 minutes they spend on an average ride in the city. But many drivers have decried the cost — up to $7,400 for equipment and fees over three years — and say the technology will let taxi owners and officials check up on them.

"I cannot afford the computer. What is going to happen to me?" driver Oscar Luzzi said at Thursday's commission meeting.

TLC Commissioner Matthew Daus said the monitors could help drivers, giving them information about traffic while boosting ridership by eliminating the need for cash.

"This project is nothing short of revolutionary and evolutionary for the taxi industry," Daus wrote in a recent agency newsletter. He noted the commission had called for the technology while approving a 26 percent fare increase in 2004.

The commission set an Aug. 1 deadline to chose a system and said that starting Oct. 1, as taxis come up for inspection, they will be required to have the technology.

The issue has a delicate history: A 2003 experiment with touch-screen television in taxis ended within months amid passenger antipathy, and the drivers' group leading the opposition to the monitors notes that it carried out a crippling taxi strike over other issues in 1998.

The credit-card option is expected to prove popular with customers, though, in what is now a mostly cash, $1.8 billion-a-year business.

Cesar Norena, a 17-year taxi driver who got the system for free by agreeing to test it for the city, says passengers have used its features, and he believes the credit-card option will boost business.

"People really like it," he said, "and as a driver, I really like it, too."

The global positioning system in the technology, from Englewood, N.J.-based TaxiTech, automates required record-keeping. It could help with lost items, as well: If a customer reports losing a wallet, the taxi commission could send alerts to drivers in the neighborhood where the customer was dropped off to be on the lookout.

Objecting drivers have raised concerns about the costs of the technology, credit-card fees and potential working time lost if it needs repair. Some worry that the global-positioning system will be used to track their movements, although the taxi commission says it will record only the pickup and drop-off points and fare, which drivers already are required to log.

"It's trampling on our constitutional rights, and it will cut deeply into our income," said Bill Lindauer of the New York Taxi Workers Alliance, a drivers' advocacy group with more than 7,000 members.

The alliance held a rally in March to protest the systems, and Lindauer said it was exploring legal and political avenues to block the plan.

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Microsoft Begins Migrating Users To Hotmail Web Mail Service

Microsoft Corp. has closed the public testing period for Windows Live Hotmail and has begun a months-long process of migrating users to this major upgrade of its Hotmail Web mail service, the company will announce Monday.

The new Windows Live Hotmail service – which was launched yesterday in 36 languages – will be a critical cornerstone in the company’s online advertising strategy in the years ahead. The company is touting Windows Live Hotmail as the most significant upgrade to its MSN Hotmail service launched in 1996.

The company says that Window Live Hotmail – the result of input from over 20m beta testers – will deliver a safer, more powerful and productive email experience than previous versions with flexible access via the web, on a mobile phone or with an email client.

Later this month later this month Windows Live Hotmail users will be able to access their Windows Live Hotmail email and contacts for free using Microsoft Office Outlook 2003 or Office Outlook 2007 via the new Microsoft Office Outlook Connector beta.

“We’re thrilled to deliver Windows Live Hotmail to the more than 280 million active MSN Hotmail accounts around the world,” said Steve Berkowitz, senior vice president of the Online Services Group at Microsoft.

“Windows Live Hotmail represents an extremely compelling end-to-end email experience that makes it easy for customers to get best-of-breed email access across PCs, mobile devices and the web.

“Windows Live Hotmail is a cornerstone online service for Microsoft and a critical part of our online advertising business because email is a key point of influence for consumer purchases,” Berkowitz said.

Microsoft says the new version of MSN Hotmail will be more akin to the Outlook experience and users will be have click and drag capabilities and auto-complete capabilities.

Users who want to bring their MSN to their mobile phones or PDAs by going to http://mobile.live.com. The company also said that the new upgraded Windows Live Hotmail will ship with Windows Mobile 6.0, the forthcoming version of its software for smart phones.

The company added that in coming weeks it will release Windows Live Mail beta, a free consumer email client available via download that will be a successor to Outlook Express and Windows Mail on Windows Vista.

The thorny issue of spam email – estimated to be impacting 60pc of business inboxes of Irish email users – is also being tackled through a number of new features.

For example, when an email message arrives in the Windows Live Hotmail inbox after multiple safety checks, the safety bar at the top of each email message will give a visual cue of the status of the email. White indicates the email is from a known sender, yellow indicates the email is from an unknown sender and red indicates the email is potentially fraudulent.

By clicking on the “mark as unsafe” link, users can automatically delete junk email messages, block any future email messages from that junk e-mail sender, and report the junk email sender to Microsoft’s spam filters to help protect others.

In terms of personalisation capabilities, users have two choices: a classic Hotmail view or the latest Outloook-oriented view. Users will also be able change the view through adding different colour schemes or skins.

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Top 3 Robotics Teams Visit White House

President George W. Bush participates in a demonstration of robotic technology developed by one of the 3 national team finalists from the FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) Robotics competition held in Atlanta. The students with the president hail from Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania and New Jersey.

Student teams were invited to the White House to demonstrate their winning projects.

FIRST Robotics was created in 1992 by FIRST, a non profit organization in Manchester, New Hampshire. FIRST created the international robotics competition to inspire students to get involved in science and engineering. Approximately 1300 teams participated this year.

NASA is the largest sponsor and participant. Government agencies, Fortune 500 companies and universities sponsor remaining teams.

Students also will demonstrate their projects to members and staffers on Capitol Hill.

In 2007, more than 1,000 high school teams from the United States, Canada, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Brazil, Great Britain and Israel participated in 'Rack and Roll', the game scenario for 2007. 'Rack and Roll,' mixes engineering skills and strategy with a little fast-thinking math. The object of Rack 'N Roll was to score points by using the robots to pick up inflatable rings and hang them on a rack in the center of the playing field. Teams could also use their robots to block opponents from scoring.

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