In <ei8ptk$lb1$1@theodyn.ncf.ca> Michael Black:

[Snip...]

> if you're paying $500 in the summer for electricity, I don't think a few
> bulbs are the issue, and thus the computer isn't going to save much money

Good point, especially if you use a lot of electric airconditioning.

Such ideas for saving electricity are all very good, but I haven't seen
any mention of doing without as much airconditioning as some folks seem
keen on having. Light bulbs (etc.) are small potatoes, if you're trying
to keep rooms electrically cooled to 75 when it's 95 degrees outside.

Of course that's not to say there's no benefit to dialing back PCs.

Use LCD instead of CRT monitors, turn all monitors off when not in use
(even "Power Saving"); check each PC BIOS for energy saving modes.

I have a Compaq Deskpro EN 6350 which has a suspend mode where it does
disk spindown and (apparently) puts the CPU into lowpower standby. The
only thing still running "normal" is the PSU fan (AFAICT). After doing
the BIOS adjustments, it goes into standby mode by simply pressing the
power switch briefly. It takes about 5 seconds to go into standby, and
about 10 seconds to spin the disk up and resume normally.

It's the best compromise I've found between a complete shutdown, and a
readily available workstation--it won't do for servers, I know.

YMMV; HTH...

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