Black Google

xoxoxoBruce · 01-23-2007, 01:40 PM

Blogger ecoIron has stirred up a little dust by claiming, if Google changed their pages from white to black, collectively, we would save 750 Megawatt-hours each year. Now that's one hell of a lot of electricity....doesn't seem possible.

Using information from GoldStar (US Dept Energy), a black screen burns 59 watts vs a white screen at 74 watts.

Then he took Google's 200 million queries/day, displayed for about 10 seconds each, gives 550,000 hours/day total, Google's on PCs.

So, a shift from white to black saves 15 watts or 8.3 Megawatt-hours per day, or about 3000 Megawatt-hours a year, for the World.

But, you say, I've got a fancy schmancy LCD screen. Gotcha covered, about 25% of the screens are CRTs, that's why only 750 Megawatt-hours. But at an average of 10 cents a Kilowatt-hour, that's still $75,000.

Of course CRTs are disappearing but look at all the oil and coal that could be saved, all the pollution that could be avoided, and we won't even get into Global Warming.

This is what GoldStar claims for color costs.

glatt · 01-23-2007, 01:46 PM

Very interesting. If true, it shows that there are lots of little ways to save energy without impacting our lives much at all.

Undertoad · 01-23-2007, 02:02 PM

Do you guys want a power-saving Cellar color scheme?

MaggieL · 01-23-2007, 02:05 PM

I suppose all these Green people should be switching to 12" monochrome CRTs....imagine how much *that* would save.

Or Tandy 100's powered by potato batteries and composted methane.

I'd rather see Google fund Bussard and his Whiffleball fusion reactor then playing "paper or plastic" games with color schemes.

glatt · 01-23-2007, 02:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Undertoad

Do you guys want a power-saving Cellar color scheme?

If you are bored and have nothing better to do, I'd play with it and might even switch to it if it was easy to read. But it hardly seems worth your effort with the two or three people who might use it in the Cellar.

Kitsune · 01-23-2007, 03:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MaggieL

I suppose all these Green people should be switching to 12" monochrome CRTs....imagine how much *that* would save.

Or Tandy 100's powered by potato batteries and composted methane.

Haw haw! That's hilarious! I got a good one, too: how about we outlaw wasteful standby mode on consumer electronics?

Flint · 01-23-2007, 04:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Undertoad

Do you guys want a power-saving Cellar color scheme?

Can you make it look like a Command Prompt? That would be the best way for me to pretend I'm working on computer-guy stuff.

jinx · 01-23-2007, 04:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Undertoad

Do you guys want a power-saving Cellar color scheme?

Ooh, I do.

Happy Monkey · 01-23-2007, 04:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by xoxoxoBruce

But, you say, I've got a fancy schmancy LCD screen. Gotcha covered, about 25% of the screens are CRTs, that's why only 750 Megawatt-hours. But at an average of 10 cents a Kilowatt-hour, that's still $75,000.

Does the color not matter for LCD? I'd think that a white pixel would have red, green, and blue all "on" (or "off", I'm not sure what the mechanism is). It wouldn't be nearly as much of an effect, as the majority of the power use would be the always-on-everywhere backight, but there should be some sort of effect.

lumberjim · 01-23-2007, 05:23 PM

careful......once you go black.....

xoxoxoBruce · 01-23-2007, 07:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Undertoad

Do you guys want a power-saving Cellar color scheme?

Time better spent with the paypal link.

lumberjim · 01-23-2007, 07:49 PM

As of today, i've recolored my DMS screen to black in order to save energy .

monster · 01-23-2007, 08:02 PM

The problem is, for most people, light text on a dark background is a lot more taxing on the eyes than the reverse, and I remember reading the results of a study that indicated people reading light text on a dark background were slower and more likely to make errors. Can't remember the name of the author or even if it was published, but it makes sense to me -white/yellow/green on black makes my eyes water. Mind you, that could just be the memories of days spent in the undergrad computer dungeon.

xoxoxoBruce · 01-23-2007, 09:11 PM

I think a dark screen makes the reflections on the surface glass more apparent, too.

MaggieL · 01-23-2007, 09:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kitsune

Haw haw! That's hilarious! I got a good one, too: how about we outlaw wasteful standby mode on consumer electronics?

How about we quit making stupid laws? Nah...that'll never work.

01-23-2007, 01:40 PM	#1
xoxoxoBruce The future is unwritten Join Date: Oct 2002 Posts: 71,105	Black Google Blogger ecoIron has stirred up a little dust by claiming, if Google changed their pages from white to black, collectively, we would save 750 Megawatt-hours each year. Now that's one hell of a lot of electricity....doesn't seem possible. Using information from GoldStar (US Dept Energy), a black screen burns 59 watts vs a white screen at 74 watts. Then he took Google's 200 million queries/day, displayed for about 10 seconds each, gives 550,000 hours/day total, Google's on PCs. So, a shift from white to black saves 15 watts or 8.3 Megawatt-hours per day, or about 3000 Megawatt-hours a year, for the World. But, you say, I've got a fancy schmancy LCD screen. Gotcha covered, about 25% of the screens are CRTs, that's why only 750 Megawatt-hours. But at an average of 10 cents a Kilowatt-hour, that's still $75,000. Of course CRTs are disappearing but look at all the oil and coal that could be saved, all the pollution that could be avoided, and we won't even get into Global Warming. This is what GoldStar claims for color costs. __________________ The descent of man ~ Nixon, Friedman, Reagan, Trump. Last edited by xoxoxoBruce; 04-07-2007 at 05:48 PM.

01-23-2007, 02:05 PM	#4
MaggieL in the Hour of Scampering Join Date: Jan 2001 Location: Jeffersonville PA (15 mi NW of Philadelphia) Posts: 4,060	I suppose all these Green people should be switching to 12" monochrome CRTs....imagine how much that would save. Or Tandy 100's powered by potato batteries and composted methane. I'd rather see Google fund Bussard and his Whiffleball fusion reactor then playing "paper or plastic" games with color schemes. __________________ "Neither can his Mind be thought to be in Tune,whose words do jarre; nor his reason In frame, whose sentence is preposterous..."

01-23-2007, 05:23 PM	#10
lumberjim I can hear my ears Join Date: Oct 2003 Posts: 25,571	careful......once you go black..... __________________ This body holding me reminds me of my own mortality Embrace this moment, remember We are eternal, all this pain is an illusion ~MJKeenan

01-23-2007, 07:49 PM	#12
lumberjim I can hear my ears Join Date: Oct 2003 Posts: 25,571	As of today, i've recolored my DMS screen to black in order to save energy . __________________ This body holding me reminds me of my own mortality Embrace this moment, remember We are eternal, all this pain is an illusion ~MJKeenan Last edited by lumberjim; 01-23-2007 at 08:19 PM. Reason: grammar

01-23-2007, 08:02 PM	#13
monster I hear them call the tide Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Perpetual Chaos Posts: 30,852	The problem is, for most people, light text on a dark background is a lot more taxing on the eyes than the reverse, and I remember reading the results of a study that indicated people reading light text on a dark background were slower and more likely to make errors. Can't remember the name of the author or even if it was published, but it makes sense to me -white/yellow/green on black makes my eyes water. Mind you, that could just be the memories of days spent in the undergrad computer dungeon. __________________ The most difficult thing is the decision to act, the rest is merely tenacity Amelia Earhart

01-23-2007, 01:46 PM	#2
glatt ™ Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Arlington, VA Posts: 27,717	Very interesting. If true, it shows that there are lots of little ways to save energy without impacting our lives much at all.

01-23-2007, 02:02 PM	#3
Undertoad Radical Centrist Join Date: Jan 2001 Location: Cottage of Prussia Posts: 31,423	Do you guys want a power-saving Cellar color scheme?

01-23-2007, 09:11 PM	#14
xoxoxoBruce The future is unwritten Join Date: Oct 2002 Posts: 71,105	I think a dark screen makes the reflections on the surface glass more apparent, too. __________________ The descent of man ~ Nixon, Friedman, Reagan, Trump.

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