Enter our contest! Read this post, take two simple actions, and complete a quick survey!

This is the final post in a four-part series. Part 1 of this series listed the five actions we recommend that you take to reduce the power use of your computer. Part 2 and Part 3 explained in more detail how you could easily complete four cost-saving actions. This post explains the fifth and final action in this campaign — how you can multiply the positive impact you have had on the environment by getting others involved.

Softchoice found that 93% of PCs are still running Windows XP, which did not default to having power management turned on.

In Can Windows 7 make PCs Green? Todd Bishop writes, "With hundreds of millions of PCs draining batteries and tapping into power outlets around the world, even a small tweak in Microsoft Windows can influence global energy consumption."

With numbers like these, it is imperative that we convince as many people as possible to reduce their IT power use.

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Enter our contest! Read this post, take two simple actions, and complete a quick survey! Read on for more info.

Part 1 of this series listed the 5 actions we recommend that you take to reduce the power use of your computer. This post (part 2) explains two of those actions in more detail and tells you how to complete these two actions. Parts 3 and 4 will offer more detail about how you can make the other three changes.

Reduce Your Energy Use at No Cost and Save Money Instantly

1.    Set power management on your computer(s)

Light green: Easy Individual Actions

All major operating systems released in the past ten years come with power management built in, but not necessarily turned on. What is power management? It's the ability to set your computer and monitor to automatically go to sleep or shut down after a period of inactivity. Climate Savers Computing are the experts at this and have all the information you should need to accomplish this task. They even have step-by-step guides. We urge you to sign up for CSCI membership either as an individual or affiliate: it's free and it's a way to build momentum for IT energy conservation. They can keep you informed about the latest ways to reduce your IT footprint. They even have a wonderful, searchable list of energy-efficient hardware and software products that help with IT energy reduction.

Welcome to TechSoup GreenTech's Unpower Yourself! campaign. We're having a contest to encourage you to reduce your computer's energy comsumption. Read this post, take two simple actions, complete a quick survey, and you'll be eligible to win!

Global warming is happening because of a buildup of greenhouse gases in our atmosphere, most of them produced by power plants that burn fossil fuels to generate electricity. Information and communications technology consumes a good deal of electricity, much of which is wasted as heat, consumed by computers and monitors needlessly left on, or used to cool hardware that is not running efficiently.

More than half the electricity used by IT is outside the data center and it is very easy for you to make small changes that will have a significant positive impact on both the environment and your wallet. It's not always easy to get a significant number of individuals to take these easy actions, but we can reach more people with your help.

Here are five things you can do quickly to decrease your IT energy use:

Here's an interesting post by Jeff Atwood about solid-state hard drives (thanks David!). SSDs have been around in various forms for a long time, but only in recent years have manufacturers started seriously marketing them to consumers as an alternative to traditional hard drives. In early 2008, both Apple and Dell started shipping high-end laptops with SSDs only; others have followed suit since then. As Kevin points out in Should You Upgrade to Windows 7?, Windows 7 improves performance for solid-state drives markedly over XP and Vista.

A drive with no moving parts should be faster, more energy efficient, and less susceptible to failure, right? In theory, yes, but the reality might be more complicated. From Atwood's article:

I was an early solid state (SSD) drive adopter with my last laptop purchase, and it was a profound disappointment. Those first and second generation SSD drives turned out to be slower than their magnetic equivalents, despite the eager promises of vendors. On top of that, they were incredibly expensive, and of limited capacity. Running Windows Vista on an early 32 gigabyte SSD was an exercise in pain and frustration on so many levels. What's not to love? A lot.

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TechRepublic, an IT resource of the publisher ZDNet, has a good summary of the security features of Windows 7 which are especially pertinent to system administrators.

While some features like BitLocker, a drive and volume encryption mechanism, and DirectAccess, a VPN-like remote access implementation, are available in the Enterprise edition only, Windows 7 generally adds more security measures than Vista in a less obtrusive manner. Although operating system security is no substitute for vigilance and user training, it's an important componet and defense against present and emerging threats.

Since Windows 7 launched last week, there has been a flurry of activity from nonprofits and libraries looking to start using the new operating system. TechSoup has written a bunch of articles, blog posts, and forum threads to help people figure out whether to upgrade and how to do it. One thing we haven't really mentioned here yet, is the cool contest that Microsoft is hosting right now — specifically to benefit nonprofits and other social benefit organizations.

Organizations are encouraged to create a short video submission to tell the world how Windows 7 could help them change the world. For example, if you've got smoother running systems, maybe that leaves more time for you to do your real work of providing domestic violence counseling to women, children, and families in need. Or maybe upgrading the public computing lab you run for local lower-income community, will help people access job-hunt, language learning, and healthcare information easier. Whatever it is, tell your story. Here's more, direct from Microsoft:

As many may know, Microsoft's new Windows 7 operating system became available last week worldwide and through TechSoup's Microsoft Donation Program. Our customer service representatives have been plowing through the donation requests, helping nonprofits and libraries register and place their requests, and answering questions about whether to upgrade and how to do it. They're working as hard as they can to meet the demand and overflow of queries, so please be patient if you've called or emailed since they have a lengthy queue (even with additional staff support). Our community forums have also experienced a flurry of discussion on the operating system and lots of questions are being answered there.

To help bring some of the more frequently asked questions to the forefront (and hopefully answer some of your lingering questions), we've compiled this short list of Q&A to help you navigate.

In these tough economic times, there are a few relatively easy steps you can take to reduce waste in your IT systems. These measures will not only make your systems more efficient; they'll also save money and reduce your impact on the environment.

Why is it important to reduce your computer power use? Power plants are the largest source of CO2 emissions in the US, creating approximately 40% of emissions. Of course computers get their power from the power grid, but did you know that computers waste nearly half the energy they pull from the wall as heat?

Starting this month, most new PCs will have Microsoft’s new Windows 7 operating system on them. Windows 7 is much more advanced in power conservation than its predecessors, both for end users and for IT administrators. The new operating system makes it easier both to reduce power consumption and to minimize hardware obsolescence.

For those who want to try the software, TechSoup already carries Windows 7 upgrades for nonprofits and libraries; even those that have already made a Microsoft request this year can order.

In case you've missed all the hub-bub in the mainstream media, all the tech junkies blogging their reviews of it, and the cutesy commercials touting the greatness of Windows 7, today is the day Microsoft's new operating system officially launched.

If your organization is an eligible 501(c)(3) nonprofit or public library listed in the IMLS database, you may be eligible to request donated Windows 7 Enterprise or or Professional versions through TechSoup or to upgrade at no additional cost from your XP or Vista operating systems if you still have valid software assurance.

Check out the details of Microsoft's donation program and see a variety of reviews, articles, and resources to help you decide whether it's time to upgrade and whether Win 7 is the system you'd want to use. If you've already requested a Microsoft donation through TechSoup this year, you may be able to receive a special extra donation in order to request Windows 7 between now and January 31, 2010.

If you have questions about whether or not it's time for you to upgrade, how to request a donation, or want to share your opinions and thoughts on Windows 7, feel free to join the active discussion in our Software Forum.

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As a follow-up to our earlier post on The Wall Street Journal's recent review of Windows 7, we'd also like to offer the following links to other relevant and interesting articles and reviews. You might be want to check them out if you're weighing whether or not to switch when it becomes available on October 22: