PC Energy Conservation

Major Jane Raymond here with a look at PC power conservation and saving energy.

As computer hardware becomes more powerful and faster, its power consumption can spike significantly, costing a pretty penny when your power bill arrives. Modern PCs can consume more than 800 watts when running at a fast clip; your monitor adds to this power load, too. With a few simple tricks and tweaks, one can diminish their computer's power consumption, saving some greenbacks in the process.

With quad-core CPUs shipping with the latest high-end PCs, today's computers are more powerful, and are many times faster than what NASA used when they sent the first astronauts to the moon. Even though today's processors are manufactured to consume less power when in an idle state, when under a full load they can become an electricity glutton. Let's see what sort of changes one can apply to reduce their PC's insatiable power appetite.

Sweet Dreams, PC!

You may spend hours upon hours on your PC, whether it be for work or play, but we all need a break every once in a while to rest our eyes and brains. When you're not currently at your computer, consider putting it to "sleep". When you put your PC to "sleep" you're essentially tapping into a power management system called ACPI--Advanced Configuration and Power Interface.

The ACPI is a complex system that allows your OS, BIOS, and hardware to collaborate in a sort of power management agreement. Using your PC's ACPI can save significant power when you're not using your computer.

Laptops are notorious for giving out too soon due to a drained battery, which is why many laptop users don't hesitate to put their laptop to sleep when not in use. But many desktop PC users seldom even think about putting their desktop computer to bed, as drained batteries don't apply to them.

The "S3" state can put your PC into "sleep" mode in Vista--standby for XP users--which is tantamount to the power consumption used when your PC is powered off!

Navigate to the control panel and select the power management icon. You'll see three options: Turn off monitor and/or hard disks only, Standby mode, Hibernate mode. Putting your PC into hibernation dramatically decreases the amount of power consumed; unfortunately, this mode takes the longest to go into and come out of.

This is due to the fact that hibernation mode actually writes the entire contents of your PC's memory onto its hard disk, which can create quite a waiting period the more RAM your computer has. A better setting which uses slightly more power is the Standby/Sleep mode; going into and out of this mode happens almost instantaneously, for it doesn't rely on using your system memory and hard disk.

Windows can be configured to go into Standby/Sleep mode when it detects no activity after a certain amount of time has elapsed; this can be configured in the control panel, under the power management settings. Another interesting option is the ability for Windows to sleep when you hit your PC's power button; rather than actually turning your PC off when pressing the power button, Windows will fall asleep, saving power as it dreams.

This option can be enabled by going into the Power Options Properties dialog box, selecting the Advanced tab, and choosing the Standby item in the "When I press the power button on my computer" drop down menu; this setting also has the added benefit of allowing Windows to restart faster, as opposed to the longer time it takes for Windows to cold boot itself. If your PC has a sleep button you can also select a setting to activate when you press this button.

The Power Schemes tab contains some interesting settings and options. Here you'll be able to tell Windows what to do when your PC's idle. Having your computer automatically turn off your monitor after a certain amount of time elapses is a great way to save power; this setting can be activated by selecting a time in the "Turn off monitor" drop down menu. There's also an option to turn off your hard disks when you're away from your PC.

If you've a new PC or you've not touched your computer's power settings, you may be allowing Windows to squander your electricity. Take control by altering your PC's default power settings inside of XP's Power Options Properties dialog, which can be accessed through the control panel. You may need to experiment with the settings a bit, striking the perfect balance between ease-of-use, convenience, and frugality. There's really no need to waste your electricity, unnecessarily inflating your power bill, when you can command Windows to conserve power when it's in an idle state.

Major Jane Raymond USAFA

MER/IT

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