Eco-conscious PCs

Verdiem, a developer of power-management software, has released free software that allows eco-conscious consumers to actively control their PC's energy consumption and with it their household's carbon-dioxide (CO₂) emissions.

Made for the Windows operating system, the so-called 'Edison' software is an easy way for consumers to become active in supporting the Climate Savers Computing Initiative goal of reducing global CO₂ emissions from the operation of computers by 54 million tons by 2010.

Verdiem is challenging PC users to 'do their part' and download 10 million copies of Edison (approximately one per cent of the global PC population) in the next year.

While much of the IT industry has focused on data-centre energy efficiency, the world's more than one billion PCs are an unexpected drain of energy and a source of carbon emissions.

Specifically, the energy consumption of PCs correlates to an average of 1,000lbs of carbon dioxide and worldwide can consume about 506 billion kWh per year - the equivalent of 70 million cars on the road.