Computer tips - Computer energy saving

Not only is your electricity bill going up with your computer use, you are using more energy than you should and that in turn effects the world. Often we don't think about what effects that our computers have on the environment, but the truth is that they use a lot of energy. There are things that you can do to conserve energy though. Save money on your bill and make a difference in the world, what could be better than that?

Upgrade.
While it isn't always possible, getting a new computer is a good way to save energy on your computer use. This is especially true if you have an older monitor. You want to get a better processor and upgrade your monitor at least. If you are wanting to save a lot of energy in your upgrade consider a laptop or a Mac. Both use less energy. Another thing that you can look for if you are looking to buy a whole new system that is put together for you is an Energy Star efficient computer. While fairly new to the market you can get the Energy Star of approval which is only given to the top 25% of computers that are ranked from lowest to highest according to energy used.

*Don't just throw your old computer, monitor, or parts away. Instead find someone who will be able to use them or recycle them. There are always people who would love to be able to have a computer (any computer) and they will be glad to take yours or those that build computers from parts who will reuse your parts.

Set to sleep.
Whether you call it sleeping, hibernating, or going into stand by mode, you will want to set your computer to do this. This will decrease the amount of energy that your computer uses to nearly nothing. Give it a few minutes and after a short period of time it should sleep while you are away.
Don't be afraid to turn it off.

Many people believe that turning off the computer too much will damage it. This isn't true and you can turn it off several times a day if need be. This will save energy and if you are going to be gone a little while. When you turn your computer off make sure that you also turn of your speakers, your monitor, and other electronics hooked up to your computers. While they don't use a lot of energy, they do use some even when the computer if off. One easy suggestion to use if you have a lot of electronics is to plug everything into a power strip so that you can turn off the power strip and turn off everything in one easy move.

Your computer is using energy when you turn it on. It uses more energy when you do more things with it. It is a good idea to close windows and applications when you are done using them, to make sure that you are working with the best machine you can, to use the computers energy saving settings, and to turn it off when you aren't using it. These things will lower your energy bill and help save the world!