Test Center Tracker: Is Vista Not Green?

We’re just getting used to the idea of subjecting new products and techniques to green scrutiny, and taking that very close look can produce some very interesting results. In today’s Test Center Tracker, we have some very good corporate behavior, a very interesting technology analysis, and the sort of blue sky questioning that can lead to radical changes in the way things are done.

How Green Was My XP: In Sustainable IT, Ted Samson looks at the end of Windows XP, and is troubled by the ramifications of upgrading all those corporate computers to handle Vista’s power requirements. It’s not that XP was designed to be more ecologically friendly, but when you add up the environmental impact of surplus-machine disposal and the more power-hungry computers that will replace the last-generation XP workstations, you end up with a non-trivial footprint on the landscape.

Sharing the Green: There’s also some good news in Sustainable IT, and Ted gives props to IBM, Nokia, and Sony for sharing patents that involve energy savings and sustainable product use. It’s good to see companies show that doing the right thing and being profitable aren’t mutually exclusive.

A Big “What if?”: Almost all of us have wondered, at one time or another, what would happen if the world ran a bit differently than it does in our current reality. Over in Open Sources, Zack Urlocker ponders the results if Detroit ran more like Silicon Valley. When he gives it some thought, he’s not at all sure he likes what he imagines — particularly when he imagines sitting in the results doing 70 MPH on an Interstate highway. With Tesla looking more and more like a cautionary tale, it’s just possible that Silicon Valley isn’t the best model for every industry.