10 Tips for Being a Greener Web Designer
July 25, 2008
As web designers, it’s impossible to deny that electricity lies behind everything we do. There is no physical alternative—no part of our job—that is entirely free from energy consumption.
While there’s much debate and controversy and differing statistics concerned with the issue of climate change, there’s one point upon which everyone agrees: reducing the energy that you consume is both good for the environment and good for your wallet.
Sure, we’re all aware of the usual commonsense stuff—take public transport or ride your bike instead of driving, wear a jumper instead of turning on the heater … but there are also specific measures that we web professionals can make.
Here are ten tips that you, as a web designer, can employ to reduce your carbon footprint.
1. Buy green energy.
Many electricity providers now offer the option to purchase 100% green energy. Switching to green energy is the most effective way to reduce your emissions, and it’s cheaper than installing solar panels yourself. Running on green energy means you can be safe in the knowledge that your business is no longer contributing to global warming. If you’re not the business owner, research some green energy options and present them to your boss.
2. Use green hosting.
Ask your current web host if it offers green hosting as an option; if not, consider switching to a host that does. While the phrase “carbon neutral” is standard (and potentially misleading, often confused as it is with “carbon offset”) in a company’s marketing copy these days, more and more Australian hosting companies are recognizing the demand for truly green web hosting services that run on servers powered by renewable energy sources.
3. Ditch your desktop machine for a laptop.
Laptop computers are built, by necessity, to use less energy than desktop machines. These days, a laptop computer (be it a Mac or a Windows machine) is fast enough and contains enough memory and hard-drive space to serve as your primary machine. Plus, you can work with it in the park when the sun shines, use it at meetings and conferences, and take it home at the end of the day.
4. Switch your old CRT monitor for an LCD.
If you were looking for an excuse to ditch that old CRT that takes up half your desk and replace it with a lovely new, thin LCD monitor, then now you have one—LCDs, in general, use less energy than a CRT monitor of the same size. Of course, the bigger the monitor, the more energy it uses, so if you decide to upgrade to a 30” wide screen, you may not see much of a reduction in your carbon emissions.
5. Turn off your computer and monitor overnight.
The constant after-hours hum of computer fans whirring in an office is all too common. Sure, there may be a good reason why your server needs to keep running throughout the night while we’re all in our beds, but does your desktop machine, if you decide to keep it, really need to run 24/7 as well?
6. Unplug battery chargers overnight.
Chargers for laptop computers, AA and AAA rechargeable batteries, and other appliances generate heat when left plugged in, even when they’re not being used. It may be convenient to leave them plugged in, ready to charge for you at a moment’s notice without your having to scrabble about in the darkness under your desk, but only plugging them when you need to use them will save a few carbon emissions as well as help reduce your power bill.
7. Use energy-efficient power boards and light globes.
A traditional tungsten-filament light globe isn’t terribly efficient—an enormous amount of the energy that powers a light globe is lost as heat. Energy-saving fluorescent globes draw less power, which means the drop in your energy bill will be noticeable. Power boards also generate significant heat, so spend a little extra on an energy-efficient board, and it will pay for itself in the long run.
8. Make use of natural light whenever possible.
At KDI Media we’re lucky enough to have lots of windows that let natural light into the office. During the summer, there are many days where it’s just not necessary to turn on most of the lights in the office. Not only is natural light free, but it also contains Vitamin D—open the window and absorb away!
9. Support other green businesses when making a purchase.
If you’re faced with the choice of purchasing goods or services from two or more vendors, and any of them will likely do a good job, consider favoring the provider who is more committed to reducing its own carbon footprint. As “being green” becomes a criterion that more businesses demand, more businesses will look internally at how they can change.
10. Stay informed.
If you care about the impact that you and your business has on the environment, but aren’t across all the facts, get educated. Check out the many blogs about reducing your carbon footprint (SustainabilityBlog.Org and the Planet Ark site are good places to start); research whether a carbon-offset scheme is genuine or questionable.
Do you have any tips for ways that web designers can reduce their carbon footprint? Post comments to this article, and let us know about them!
iPhone 2.0 Apps: The Social Networking App Comparison
July 21, 2008
iPhone 2.0 Apps: The Social Networking App Comparison: “
I’ve spent the past five days testing the iPhone 3G and many of the wonderful applications that have been made available at the App store. Much of this time I focused on the ‘Social Networking’ apps, or the ones that had social networking features. However, I came across a huge problem: without any friends, these applications are rather useless. This is a direct results of the Twitter vs. Plurk vs. Pownce issue: You have to go where your friends are.
I tried twittering my my problem in the hope of finding a solution, and though my question spread to several friends and groups, it seems people are still waiting to see where everyone else goes. In the hopes of expediting this process I’ve put together a list comparing some of the popular apps. In alphabetical order, I’ve gone through each application three separate times and after browsing around each these are my summaries, options and conclusions:
Personal Thoughts:This is a very generic app that I’m pretty sure just runs through an internal browser, as it has the look and feel of a Web page. There are friends, status updates, messaging, ‘stuff’ (aka photos and videos), and that’s about it.
Pros: Simple, clean and fast.
Cons: Lacks too many features at this point, including location and intuitive messaging.
Personal Thoughts:The simplicity is beautiful, however, the features are visibly missing. The best part of the application is that it ties into Facebook and since Facebook is where many of us have a plethora of friends, this will come in handy if other users add the app. Features include: Location and status via icons and text.
Pros: Simple and clean. Facebook integration will be key to app’s success.
Cons: I’m not too sure how to find other friends through Facebook. Also, there are no photos or profiles, just nicknames.
Facebook
Personal Thoughts: An almost perfect mobile companion to Facebook. The features and look and feel compared to the Blackberry version is just no contest. However, the better comparison is for Facebook for iPhone (Web) versus the app. I believe the app is significantly stronger in look, feel, and functionality (even though it’s missing some profile info).
The integrated chat, phone number, and e-mail recognition has already come in handy several times. The fact that this app doesn’t run in the background is the its biggest downfall since there are no active chat or mail features when you aren’t ‘logged in’ to the app. Something tells me this ‘fix’ is only a matter of time.
Pros: All of your friends are already there. Clean and fast. Very functional beyond just Facebook features including e-mail and phone number recognition. Mail and chat options. Poking!
Cons: No location awareness and doesn’t run in the background. No Scrabulous.
Personal Thoughts: iFob is solely based on location and proximity. Which is great for a bar, networking scene, or concert, however, this makes it impossible to remain in connection with friends through iFob. This could, however, come in really handy at networking events to see who is around, who you should talk to, and who wants to be talked to. Something tells me that iFob would be a perfect tool for a singles event.
Pros: Clean. Chat. Profiles based on personality.
Cons: Only proximity based. No way to add friends.
Personal Thoughts: If your core collection of friends were on Limbo, this would be a great status update tool with a Who, Where and When for each friend. While you can import friends directly from Contacts, this is really a ‘blank invite’ tool as there is no awareness of whether the mobile phones are iPhones or even on Limbo. However, the combination of a Yelp like environment for Bars, Food, and Shops come in very handy for setting a proper status.
Pros: Pinpoint location for nearest Food, Bars and Shops. Messaging and Groups.
Cons: Find Me isn’t pinpoint, just city (in status). Profiles are limited to Picture, Activity, and When. Not the fastest. No way to sort Food, Bars, and Shops (by category or neighborhood). No friend search. No photo or mapping functionality. Member search isn’t by proximity.
Personal Thoughts:A simple status/location program with 2 crucial aspects: Facebook and Twitter integration (RSS feed on the way). With these integrations more people are likely to use it compared to the other applications. Microsoft Virtual Earth Maps with Yelp Search Integration is a plus. However, I had many issues setting it up with Facebook and somehow still can’t connect my Facebook friends who are on Loopt to the mobile app. An amazing feature though is the ability to search your entire contact database for Loopt members (by mobile number), but it also tells you who is on the appropriate network (aka AT&T in US).
Pros: Simple and Clean. Facebook and Twitter integration. Contact database Search. Map with Yelp integration. Status udpates can include a picture (from camera or photo library). Comment on other people’s status updates. The ability to ‘Call’ or ‘Text’ or Ping’ a contact.
Cons: Difficult to add friends who are not in your Contact List. Also, I could not figure out how to add Facebook friends. Profiles were too simplistic with just Name and Picture.
Personal Thoughts: It’s MySpace on your iPhone without the flair of customization, which is a good thing in my opinion. However, I did run into several errors. Otherwise, it’s all there: friends, comments, requests, bulletins, status updates mail and photo albums. No location or mapping.
Pros: All your friends are there and searchable (top, all, online, new, upcoming birthdays), direct messaging and comments, as well as Inbox.
Cons: Full profiles are broken down into sections and a bit hard to navigate. There is a lack of information to get contact information outside of MySpace.
Personal Thoughts: A bit confusing at the start until you realize that this is just a mobile version of a Social Network called Plum. The abilities include viewing your ‘saved items’ and your friends ‘saved items,’ which include media, links, notes, images, etc. There is Twitter and Facebook integration, however Twitter is only configurable on the Web and Facebook is only configurable if you look for it on Facebook. The shear lack of functionality on the app is astounding if you’ve never used Plum before. The application is similar to Evernote but with social features.
Pros: Add photos and notes to a saved and shared location. Ability to separate locations of ‘saved items’.
Cons: Absolutely no functionality besides seeing your ‘saved items’ (media, links, notes, images, etc) and the same from your friends. No profile setup or really anything via mobile device.
Personal Thoughts: Pownce is simple and so is the app. There are your collective friends’ updates and their individual updates. Notes include Note, Photo, Link and Event. Overall, if you use Pownce and Twitter, this app is too simple and misses any functionality besides the core basics.
Pros: Message ‘The Public,’ friends, or a specific friend (aka direct message). Photo integration via camera and photo library.
Cons: No ability to really search and add new friends. No Profiles. No profile integration whatsoever besides profile picture. No real functionality besides viewing other people’s ‘notes’ and creating your own. Without Sarafi integration having links via a ‘note’ on iPhone is rather ‘weak.’
Twitterific
Personal Thoughts:Think the first version of Twhirl… it has your friends, their feeds and info. You can update your status (bonus with twitpic/camera integration) and location, however, there isn’t much more. The design and usability is great. The bookmarklet feature (aka just a link and a how to) definitely comes in handy.
Pros: Bookmarklet (although 3 steps to set it up, totally worth it) and Twitpic integration with Camera Photo.
Cons: No contact Search, No ability to direct follow (takes you to Safari). Location doesn’t work for me. No ability to upload picture from photo library.
Personal Thoughts: Beautiful design and amazing functionality (although it does run a bit between transitions). You’ve got everything you could want on a Twitter app except background running ability. Functionality includes: Friend Twitter, ‘My Replies,’ Public Timeline, Featured ‘Tweeters’, Favorites, Bookmarks, Search (with Last Search), and full camera/photo and location features.
The funnest/most scary part of the app is the ‘Alert’ button, which pulls your location/map (via a link) with the message ‘This is an emergency! Please Help!…’ You can even take a photo with that message. Beyond all of this, the profiles are full and provide easy access to the 4 key features: message, direct message, latest updates and friends (with the ability to follow anybody you come across or bookmark them for quick actions). Beyond all of that, the best feature is in a ‘new tweet’ window, you can easily pull up your @friends list!
Pros: Full search functionality with full friend functionality. Camera/photo and location integrations. Bookmarks. Emergency Button.
Cons: A Bit slow and lags/freezes at times. No background running capability. Map had my incorrect location by just a bit, so no guarantee.
Personal Thoughts: Whrrl is Yelp with limited social functionality. However, the social aspects are limited to a profile and their ratings. Overall without friends, the social functionality is easily lost. Also, without filtering, my few square blocks in NYC were littered with locations which would render it useless to find anything specific since there are so many ‘boxes’ to choose from without any color coding.
Pros: Full list of nearby restaurants, bars, shops, areas for free wi-fi, and ‘open now’ (which is great for late night functionality).
Cons: Can’t easily find friends (by e-mail invitations only). Map only displays what’s around your vicinity with no ability to zoom in and out of map. Map loads improperly when moving to other areas.
Personal Thoughts:Zintin is the simple iFob for friends and not dating/random related at all. The profiles are simple and clean. The ability to share your contact information (phone/email) with a contact is rather simple and functional. However because Zintin is location/proximity based, without any friends or nearby users it’s rather boring.
Pros: Proximity based networks, interactive wall with photos, and simple profiles.
Cons: Doesn’t run in the background, so proximity is only a limited feature, thus rendering the application useless unless running.
Conclusion
So, those are my reviews and I’m looking forward to hearing your opinions and what choices you’ve come to. Personally, I plan to stick with Facebook and Twitterlator for now and hope that if one of the above takes off, it’s Loopt, as I can see myself using the app.
If you’re interested in more information, I put together a quick chart of all the apps and their key points for further discussion.
P.S. Please add me so we can chat beyond the post. I should be ‘adamhirsch’ on most of the applications above.
(Via Mashable!.)
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(Via Tybee Guy.)
