Green computing’s all the rage lately, isn’t it? Seems every single tech business in existence is currently competing to see who can build the greenest data center, who can design the most energy efficient tech, and who can save the most power.

But why should corporations do all the work? After all, Earth’s kind of our home, too. We should all do our part, as well.

Plus, in the long run, being greener tends to save money… so it’s kind of a win-win situation.

But how can you go about being greener?

1. Turn it off if you aren’t using it

This should be obvious, shouldn’t it?

Got any gadgets plugged into the wall that you aren’t using? Cut the power. Better yet, unplug them until you have occasion to use them again. Even electronics (particularly computers and peripherals) that are turned off draw a small amount of power. If you don’t need them at the moment, flip the switch. Yeah, it’s a bit inconvenient, but it’s better than wasting energy.

2. Tweak Your Power Settings

If you’re using Windows 7, go to the Control Panel and select “Power Options.” This’ll take you to a menu where you’ll be able to control what your computer does if you haven’t been using it for a while.

It’s pretty straightforward from there. Set it to sleep or hibernate after you haven’t been using it for an hour, and it’ll turn off while you aren’t using it. Of course, that might not be an option if you’re updating a program or running a torrent. In that case…

3. Disable Non-essential hardware and software

Believe it or not, your system actually does draw more power when it runs more programs. The hardware needs to work harder, and it needs more energy to do so.

If you can think of any programs you probably won’t be using when you turn in for the night, get rid of them. Don’t think your system will need its wireless card or display? Turn them off. Same goes for Bluetooth.

4. Recycle Your Old Hardware

If you’re upgrading your system, don’t just throw out the old one. Give it to a recycling program (there’s quite a few businesses that make their cash recycling old electronics), or sell it to someone. As a last ditch effort, donate it to a thrift store or something (though there’s a chance they might throw it out if it’s not up to their standards).

You could always do what I did, and set up a file hosting/game server.

Long story short, don’t just toss it, find a new use for it.

5. Install Green Computing Software

There’s actually quite a few decent programs out there that are designed to help you monitor and reduce energy use – both in your system and in your home. It might well be a good idea to try installing one of these applications. Mindtree’s a pretty decent choice.

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