Posts Tagged ‘IT’

Tuesday 6th July 2010 may have gone unnoticed by many people as just another Tuesday (apologies to those for whom it’s a major anniversary!), but for the development of Digital Britain it was something of a milestone.

This date is when it became officially impossible to buy a new analogue TV set from a UK retailer. With the final analogue TV switch-off scheduled for 2012, clearly the change had to come some time and apparently last month (June) no sale of an analogue TV took place anywhere in the UK. (more…)

It is quite common to see IT services being sold on the basis of unlimited supply of some resource – the current favourite seems to be email storage. At last, an end to the inconvenience of being barred from sending new email unless your stored email remains below some level, which is arbitrary and clearly insufficient for your needs. Of course, the “inbox full” popup always appears at the most inconvenient time, so what could be better than providing more space, keeping everyone happy. In a world of unlimited storage, where the cost per byte of storage is so low, what other solution could make sense? (more…)

First, an introduction, I am Professor in Mobile and Converging Technologies. I have spent much of my academic career researching and teaching computer networks and performance measurement. I go along with Lord Kelvin’s view that measuring anything adds to our knowledge about that thing, and therefore my work aims to produce data and information to add to our awareness of systems and their behaviour.

About 5 years ago, these interests and my work in computer network management developed into a belief that one of the “things” we should start to measure was the energy consumption of our computer systems. From initial readings of books like Kuehr & Williams, Computers and the Environment, (published by Kluwer Academic Publishers in 2003) I developed a view that this should form part of our academic curriculum. Late in 2005, I presented an internal seminar to colleagues at the University on the subject. The conclusion of which was “we should create a course or part of a course on this subject.”

We then ran a number of projects as part of our undergraduate courses, and 3 years later, in 2008, validated our MSc in Green Computing which accepted its first students in October 2009.

Alongside this, the projects have continued with undergraduate projects in low-cost low-energy Wireless LAN, Portable servers, thin client evaluation and an IT energy saving advisory team; with funded project developing both the wireless LAN and the thin client work; PhD work in cloud computing, network management in a power-saving network environment and efficiency of security for mobile devices. I have also worked on developing our Green IT strategy and undertaken consultancy on energy-saving IT matters. Other ideas will follow as they are developed.

In starting this blog, I hope to share the ideas and enthusiasm for the subject, and to widen the discussion about Green IT related matters.

Leeds Metropolitan University’s, Innovation North  - Faculty of Information & Technology is delighted to invite you to the 15th anniversary of the annual showcase of undergraduate student work in the areas of:

- Music, Sound & Performance

- Multimedia, Games & Animation

- Computing & IT

This will provide you with the opportunity to view innovative student work and meet the people behind it through a series of exhibitions, presentations and performances.

The showcase will be held on Thursday 13th May 2010 with daytime viewings, 2.00pm - 4.30pm, and evening viewings, 5.00pm - 8.00pm at James Graham, Headingley Campus, LS6 3PS.

Confirm your attendance by emailing innevents@leedsmet.ac.uk.

Green IT has joined with JISC to present the Greening ICT programme for UK higher and further education to reduce the large carbon footprint. It is estimated that in the sector there are one and a half million computers, 250,000 printers and 240,000 servers which collectively produce 500,000 tonnes of CO2 a year and in 2009 cost the sector around £116m in OCT related electricity bills.

Professor Colin Pattinson will be heading up the programme to investigate the environmental impacts of ICT. The whole lifecycle of ICT procurement and use consumes energy and resources both in manufacture and transportation to end users, and more in disposal - which itself can leave a legacy of waste, some of it toxic.

To find out more about the programme and the Green IT network, visit the website here.

Are you bowled over by some of the talent you have seen in the Yorkshire Digital and Creative sector? The Yorkshire Digital & Technology Awards are now open for entries to projects you think deserve some wider attention.

Perhaps it is a project you are working on at the moment, or a piece of technology you are currently developing in the sector itself. Maybe you have seen a mind-blowing website that you think has established a new benchmark in quality, or a new digital equipment you think could really make a difference to our lives or the way we do business? (more…)

Green IT is gaining momentum, and already organisations are reporting a skills gap around areas such as the implementation of virtualisation and the building of a Green IT infrastructure. In response to the growing discussion facing Green IT, Old Broadcasting House hosted a Green IT mini conference on Monday 18th January. The day included guest speakers from Helen Harrop (Digital 20/20), Colin Coghill (formerly University of Leeds) and Leeds Met’s Innovation North Professor Colin Pattinson. The three main questions posed were, what does “green” really mean? Why be Green? How to be Green? Each was discussed in 15 minute presentations and a debate with the speaker panel. (more…)

TechMesh will be holding an exclusive launch of a brand new network for IT, telecom organisations and professionals. On Wednesday 27th January 2010 at 6-9pm, The Loft will host an array of guest speakers that include Lee Strafford, Executive Chairman of theNetStart & former CEO for PlusNet and Conrad Poulson, Head of Startup Business Development for Orange.

The evening tickets have sold out but if you are an IT, telecoms organisation, or professional there is a waiting list just for you. To find out more, visit the website at www.techmesh.org. For any direct questions you may have contact Dawn on 0113 384 5641 or email dawn@techmesh.org.