John Belmont demonstrates IBM’s newest mainframe, the Z10. It has a starting price of about a million dollars.

IBM asserts that it represents a 50 percent performance boost and has dramatically lower energy costs over its predecessor.

Mark Fontecchio, one of the intrepid writers over at SearchDataCenter, reported on the announcement in IBM pushes System z10 mainframe as consolidation savior. In the story, Mark wrote that the newest version of “big iron”includes highlights like:

• the capability to run 64 4.4 GHz processors, compared with 54 1.7 GHz processors on the z9;
• 1.52 TB of memory capacity, compared with 512 GB on z9;
• Five models, ranging from a unit with a maximum of 12 central processors, to one with up to 64; and
• a larger physical footprint than the z9, standing more than 6 feet tall, taking up 30 square feet of floor space, and weighing in at about 2.5 tons.

IBM also previewed the new version of z/OS 1.10 due out in September.

Mark also wrote about an IBM System z10 mainframe beta user who touts HiperDispatch, a new feature allows mainframers to limit the amount of data that is moved during different sessions.

“All told, I really like the idea of my brand new datacenter rolling in on the back of a tractor-trailer truck. It kinda reminds me of the setup the bad guys had in latest Die Hard movie. I just hope nobody buys one and hires only one person to run it.”

- Cliff R. Pearson

Project Blackbox (now officially called the “Sun Modular Datacenter S20“) is a modular virtualized data center housed within a shipping container.

For more, head over to our sister site, SearchDataCenter.com, whose writers and editors have been covering the development of Project Blackbox since its introduction:

• Sun renames, rejiggers Project Blackbox, a modular data center
• Prefabricated data centers offer modular expansion alternatives
• Sun Black box: A data center Winnebago

Thanks to the ever-observant Cory Doctorow (whose Eastern Standard Tribe I thoroughly enjoyed last week), I’ve discovered that today is Blog Action Day.

According to the organizers over at blogactionday.com, Blog Action Day is intended to try to elevate a singular issue into a higher place in the world’s consciousness. This year, it’s the environment. All you have to do to participate is to blog about whatever environmental issue you are the most passionate about, contribute the day’s advertising earning to a favorite environmental charity and encourage others to do the same.

Simple and, perhaps, effective. While you may not earn a Nobel for your efforts, you just might help the world become a tad greener today. We’ve blogged here before about ways to e-cycle, a new way to think green (carbon footprints) and even podcasted about greenwashing.

Here’s one more hot (or cold) concept to add to the list for the server geeks out there: green data centers. My colleague over at SearchDataCenter.com, the intrepid Matt Stansberry, has been hard at work writing “The Green Data Center: Energy Efficient Computing in the 21st Century.”

Learn more about the forces driving IT energy consumption, why you should care and how you can make a business case to do something about it. It’s well-written, it’s downloadable and, best of all, it’s free.

Go read it.  For that matter, go read Matt’s post today posted today about how green computing is driving both better collaboration and faster product advancement.

In the meantime… it’s time to start practicing green computing!

Don’t forget to turn off your PC and unplug your chargers before you go home tonight.

Consider switching to a laptop and telecommuting more while flying less.

Ride your bicycle wherever possible and look into the slow food movement.

Adjust your PC’s hibernation settings to use the least amount of energy.

Consolidate some servers through virtualization.

Use LCDs, not CRTs.

And don’t forget to e-cycle!

Go green!

It’s not quite perpetual motion — but it might be the next best thing. Dr. Steve Beeby and a team of researchers at the School of Electronics & Computer Science (ECS) at Southampton University in the UK have developed a kinetic energy generator that harnesses the energy of environmental vibrations and movement. When you think about it, Elvis was right: There’s a whole lotta shakin’ going on. And the scientists working on the VIBES (Vibration Energy Scavenging) project want to put all that energy generated to good use.

Actual size: less than 1 cubic centimeter

Although the generator is not the first of its kind, it’s said to be 10 times more powerful than any previous implementation. The technology, which has an industrial background, is being adapted for use with pacemakers. In this application, the beat of a person’s heart could power their pacemaker, which would mean that they would no longer require surgery to replace the batteries.

Here’s Beeby’s explanation (quoted in IndiaTimes Infotech):
“There is a big drive towards using wireless devices, but one of the challenges in supplying power to these devices is that batteries have a finite supply that needs to be replaced. We have a spin-out company that is now looking at powering pacemakers from the movement of the heart.

“As the power consumption of electronic devices continues to fall, the opportunity to use these devices to power them becomes more apparent. The potential is there for devices like mobile phones and MP3 players being at least augmented by vibration generators. There is quite a lot of energy available on a human such as the impact of a heel on the floor which could also be used.”

When you think about it, there’s no end of vibrational energy being generated all day every day. The VIBES team and other researchers are also exploring the potential of vibrations from roads and bridges. ~ Ivy Wigmore

Green is definitely the color of the moment. Green data centers, green computing, green touring, green tea. Even geogreen, if you follow Tom Friedman.

Of course, it’s not easy being green. Just watch Kermit.
Just as there are complex tradeoffs in choosing what you eat (an Omnivore’s Dilemma, in fact), managing to make the “right” choice in terms of how you travel, how you do business and simply how you live is a test of both ecological ethics and cold, hard business savvy.

IBM, for instance, recently launched Project Big Green, diverting more than $1 billion dollars annually to create more energy efficient data centers.

And, according to Bridget Botelho, HP is also making a push for lower data center power consumption and green computing.

Even Google and Yahoo! are receiving fresh scrutiny, as TechCrunch recently compared just how green the two Internet giants are these days.

Fortunately, thanks to an environmental movement that’s still going strong, decades after Earth Day and fueled by an energy crunch that’s unlikely to abate any time soon, there are companies, services and individuals working hard to make being green a bit easier and sustainable. Ivy blogged about e-waste, e-cycling and environmental responsibility in the enterprise recently as well, so it’s safe to say that our team is united in believing this to be a significant issue of the moment.

We’re not alone in that assessment. Carbon neutrality, whether purchased or achieved through internal changes to processes, materials or technologies, is increasingly an important benchmark for organizations and individuals alike. Yahoo, in fact, has pledged to become carbon neutral by the end of 2007.

TechCrunch also covered GigaOm’s launch of Earth2Tech, written by Katie Fehrenbacher and Adena DeMonte, a blog that will track news, events and technologies in the green computing world. Yahoo is also urging people to become more environmentally friendly using two other sites, Be a Better Planet and Yahoo Green.

ZeroFootPrint.net is at the leading edge in terms of personalizing these choices. Based in Canada, the nonprofit was founded by entrepreneur Ron Dembo, fresh off the sale of risk-management software firm Algorithmics. ZeroFootPrint recommends green products and services for individuals, organizations and cities to help reduce their environmental footprints. I particularly like the handy calculators that allow users to determine how their food, building, consumer consumption and travel choices have larger consequences.

Over the next month, I’ll be researching a podcast on green computing, to be released in conjunction with a new ebook from the editors of SearchDataCenter.com, a leader in covering the explosion of energy efficiency and green practices on the enterprise beat. If any readers know of other great sites, organizations or services that are shaping, leading, innovating or writing about green computing (TerraPass, NativeEnergy, UC Boulder, and WorldChanging.com all spring to mind), please let me know.

And, of course, if you’ve made your own changes to your data center or home office, transportation choices or energy consumption habits, I’d love to hear about that too.

In the meantime, I’ll be walking home from work today and biking tomorrow, making my own small concession and contribution, along with getting some much needed time in the sun. It’s a shame my laptop doesn’t have a solar charger!

[Photo credit: Nigel’s EcoBlog]

Environmental responsibility can be a bit of a pain. For one thing, I’d love to buy a new computer but I’m having difficulty rationalizing it (and, let me tell you, I can rationalize with the best!), making it fit into the “sustainable practices” model.

I’m still hearing that computers are, on the average, considered obsolete and discarded after only three years. Can that be true? We’re a three-computer household, with ages ranging from 5-8 years. And I’d love to trade up but… they all work. They do everything we need them to do (mind you, we’re not gamers), are reliable enough, fast enough, have enough storage. So as much as I’d like to get a new desktop with a flat screen monitor and a fresh, new hard drive — it just doesn’t seem to be the best thing to do.

Gartner Research recently reported that the global IT industry is responsible for about two percent of carbon dioxide emissions, equivalent to aviation.

Other tidbits:

• It takes about 1.8 tons of chemicals, fossil fuels and water to make a single PC.
• Most obsolete computers end up in landfill.
• Toxic chemicals, such as cadmium and mercury, leach out into the surrounding soil.
• Energy costs will soon consume one-third of IT budgets.

Sigh. I guess I’m morally obligated to keep my old systems until they give up the ghost… On the other hand… you know, my sister could definitely use a computer. And even if she only lives across town, couldn’t donating one be considered doing my part to bridge the digital divide? And if I buy a new one from a responsible company, can’t I see that as support for good environmental practices? Yeaaaaaaaah… that’s the ticket! (I did tell you about that “rationalization” thing )

So. You’re going to buy a new computer. What can you do with your old one? Here’s a sampling of information and advice:

From GOODmagazine, here’s a punchy and to-the-point video about the issue.

Freecycle.org is a fabulous international community for the exchange of goods. Find a worthy home for your old electronics!

Ewasteguide.info offers more information and advice.

The EPA maintains e-cycling information on its Website, including “Where Can I Donate or Recycle My Old Computer and Other Electronic Products?“

Environmental responsibility in the enterprise

Some of IT’s promises have not really come to fruition. Paperless office, anyone? To the contrary, we’re printing more than ever. It may not be easy being green but — hey! — we’ve only got one planet. How much do you know about environmentally responsible and sustainable computing practices and technologies? Try our quiz, Greening the cube farm.

How green are your computing — and buying — practices? Let’s talk about it! ~ Ivy Wigmore

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UPDATE: Adam Trujillo, over at SearchDataCenter’s excellent Server Specs blog, has posted a Q&A with environmental reporter Elizabeth Grossman, exploring e-waste further, including why we should all care about it.