Paul’s musings

Years ago, I preferred the alternative operating systems. When the world was hooked on MS-DOS, I was running Amiga Workbench. When Commodore went belly up, I spent a brief moment with DOS and Windows 3.1, but soon moved on to OS/2 Warp 3. I preferred these alternatives because they seemed to offer much greater value for my money. By and large, the alternatives were more stable, had more features, and had better overall performance. The only drawback has been the lack of hardware (and, to a lesser extent, software) support, which is actually a pretty big deal.

By the end of the 1990′s, Windows wasn’t too bad, and I often found myself needing to run Windows-specific software.  As such, I decided to bite the bullet and go mainstream.  Over the past decade, I dabbled with various Linux distributions, including Red Hat Linux and Ubuntu; but for one reason or another, I always went back to whatever the current version of Windows was.

Recently, my son’s NetVista needed a new hard drive.  It came with Windows 2000, but those install disks are long gone.  Wanting to provide him with something more up-to-date, I decided to install the latest Ubuntu.  I was impressed at how quickly and easily it installed, and how it configured the drivers properly for his hardware.  Having plenty of hard drive space on my Windows 7 notebook, I decided to install it alongside Windows 7.

At first, I was impressed.  The performance is excellent, everything is solid.  The value I expect is definitely there.  I downloaded WINE, and found that I could run the Windows applications I needed to run for my business.  Downloading and adding software packages was a breeze with the Ubuntu Software Center.  Evolution was every bit as good as Microsoft Outlook.  The boot up and shut down times were stellar.  Microsoft, as well as Apple, should be afraid of this free OS.  No wonder there’s good deals to be had on Windows 7 these days.

Sadly, there’s a downside; and it’s the same story as always.  I have specific hardware I need to use for my business.  I need to use my Canon scanner to scan in documents and convert them into a pdf; I also need to use Tectite software which controls a DG700 module via USB.  Neither of these work with Ubuntu.  I could replace my scanner with a Linux friendly model (though it would also need to be super compact and powered by the USB connection), but there’s no suitable replacement for the DG700.  Ah, it brings back the good old days of OS/2 Warp.  Just because you can run the software doesn’t mean you can run the hardware controlled by the software, and sometimes being able to use a particular piece of hardware is all the justification one needs in their choice of operating system; especially when one’s career depends on it.

My verdict?  Ubuntu is an excellent operating system; I’d recommend it highly for anyone who wants something powerful, easy to use, up to date, loaded with features and value, and don’t need to use odd hardware.  As for me, I’ll leave it on its partition for now, and see if things don’t improve.

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There are two mottos that go hand in hand. The first is, a dollar saved is two dollars earned. The other is, the cheapest watt of energy is the watt not used. Of course, we need to spend money and use watts of energy to enjoy life; but it’s often the case that we end up unknowingly waste energy that we never get to use for our benefit, and spend money to buy that wasted energy. One such source of waste is something called Phantom load.

Phantom load is the power modern electronic devices use while plugged in and powered off.  Not every device uses phantom load; for example, a common table lamp consumes no power when it’s switched off.  Phantom load comes from devices such as modern televisions, DVD players, and power transformers.  For example, the power transformer in my battery charger draws 3 watts of power continuously, even when it’s not charging batteries.

To illustrate the full impact of Phantom load, consider the following setup I have in my basement:

A modest, somewhat dated entertainment system

This rather modest system consists of a standard picture tube TV, DVD player with an amplifier and surround sound speaker system, a VCR, and a videogame console.  There is also a videotape rewinder and a signal converter between the DVD player and the TV.  This sort of setup can probably be found in many homes across Canada, either as a primary entertainment system, or as a secondary system in the basement for the kids.

Power meter

To start, I connected everything to a power bar, and connected that to a watt meter.  First order of business was to take some readings while the system was in use.

The amount of power fluctuated depending on what I was doing.  If I was just watching TV at a reasonable volume level, the power would typically fluctuate between 70-80 watts.  If I was watching a DVD movie with the surround sound turned up to a reasonable level, it would fluctuate between 120-130 watts.  It would be safe to assume that using this entertainment system would cost 100 watts of electricity to run.

Meter reading phantom power

Next, I turned everything off and checked the power meter reading.  Even with everything powered down, it still read 20 watts of power was being consumed.

What does this mean?  It means that having everything turned off in standby mode consumes as much power in 4-5 hours as I would just watching the TV for one hour.  In a 24 hour period, it would be as though it was on for approximately 5 hours even if left off.  Over a week, it’s similar to approximately 35 hours of use, even if it’s never been turned on once!

What does this mean, in terms of cost?  Let’s suppose this entertainment system does nothing but gather dust for an entire month consisting of 30 days.  That’s 20 watts * 24 hours * 30 = 14,400 kilowatt hours.  At 9.4 cents per kilowatt hour, that works out to approximately $1.35.  There’s your dollar, plus change, saved.

This is just one example.  Phantom load exists all over my home.  A more modern flat screen TV with a Blu-ray player, amplifier, DVD recorder, all consume 30 watts in standby.  That’s $2.03 added to my bill.  Add in a modern desktop computer, which is still sipping 4 watts even when powered completely off, the powered off but still plugged in computer speakers drawing 3 watts, a battery charger which is also drawing 4 watts while not charging anything, the TV in the bedroom drawing another 8…it all adds up.  Before you know it, you could easily be looking at $6-$7 a month, or $72 to $84 a year.  If we consider a dollar saved is two dollars earned, that’s potentially $168 a year.

This is only half the story.  The rates will not stay at 9.4 cents per kilowatt hour for much longer.  In New York State, the rate is around 20 cents per kilowatt hour; in England, it’s 50 cents.  The reason why electricity in my area is so cheap is because it’s subsidized.  It won’t be that way forever.  So, consider that same modest setup, burning 20 watts all day, every day while powered off.  The true monthly cost would be anywhere between $2.88 and $7.20.  Add in the rest of the parasitic power, and we’ll be looking at anywhere between $175 to $438 a year (or $350 to $876 of actual earned dollars).  That’s when things are going to really matter.

The trick is to get into good habits now.  I have everything connected to an inexpensive power bar, which means when that’s turned off, everything really is off.  I don’t leave battery chargers plugged in, and I look for alternatives to phantom power devices whenever I can.  That way, I’ll be saving smaller dollars today, and will be ready to save bigger dollars when the rates start to climb.

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Radio is something I grew up with. I have many fond memories of listening to late night talk shows on the AM, and recording my favourite shows and music off the FM. College radio introduced me to a whole new world of music to explore.  Radio introduced a whole new dimension in my life that television could never replace.  It could travel with me wherever I went; it was my companion while traveling and throughout my work day.  It provided my life with a sound track, and provided me with entertainment at any place, any time.

When MP3 players came out, I made a point of getting one.  My current player, an 8GB Sansa Fuze expanded to 16GB, is my fourth MP3 player and seventh portable music player (my first being a Sanyo portable AM/FM/Cassette player in the very early 80′s).  My first MP3 player, a Philips Expanium, could play both MP3 CD’s and music CD’s.  However, it was the solid state players with large memory capacities, along with the increased popularity of podcasts, that caused a more complete transition in my life away from radio.

It all started out with Napster in the late 90′s.  Between that and web pages about music, I was able to re-explore the music I liked to greater depths than was possible with the radio.  Contrary to what the music industry would like everyone to think, this led me to buy more CD’s; I’d make a discovery, then I would buy their “Greatest Hits,” and then on to the more obscure stuff from there.  The MP3 player was also an obvious choice for talking books; I’d rip them from the talking book CD’s I’d sign out at the library, then enjoy them at my leisure.  That’s how I got through greats like Moby Dick, 1984, Robinson Crusoe, and other notable works of literature.  While I enjoy reading a physical book, talking books allow me to enjoy the story while I am working on something else and also allow me to get through larger tombs with considerably less fatigue.

A couple of years ago, I discovered podcasts.  During this discovery, I found out that my favourite radio programs were often available as podcasts.  Not only that, I could access podcasts that were broadcast outside of my range.  For example, I was always a fan of Penn and Teller, but living in Canada, I never got to hear the Penn and Teller show.  Now I could enjoy each and every episode at my leisure.  It also opened up a whole new world; while radio stations are limited in the amount of time they can spend on any given topic (so as to appeal to the majority), Podcasts know no such limitation.  I can get some really obscure stuff that would never make it to the radio, but is of great interest to me personally.

I turned on the radio recently, and found myself grabbing for my Sansa Fuze and looking for the place to plug it in.  I felt the radio was assaulting my ears with commercials and music I didn’t want to hear.  I suppose I could have scanned the AM and FM dial to find some talk radio show, but it seems like so much effort now in a world where we have Google.  I even bought a cheap FM transmitter in case I find myself in a car without an MP3 player hookup.  The sound quality is crappy, but it works fine for my talking books and podcasts.

I recognize the usefulness for weather radio broadcasts in rugged country and across the waterways, and I can see its importance as a method to convey information in the event of a disaster.  Also, there’s nothing that beats the FRS or GMRS radio systems for local communications between two or more people in a group.  I suppose if I lived in a remote area of the country, I’d still be listening to the radio.  However, this is not the case.  Solid state MP3 players are as cheap as AM/FM radios now.  Internet and computer access is free to the residents of my city at the public libraries.  Recognizing all of this, I have to conclude that, as an entertainment medium, radio is obsolete.

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Not much, just a drive-by shot of the snow rolling in.

Snow's rolling in

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I volunteered at the official opening of Phase 1 of the Durham College Whitby Campus expansion, an I scored a solar powered light.

Solar clip light

The sticker on it indicates that it’s made in China.  Am I the only one that sees the irony in that?

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I decided to visit the main Durham Campus today. They have this crazy full-sized Stargate-like ring out in front of the college, made out of what appears to be stainless steel.

Ring in front of Durham College

I didn’t see a dial pad nearby, so if it is a Stargate, it’s incoming only.

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Tree on the roof

I decided to get a real tree this year instead of using the artificial one. Why? Because I can.

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It’s my Anenometer, just like every one else’s.

anenometer

Everyone has one, right?

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The winter sun trying to burn through the clouds of snow

As we approach the winter solstice, it’s no wonder we pay more attention to the sun. Here Sol is, trying to force its live-giving warmth through a layer of early morning clouds.

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I’ve decided to start a new section in my blog, entitled, “Paul’s Energy Saving Tips.” As an energy auditor, it’s my job to find ways for people to save energy in their homes. Some things are easy and cheap (or even free), and can save a person significant amounts of money on their home heating costs. To illustrate this, I’m going to start off with replacing the door sweep.

The door sweep is usually made out of a combination of hard and soft vinyl, and runs under the door leading to the outside.  Its job is to provide an airtight seal under the door, while still allowing the door to open and close easily.  Because it is dragged across the threshold every time the door is opened and closed, it can wear out.  Because it’s made out of vinyl, the soft part can harden and crack over time.  Then there’s the fact that, over time, a house settles; so what may have been an airtight seal a couple of years ago in a new house has now become a small gap.

Many people do not realize that a door sweep is usually easy to adjust, and cheap and easy to replace.  Many also do not understand how important the door sweep is at preventing cold outside air from infiltrating the house, even if there’s a storm door installed.  Using an inexpensive digital temperature reader, I will illustrate.

Base reading of the door

First, a base reading of the door is in order.  This door provides a thermal barrier between the inside of the house (at 21 degrees Celsius), and the outside of the house (at minus 6 degrees Celsius).  It’s a standard steel foam core door with a storm door installed, and the inside surface temperature of this door is measured at 18.7 degrees Celsius.  My goal is to have the door sweep come as close to this as possible.

First sweep reading

I discovered that this door sweep is performing extremely poorly, as the temperature measures only 10.3 degrees Celsius at the door sweep.  It is around 12 years old and has never been adjusted.  My first test involves loosening the screws and lowering it so that it can make a tighter seal, which costs nothing but a few minutes of time.

Door sweep after adjustment

That simple adjustment made a considerable improvement, by nearly four degrees Celsius, demonstrating that adjusting the door sweep is a worthwhile task.  New good quality door sweeps aren’t very expensive (around $10 each), so I decided to replace it and see what kind of improvements that would yield.

Thermal reading of the new sweep

Not quite as dramatic as the adjustment, the new sweep improved thermal resistance by two and a half degrees Celsius.  That’s within roughly 2 degrees Celsius of the foam core door, which is acceptable.

Not only does this procedure help to reduce heating costs, it also makes the area near the door considerably more comfortable to be around when it is very cold outside.  Both adjusting and replacing are jobs many people could do themselves in a few minutes, and mean that you may be able to put off replacing a drafty door.  It’s just like money in the bank!

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