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| liit:it [2026/03/16 16:28] – Simon Grant | liit:it [2026/03/26 18:33] (current) – external edit 127.0.0.1 |
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| # Low-impact IT | This topic is part of [[gt:digital|Digital & media]]. |
| | ====== Low-impact IT ====== |
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| ## What is low-impact IT? | ===== What is low-impact IT? ===== |
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| A [lot of energy](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0959652611000801) goes into making our computers, so we think it's a good idea to make them last as long as possible. Big software companies are always bringing out new software that almost always requires more processing power than its predecessors, and therefore requires more powerful hardware, so tends not to work too well on older computers. This results in criminally short lives for most computers. They can be recycled / made to last longer by a combination of a) a bit of tinkering, and b) using [free / open source](/foss/open_source) software and operating systems, which tend to require less processing power. | A [lot of energy](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0959652611000801) goes into making our computers, so we think it's a good idea to make them last as long as possible. Big software companies are always bringing out new software that almost always requires more processing power than its predecessors, and therefore requires more powerful hardware, so tends not to work too well on older computers. This results in criminally short lives for most computers. They can be recycled / made to last longer by a combination of a) a bit of tinkering, and b) using [free / open source](/foss/open_source) software and operating systems, which tend to require less processing power. |
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| ## What are the benefits of low-impact IT? | ===== What are the benefits of low-impact IT? ===== |
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| With well over 2 billion PCs in the world, and rising rapidly, their short lives point to a massive environmental disaster. | With well over 2 billion PCs in the world, and rising rapidly, their short lives point to a massive environmental disaster. |
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| ## What can I do? | ===== What can I do? ===== |
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| Most importantly, don't chuck your old computer away. You can have a go at revamping it yourself, with the aforementioned tinkering/open source, or you can give it to specialist companies who recycle them, often for the developing world (see our links page). | Most importantly, don't chuck your old computer away. You can have a go at revamping it yourself, with the aforementioned tinkering/open source, or you can give it to specialist companies who recycle them, often for the developing world (see our links page). |
| The development of smaller and less power-hungry processors has meant that microcomputers now present a useful alternative to traditional computers. These are [small (credit-card-sized) computers](http://lowimpactorg.onyx-sites.io/30-credit-card-sized-non-corporate-low-energy-computers-set-up-to-run-on-linux-any-boxes-not-ticked-there/) that run a Linux operating system, running versions of most open source software. [Raspberry Pi](http://lowimpactorg.onyx-sites.io/how-i-built-a-raspberry-pi-arcade-machine-with-my-kids/) is the best known of these, built by the [Raspberry Pi Foundation](https://www.raspberrypi.org/) charity. | The development of smaller and less power-hungry processors has meant that microcomputers now present a useful alternative to traditional computers. These are [small (credit-card-sized) computers](http://lowimpactorg.onyx-sites.io/30-credit-card-sized-non-corporate-low-energy-computers-set-up-to-run-on-linux-any-boxes-not-ticked-there/) that run a Linux operating system, running versions of most open source software. [Raspberry Pi](http://lowimpactorg.onyx-sites.io/how-i-built-a-raspberry-pi-arcade-machine-with-my-kids/) is the best known of these, built by the [Raspberry Pi Foundation](https://www.raspberrypi.org/) charity. |
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| ## Further resources | ===== Forum ===== |
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| | This topic belongs to the section [[gt:digital|Digital & media]]. You can ask questions or add information on the corresponding [Forum section](https://forum.growingthecommons.org/t/digital). |
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| | ===== Further resources ===== |
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| - [Computer Aid](https://www.computeraid.org/) non-profit organisation refurbishing computers for use in poor countries | - [Computer Aid](https://www.computeraid.org/) non-profit organisation refurbishing computers for use in poor countries |
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| ## Related topics | ===== Related topics ===== |
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| - [Blockchain](bloc:blockchain) | - [Blockchain](bloc:blockchain) |
| - [Wikis](wiks:wikis) | - [Wikis](wiks:wikis) |
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| ## Specialist curators of this topic | ===== Specialist curators of this topic ===== |
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