Green computing

Via extremegh, still undergoing painful fits of enlightenment, I learned of Zonbu. This sounds like an ungainly savanna herbivore but is in fact a startup that's selling Linux-based personal computers that they will back up and maintain remotely, through an internet connection. A key selling point is low environmental impact: because it has no hard drive (only flash memory) and presumably an underclocked CPU, the device uses only around 15 watts, and Zonbu promises to pay for offsetting carbon credits. A portable solar panel is one of the accessories. It's $99 with a prepaid two-year subsciption (~$13/month), which altogether amounts to hardly more than just paying for the privilege of burial in the coffin of the hulking lawyer-infested zombie that is Windows Vista.

My officemate plans to get his parents two for Christmas.