Blackle.com
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Blackle | |
|---|---|
 Screenshot of Blackle.com |
|
| URL | http://www.blackle.com |
| Commercial? | Yes |
| Type of site | Search engine |
| Registration | No |
| Available language(s) | English, Portuguese, French, Czech, Italian |
| Owner | Heap Media Australia |
| Created by | Toby Heap[1] |
| Launched | January 2007 |
| Current status | Active |
Blackle Is a website powered by Google Custom Search, which was developed by Heap Media Australia.[1][2]
Contents |
[edit] Principle
The principle behind Blackle is based on the fact that the display of different colors consumes different amounts of energy on computer monitors.[3] The creators of Blackle cite a 2002 study from Roberson, who tested a variety of CRT and LCD monitors and found that an all black screen consumed less energy than an all white screen on all of them.[3]
The creators of Blackle state that the idea behind the site came from a blog, which estimated that a black Google would save 750 megawatt-hours a year[1]. There was a huge contribution from Engineering students Nikul,Mihir,Shreyansh and Sahil. A megawatt-hour is the equivalent of ten thousand 100 watt light bulbs burning continuously for 1 hour. On the Blackle homepage, the creators of Blackle provide a count of the number of watt-hours that they claim the users of Blackle have collectively saved.
[edit] Functionality
Because it is not owned by Google Inc., the Blackle site lacks many of the features of conventional Google, including the 'Cached' and 'Similar Pages' options, and it does not have as many of the corresponding links that can be found on the Google homepage. These links include items such as preferences, advanced search, language tools, images, groups, news, scholar, and the iGoogle features.
Blackle is a Google Custom Search partner, which allows for the customization of the returned search results. As such, a search in Blackle does not necessarily return the same results as a Google search.
[edit] Criticism
The creators of Blackle have been criticised for lack of clarity regarding the type, size and manufacturer of monitor that the power usage claims refer to. One critic, a technology journalist who reviews computer hardware, tested 4 cathode ray tube (CRT) monitors and 23 liquid crystal display (LCD) monitors, and found that power was saved by the CRT monitors, but was less than that claimed by the blog post that inspired Blackle. The LCD monitors tested showed increased power use in the majority of cases, although most of the larger (24 inch) monitors did use less power displaying a black screen.[1][4][5]
Relative to other energy saving initiatives, it has been suggested that the energy savings of Blackle is small. For example, the Climate Savers Computing Initiative, a consortium of large software and hardware vendors that promotes efficient computing on a large scale, is forecasting a power saving of 10,000 MW by 2010. [6]
[edit] References
- ^ a b c d Moses, Asher. "Search site cashes in on eco-guilt", Sydney Morning Herald, August 1, 2007.
- ^ "Google goes black to go green", Metro, July 30, 2007.
- ^ a b Roberson, Judy; Homan, Gregory; Mahajan, Akshay; Nordman, Bruce; Webber, Carrie; Brown, Richard; McWhinney, Marla & Koomey, Jonathan (July 2002), Energy Use and Power Levels in New Monitors and Personal Computers, <http://enduse.lbl.gov/Info/LBNL-48581.pdf>
- ^ Yates, Darren. "Blackle energy saving claims still do not add up", Techlogg.com, August 2, 2007.
- ^ Yates, Darren. "Blackle vs Google power savings – the final test", Techlogg.com, August 8, 2007.
- ^ "Google Joins Energy Saving Initiative", Submit Express, 18 June, 2007.
[edit] External links
- ecoIron - Black Google Would Save 750 Megawatt-hours a Year - Blog post that inspired Blackle, according to its creator. [1]
- Google - Is black the new green? - Google takes note of Blackle, but doesn't believe it saves energy.
- US Department of Energy - DOE Energy Star Desktop Information: Monitor Energy Information
- Optimal Web Design Readability study of web pages
