That….

- Computer monitors use 60% of the total power of the computer. 
- Only 10% of people turn off their monitor when they leave their desk for 30 mins.
- Leaving a PC monitor on all night wastes enough energy to microwave 6 dinners.
- In an office with 10 PC monitors left on overnight, enough energy is wasted to run 8 dishwasher loads/13 washing machine loads.
- The average computer sucks down 35.5 watts when on standby.
- The average ‘On’ mode for a computer is 82.2watts, and the average ‘Passive standby’ is 35.5 watts. Therefore, the average computer uses 43% of its total energy on standby.

- The average laptop uses 16.5 watts when on standby. Therefore, the average ‘On mode’ for a laptop is 34.1 watts, and the average ‘Passive standby’= 16.5 watts. Therefore,  a laptop uses 48.4% of its total energy on standby.

Quick Tip: Configure your computer to ‘energy saving mode’ or turn it off when it is not in use.

• Do: Be creative.
• Do: Use the license plate rule
• Do: Use phonetic replacements:

            ‘Luv2LafF’ for ‘Love to Laugh’ or ‘Phunnyb0n3′ for ‘Funny bone’.

• Do: Include similar looking substitutions, such as the number zero for the letter ‘O’ or $ for the letter ‘S’, 1 for ‘L’, etc.

• Don’t: Write your password down or disclose it to anyone.
• Don’t: Use a password that you have used elsewhere.
• Don’t: Include commonly known information about yourself in your password.
• Don’t: Use a password that is listed as an example of how to pick a good password.

If it’s cheaper and quicker to setup a dot com domain name, then some people might ask why choose a dot ie address for your company domain name?

For starters, if you are an Irish Company operating mainly in Ireland a dot ie address can come across as much more credible and advantageous from a business perspective.

For example;

- Anyone can setup a dot com address in a matter of minutes. Register.com for example

• The IEDR will only approve (with the exception of personal domain names) a dot ie address if your business is properly registered. There are strict policies in place. See here for more information. You will need to provide proof along with your application which can be made and retrieved from the Company Registrations Office.
• A dot ie addresses ranks higher in regional searches. i.e Looking for an estate agent in the West of Ireland….
• There is much more availability and scope of domain names.
• Other companies will instantly recognise you as “Irish”

My advice:

Register Both! Use the dot ie address as your primary domain name for your email and website. You can then park the dot com address to yourwebsite.ie and forward all email from that domain to an email address of your choice.

The Irish Broadband Service Providers generally irritate me. As a small Irish Company providing IT Solutions, we are often asked to recommend to our clients where they should get their broadband from. I would love nothing more than to be able to say, “Try X Company – They are brilliant!”

The reality is much different. My current home broadband provider is from Eircom. I wanted to switch as I don’t need a house phone and I don’t like Line Rental. The idea of renting a phone line is ludicrous. So when I noticed that ICE Broadband were in my area I decided to give them a try. On paper it seemed like a good idea;

No line rental:   No download limit: Speed offering of 3mb download and 1mb upload

Installation Fee is €0 if you take a 24 Month Contract. Price per Month €37.99

I made the call. By the end of the week I was genuinely impressed that the Engineer was on my roof installing the Broadband Aerial. The aerial itself is a bit oversized and indiscreet but overall the installation was professional. When it came to checking the quality of the service however, this is where ICE Broadband couldn’t deliver. Read the rest of this entry »