I got one of those “viral” emails today, related to the ecoIron post on a Black Google Homepage a while back:
The new Google
For those worried with energy consumption and all its downsides… When your screen is white, being it an empty word page, or the Google page, your computer consumes 74 watts, and when its black it consumes only 59 watts. So a man named Mark Ontkush wrote an article about the energy saving that would be achieved if Google had a black screen, taking in account the huge number of page views, according to his calculations, 750 mega watts/hour per year would be saved.
In a response to this article Google created a black version of its search engine, called Blackle, with the exact same functions as the white version, but with a lower energy consumption, check it out.
I must hand it to the guy that put it together - it’s very clever, and he is using the Google Custom Search Engine, which means that as this viral campaign spreads, he drives more search volume to Google, and also makes money out of it! Smart, very smart!
From the Blackle About Page:
How is Blackle saving energy?
Blackle saves energy because the screen is predominantly black. “Image displayed is primarily a function of the user’s color settings and desktop graphics, as well as the color and size of open application windows; a given monitor requires more power to display a white (or light) screen than a black (or dark) screen.” Roberson et al, 2002
In January 2007 a blog post titled Black Google Would Save 750 Megawatt-hours a Year proposed the theory that a black version of the Google search engine would save a fair bit of energy due to the popularity of the search engine. Since then there has been skepticism about the significance of the energy savings that can be achieved and the cost in terms of readability of black web pages.
We believe that there is value in the concept because even if the energy savings are small, they all add up. Secondly we feel that seeing Blackle every time we load our web browser reminds us that we need to keep taking small steps to save energy.
How can you help?We encourage you to set Blackle as your home page. This way every time you load your Internet browser you will save a little bit of energy. Remember every bit counts! You will also be reminded about the need to save energy each time you see the Blackle page load.
Help us spread the word about Blackle by telling your friends and family to set it as their home page. If you have a blog then give us a mention. Or put the following text in your email signature: “Blackle.com - Saving energy one search at a time”.
There are a lot of great web sites about saving energy and being more environmentally friendly. They are full of great tips covering the little things that we can all do to make a difference today. Try Blackling “energy saving tips” or visit treehugger.com a great blog dedicated to environmental awareness.
Again - very smart, but just another Internet fad!
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Comments On This Post
July 19, 2007 at 8:46 pm
Obviously, this is NOT associated with Google, as the viral email indicated.
July 19, 2007 at 10:46 pm
Obviously, this is NOT associated with Google, as the viral email indicated.
July 23, 2007 at 10:07 am
Its the same as Ninja.com
July 23, 2007 at 12:07 pm
Its the same as Ninja.com
July 24, 2007 at 8:16 pm
What i actually did a few weeks ago was install the stylish addon for firefox and use one of their scripts to make my google hompage black because it was softer on the eyes, great to know its saving enery
really nice because you can redo basicly any page you vist often
July 24, 2007 at 10:16 pm
What i actually did a few weeks ago was install the stylish addon for firefox and use one of their scripts to make my google hompage black because it was softer on the eyes, great to know its saving enery
really nice because you can redo basicly any page you vist often
July 27, 2007 at 7:37 pm
With reference to your article on Blackle in the Hindustan time, you might want to note that Blackle is just the first page of http://www.searchincolor.com, a site which has offered google search in color since a very long time. There are other color combinations out there…in general a dark background with light text-which are also energy saving.
John
July 27, 2007 at 9:37 pm
With reference to your article on Blackle in the Hindustan time, you might want to note that Blackle is just the first page of http://www.searchincolor.com, a site which has offered google search in color since a very long time. There are other color combinations out there…in general a dark background with light text-which are also energy saving.
John
July 28, 2007 at 7:54 am
http://www.blackgoogle.co.uk does something very similar (and looks much nicer).
July 28, 2007 at 9:54 am
http://www.blackgoogle.co.uk does something very similar (and looks much nicer).
August 4, 2007 at 5:12 am
Some people may find it uncomfortable reading light text on a black background. They might find Greygle to be a better choice for them. It uses a grey background with dark text which they might find easier to read. This still allows for some energy savings while providing an easier reading experience.
August 4, 2007 at 7:12 am
Some people may find it uncomfortable reading light text on a black background. They might find Greygle to be a better choice for them. It uses a grey background with dark text which they might find easier to read. This still allows for some energy savings while providing an easier reading experience.
August 4, 2007 at 9:11 am
no energy saving at all if you using a LCD monitor.
August 4, 2007 at 11:11 am
no energy saving at all if you using a LCD monitor.
August 4, 2007 at 1:11 pm
I prefer using http://www.Darkoogle.com as their text are green which reduce eye strain. So instead of saving energy from our monitor, it also save our user’s eye energy.
August 4, 2007 at 3:11 pm
I prefer using http://www.Darkoogle.com as their text are green which reduce eye strain. So instead of saving energy from our monitor, it also save our user’s eye energy.
August 20, 2007 at 1:19 pm
let there be colors! similar, but more flexible: http://www.skinnle.com
August 20, 2007 at 3:19 pm
let there be colors! similar, but more flexible: http://www.skinnle.com
November 7, 2007 at 10:25 pm
thanks let there be colors
November 8, 2007 at 12:25 am
thanks let there be colors
November 18, 2007 at 1:25 pm
I saw a meta cafe video about that few months ago. I just did a little search and ofund there’s a few of them on there, including one called “Darkoogle.”
November 18, 2007 at 3:25 pm
I saw a meta cafe video about that few months ago. I just did a little search and ofund there’s a few of them on there, including one called “Darkoogle.”
March 31, 2008 at 10:28 am
I think that Google with a black colour will be much dispiriting.
March 31, 2008 at 12:28 pm
I think that Google with a black colour will be much dispiriting.
April 17, 2008 at 12:42 am
A black background color would save some energy
By the way, what is a “viral email” ??
April 17, 2008 at 2:42 am
A black background color would save some energy
By the way, what is a “viral email” ??
August 15, 2008 at 7:57 am
There are around 16 different versions of “black google” online. The best one I’ve found is http://www.cleanblack.com. Cleanblack is the only version that allows you to change the text colors of the google search results. Try it yourself by going to http://www.cleanblack.com/theme/
August 15, 2008 at 2:57 pm
There are around 16 different versions of “black google” online. The best one I’ve found is http://www.cleanblack.com. Cleanblack is the only version that allows you to change the text colors of the google search results. Try it yourself by going to http://www.cleanblack.com/theme/
September 7, 2008 at 12:39 am
Blackle is okay. The big problem they have is the colour scheme. To tiring for the eyes.
Try ggl.me and you will feel the difference.
Not only you will help the environment, but you will releave your eyestrain too.
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