Power to the people

While doing a little ego surfing recently, I came across a two page article in the The Bulletin magazine (Braue, 1999):

"This article presents the views of Tom Worthington, former president of the Australian Computer Society and internet advocate. Relevant points include his various efforts to popularize cyberspace in Australia, such as posting digital photographs on the web from a hot air balloon, his service as an adviser to the Australian government on internet issues, and his opposition to censorship laws as inhibiting the net's proper function as a device for people-to-people communication." From Trove: http://trove.nla.gov.au/version/73995666

This is a very flattering article, with quotes from others as to how wonderful I was. There is a large photo of me standing in front of some computer equipment looking very expert. But what is curious is above my head in the photo is a sign which says "Kick-Me". I don't recall ever seeing this before, or why the sign was there.

Reference

Braue, David (1999-09-28). Power to the people.(views of Tom Worthington, past president of the Australian Computer Society and internet advocate). In The Bulletin with Newsweek. 117 (6193), 86(2).

Building a green Internet

The report "Clicking Clean: Who is winning the race to build a green Internet?" (Greenpeace USA, 10 January 2017), identifies Apple as the leader in green computing. leadership spot for the third year in a row among platform operators. The report criticizes Amazon Web Services (AWS) for data centers in Virginia (USA) power by electricity from coal. 

One point the report makes is that more than half of global Internet traffic is now video streaming. This is an area, I suggest, where technology could make improvements. Improved compression algorithms can reduce the size of the streamed data. Also more intelligencer systems can detect the size of the display and therefore what resolution image is required. There is no point in streaming
8K ultra high definition television to a pocket size mobile device, or a tiny picture-in-picture window on a large TV. Lower resolution video will be indistinguishable to the viewer, saving bandwidth and energy.

For more on green computing, see my book "ICT Sustainability: Assessment and Strategies for a Low Carbon Future".