Our article yesterday asserted that the Apple PowerMac G3 "Blue and White" systems were not rated as Energy Star compliant, so government agencies could not purchase them.

We got many emails from readers that exposed many things about the Energy Star program, namely that it's basically ignored in most government agencies. Email after email said they were aware of the limits, but knew that purchases were still going on. It wasn't limited to Macintosh systems, either. Many readers pointed out that Pentium II systems are generally not compliant, but many are still purchased.

We also found the technical reason the PowerMacs aren't in compliance. They do not cut the power to the pass-thru where the monitor gets its power on the back of the mini-tower. This puts them over the limit for watts drawn during "low power" or "sleep" mode. Thus, they're not in compliance with the mandates. However, if they're used in conjunction with an ES compliant monitor, such as Apple's Studio Displays, the system would be in compliance. But since the regulations do not permit the assumption that a ES compliant monitor will be used, the "Blue and White" PowerMacs are not allowed to be called ES compliant and carry the ES logo.

This doesn't stop many government agencies from buying scads of them. At the end of this article is a selection of some of the emails we received on this issue. However, here's a summary of their points:

• There are regulations in place against buying non ES compliant hardware. Agencies may buy hardware that is non ES compliant if they justify it on a "case by case basis" according to one reader.
• Many PowerMac G3's are being purchased in government agencies, mostly in national labs.
• This isn't the only regulation being violated. The government mandates that all computer gear purchased must be Y2K compliant, but purchases of NT4 and Windows 95 continue.
• Pentium II and IIIs draw easily as much and more power than any G3-based system, yet they're still ordered as well.
• Basically, it's all well and good to say the government adheres to these energy and Y2K standards, but they're generally ignored in practice.

Below is some of the emails we received on the issue. Some are quite interesting:

I work for the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. One of the things my Division does is support DOE and EPA in their Energy Star activities. Specifically, we provide technical analyses of the marketplace, showing where the program can get the most "bang for the buck." I'm VERY interested in the situation with the new Apple G3s. We have a couple in our office, and I'm monitoring the energy consumption of one now. I suspect (though I don't have the data yet) that the G3 can't "sleep" below the 30 watt limit that EPA sets as its EnergyStar guideline.

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The Pentium Series wasnt compliant at the Pentium Pro and newer. All the lovely VAXes and mainframes are probably not EnergyStar compliant. It's a very Green-gesture to have that purchasing policy but I dont think it stops the Government from buying what they really want.

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I seem to remeber reading many articles about a similar situation when Intel first released the Pentium II. This chip and almost every system built around it were NOT energy star compliant. However, I don't think government agencies stopped buying new PC's. Maybe Apple should have someone look into this if government agencies are using this as an excuse not to buy Macs.

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as far as i know, energy star is not a show stopper when buying pc equipment at the govt facility where i work.

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I work at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center and the issue doesn't seem to be a consideration at all. We've ordered dozens of B/W G3s and never once heard the word Energy Star mentioned. I'll bet that Energy Star is never an issue when it comes to government procument of Intel-based PCs nationwide (how those energy-hogging CPUs make the grade I'll never kn This sounds more like politics to me than environmental awareness.

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Just a bit of data - NASA Ames Research Center at Moffett Field (about 5 mi from Cupertino) has B&W Macs. I don't know how many, but energy star compliance doesn't appear to have been an issue in their purchase.

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I work at LLNL. I don't know what the official rule is regarding Energy Star compliance, but I can tell you that the division that I work for is buying B&W G3's. The Labs (Livermore and Los Alamos) are actually run by the University of California under a Department of Energy contract. So, maybe we're not subject to the government rule.

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I am not an official spokesperson for NASA but we have been buying Blue and White G3's since they came out. Just got about 7 or 8 new ones in last week. I'm not sure if the Energy Star rating ever came into consideration, or even if we were aware that 1) it was required for gov agencies, and 2) that the B/W G3's don't meet the rating.

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I have definitely seen B&W Powermac G3s in the US DoD. Maybe DoE labs should be put back under DoD - where they don't worry about things like whether something is 'PC' or not.......;) Especially with the lax security at the labs....

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Government agencies *are* allowed to buy non-Energy Star compliant computers, as long as they justify the purchase on a case-by-case basis. Note that LOTS of PCs are not Energy Star compliant, especially running Windows NT. And Windows NT 4 still isn't Y2K compliant -- even though purchase of non-Y2K compliant hardware and software has been prohibited since last year. Energy Star compliance seems to be ignored widely in the purchase of personal computers -- except where someone wants an excuse to eliminate Macs.

Back to the index page for today's PowerBook news and more...

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Written/Edited/Published by Doug B. Landry
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Apple, Mac, Macintosh, Mac OS,The Apple Store, and Powerbook are trademarks of Apple Computer, Inc.
©1998 Doug B. Landry. All rights reserved. All or part may not be reproduced or distributed without prior consent.
Coded on a Apple Macintosh Powerbook G3 Series from Baton Rouge, LA

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