Two interesting takes on software popped up on the interweb recently. I find it interesting the potential that using software has for reducing pollution thanks to digitization.
First, we have a blogger arguing that iTunes saves the environment because less people are buying CDs (and the CDs don’t need to be shipped).
“Steve Jobs also announced that Apple is currently selling 5,000,000 songs per day. This is about 416,000 CD’s per day. By buying your music from the Apple Store, you are helping to prevent a stack of CD’s 2.6 miles high from having to be manufactured PER DAY.”
Apple uses DRM (Digital Rights Management, which is bad), and so does Microsoft Vista. Vista, the new windows, will harm the environment thanks to DRM (see why it’s bad?).
“There will be thousands of tonnes of dumped monitors, video cards, and whole computers that are perfectly capable of running Vista — except for the fact they lack the paranoid lock down mechanisms Vista forces you to use. That’s an offensive cost to the environment. Future archaeologists will be able to identify a “Vista Upgrade Layer” when they go through our landfill sites”
Be lazy and don’t upgrade to the awful Windows Vista.
This is satire right? The only practical way to upgrade any mac is toss the entire thing and buy a new one. Until recently Steve had such a iron grip on the mac hardware that any other type of upgrade (video, gigabyte nic, and in some cases even memory and hard drive) was impractical.
Check your math… last time I checked a CD was ~0.04″ thick, not ~0.4″ thick. You’d end up with a stack of CDs somewhere around 1/4 mile high, not 2.5mi as you suggested.
Todd,
You need to get out more, or at least do a little research. Oh, yeah, that’s too easy. My Mac is 7 years-old and has been updated numerous times. Easy, very easy. Yes, Apple does sell some non-upgradeable machines. So do others. When I replace my Mac it will go on to a good home and be used for several more years.
NumberNazi, I think the calculation includes the CD and the case.
A word from the mouth is like a stone from a sling.