After reading arleigh's reply (above) in the Solar panels on roof? thread, I began thinking of something. Pico PSU's. Rather than going DC (battery) to AC (power inverter) to DC (CPU power), why not just go DC to DC to power the computer, and "cut out the middle man"? Pico PSU's are one way to certainly do that. They plug directly into the ATX socket on the motherboard. They also have the appropriate connectors for your peripherals you will need for your specific machine. A Pico PSU uses considerably less power and runs quite a bit cooler than a standard ATX power supply. You could, in fact, easily power it directly off solar. A single panel, a small controller, a couple of (smallish) deep cycle batteries, and a Pico PSU rated for your specific power needs, would be all you need to power the CPU. (Calculations, of course, would be necessary for your specific power / system up time requirements.) Anyway, just turn off the monitor and speakers when you are finished with your computer, and you could leave it running 24 / 7 / 365, for cheap. Just a thought I wanted to share.
they run about $60-$80 plus plus unfortunately they cannot power a Xeon or a PC that requires a lot of power a yuuuuuuuuuuuuge game PC can have a PSU in the 850-1250W range perhaps plus plus
Actually, less than that, and free shipping. Two examples: picoPSU-160-XT, 160watt (200watt peak) , 12V input DC-DC ATX Power Supply picoPSU-150-XT 12V DC-DC ATX power supply Personally, I have never been a gamer. I've always looked at a computer as being a tool - something that should be earning its keep. Games, to me, are a waste of computing power. If it is running, it had better be making me money. The irony is, without the gamers, companies probably wouldn't be pushed to create better, faster machines.
yup , I run Pico Scope and Pico stuff . Metric prefixes. m (mili) 10-3 k (kilo) 103 micro (ยต) (micro) 10-6 M (mega) 106 n (nano) 10-9 G (giga) 109 p (pico) 10-12 T (tera) 1012 f (femto) 10-15 P (peta) 1015 a (atto) 10-18 E (exa) 1018 z (zepto) 10-21 Z (zeta) 1021 Y (yotta) 1024 Units of measurement.
Computers today are simply appliances, like your range, fridge and TV. They have a host of uses. Entertainment is just one. I used to play a lot of computer games, before I became an IT professional. After working on a computer all day, I had little interest in getting back on one at home. So my Atari and Commodores have been consigned to the closet. Then I got online. Now my PC tames the placevof TV, providing entertainment, streaming TV, communication via e-mail, access to information better than any S&B library, billpaying without using snail mail, etc. Maintaining access while in a power outtage situation is a good thing.
I don't have a "whole house" solar system. In fact, one could simply provide enough solar to power the CPU 24 / 7. This wasn't only to save money on an electric bill. It could also be to provide consistent, clean, stable power for a home computer.
Exactly, which is why I still have grid power. But on those occasions it goes away for awhile, this little power unit would come in handy.
You can do that with a 10 dollar Buck converter as I have done in my cars mobile system. I take 12Vdc (14.4 running and its boosted to 19Vdc -20Vdc ) this plugs into my Panasonic Toughbooks I use. They mount on a RAM Mount (like a cop car). Sloth
