MaSSSoftech

There are many ways that information technology can assist us in saving the planet. One of the best ways is with the internet. More shopping than ever before is being done on the internet. Instead of consumers getting in cars and driving from store to store to shop for what they need, they are letting the internet do the driving and going from web site to web site to shop.

But shopping is only the start of this. Many purchases are being delivered electronically. Music is increasingly sold over the internet. Companies like Apple with iTunes, sell you a single song or a CD and allow you to download it. Various artists are selling their music direct as well. This eliminates the need to drive to a store to purchase the music. It also eliminates the packaging and the distribution costs.

Books are being downloaded as e-books today. Amazon and Sony have readers where you can download hundreds of books, many of them classics, at no charge. These devices are very reader friendly, with a book-like feel and good lighting. They even allow you to increase the font size of the text, making them ideal for older readers.

Several colleges such as Princeton, University of Virginia, and Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) are pioneering the use of the Kindle for their freshman classes. Princeton has said this is a sustainability project designed to reduce the amount of paper used. University of Virginia has stated that it is one step in helping them reach their goal of becoming carbon neutral by 2020. CWRU indicated that paper saving was one advantage; however, their goal in using the Kindle was student success.

Software used to be a bulky issue. In the past, companies had to wait for the software to be delivered and then figure out where to store all the boxes and manuals. Now, you can order most software on-line and download it within minutes.


News is now available on line. The days of the newspaper being delivered to your door is soon headed the direction of milk delivery and bread delivery. Companies, like Examiner, are filling the niche of local newspapers on-line. One analyst has indicated that printing the New York Times costs twice as much as sending every subscriber a free Kindle. With this kind of cost, expect the New York Times and other major print publications to switch to virtual delivery solutions.