Tape Storage Might Be Computing’s Climate Savior

Re:Tape Storage Might Be Computing’s Climate Savior by perrygeo on Thursday August 17, 2023 @04:55AM (#37158965)

Computing's Climate Savior - really? By their estimate, if every organization in the world put in the effort to transition 60% of their data to tapes, you'd save 79 million tons a year, a whopping 0.16% reduction in CO2e. This doesn't even cover the current rate of emissions growth or the steady increases in hot data volume. No mention of Jevon's paradox either - highly likely that companies will take those IT savings and roll them into more IT resources.

It's still worth considering tape storage. But if you think you're "saving the climate" by doing so, you should tone down the greenwashing - don't want to pull a muscle patting yourself on the back.

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Re:Tape Storage Might Be Computing’s Climate Savior by galleywest200 on Thursday August 17, 2023 @10:49AM (#37162569)

This is a small amount, but it is not negligible.

If we really wanted to tackle green house gas emissions for climate change we should ban cruise ships, as they are equivalent to 1 million cars each [1]. Then heavily investigate and possibly prosecute large companies in a plethora of sectors.

[1] https://www.cbc.ca/radio/asithappens/as-it-happens-wednesday...

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Re:Tape Storage Might Be Computing’s Climate Savior by rbanffy on Thursday August 17, 2023 @12:29PM (#37164191)

> ban cruise ships

Or force them to use carbon-neutral fuels. Or get serious about nuclear-powered civilian ships - the NS Savannah was a good technically successful example.

And, while we are at it, remember a nuclear (or even carbon-neutral) airliner is a challenge, but a nuclear transatlantic ship is not. Add a hydrofoil and we'll be in the Thunderbirds future.

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