There’s a new solar gadget coming in early 2010. It’s the Keystone Eco Tag. It’s a small solar panel that’s a charging tool for your USB devices and a recharging tool for batteries.
It’s the size of a luggage tag, which it doubles as. The idea is that you’ve an extra power source that charges along the way. However, how often does your luggage see sunlight?
It might make a great little panel to attach to a backpack, or leave on your car dash.
Are We Moving Into the Digital Media Age?
For the first time ever, Amazon is reporting electronic books sold better than printed books. Yes, they sold MORE digital books this holiday season than physical books.
The new electronic readers are cutting down on paper production. Does this mean that we’re destined to someday only have electronic versions? Will we start to see some books coming out in digital versions only?
While that’s a boon to the trees, it’s not a boon for our libraries.
It’s nice to peruse the shelves of a bookstore, a library or your own bookshelves, looking for just the right book to read. It’s not the same when looking thru a list of titles in digital format.
I know ‘one’ person with an electronic reader. Who’s doing all the buying? Will that number slack off or continue to grow?
So while I understand the ‘fun’ factor of reading a book electronically, I just can’t get past the ‘feel’ of a good book in your hands.
I’m sticking with the printed version as long as I can. My books, from precious trees, are a renewable resource, and when I’m finally done with a printed book, it can be shared, passed on, donated, or recycled.
In fact, I wrote a guest piece for The Green Tulsa blog. 10 ways to Recycle a Book. Take a gander and save a book. (Which in turn – saves a tree.)
books
Treehugger reports that folks in San Francisco can now obtain free refills for their refillable water containers in the form of GlobalTap’s water refill stations. In other words, water fountains are returning.
I noticed a lack of water fountains a summer or two ago. I immediately remembered being a kid in the park in my small hometown. We’d play Red Rover then run over to stand in line at the water fountain. It was sad to think that all the water fountains had disappeared with the advent of carry your own water bottles.
Kudos to the city of San Francisco for partnering with Hetch Hetchy to provide the GlobalTap stations. Here’s hoping other cities will follow suit. Everyone needs access to clean and free drinking water.