Microsoft opens Hohm to energy monitoring
The site gives people a starting point for cutting home energy use.
Microsoft opened up its Hohm Web application on Monday to U.S. users, a site that gives people a starting point for cutting home energy use. The "brains" behind Hohm's energy-efficiency recommendations is an existing database that Microsoft licensed from the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and the U.S. Department of Energy. That means much of the basic information on how to save money on energy bills has been available for some time from the Energy Department and other sources, if in a disjointed and less attractive form.
Some of the questions are incredibly detailed, such as what's the capacity of your refrigerator expressed in cubic feet? There are also some places where inevitably there will be gaps and guesses.
it's a worthwhile exercise to run through the roughly 200 questions, even if you can't answer them. Why? It offers strong clues as to what matters most when it comes to cutting your energy bills. Whether your PC and monitor uses power-management features is significant enough for Hohm to care.
But on your first visit, it's really the energy report that you're after. Although Hohm's recommendations perplexed me a few times, on balance it provided solid information.
It also features a "library" with generic recommendations to help people get ready for the summer and there are tips sprinkled on the News section.
Hohm doesn't quite measure up to a knowledgeable human being. Most people just want some good ideas on greening their home and Hohm does that. What I like most is that it creates a list, from which you can develop a plan. Because let's face it, nobody's going to weatherize their home in one weekend.
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