Computer power management awareness: an insight from youngsters in Mauritius

Down the past years, the number of computer and Internet users has been constantly increasing in several countries and today, more and more youngsters are starting to use computers at an earlier age be it at home or in educational institutions. In many countries around the world, computer literacy among youngsters is being promoted since a very young age where computer studies are being taught in schools. However, this increase in the computer usage has led to an increase in power consumption which adversely affects the environment mainly due to the non-renewable power production techniques currently being employed. Computer Power Management (CPM) interacts with every part of the computer system including the operating system, software, Central Processing Unit, peripheral devices, etc, and is present in most modern operating systems. Different techniques are available today to save power while using computers. Since computers are now being used at an earlier age and are intensively being used by youngsters, an understanding on how the different power saving techniques being employed is very important. This paper attempts to provide an insight on CPM from youngsters, following a survey carried out where 300 youngsters aged between 19 and 24 were interviewed. The study aimed to find out whether youngsters today are aware of the different CPM strategies, the motivation behind using these strategies and the application of these strategies by youngsters today. This paper also discusses on the method and results of the study conducted, to give an insight on CPM from youngsters and also make recommendations on how CPM techniques can be better promoted to be adopted by youngsters of tomorrow