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Engadget has some good advice for fellow geeks on this holiday, as well as a list of links to hardware vendors who with recycling programs. Engadget Post

Apple Computer will pay for shipping and environmentally friendly disposal of any old computer with the purchase of a new Mac from the company’s retail or online stores. So, if you’re a switcher, you can now let Apple deal with getting rid of that old box, and if you’re upgrading, Apple will give that old Quadra a proper send-off.

Sprint Nextel will spring for shipping and recycling or disposal of any brand of cellphone — and you don’t even need to buy anything. Just grab a prepaid mailing label from Sprint’s web site, stuff your phone in an envelope and send it off. So forget about the sentimental value already and send off that MicroTAC.

Verizon Wireless will also accept any old cellphone for recycling — but you have to bring it into one of their stores. But, hey, at least they’re trying.

CTIA has more info about cellphone recycling programs nationwide.

Dell offers something called the Asset Recovery Program. It’s similar to Apple’s plan, but it’s only good for corporate customers. So, if you’re an IT manager and you’re about to upgrade, get Dell to clear out your old stuff, dude.

Staples will give you $30 worth of coupons if you drop off an old computer for recycling — at least at certain Chicago-area stores. We hope the coupons are good on items like recycled printer paper, so you can double your greenie points.

100 Percent Day is a project sponsored by Microsoft, Intel, the US Chamber of Commerce and others with the goal of collecting 100,000 computers for recycling — today. The project’s web site has a list of dropoff locations where you can bring your gear.

For more ideas, visit the officialEarth Day web site.

A very happy Earthday to all! The weather in portland could not be more perfect.

Preserving our planet needs to take front stage in the way we live on a daily basis. For example, global warming is an increasing concern that could exponentially worsen if we continue to ignore the harmful effects of fossil fuels. Although our trees absorb CO2 from the atmosphere and this helps to slow down global warming, by ignoring recycling campaigns and choosing to cut down trees for paper production, we contribute directly to climate change. Irresponsible deforestation is contributing greatly to deaths resulting from floods and landslides. In 2004, as many as 1700 Haitians died as a direct result of illegal logging and deforestation. Cars and other vehicles are the primary culprits behind smog. According to the web site of the Environmental Protection Agency, one of three people in the US is at risk of experiencing respiratory ailments due to smog. LINK

Last night I attended a Devgroup NW meeting at PSU during which a Microsoft rep introduced their upcoming Expression suite of products. I could barely stay in my seat through the Q & A session though, because after getting an initial taste, I couldn’t wait to get home and download the demos! This is some really exciting stuff for the development community. It’s definitely a direct hit across the bow of Macromedia…err, I mean Adobe. These front end tools will also integrate seamlessly with Visual Studio. Check out the slew of videos illustrating what development will be like for Vista and the web in the near future. Link

The nominations for the 10th annual The Webby Awards, “The Oscars of the Internet” according to the New York Times, have been announced, and lo and behold Microsoft’s Xbox.com is in the running for a Webby under the Community category. We are not sure how much of Xbox Live factored into the choice, but we do admit we love being able to paste our gamertags everywhere (and especially since they added Friends Management to the website).

The website is up against some fierce and eclectic competition. Congratulations to Microsoft for the nomination, but somehow we doubt a community of gamers will triumph over, say, a website devoted to fallen soldiers or NICU families.

Folks….this is a huge day in geek history…literally a tear came to my third eye, lol. You can now officially run Windows on Macs. Now where are the flying pigs…because this is HUUUGE!
Apple Bootcamp: BOOOYAAA!