Ergonomics/Safety ////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////// RISKS-LIST: Risks-Forum Digest Tuesday 17 May 2005 Volume 23 : Issue 87 ACM FORUM ON RISKS TO THE PUBLIC IN COMPUTERS AND RELATED SYSTEMS (comp.risks) Peter G. Neumann, moderator, chmn ACM Committee on Computers and Public Policy This issue is archived at http://www.risks.org/ as http://catless.ncl.ac.uk/Risks/23.87.html ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 29 Apr 2005 19:29:59 EDT From: Ken Knowlton Subject: The Downside of Wired Hospitals "Computers are making hospitals more dangerous, new research suggests. Computer keyboards fester with colonies of bacteria, which can easily spread from the medical personnel who use them to the patients they treat. Some hospitals now have computers in every patient room, creating even more opportunities for contamination. Researchers at Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago found that the types of bacteria commonly found in hospitals--some resistant to antibiotics--could survive on a keyboard for 24 hours. Simply cleaning the computers with soap and water didn't make a difference. Using a strong disinfectant did kill the germs--but it also damaged the computers. 'The difficulty with keyboards is you can't pour bleach on them,' Dr. Allison McGreer of Toronto's Mount Sinai Hospital tells The Canadian Press. 'They don't work so well when you do that.' Because it's nearly impossible to keep keyboards sterile, researchers say, the onus is on doctors and nurses to wash their hands vigorously and often." [Excerpted from *The Week*, 29 May 2005] ------------------------------ ////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////// This firm: Educational Resources Inc. 557 Whiteford Way PO Box 1257 Lexington, SC 29071-1257 WATS voice: 1-800/333-8822 POTS voice: 1- POTS FAX: 1-803/356-1946 has the following safety films available: 9113 "Video Display Terminal Safety" - ergonomics - eye strain - effect of lighting - radiation - fatigue and stress relief - practical solutions 15 minutes long 5-day rental $150 30-day rental $200 purchase $395 VHS, U-Matic DM43 "Preventing Carpal Tunnel Syndrome" 14 minutes long 5-day rental $150 30-day rental $200 purchase $325 ////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////// .............................................................................. .............................................................................. ////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////// From skoper@comcast.net Thu Jan 6 13:10:58 2005 Newsgroups: ne.general.selected, ne.general References: Message-ID: Organization: I.E.C.C., Trumansburg NY USA Date: 5 Jan 2005 16:11:20 -0500 From: Stan Koper Subject: Re: Donating old computer parts Barry Margolin wrote: > I've got some really ancient computer equipment: an old ImageWriter, a > SCSI QIC tape drive, a SCSI CD-ROM drive (probably 2X or 4X), lots of > cables, some old hard disks, lots of floppy and Zip disks (containing > ancient home Macintosh backups that I don't think I'll ever need to > restore from). > > I'm looking for a good way to get rid of this stuff that's cluttering my > apartment. I did some web searching, and most places that want donated > computer equipment are looking for PC's and monitors, typically less > than 10 years old, not all these random parts and accessories. Or > they're just places where you can list what you have, and they'll match > up donors with requestors -- I'd like to just load up my car with all > the stuff and drop it off somewhere. > > Any suggestions (ideally, within a half-hour of Arlington)? To see the > description of the place that would have fit my needs if they were still > in operation, go to: > > http://www.nonprofits.org/gallery/alpha/east > Here's a piece that someone posted on the Metrowest Freecycle list: Anne Kandra of Consumer Watch reports: I'm not proud of this, but here's what I recently discovered stashed in a corner of my basement, right next to the high school yearbooks and stacks of vinyl LPs: two old tower PCs, two CRT monitors, a nonfunctioning multifunction fax/copier/scanner, a cell phone the size of a Kleenex box, a single-disc CD player, an elderly but willing inkjet printer, and a PDA that long ago lost its will to hot-sync. Naturally, I never intended to create a refugee camp for discarded digital devices. It just sort of evolved.. Throwing the stuff out, though, can be worse than stockpiling it. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, the average CRT monitor or TV contains about 4 pounds of lead, and most electronic devices contain mercury, cadmium, and other hazardous materials. Currently, according to the EPA, electronics account for about 1 percent of all solid waste, but most research suggests that the percentage is increasing every year. Manufacturers Help The good news? Hardware makers and other companies are finally starting to help stem the flow of electronic waste. Many have established programs that make recycling easier for consumers and that offer incentives such as discounts on new purchases for customers who recycle. Last summer, Office Depot worked with HP to offer free electronics recycling to the public for a limited time--all you had to do was drop off your device at a local store. Companies such as Dell, Gateway, and IBM provide recycling services, too. HP, which historically has been proactive in electronics recycling, will recycle just about any PC, monitor, printer, scanner, fax machine, or handheld device--including equipment made by companies other than HP. You simply fill out an online form and pack the hardware up: http://www.hp.com/hpinfo/globalcitizenship/environment/recycle/ At $13 to $34 per item, the service isn't the cheapest solution around, but the convenience is hard to beat: Just leave the box on your doorstep, and rest assured that your hardware will be reused or recycled for parts. If you have your own collection of outgrown tech gear languishing in a hall closet, start the new year right and clean house. Chances are that you have something someone can use. Even if you don't, it's worth spending a few minutes--and maybe a few bucks--to dispose of those dormant devices responsibly. First take inventory of what you have in storage. Separate the things that work from those that don't, and gather all the documentation and components you can find. Don't worry if the devices have minor problems; in some cases, facilities will do minor repairs or upgrades. Obviously you shouldn't even think of handing over a computer--or anything else that might store private information about you--without wiping the entire hard drive clean. (And remember, simply deleting the sensitive data doesn't make it unrecoverable from the hard drive.) Some refurbishers or recycling services might offer to wipe the hard drive for you, but unless the company is run by your mom, my advice is to do it yourself. Read "Ditching an Old Computer" for how to scrub your drive: http://www.pcworld.com/reviews/article/0,aid,117330,tk,cax,00.asp There is a downside to wiping the drive completely: Most charities and nonprofits don't have the resources to replace deleted operating systems and other software. If you have either a restore disc for the computer or your original copy of the OS, you can help by reinstalling the software or by including the disc with the PC. Free to a Good Home Once you've collected and cleaned your hardware has-beens, you can focus on getting rid of them. The easiest approach is to find a company that specializes in placing or recycling used equipment and let that group handle the details, even if it ends up costing you a few dollars. A helpful place to start your search is the National Recycling Coalition, which offers an extensive database of recyclers and refurbishers, listed by state: http://www.nrc-recycle.org/resources/electronics/search/getlisting.php Another useful site is TechSoup, which lists recyclers, refurbishers, charities, and other resources by region: http://www.techsoup.org Check with your community's waste management department, as well. Many cities and towns schedule times when you can drop off electronics and other unwanted equipment; some even provide occasional curbside pickup service. Got an old cell phone, PDA, or other small electronic device whose service is no longer required? ReCellular, a Michigan-based company, collects and refurbishes or recycles unwanted devices, donating most of the proceeds to charities. Return any retired cell phone to a local pickup spot, and it'll be refurbished, reused, or recycled, according to marketing director Mike Newman. Go to the company's Web site for a list of pickup spots: http://www.wirelessrecycling.com/home/index.html And don't forget that disposing of some recent tech products could yield you a little cash. Auction giant EBay is doing its part to encourage consumers to sell their outgrown computers for reuse. The company's PC Selling Center service lets you obtain a detailed description of your computer (using an online tool provided by PC World) and a quote of its value, print prepaid shipping labels, order shipping materials, post a listing, and arrange for pickup, all with just a few clicks: http://pcsellingcenter.ebay.com/ David Stern, senior category manager of systems at EBay, says, "When we surveyed our customers, we found a tremendous demand for systems that are between one and three years old. So it made sense to help sellers reach out to that community." As for my own collection of idle tech tools, I discovered a nearby recycling center and cleared out my electronic castoffs within a few hours. Some of the devices--like the CD player and the printer--even got a new lease on life, finding a home at a nonprofit after-school program. It's a win-win solution: You get rid of stuff you don't need, help a good cause, and do the environment a favor. But remember, the longer your computer sits idle, the less useful it becomes. So Happy New Year--and happy recycling. For more help getting rid of your old equipment, read "PC Recycling Made Easier": http://www.pcworld.com/news/article/0,aid,114054,tk,cax,00.asp Have a question or comment? Write to Anne Kandra: consumerwatch@pcworld.com Read Anne Kandra's regularly published "Consumer Watch" columns: http://www.pcworld.com/resource/columnist/0,colid,4,tk,ca,00.asp