Solar power

It’s not easy being green: Data center edition

Building sustainable data centers is hard — especially if you’re trying to do it in office space in Houston. This and a few less obvious lessons were the takeaways from a panel on sustainable data centers at the Open compute Summit on Wednesday.

The future, and fantasy, of space solar power

Professor Murphy evaluates solar power from space and the giant hurdles such a scheme would face. On balance, he doesn’t expect to see this technology escape the realm of fantasy and find a place in our world. The expense and difficulty are incommensurate with the gains.

A new way to cut ultra thin solar cells

Cutting down on silicon used in solar panels has been a hotly pursued goal for solar startups. And now a new player is entering the ring: meet Twin Creeks Technologies, which is launching a machine that will dramatically cut the use of silicon in solar cells.

First Solar CEO is out, stock tanks

It’s been a rocky couple of months for solar companies, but First Solar just hit an unexpected hurdle. The thin-film solar darling announced that Rob Gillette will no longer serve as its CEO, and Chairman and Founder Mike Ahearn will step in as interim CEO.

Valley couple gets the spotlight via Solyndra

The ongoing investigations into the email exchanges among now-defunct solar maker Solyndra, Department of Energy officials and the White House continue, and they lead to an unusual link between Solyndra’s law firm and a DOE official that pushed for the Solyndra loan: a married couple.

Solyndra execs to invoke the Fifth at hearing

Solyndra CEO Brian Harrison and CFO Bill Stover have decided not to answer any questions during an upcoming hearing on Friday and plan to invoke the Fifth Amendment in the face of questioning, the company announced late on Tuesday.

Solyndra story makes The Daily Show

John Stewart brings you the Solyndra story in the true fashion of The Daily Show, proclaiming, “That custom-tailored Obama scandal you ordered is finally here.” To us in Silicon Valley, it shows just how big this story has gotten.

Community solar gardens are starting to bloom

There is a growing interest to bring solar generation closer to where the power is used and accessible to the masses, and the idea of so-called “solar community garden” may be the next idea to catch on.

The pressure to add clean power in California

The race for more clean power has intensified in California, and utilities such as PG&E and San Diego Gas & Electric have been busy inking contracts to meet what is the toughest standard in the country.

Tending to the Open With Context Menu

A huge thanks goes to Dan Moren at MacUser for posting this tip. I was literally looking for this method over the…