Your computer has some time on its hands, should you donate it?

Lifehacker  reminds us all that you, yes you, can donate your spare CPU cycles to a good cause.  The first and most famous of these was the SETI @ Home project where, through a nifty screensaver, when your computer wasn’t busy with something else, would help pour over the millions of hours of radio telescope recordings in search of life on other planets.  There are many of these apps now.  Some help find cures for disease, some try to work out mathematical puzzles.  I think there are some even out there to help crack codes and passwords (don’t quote me on that).  Regardless, they look cool, help out the planet, and give you the warm fuzzies.  The question is, then, should you.

If you’re at work, ask first.  Yeah I know I’m a big fan of thumbing my nose at IT’s rules and stuff.  Yeah I’ve been one of those folks who got a piece of software accepted by first sneaking it into the company, then getting lots of people to use it (influential people, of course).  But here’s the thing.  I’ve tried these and sometimes they tend to bog ones computer down.  Also they can, I emphasize can, bog down a network too.  Yes, I’m all for using computers to help solve the world’s problems, but you know in this case, you really should ask first.  If you want to do it at home, spiffy.  But, just remember keep an eye on how much bandwidth it’s using and if your machines performance is being negatively affected.

Tags: screensavers, downloads