The headline seems a little sensationalistic, the story itself doesn't seem to indicate that manufacturers will be forced to change their energy usage, just that the appliances will be rated on their energy usage. It's the manufacturers threatening to cut the energy usage (like it's a bad thing...) so that they can have a better rating on their vacuums.

The same can be said about EU bureaucrats...

Congratulations! You've posted a two-year-old, heavily outdated article that quotes another article that postulates on an EU report that specifies nothing of the sort.

I suggest you actually do your research in future instead of blindly trusting the media.

Exactly. Those legislations are very important. It may seem quite silly when it comes to vacuum cleaners. What I wait is a legislaton on all "ISP TV boxes", because they can sell any sloppy design they want the standby consumption of some models is completely ludicrous. Nowadays most progress in electronics is about lowering voltages, so it should be strange that hardware designers are asked to lower their product's energy consumption (this is to reassure those worrying about GPUs/CPUs : it's not really about imposing limitations on perfs, just applying clever design).

It is great time we start learning to suppress wastes. I am glad Europe is moving things on the energy aspect, the mobile chargers was a great initiative for instance.

I'm aware of the article's date and aware that -so far- they haven't taken away gamer's precious 3d cards but it is meant to illustrate how the very same strategy that might seem perfectly reasonable to you right now can turn against you in the future.
When, of course, it will be too late and posting a 'current' article will be pointless. See it as a preventive incentive to think about the future.

EDIT: btw, I am using an old laptop without 3d card because I play old games mostly but I would find it very amusing if it turns out that there's gamers out there who are against global warming etc and are at the same time using a high powered 3d graphics card just for gaming purposes. I trust you're not one of those, hopefully.

Fluorescent bulbs - at least many of the 'cheaper' ones - emit higher levels of UV-B radiation, increasing the risk of cataracts. Also, their low-intensity output makes eye strain more likely.

To be honest I'm perfectly happy if they limit powerconsumption of videocards, hell I wouldn't care if they would prohibit christmasslights too.
Man I would be ecstatic if they had the balls to ration powerconsumption to the equivalent of 1 penlightbattery per person a day..., energy crisis solved.

You're basically describing North Korea. Sounds like you would love it there :)

North Korea is da shit! Glory to the PRoNK!

But to be serious, yes in North Korea they don't waste energy on lights when they are to sleep which I find rather a disgusting way to squander earths resources upon, same as overpowered vacuumcleaners.

The great thing about North Korea is that their computer games don't require powerful 3D cards:

http://www.pyongyangracer.co/

(yes, I actually played and finished this game, it's quite...an experience)

That game is great!
The music is awesome, North Korean polka!
Noooooooooooooo, I ran out of fuel. =(

I can't wait until they make a GTA version of this!

It would be hard to make a GTA version because that would require other cars on the road. I had to laugh out loud when Pyongyang Driver shows an in-game message advertising how great it is that Pyongyang's streets aren't congested, unlike those evil capitalist cities like Paris etc.

The only cars in this game are the ones set up as traps, watch out for that yellow car that is placed directly behind one of the oil barrels, I bumped into that car hardcore on my first playthrough. I've only finished the game once and didn't get a good score but I'm surprised I had the patience to finish it, at all.

Here's my 'high' score:

+1 This is one of those things that makes me believe in the EU.

Yeah, there may be a lot of bureaucrats that don't give a shit about anything at all and that just uses the EU for making money, there are also some problems from a citizen point of view, since I see the EU seems a lil far from me (nothing more far than the spanish goverment I could tell, but far anyways).
But I believe that, in the end, the EU makes Europe to bi one step further from other countries.

The EU is good at overseeing things that suck. They would know. They've cornered the market on all things suck.

Basically the more powerful Euro countries France, Germany, Italy, and Spain?

You make the EU sound worse than the United Nations (which I would to work if I got through my politics major)