[NTLUG:Discuss] ext3 vs. XFS vs. ....

[Leroy Tennison]

steve wrote:
>  > Another curious, wild thought came to mind.  Anyone know how
>  > expensive it would be to have an electric motor coupled to a
>  > generator via a relatively large/dense cylinder such that the
>  > computer was totally isolated from the external electrical
>  > environment?
>
> Large flywheels can be really dangerous - they can store large amounts
> of energy - but if anything at all goes wrong (eg a bearing breaks or
> something in the generator seizes up) - then all of that energy has to
> go somewhere - and the 'somewhere' is generally bits of flywheel flying
> off at insane velocities and embedding themselves somewhere undesirable!
>
> The practicalities of containing the resulting death, mayhem and
> destruction means that the flywheel won't be storing more than a
> few tenths of a second or so of energy in any practical setup.
>
> Motors and generators are each less than 100% efficient - so expect
> to see your electricity bills double if you go that route!
>
> The mental comfort that comes from being able to physically see that
> you are disconnected from the grid comes at a price.
>
> There are much cheaper, safer and more efficient ways to provide a
> few seconds of backup power and power spike/surge/dropout protection
> using modern electronics where the energy can be stored in something
> relatively safe like a pile of car batteries.
>
> _______________________________________________
> http://ntlug.pmichaud.com/mailman/listinfo/discuss
>
>   
Ouch!  I hadn't thought about the consequences of a failure, sounds like 
you have "been there - done that".  Thanks for the reply, I enjoy the 
education(s) I get in response to these things.