How Will We Manage Demand on the Smart Grid?

If Renewable Energy World is going to put podcasts on its website, the #1 rule of podcasting is to annotate the podcast link with how long the podcast is. e.g. 4 min 39 sec. For an example of how to do this correctly, look at a professional site such as NPR:
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=103158500

The podcast is 48 minutes long and worth a continous listen, if you are really interested in the future of distributed energy. Those interviewed are leaders in the next stage of energy management technology which may turn a residential roof-top PV array into an asset to the utility, rather than a nuisance.
Listen to part one of the four part series

Smart grids can turn the variable nature of renewable energy into an asset or at least remove its percieved liabiliy
http://mtkass.blogspot.com/2007/10/excess-energy-what-to-do.html
That will keep us going until contenent wide super cooled DC grids allow the complete elimination of fossil fuels for the generation of electricity.

"Actively managing and reducing demand on the customer side of the meter is an important part of the smart grid."

I am here to tell everyone, that there is no law that makes you have a meter.
There is no law that makes you buy your electricity from the utilities.
You can live "off grid" just as successfully as you can live "on grid."
Which is smarter, telling the electric utilities what they can do with there meter or, letting there meter, an inanimate object, tell you what to do with your electricity?
Well? Which one is smarter?

"Smart grid."
Sounds like something right out of Star Trek to me.
"We are Borg. Your biological and technological distinctiveness will be added to our own. You will service us. Resistance is futile."

You RE people and your obcesssion over controling the way people use energy. You all really need to get a life and I mean that in a friendly way. Only a true friend would be able to tell you the cold hard truth about yourself. There are professionals that can help you with those knids of mental disorders, ya know?
http://dbs2000ad.com/narayan/black-sheep-personality.htm
Admitting you have a problem is the first and most important step.

Thomas, while I can certainly appreciate the humor in your remarks, I don't think they are accurate, especially as they relate to the smart grid.

Did you listen to the show?

If so, you would realize that we're not talking about science fiction -- these are real businesses finding extraordinary opportunities in providing valuable services to utilities and customers.

This is about a two-way conversation. Consumers can be empowered to dictate the utility's behavior, with the right technological and regulatory tools.

As most of the guests pointed out, we're trying to create a framework to give customers more choice. In fact, I addressed that exact issue at the end of the show. If you take a listen, I think you'll find the conversation much more valuable than you've characterized it.

Thanks,
Stephen Lacey

Making energy management "smart, hip, and cool" as Stephen put it is the holy grail for the smart grid. Business and Home owners can't make pro-active choices without information and site-usage meters are the first step. Relying on higher costs alone to change behavior takes too long and doesn't create a new zeitgeist around conservation.

REW Podcast does a great job bringing a wide variety of experts opinions on complex topics and I love the more in-depth analysis on one topic at a time, along with the weekly "highlights." Great content!

PS: I just received my PG&E "smart meter" for natural gas and it doesn't even have a digital display! At least my electric meter for the PV has a display showing how much I'm sending to the utility or using at any one point in time. Small steps, I guess ;-(