h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Not all of us are able to make big gestures to help charities because we don't have the financial means or the time to do so. However, there are ways that you can support charities by using your computer, and best of all it won't take up any of your time, and won't cost a thing.

For those who can make donations of money or time to charities this isn't intended to replace that, but to enhance it.

Firstly it is possible to donate the time your PC is idle to the World Community Grid, so that your processing power can contribute to medical research. One project the Community Grid is involved with is ways to combat cancer. There is a download on the website, http://www.worldcommunitygrid.org/ and once this is installed a small programme runs in the background of your PC. You will then be participating in research that benefits everyone.

Secondly, there are search engines that donate money to charity. All you need to do is use these search engines in the usual way and your clicks will accrue cash for the selected charity. Some search engines allow you to choose which charity the donation will go to, whilst others are focused on a specific cause. This article lists some of the most popular of these search engines: http://www.helium.com/items/1649507-search-engines-that-donate-to-charity

For very little effort you could be making a difference to the world, so why not take a look at the web pages mentioned here.