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My computer consumes 1 to 2W when switched off!
I bought a plug switch and turn it off so it now consumes 0W when switched off.
Some people think there is a spike when the computer is turned on. There is none. If it takes 30 sec to shut down and 2 minutes to boot and you leave for 5 minutes, you will save energy if you switch it off. It's nothing like a diesel motor, not to mention that what people think about modern diesel motors is also false. Switching your motor off is also worth it.
If you are using a laptop as a desktop replacement, like mentioned in the article, and it is plugged to the wall, please, pretty please, remove the battery! You don't use it and you are charging it. There is an insane loss of energy to store it, then your battery will loose that energy over time by heat when the computer is turned off. Moreover your battery will live longer if you don't waste your limited cycles.
Most desktop PSUs have hard switches at the back. That should take care of the stand-by power consumption.
I would hope for average battery-charging software / logic to be better; to not recharge obtrusively when not really needed... (though this might involve a setting or two; still, probably less "taxing" than something so scary as manipulating a battery, for most users)
Overall, having a built-in UPS is too nice to abandon (and again, in a "desktop replacement" normally working off the mains, the battery doesn't need to be obtrusively topped-up at every opportunity)
PS. Funny thing with diesels, they actually scale exceptionally well their fuel usage down, when only fraction of their total power output is required or when idle. Yeah, people could stop being almost prejudiced about them.
Well, it does not matter how clever the software is. Charging the battery costs energy, always. If you use it, when traveling for instance, you need it. But if your laptop is always plugged, just remove it. The ratio of energy consumed vs energy stored is insanely low. And you store it for nothing, it will dissipate in heat, and not so slowly.