The Chronicles
November 2008
Salutations dear readers and fellow Laurentian neighbors,
This month I'm going to answer a question directly formulated by my clients but also often found in my e-mail box: questions.monamilordi@gmail.com . "Do I need to shutdown my computer at the end of everyday (or when I'm not using it)?" It is a good question as one might wonder if keeping a computer running will "tire it out". So let's start by looking at when one SHOULD turn off a computer:
- At the onset of any of our famous Laurentian thunderstorms (even if you have an anti-surge power-bar, which I STRONGLY recommend you purchase to protect your equipment at all times),
- If your computer is experiencing System problems. The restart function (a shut-down followed by an automatic start-up) often helps troubleshoot abnormal problems your computer may be experiencing,
- If you are leaving your home for an extended period of time,
- If you will be travelling with your portable computer for a period of time longer than the life of the battery,
- If you are concerned with energy consumption. This being said, the peripheral which really uses a lot of energy is the screen so, in all fairness, you could just turn off the screen of your desk-top computer,
- If your computer is requesting that you perform a restart. This usually occurs after a system (e.g. XP, Vista) update.
So, now that we know in which situations we should turn off (or perform a restart of) our computer, let's look at the other options we have apart from leaving the computer on or off.
There are two other modes that a computer can be in. The first is known as "screen-saver" and can be likened to sleeping humans (when we are unconscious and use little energy but can awaken easily, to drink water for example). It is usually used throughout the day whenever the computer is not needed so as avoid to have to shut-down and restart it, at the same time benefiting from the "use less energy" option. There are a number of interesting screen-savers such as a personalized text or a clock though the most popular (and entertaining) is the display of your personal photos, the latter however being the most energy consuming screen-saver. The other mode is known as "hibernation" and can be likened to a bear during winter (bears live in suspended animation neither eating nor drinking, with a heartbeat down to one a minute). What is fantastic about hibernation is that your computer (screen and other apparatus) is at its lowest consumption potential without being "off", so that when you come back to it and hit the "on" button it takes very little time to activate your desktop and the programs and documents you left up and running waiting for you to continue your activities.
In conclusion, when should you shut down your computer? I would say only when needed as detailed above. Of course, you do as you wish ... it's just a suggestion...
Bye for now and look after yourselves!
questions.monamilordi@gmail.com
This article originally appeared in Main Street – The Laurentians' English Language Community Newspaper.
