Just curious
I leave mine on 24/7 365 days a year.
You leave YOUR computer On or OFF?
- Thread starter DragRace
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Edit feature: where's it at?
Anyways, What i meant was,when your finished using the computer,do you shut it down, OR leave it on.
Carry on...
Anyways, What i meant was,when your finished using the computer,do you shut it down, OR leave it on.
Carry on...
JHZR2
Staff member
I have heard that thermal cycling is bad for a computer. As a result, in the day to day, I leave it on, and since it is jut sitting idle, it is not using mych power. Sure, it would be better to turn it off, but I suppose its a balance, and a habit.
I always turn off my monitor when moving away from my computer too... I guess its because monitors have a fairly well defined degradation pattern (like TVs, etc), so replacement is nigh from as soon as it comes out of the box (though replacement might not be 5 or more years).
I suppose of at night, on in the morning would be an OK approach... but then again, you go to work for 8+ hours in the day... do you turn it on in the AM, off before work, on when you return, off before bed?
Im always on my computer... email, work, BITOG, purchasing stuff, researching stuff, etc. I am not generally one to atach a dollar value to routine tasks, but the extra 3 minutes to start the computer 2-3x per day is an extra 3 minutes I could be doing something else...
GOod question, Im curious to see what a lot of folks do!
JMH
I always turn off my monitor when moving away from my computer too... I guess its because monitors have a fairly well defined degradation pattern (like TVs, etc), so replacement is nigh from as soon as it comes out of the box (though replacement might not be 5 or more years).
I suppose of at night, on in the morning would be an OK approach... but then again, you go to work for 8+ hours in the day... do you turn it on in the AM, off before work, on when you return, off before bed?
Im always on my computer... email, work, BITOG, purchasing stuff, researching stuff, etc. I am not generally one to atach a dollar value to routine tasks, but the extra 3 minutes to start the computer 2-3x per day is an extra 3 minutes I could be doing something else...
GOod question, Im curious to see what a lot of folks do!
JMH
My computer is a notebook, which I use with an external monitor and keyboard at home. The cooling on notebooks isn't optimal (although I do have a cooling pad underneath it). I try to switch it off when I'm not at home, just in case the fan dies and the notebook catches on fire while I'm not around.
Notebooks stay off unless used. Desktops and servers are on 24/7.
I have consolidated a fair number of servers out of my home. So I'm just down to two now, LOL.
And three desktops.
I have consolidated a fair number of servers out of my home. So I'm just down to two now, LOL.
And three desktops.
I keep mine on all the time. I used to run 2 computer stores and have seen what happens to computers that are turned on every time. I had figured out like someone said that the p/s has a spike when turned on. I have 3 fans on my computer so I'm not worried about it getting hot. I also leave mine on top of the desk with no cover on it as I like to work on it from time to time.
by not having it in a small space it can get all the air it needs, also, by having it off the floor it doesn't collect dust in it like floor models do. yeah it would look nice putting it in the shelves but not ventilation. I also turn off the monitor when not in use as it will burn out after a certain amount of time and it uses more current than any other device. I also keep my printer on also.
by not having it in a small space it can get all the air it needs, also, by having it off the floor it doesn't collect dust in it like floor models do. yeah it would look nice putting it in the shelves but not ventilation. I also turn off the monitor when not in use as it will burn out after a certain amount of time and it uses more current than any other device. I also keep my printer on also.
I did some research on this. From what I found - it is better to leave your computer running as the starts are pretty hard on the electrical equipment (processor, what not).
My laptop, though - I shut off and on when I take it from home to work and back.
My home computer - I would leave it on 24/7 if it didn't heat my room up to 80+F (Dual XEON Dell with 2 hard drives). But I should leave it on.
I help my parents set up a 133Mhz IBM desktop back in the early 90s. We turned that thing on sometime in 1992? and haven't turned it off since (except for power outages and rare restarts). So that thing has been running for 15+ years consistently (original hard drives, monitor). The power supply did die last month on a power outage... lol.
But who keeps their computer for 15 years?
My laptop, though - I shut off and on when I take it from home to work and back.
My home computer - I would leave it on 24/7 if it didn't heat my room up to 80+F (Dual XEON Dell with 2 hard drives). But I should leave it on.
I help my parents set up a 133Mhz IBM desktop back in the early 90s. We turned that thing on sometime in 1992? and haven't turned it off since (except for power outages and rare restarts). So that thing has been running for 15+ years consistently (original hard drives, monitor). The power supply did die last month on a power outage... lol.
But who keeps their computer for 15 years?
A similar thread was recently started in Computers: Whe computer is not in use...
In the summer, I generally leave my desktop off when I'm not using it. It's upstairs and that part of the house is already hot enough in summer. In the fall, winter, and spring, I'm more likely to just leave it on all the time.
I have a Linux machine that is always on. But it's in the basement.
I have a Linux machine that is always on. But it's in the basement.
I turn mine on in the morning and off at night. Same thing at work. Some workers leave theirs on 24/7; it seems to make no difference in longevity, just power usage.
Servers, especially Unix-based, are left on 24/7.
I recommend not cycling power oftener than daily, though, unless the system crashes.
Servers, especially Unix-based, are left on 24/7.
I recommend not cycling power oftener than daily, though, unless the system crashes.
You are saving possibly nothing at the cost of electricity generation. An average desktop will have something like a 300 watt power supply (250w-500w is a good norm range). Leaving it on 24/7 is like wasting 216kWh per month, for our rates that's almost $40. That $40 is overpriced for a “pre-mature failure” insurance policy, which is essentially what you’d be doing. Even if you got money to burn, then think of the energy you are wasting.
. I've been overseeing 25 office computers for the paste 10 years and have not noticed any advantaged to overall life either way. We turn our computers off at the end of the day. The only exception would be the servers or the 3 remote access computers that must be left on 24/7.
. I've been overseeing 25 office computers for the paste 10 years and have not noticed any advantaged to overall life either way. We turn our computers off at the end of the day. The only exception would be the servers or the 3 remote access computers that must be left on 24/7.
I've measured the power consumption of a couple of my desktop PCs and they're right around 100 watts, not including the monitor.
Off at night, on again in the morning.
Thermal cycling is bad? How long does anyone keep their computer for anyway? If you're BITOGing from your Apple II, then sure, keep it on to help longevity. Otherwise you're just wasting energy.
Thermal cycling is bad? How long does anyone keep their computer for anyway? If you're BITOGing from your Apple II, then sure, keep it on to help longevity. Otherwise you're just wasting energy.
Well, since my desktop is built for gaming, it has a 500W power supply and although I am not using all 500W, I am on a college budget so it stays off during the day and goes on at night for a few hours (movies and TV) then goes off (gotta love my Remote Wonder) when I go to bed. I'd say its on for about 4-5 hours at the most.
The MacBook is on when I need it and off when I don't.
The MacBook is on when I need it and off when I don't.
Oh, I should add that instead of your convensional speaker system, my desktop is hooked to a Yamaha Home Theater. Imagine a 10x13 bedroom with a 10 inch, 150W sub, 2 large 3 way speakers (older Jensens, when they were very good), 2 medium sized Yamaha rears and 1 larga yamaha center channel, powered by a 680W (true output) system.
So 500W for PC + 680W for HT + 150W for sub + 25W LCD = 1355W.
So 500W for PC + 680W for HT + 150W for sub + 25W LCD = 1355W.
My pc has a 250w power supply, 2.53ghz p4, 1gb of ram, sata hd, multiple fans, and a 256mb radeon x700 pro. Its connected to my battery backup, which also is running my 24" widescreen lcd, my cable modem, and wireless router. Right now it says its only using 162w of power when im not really doing much. I'm sure if i were playing a game or something i'd be using more power, but at close to idle its not using much at all.
http://home.comcast.net/~apexigsx/power.jpg
Incidentally, the PC that consumes 100 watts has a 400-watt power supply, which is way overkill but it was $9 after a rebate.
That's close to my findings as well (I have a Kill-A-Watt plug meter, so it's easy to test power usage of various appliances). And that means that keeping the PC on costs about a penny an hour. Not a lot of money, but it's enough to easy "add up" over the month! As a result, I now often power down the house computers (to save power), when they aren't going to be used for a while. And even when we choose to leave the computers on (when not in use), we usually try to power off the computer monitors.
NOTE: I have VoIP (internet phone), so I do keep my VoIP adapters and network equipment (DSL modem, router, and network switches) up at all times (which allows me to use my VoIP/Phone even when my computers are off). And I also have an inexpensive networked disk drive (that I use as a mini "file server" for the house) that I also keep powered up at all times (but I do have the drive set to go into power saving "sleep mode" when no computer in the house has accessed it for several minutes).
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