2 Turn it off or not 2 Turn it off

[Jackson3D]

I have been in several debates with friends and family about Leaving your computer on 24/7 V.S. booting it up 2-10 times a day.(average not exact just using this as an example)

What do you guys do. Help me out!!

[Joel Kleppinger]

Leave it on, of course. /forum/smile.gif Multiple advantages:
#1: When you're ready to use it, it's ready to be used.
#2: You can run RC5 all night giving it 100% of the CPU. (the most important reason)
#3: Theoretically better for the circuitry of the PC, though this can't really be proven or disproven in my mind.

In my experience, I've left my PCs on 24/7 as much as possible and have never been able to trace any problems whatsoever to doing so. I've had systems for over a year that have run basically that entire year, being turned off only for the occassional upgrade or reboot and they've never hiccupped.

The only disadvantage I can really point to is electricity usage, etc. However, I don't believe the box itself pulls a whole lot, though a monitor can suck a lot of juice. This depends on how much you want to "waste," but then again, if you're running rc5 for SysOpt/TweakIt, how can it be a waste? /forum/smile.gif

So for me, the advantages far outweigh the disadvantages. /forum/smile.gif

[Jackson3D]

Newbie Question: Joel what is RC5?

[800XL]

Turning a machine off and on a lot causes more heating and cooling cycles. As things heat, they expand, then contract when they cool. This causes mechanical stress and over time could cause something to break or fail. Just how much time it would take to break something is anyone's guess. In the old days, this same effect would cause chips (like ram chips) to 'walk' out of their socket over months to years.

Personally, with modern machines that are not involved with RC5 or similar 'idle cpu time' projects, I'd just use the power management features. Suspend the machine when it is not in use. A fully running system can pull as much power as the monitor.

[SoopaStar]

Jackson: you can read about RC5 by clicking on the Distriubuted Computer string onthe first mesage board login or, when you first load up sysopt.com there is a link on the first page for it. I am a member of the sysopt team as well.
http://stats.distributed.net/rc5-64/psummary.php3?id=210483 are my stats. I think its fun. I have the program loaded onto about 6 computers running in the background.

to answer the first question
I leave my PC on unless I go away for the weekend. the monitor is shut off when I leave the room. I am online 24/7 with my dial-up for the helluva it...and i see no point in turn it off. I reboot every few days or when windows crashes, whichever comes first. just to keep things fresh.

SS

[welsh wizard]

One of the main problems turning on and off all the the time is, each time power comes on It does so with a surge, or spike as the power always goes high with being switched on, if you want to see it find someone with a scope and get them to show you the trace when you turn on power, spike or surges lead to early component failers. /forum/smile.gif hope this is of use to all.( after thought, look in any big company at night and in majority you will find that the sytem manager will have requested thay are left on gives him less work repairing.

[Anakhonda]

Anybody have a ballpark figure of how much it costs to leave a comp on 24/7 ? Like a dollar a day? more, less?
Obviously, some areas pay more for electricity than others, but I'm just looking for a rough guesstimate. Just curious /forum/smile.gif

[Anakhonda]

Anybody have a ballpark figure of how much it costs to leave a comp on 24/7 ? Like a dollar a day? more, less?
Obviously, some areas pay more for electricity than others, but I'm just looking for a rough guesstimate. Just curious /forum/smile.gif

[Anakhonda]

Anybody have a ballpark figure of how much it costs to leave a comp on 24/7 ? Like a dollar a day? more, less?
Obviously, some areas pay more for electricity than others, but I'm just looking for a rough guesstimate. Just curious...

[nilknarf]

Answer to original Question...

If you use the computer frequently, leave it on. I have a computer that I only use 7-8hrs a week, it's usually off. On the other hand I have a number of computers that are used 7-8hrs a day, those I leave on because it's to hard on them to turn them on and off every day. Whenever any electronics are cycled on and off they use up part of there life. Most electronics use more electricity at power on than they do once they're on. The best examples of that are CRT's, flourescent lights, laser printers & copiers, and anything with an amplifier or motor (that covers most electronics). Most CRT's actually draw less power, once there on, than laptops did 5yrs ago! The average CRT draws less than 30watts once it's on, whereas the average modern PC draws 75-100watts w/o power management! Either way, I'll bet most people spend more on power for lights than for their PC's.

As for the question about the cost of leaving a PC on all year...

I spend less than $100/month on electricity in the Indianapolis area. It varies more with the amount of heating and cooling than it does with the computers. I have 3 computers on constantly, 5 more run about 30hrs/mo each. Even turning them all off for a week doesn't have much of an impact on my bill. It probably costs me $3/month for each computer to be left on 24/7!