Thread: Power options on laptop...

No problem at all leaving it all on, if I were you I would change the settings so that you can shut down the lid but not hibernate or go to stanby. Thats what I do for my laptop

Let's take a step back and ask why you need it to stay on. If you're downloading a huge file (naughty nurses VII or something ), then why not just use GetRight or some other software that allows resumes?

I think if you set up your laptop to never go into standby/hibernate mode, then you should be able to close the lid, which would turn off the screen just on the laptop side, but never actually sleep the system. Another option could be to switch the screen mode to external. Like, there's a "CRT/LCD" button on most laptops so you can plug in an alternate screen, right? And if you hit it (it's usually Fn + F8 or somesuch), you can toggle between using your laptop screen and a non-existant external screen (which would essentially turn off your laptop screen).

Ah kay, thanks guys!

Yes, I need to download some porn. Actually it's because my network card is screwed up and if I restart my computer I will no longer be able to connect to the internet. So it needs to stay on until I get a replacement card!

Oh forgot to mention, and I don't know if this is urban myth but you shouldn't leave it plugged into the mians as I am heard that this can kill the laptop battery and they wont last as long unplugged as they should do.

Get extra cooling fans, because it gets pretty hot after some days on. And you dont want to close you laptop screen lid when the surface keyboard is hot, may damage the screen or warp it.

Originally Posted by Mes Tarrant

how important is it to have a screensaver turn on?

Screensavers don't help modern LCD displays, so don't bother using one. Their only purpose is to prevent a stationary image from burning the display of the older CRT monitors. Nowadays, screensavers just waste power. A better idea would be to dim or shut off your display.

Originally Posted by Adam

Oh forgot to mention, and I don't know if this is urban myth but you shouldn't leave it plugged into the mians as I am heard that this can kill the laptop battery and they wont last as long unplugged as they should do.

Unless I'm mistaken, or your computer is really old, the computer should stop charging once it reaches 100%. But don't take my word for it.

Thanks for the help guys... yeah I don't think the battery will suffer any.

Now I'm worried about it overheating though. Well with any luck, tomorrow should be the last day I need to keep it on (cross your fingers for me). I just checked the temperature and it's warm like usual...

Originally Posted by Mes Tarrant

Well with any luck, tomorrow should be the last day I need to keep it on (cross your fingers for me)...

Damn it admins, there's no cross-fingers smiley
Well, how about a prayer?

I guess at this point, it's kind of tricky, since it's on, but I recommend you spray half a can of compressed air into all the laptop's orifices (especially the fan area and related holes) every other month. It really helps with any cooling problems you might encounter.

And how much RAM do you have running on your laptop Mes Tarrant? The more the better, the less work you give your laptop, resulting in less heat created. and will slow down less in time, until you restart or shut it down.

A computer should be fine left on. As long as you're not running any intensive programs on it. You can usually tell it is if the fan is on all the time.

You can also get software to regulate the power consumption in your laptop, set it to performance on demand or something. I use RightMark since it's compatible with Vista.