computer breaks

[VaCpuNerd]

how often should i restart or turn off my computer
i always thought that it should be restart evry other day or whenever it becomes slow, and to only turn it off for events like a storm or when im on vacation and its at the house?

[smurfy]

Hi Nerd, there's two schools of thought on this subject.
1) Leave the machine on 24/7. This is what I do. I only ever reboot to change O/S (From Win98/Win2000/Linux)
If your O/S can handle it, this should cause no problems.
Turn off monitor to save power consumption.
2) Shut down when not in use. Start up when you want to use it again. Power usage on an idle machine is pretty minimal. The stress on components of being shut down and started up constantly is the only argument against this practice.

My opinion is, leave it on as long as you can, only restarting to solve problems (memory leaks etc).

[Harrie]

Hey Smurfy, no way I would question the validity of that...have certainly heard it before, I believe, but I was just wondering, with viruses and trojans so prevalent out there, you don't think that because of that, it's a good idea to shut it off when not in use? Or is leaving your firewall and antivirus running protection enough, you think?

Harrie.......who has definitely read too many cracker books lately!

[smurfy]

Harrie, if you're on a permanent broadband internet connection, then the only completely safe way to stay protected from the nasties out there is to shut it down, but most of them are clever enough to get through even if a user is staring intently at the screen so I don't think it makes that big a difference whether you do so or not. As you say, keep an effective Firewall & A/V running and you should be OK.

[Harrie]

Thank you, Smurfy!

[VaCpuNerd]

My opinion is, leave it on as long as you can, only restarting to solve problems (memory leaks etc). [/b]

thanks, now i can finally proove to my mom that leaving it on all night is the best way to do it, even if i do got cable net