Using a Laptop

[hazel m]

This morning, at a forum, I saw someone asking why his laptops all died within a year. One of the responses asked if he was leaving his laptop plugged in all day instead of turning it off when he was finished with it.

Is the question saying that we cannot leave a laptop plugged into the Ethernet, say, eight hours a day the way we do desk tops? Must we not only close the programs but log off completely between each visit to the internet? And, even then, must we also unplug the laptop from its power source?

Second question: Will leaving a laptop always plugged into the Ethernet overcharge the battery?

Thank you for explaining what is going to be very different if I switch from my desk top to a laptop.

 

[LMiller7]

Whether or not a computer is connected to a network or the Internet has nothing to do with power consumption or how long it will last. Leaving a laptop connected to AC power can cause overheating. A real killer for laptops is using them in a way that blocks ventilation ports. They should only be operated on a hard flat surface.

 

[hazel m]

Whether or not a computer is connected to a network or the Internet has nothing to do with power consumption or how long it will last. Leaving a laptop connected to AC power can cause overheating. A real killer for laptops is using them in a way that blocks ventilation ports. They should only be operated on a hard flat surface.

Gee, I'm glad I asked as that was my plan if I got a laptop - to simply hook it up to my ISP and leave it there to be used like any desktop. It seems I must not do that. So a laptop is meant to be battery-operated and plugged in to recharge the battery? Or, to plug it in for a short spell of use and then unplug it? Wonder why "they" didn't tell me that when I discussed buying a laptop.

OK. What if I left it connected to the ISP's modem but unplugged it from the wall? Or, in my case, from the surge protector? My plan was to use the laptop exactly as I have always used a regular desk top? Why? Because the old, heavy CPUs I cannot get to a shop for repairs. The laptop would be easier to tote.

And, do they still make the old style desk tops? Just curious about that.

Thanks again.

Thanks again. hazel m

 

[whs]

If you use your laptop as a stationary system, you can leave it plugged into the mains all the time. It does, however, somewhat shorten the lifetime of the battery.

For stationary use, I would always recommend a desktop - especially if you need a powerful system.

 

[hazel m]

If you use your laptop as a stationary system, you can leave it plugged into the mains all the time. It does, however, somewhat shorten the lifetime of the battery.

"The mains"? Meaning, perhaps the modem and surge protector? But, no, the surge protector goes to the AC power outlet?

I am thinking it may be best to stick with the desk top. Are they making those with CPUs light-weight enough to carry now?

When I looked at a MAC, the man said the CPU is in the back of the monitor. I wonder, now, if he was showing me a laptop.

I like your motto but is anyone keeping it simple nowadays?

 

[whs]

The mains is the Britsh word for the electricity outlets in the wall. Sorry for the confusion.

Yes they make desktops in small boxes. I myself do not like them because they are impossible to work with when you want to upgrade the system (e.g. add a SSD). Plus they are very often built with low performance laptop components because there is a cooling problem in those small boxes. Heat control is also one reason why laptops rarely have high powered components (CPU and GPU) and if they do, they often get very hot.

I would never buy a Mac. They are insanely overpriced. The units where the CPU and other components are in the monitor are called "All in One". The are essentially a horizontal laptop - no good. Many companies make those.

 

[hazel m]

The mains is the Britsh word for the electricity outlets in the wall. Sorry for the confusion.

Yes they make desktops in small boxes. I myself do not like them because they are impossible to work with when you want to upgrade the system (e.g. add a SSD). Plus they are very often built with low performance laptop components because there is a cooling problem in those small boxes. Heat control is also one reason why laptops rarely have high powered components (CPU and GPU) and if they do, they often get very hot.

I would never buy a Mac. They are insanely overpriced. The units where the CPU and other components are in the monitor are called "All in One". The are essentially a horizontal laptop - no good. Many companies make those.

My thought, too. Fortunately, we have a Microsoft store here. A whole raft of experts in there. So I have that resource but I need to be able to get to them. They do not come to the house to do repairs or setups.

I am beginning to think we "simple folk" are running out of options. Bring back the old Mail Station! :-(

Thanks for your answers. I am learning what to expect - or avoid.

P.S. Thanks for the British word. There is a "foreign language" that I intend to learn some day.

 

[whs]

I you do what is usually referred to as Office Applications - no games, no permanent video encoding no CAD (computer aided design), then a laptop is OK. But if you have high power requirements for the CPU or GPU (graphics), then a desktop is a much better choice.

 

[strollin]

I have a personal laptop and a work laptop that are both plugged into AC more than 75% of the time. I don't have a need to use my laptop's on battery while away from AC power but do have a need for them to be portable so that I can use them in several places. For my work laptop, I move it between home and the office. For my personal laptop, I use it when traveling in my RV.

If you don't need to operate the computer while mobile (away from AC power) and you don't need it to be portable (able to move around easily) then you will be better off with a desktop.

 

[hazel m]

I you do what is usually referred to as Office Applications - no games, no permanent video encoding no CAD (computer aided design), then a laptop is OK. But if you have high power requirements for the CPU or GPU (graphics), then a desktop is a much better choice.

All I do is email my friends and surf the internet for answers to my never-ending curiosity questions. That is until August when BBC takes over my computer for the Welsh Festival and a Music festival (forget its name). BBC wants a lot of power. My biggest game is spider solitaire. That's it.

In other words I really do want it simple. I'd stick with a desk top any day just because I am used to them -- if the CPU was portable. I am not a weight lifter.

Hazel

 

[hazel m]

I have a personal laptop and a work laptop that are both plugged into AC more than 75% of the time. I don't have a need to use my laptop's on battery while away from AC power but do have a need for them to be portable so that I can use them in several places. For my work laptop, I move it between home and the office. For my personal laptop, I use it when traveling in my RV.

If you don't need to operate the computer while mobile (away from AC power) and you don't need it to be portable (able to move around easily) then you will be better off with a desktop.

Check. I have no trouble at all "leaving home without it". The only reason a cell phone (not smart phone) goes with me is so I can call a cab when ready to go home. And it is turned off.

 

[whs]

For your applications, any $400 laptop will do. And since you are worried about maybe having to haul it to a shop, the laptop seems to be the better option for you.

I do not understand though why you think you have to haul it to a shop. I never had to haul any of my PCs away - none of the 3 desktops and 4 laptops. If you treat them well, they will keep running. And if you make frequent images, you can always reset easily in case of an OS problem.

 

[hazel m]

Why I need to be able to transport it? Because this dummy cannot install, set up, analyze, all that marvelous stuff that any 12-year-old can do. I cannot even sort out that jumble of wires in the back so I can unhook my old backup and install a new one which I'd also not be able to do. So, I pay someone to do it and play safe - if I can find someone who is wlling to do it.

Thank you all. Appreciate your help.

 

[whs]

Hazel, be strong. None of that stuff is rocket science. With all the help of all the good people of this forum, I am sure we can teach you. Just keep asking questions - even if they seem to be trivial.

I have learned that stuff in a few years and I am 76 years old. And I will also be glad to guide you thru what appears to you like a jungle but what is really a light forest.

 

[hazel m]

Hazel, be strong. None of that stuff is rocket science. With all the help of all the good people of this forum, I am sure we can teach you. Just keep asking questions - even if they seem to be trivial.

I have learned that stuff in a few years and I am 76 years old. And I will also be glad to guide you thru what appears to you like a jungle but what is really a light forest.

Like untangling all those wires underneath the table and knowing which is which and where they go? Thank you. You all really are a help which is why I keep coming back but I'm better off knowing what might be the problem and then calling in the experts. At least it keeps them in business - if they want to stay in business.

I appreciate your encouragement but I do know my limits. I'll not drive a car down 270 or delve inside a computer.

 

[strollin]

One thing that you could do to help you with keeping track of which cable goes where is to buy some labels that you can attach to the cables and note where the cable goes. If that is too "high tech" then you could at least use colored labels with matching stickers so all you need to know is that the cable with the green label plugs into the jack with the green sticker. http://www.houzz.com/photos/105879/Color-Coded-Cord-Labels-contemporary-home-office-products

 

[hazel m]

One thing that you could do to help you with keeping track of which cable goes where is to buy some labels that you can attach to the cables and note where the cable goes. If that is too "high tech" then you could at least use colored labels with matching stickers so all you need to know is that the cable with the green label plugs into the jack with the green sticker. Color-Coded Cord Labels - Contemporary - Home Office Products - by Organize

I had all the wires that went into the surge protector labeled at one time. Then I got a new computer with new wires and half those labels disappeared. That's something to take care of again. But they are all so tangled up. I never saw the likes. There are five wires hooked to ports on the back of the CPU that I cannot get to. Oh, I could move everything else off the table and turn the CPU but I'm back to identifying.

Years ago, someone came out with a bar to put on the wall and bring each wire up to its own hook. It evidently never caught. Looked like a neat idea to me.

I know. I sound like a lot of alibis. But there are things I can and cannot do and I've let myself just pay people to do them. Hard to find such people now. And things don't always do what my helper friends are saying they will do. Simple jobs? Someone kept telling me how to change the ink cartridge. Well, it wouldn't open as she said it would. Finally she came over and found out I was right. Mine didn't work like hers.

Life is such fun.