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Nuks

macrumors 6502a
Feb 25, 2006
504
0
Alright, when I'm downloading something that will take a while, I usually leave my macbook on all night (not letting it sleep). There was a period where it didn't sleep (more than an hour) for probably 10 days. is this a bad idea, or does it not really matter that much? I'm trying to cut back on it now, just so I can run the scripts and stuff, but just for future reference.

Also, the daily scripts that Cocktail runs, are they the same that the macbook automatically runs in the night?


Thanks.

Sorry to bump my own post, but I think my question may have gotten lost in the shuffle
 

Hls811

macrumors 6502a
Apr 19, 2004
832
46
New Jersey
Sorry to bump my own post, but I think my question may have gotten lost in the shuffle

Nuks - Yeah, the scripts you can manually run through cocktail would be the same ones run overnight, so not letting it sleep isn't a bad thing since you're still taking care of what would be done.

I used to be the same way, I'd power it off every night and then run the scripts through OnyX every so often... Now I just leave it on overnight and power it down when I take it with me.
 

CrackedButter

macrumors 68040
Jan 15, 2003
3,221
0
51st State of America
That is however false logic, because you still use the exact same amount of energy!

I mean, if you put it to sleep the energy used by the sleep function is the same regardless of the energy source. When you wake it up, you still have less battery and then proceed to charge quicker than you otherwise would.

Besides which, carging a battery in the first place is extremely inefficient as it used more energy to charge than it uses!

I'm not particuarly careful myself however. I leave all mine on sleep; if only the government would support better methods of energy creation instead of allowing oil companies to buy out scientists' breakthrough ideas and never using them, we'd all be ok.

Good point, I didn't realise that! :p Oh well.
 

mkrishnan

Moderator emeritus
Jan 9, 2004
29,776
15
Grand Rapids, MI, USA
Good point, I didn't realise that! :p Oh well.

To be honest, not to mention that ultimately using the battery more means the battery wears out more quickly means you will use more batteries which means that, aside from the energy consumption being a wash, you also contribute to the pollution associated with manufacture and disposal of batteries, I guess.... Being really environmentally sound is so hard!
 

iBookG4user

macrumors 604
Jun 27, 2006
6,595
2
Seattle, WA
I personally just let my laptops sleep. Although, when I had a windows laptop I shut it down. It's just so much easier to shut the laptop and then open it and have it ready to use in less than 5 seconds. Even on desktops I just let them sleep, I go for convenience over electricity saving.
 

CrackedButter

macrumors 68040
Jan 15, 2003
3,221
0
51st State of America
To be honest, not to mention that ultimately using the battery more means the battery wears out more quickly means you will use more batteries which means that, aside from the energy consumption being a wash, you also contribute to the pollution associated with manufacture and disposal of batteries, I guess.... Being really environmentally sound is so hard!

If I don't use it either, I'll lose it!
 

Maxiseller

macrumors 6502a
Jan 11, 2005
846
1
Little grey, chilly island.
To be honest, not to mention that ultimately using the battery more means the battery wears out more quickly means you will use more batteries which means that, aside from the energy consumption being a wash, you also contribute to the pollution associated with manufacture and disposal of batteries, I guess.... Being really environmentally sound is so hard!

If you say that whole paragraph quickly, you can really impress people. Try it! :p

You are of course correct. It is very difficult to be environmentally friendly, If we were we probably wouldn't use computers. I wonder how many beige G3's are on a massive pile of scrap nowadays...
 

dane0

macrumors member
Oct 24, 2006
44
0
Århus, Denmark
Yup, same experience for me. My only computer currently is a pathetically old 750 mhz/128 mb ram computer and it's markedly faster when resuming from hibernate... The computer I'm writing from right now is also a 2ghz Acer laptop (my gf's) and it's the same story here...


Just decided to run a test on the old computer (the only one I have since my good one died ½ a year ago) and oh my good :eek: the difference is so striking. When I booted it up the times for Windows XP Professional start-up were as follows:

Windows XP start-up screen: 31 sec.
Welcome to Windows screen: 1 min 46 sec.
Windows started and hourglass on: 2 min 48 sec.
Hourglass gone and system operational: 4 min 46 sec.

(BTW these times really made me long for my new Macbook, oh when will it be here? :( )

Anyway, at this point I then hibernated the system, of course here it has to be noted that if you had lots of memory-stealing programs running when you hibernated, the startup process will of course be longer, but since I can't be bothered actually doing anything on that old ****** computer I just hibernated without any programs running. Normally when I do have to use the computer and I'm shutting down, I do it the same way, eg. close all programs and then hibernate from the desktop, without anything running, so it is ready for the next time I'm going to use it. The start-up times from hibernation were:

Continuing Windows screen: 17 sec.
Windows with hourglass: 32 sec.
Windows operational: 40 sec.

The difference in start-up time is 4 minutes and 6 seconds!! :eek: Speaking in percentages you shave off 86% :eek:

Of course the problem is a well-known one that is inherent with XP. A newly installed XP system would probably boot in around the time it took to get to the "windows with hourglass" screen, but as soon as an XP install has been around for a few months the system will clutter up with programs running in the background, registry key problems and all those other little quirks inherent in Windows (when I actually had to use Windows I re-installed the OS every 4-5 months). The time in which windows is open, but with the hourglass and not really operational is a real time waster (about 2 minutes) and without those additional 2 minutes I actually find a boot time of 2½ minutes to be quite acceptable for such an old computer.

However, when you hibernate you sidestep all those problems, so however poorly written Windows XP is, Microsoft were clever enough to give a way to sidestep those oh-so-delightful built in problems. 40 seconds to boot up a system on a 5½ year old computer is actually a really superb time IMO...


*edit GHz, I meant GHz!!!
 

yudilks

macrumors regular
Jan 30, 2006
225
15
Yup, same experience for me. My only computer currently is a pathetically old 750 mhz/128 mb ram computer and it's markedly faster when resuming from hibernate... The computer I'm writing from right now is also a 2mhz Acer laptop (my gf's) and it's the same story here...

2mhz??????? i believe it is slower than my dying Nokia 3330 handphone.. :D
 

ivnds

macrumors 6502
Aug 6, 2006
279
0
ok , so its fine to leave the macbook sleeping all night.

now, is it ok to let the ac conected all night also so it doesnt drain battery or that would be overcharging a full battery?:confused:
 

Jiddick ExRex

macrumors 65816
May 14, 2006
1,469
0
Roskilde, DK
ok , so its fine to leave the macbook sleeping all night.

now, is it ok to let the ac conected all night also so it doesnt drain battery or that would be overcharging a full battery?:confused:

You cannot overcharge a battery. When it's full, it will drain from the AC and not the battery, thus leaving any battery usage out of it.



On to my question:
Hibernating a pc, does that mean you can turn off any power connected to it? Because I really like doing that.
 

tjcampbell

macrumors 6502a
Aug 14, 2006
826
0
Vancouver
wakes back up

What about when transporting your Mac? Do you turn it off before you put it into a carrying case? (I'm still a month away from my Mac getting here, but I'm curious as to the affect sleeping it, and putting it into the case will have.)

Would it wake back up in the case?

YES! This happened to me. I put my MBP to sleep then slid into the special sleeve of my incase MBP backpack. When I got to my destination (about an hour later) I opened the bag and a heatwave came out! My machine was folded closed, yet awake and screaming!!! My heart nearly stopped. It's like she was being burned alive. If this happened on a desk, no big deal. But when it's encased it's terrible. So now, if I am ever transporting it I always shut her down.
 

dane0

macrumors member
Oct 24, 2006
44
0
Århus, Denmark
On to my question:
Hibernating a pc, does that mean you can turn off any power connected to it? Because I really like doing that.

Yup, what it does is essentially to save all system processes to a file on the harddisk, which is then resumed when the computer is turned back on. When I moved to my current appartment I had to stow my stuff away in my parent's basement for a few weeks and incidentally I had hibernated the computer the last time I shut it down before moving. When I turned it back on a month or so later the computer resumed with the news of the day I moved still on my web browser...
 

rjphoto

macrumors 6502a
Mar 7, 2005
822
0
PB loses charge whle sleeping

anyone still reading this thread?

My 12" PB was fully charged Friday afternoon. Monday afternoon it only had 5% remaining.

When I opened the lid the power meter read 98%. After it finished waking up it read 5%.

5-10% a day wouldn't be too bad, but 30%?

I haven't let it run down while using it from 100% to 0% in several months. Maybe it is time.

(Oh, and this is the second battery for this machine. I had it swapped out while still under warrenty because it wouldn't hold a charge while sleeping for a week at a time like my 15"PB and the clock would be reset. Didn't find out until later that there is no internal clock battery on a 12"PB.)
 

CrackedButter

macrumors 68040
Jan 15, 2003
3,221
0
51st State of America
anyone still reading this thread?

My 12" PB was fully charged Friday afternoon. Monday afternoon it only had 5% remaining.

When I opened the lid the power meter read 98%. After it finished waking up it read 5%.

5-10% a day wouldn't be too bad, but 30%?

I haven't let it run down while using it from 100% to 0% in several months. Maybe it is time.

(Oh, and this is the second battery for this machine. I had it swapped out while still under warrenty because it wouldn't hold a charge while sleeping for a week at a time like my 15"PB and the clock would be reset. Didn't find out until later that there is no internal clock battery on a 12"PB.)

Mine loses quite a bit of charge while in sleep mode over an 8 hour period. I'll post back here and let you know tomorrow after I have been to bed. But its enough to make me wonder. My iBook never did it.
 

daneoni

macrumors G4
Mar 24, 2006
11,610
1,154
I use sleep as i find its a quicker than Hibernate. power is not an issues. the only things constantly running in this house is.......nothing. everything is usually in low power mode. TV, VCR...all on standby. Electrecity bill has been decent since i can remember. Then again, there are no longer any desktops or consoles in the house so maybe thats why.

Sleep all the way for me, plus i get to see the 'pulsating' light
 

Jiddick ExRex

macrumors 65816
May 14, 2006
1,469
0
Roskilde, DK
I use sleep as i find its a quiker than Hibernate. power is not an issues. the only things constantly running in this house is.......nothing. everything is usually in low power mode. TV, VCR...all on standby. Electrecity bill has been decent since i can remember. Then again, there are no longer any desktops or consoles in the house so maybe thats why.

Sleep all the way for me, plus i get to see the 'pulsating' light

These kind of posts really irritate me because it shows more and more totally ignorance of the environment.

You are contradicting yourself my friend. If everything in your house is running "low power mode" aka on standby then everything is still constantly running!!! Standby uses up a significant amount of energy! If you actually turned off all standby devices you would be saving ridicully amounts of energy and also not doing your part ruining the environment.

Yes I am a hippie.
 

YS2003

macrumors 68020
Dec 24, 2004
2,138
0
Finally I have arrived.....
It seems many people have their own rituals about this. I will let my Macs sleep and I rarely shut them down. I set up Macs to go to sleep after 2.5 hours or 3 hours of inactivity. Also, I don't unplug from the power source if my Macs are set up at home. My Ti PB (4 years old) had the perfect OEM battery with that arrangement (cycle count was less than 50 for those years).

When I take my 12" PB, I put it to sleep and put it in the Radtech sleeve. If Mac is operating normally, it should go back to sleep after an accidental waking (if that happens). The key is to activate the log in password when waking Mac.

However, for Windows PC, I find sleep and hibernate features are not as smooth as Mac. Also, it seems Windows prefer shut down/restart over sleep/hibernation.
 

Westside guy

macrumors 603
Oct 15, 2003
6,340
4,158
The soggy side of the Pacific NW
Let's see...

I've been taking transit to work for the past four years, after being a solo commuter for a long time before that. Except for my telecommute day; I walk to work then. ;)

I've swapped out every incandescent bulb in our house for compact fluorescent, except for a few fixtures where CF bulbs won't fit.

Oh, and I raise my own vegetables in an organic garden.

AND...

I've been putting my laptops (Windows, Linux, and now Macs) to sleep for many years rather than turning them off completely. :D

Frankly I don't see the point to getting in an environmental argument with forum folk - I have no way to verify if anything anyone says here about their eco-friendly lifestyle choices is at all truthful. For all I know people here turn their laptops completely off, then drive themselves to work in a Hummer doing 20 mph over the speed limit. :eek:
 

mattster16

macrumors 6502a
Apr 18, 2004
743
489
Nearly all electronic devices us electricity when they are turned off but still plugged in whether it says it is in 'standby' or not. Anything that has a power button and is plugged in is using power. 2 reasons: 1. The device somehow needs to monitor when the power button is pressed. 2. Power supply circuitry is not always designed very well.

If you really want to not use any excess power you need to actually unplug or use a power strip to turn off any power going to the device. Bad electronics design.

YES! This happened to me. I put my MBP to sleep then slid into the special sleeve of my incase MBP backpack. When I got to my destination (about an hour later) I opened the bag and a heatwave came out! My machine was folded closed, yet awake and screaming!!! My heart nearly stopped. It's like she was being burned alive. If this happened on a desk, no big deal. But when it's encased it's terrible. So now, if I am ever transporting it I always shut her down.

Wow, that is odd! Does it wake up from sleep when you have it on a desk? That has never happened to me with either my 3 year old powerbook or my macbook pro and I walk around with it in my backpack almost every day.
 

rjphoto

macrumors 6502a
Mar 7, 2005
822
0
YES! This happened to me. I put my MBP to sleep then slid into the special sleeve of my incase MBP backpack. When I got to my destination (about an hour later) I opened the bag and a heatwave came out! My machine was folded closed, yet awake and screaming!!! My heart nearly stopped. It's like she was being burned alive. If this happened on a desk, no big deal. But when it's encased it's terrible. So now, if I am ever transporting it I always shut her down.

If for some reason it didn't get all the way into sleep before you closed the lid it may have sort of locked up.

I've had it happen when unplugging a USB printer or something after the lid was closed and find it in the bag an hour later super hot. No room for air flow.
 

e12a

macrumors 68000
Oct 28, 2006
1,881
0
If for some reason it didn't get all the way into sleep before you closed the lid it may have sort of locked up.

I've had it happen when unplugging a USB printer or something after the lid was closed and find it in the bag an hour later super hot. No room for air flow.

Yes, unplugging/plugging a USB device disturbs sleep mode, even if it's completely in "sleep". Mine does that...but the interesting thing is that it goes back to sleep after a few seconds.

I discovered it by unplugging my USB hub while it was asleep. I heard the DVD drive and then i opened the screen to see but it had already gone back to sleep.

note: this was done on my desk. Maybe if you disturb it then put it into a bag the motion sensor prevents it from going back to sleep?
 

hdsalinas

macrumors 6502
Aug 28, 2006
397
0
San Pedro Sula, Honduras
How about when you dont have central air condinition?

In my house, as in most home with A/C in Honduras, use A/C units in every room. I dont leave the AC on all day, and only use it when I am working on my computer. I sometimes leave my desktop PC on all day (not intentionally), even without the ac on. My study room gets pretty hot in the summer (around mid 90s).

So is it a good idea or bad to leave a mac sleeping without the AC turned on?

I think that I rather turn it off at the end of the day and when I know that I wont be using it it during the day.
 

daneoni

macrumors G4
Mar 24, 2006
11,610
1,154
These kind of posts really irritate me because it shows more and more totally ignorance of the environment.

You are contradicting yourself my friend. If everything in your house is running "low power mode" aka on standby then everything is still constantly running!!! Standby uses up a significant amount of energy! If you actually turned off all standby devices you would be saving ridicully amounts of energy and also not doing your part ruining the environment.

Yes I am a hippie.

Its the system we use and it works for us. Waste of time plugging and unplugging stuff and somewhat frustrating, who knows where each plug goes. A while ago people even left stuff on 24/7 but the rule now is put everything (i.e. TV, VCR, Cable, Stereo and Laptops) on standby....exceptions include irons, printers etc(off!!!). Is it the most cost effective method?...probably not but it works.

Shutting down and booting laptops and some other electronics is also not good in the long term as there's more wear and tear on some components e.g laptop HDDs

Sorry my methods of 'saving' (environment included) aren't up to your specifications hippie, but i could be doing alot worse.
 
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