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Do you shut down your Macbook Pro when you are not using it?
- Thread starter Laughingman13
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I leave mine on and put it to sleep when I am not using it or overnight...
I only restart it when I need to (ie: after installing new software/software update, or if it seems to be running slowly of erratically)...Once in a while I let it run overnight (turn the display all the way down) so the maintenance programs can run...
I only restart it when I need to (ie: after installing new software/software update, or if it seems to be running slowly of erratically)...Once in a while I let it run overnight (turn the display all the way down) so the maintenance programs can run...
Most likely, you need to give your battery some decent ware so that it can operate properly.
it doesnt really make a difference whether you turn it off or put it to sleep. its your choice. personally i just put it to sleep because its so much easier just to open the lid and be back to doing whatever you were doing in a few seconds.
I will typically shut mine down at the end of the day and have it automatically power back up at 6am. I just like giving it some time to cool down and clear the RAM.
I had an AppleCare technician tell me that the less you turn the HD on and off the better (this probably doesn't apply to the SSD's)...he said that putting the HD to sleep is better "wear and tear wise" than having it start up and shut down...he told me after replacing my G4 PowerBook HD that the new drive will last longer if I let the computer sleep instead of turning it on and off every day...
Never shut mine down; just sleep. My old MacBook had an uptime of over two months before I had to system update.
By that logic,
I restart my computer at least twice daily (to enter win7 via boot camp, then back to mac os) to play games on the windows side. I can definitely hear the HDD restarting every time i reboot. Does this mean that's bad for the HDD?
Also by that logic, wouldn't the HDD start up every time you opened up your laptop from sleep mode? Cause everything shuts down during sleep mode except for the RAM. So I am not sure what that Apple Technician was saying, but I don't think a shutdown vs sleep mode is any different as far as the HDD is concerned.
sleep mostly because i use it here and there...so having to turn it on & shutting it down would become a hassle 
As usual, that AppleCare technician is living in the dark ages and doesn't know what he/she is talking about. That was true for HDDs about a decade or so ago. HDDs these days can start/restart thousands and thousands of times; you will get rid of the computer before the HDD has a chance to die due to age.
I think the difference between a shut-off and sleep may be that the actuator arm inside the HDD moves off the platter to rest when the computer is shut off, as opposed to the arm not moving off the platter when sleeping... Well that was kind of a wild guess. The read head would need to lift off for safe movement/storage of the mbp.
There is no logic or anything. These days you will get rid of your computer looong before the HDD has a chance to die due to wear/tear.
I think, not sure of course, he was referring to Apple's recommendation to use the battery occasionally, rather than always running with the power cord connected. The batteries Apple uses needs to be used at times to maintain health. Of corse this is a different thing from your original question about sleep or turning the machine off. I usually close the lid to sleep the machine when I go to sleep and turn it off occasionally if I am not going to be home for a longer period of time. I don't think you have to worry about this at all.
He said that awaking the drive from sleep was not the same as it starting up cold...anyway, I've been doing that for the past 5 years now and haven't had a HD fail me since...I had three of them fail before that when I was shutting down my computer every night...I'm not certain that taking his advice was the sole reason but it is clear that it certainly didn't hurt...
Either there is something only Apple technician's know, or he's simply wrong. I prefer the latter. Sleeping is fine as long as you are plugged in. If it were unplugged I'd hard sleep or shut down.