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Q: Should I turn off my computer at night?
A: Only if you are not working on it! Seriously though, if you have the PC connected to the power through a UPS (Uninterruptible Power Supply) you can safely leave it on all the time, but be sure to turn the power off to the monitor.
"WHY?" you ask. Well, each time you power ON the computer, which consists of electronic circuits, the surge of the electricity through the circuits in the system and the drives has the potential to cause something to burn out. I use the following analogy to help understand this when I present to my hardware troubleshooting class. When do you generally see a light bulb burn out? When you turn the switch ON of course. The electrical surge causes a temperature change as well as the filament being subjected to the electrical flow and this has the potential to burn out the filament in the bulb. (Of course this does not apply to fluorescent lamps.)
So, if you have an UPS, and not just a SURGE Protector, you can safely leave the power ON. If the power happens to fluctuate during the night, or even go off for a short period of time, the UPS continues to power the PC. It has a battery that constantly converts the DC power to the AC power used by the PC. This battery allows the PC keep running for a time.
I ran a BBS (Bulletin Board System) for 10 years and of course the PC had to be left ON all the time so callers could connect to it. Hmmmm, did my mention of BBS happen to DATE me? These were the method of communicating with other PC users through one central PC, much like the Internet, but on a smaller scale. Anyway, I left the PC ON all the time, except for periodic shutdowns for upgrades and maintenance.
To sum it all up, leave the PC ON but turn the monitor OFF, or at least have a screen saver running to prevent the possibility of the image being burnt into the monitor screen.
Q: What is Wallpaper? How can I change it? Can I use a picture from the Internet or a picture that I have scanned?
A: The background on your desktop is called WALLPAPER. The picture, or graphics displayed are found in the system or can be added from other sources. Mine is a space shot showing the shuttle and arm of an astronaut looking down on the Great Lakes.
To change the wallpaper, RIGHT click the desktop, select PROPERTIES and select the WALLPAPER TAB or BACKGROUND TAB as some systems name it. In the displayed window there will be a list of installed wallpaper scenes to select from. Scroll through the list, and if you have a favorite, select it. You also can have it centered in the desktop window, or tiled--multiple images of the picture or graphics used to fill the screen. I prefer CENTERED. These images can be .BMP, or JPG files; pictures of the kids, or your favorite ski trail, or whatever you desire can be used.
If you find a picture on the Internet and would like to use it as a wallpaper background, here's how to install it. Right click the image and the selections SET AS WALLPAPER, or SAVE PICTURE AS are available. I prefer to save the picture and then access the desktop properties as explained above to later try it. Save the picture in the C:\WINDOWS folder and you are all ready to change it when you want a different wallpaper setting. Scanned pictures can be used in the (Continued on page 12)
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