I’ve been asked if it’s okay to just put your PC to sleep as opposed to shutting it down and whether or not there’s an advantage to shutting it down overnight once a week.
Here’s what I think. There’s no harm in just letting your device go to sleep. Be aware, however, that if you’re using a laptop or tablet, it will continue to burn battery power.
Also, if your work isn’t saved and there’s a sudden power outage, you can kiss it goodbye.
I do believe there is an advantage to occasionally shutting your computer down overnight or for several hours. I find that apps start to act a little odd if you go too long without shutting down the PC. The temporary memory gets a little full and your PC won’t run as fast as it should. Shutting down not only helps clear your computer’s thoughts, but it also gives any updates that require a restart a chance to install.
In my experience, I’ve also learned that some PCs don’t like sleep mode for various reasons. If your PC misbehaves after going into sleep mode, you’re probably better off to just shut it down overnight.
And I’m talking about home PCs here, too. I would not be keen on leaving a work device in sleep mode. Also, make sure your computer is actually turned off before you unplug any power cords.
Good Morning, Cyn, and as usual, thank you for another useful informative article. Just a thought: you could do an article on energy conservation with respect to computer usage. I Googled ‘computer power conservation’ and found a slew of articles about the topic. Might be good for us to consider.