leaving computer on

[rayman]

i've got conflicting opinions concerning leaving your
computer on when you are away or overnight,etc.i'm not
concerned about electricity issues,i'm concerned about
security issues,whether or not someone could hack into
your computer while you where away.it does't seem like
anyone worrys about this.should i be? are there any other
reasons why i should not keep it on?

 

[MAP]

-----Original Message-----
i've got conflicting opinions concerning leaving your
computer on when you are away or overnight,etc.i'm not
concerned about electricity issues,i'm concerned about
security issues,whether or not someone could hack into
your computer while you where away.it does't seem like
anyone worrys about this.should i be? are there any other
reasons why i should not keep it on?

.

Just install a good firewall

 

[buddy]

I always say if you are not going to be around to use
your computer then why have it on ... It like your TV
would you leave your TV on if your not at home ???...
Also if someone really want to hack into your computer
and he is a real hacker he going to get in no matter
what ... But most Pro hacker couldn't bother with hacking
into the average user , why would he ??? A real hacker
want the real good stuff from the big boys .. Again if
you feel you want to stop the average wanna be hacker
then get a firewall ... You could get the paid version
which i am using or the free ones ... Take a look at this
site here www.sygate.com one of the better ones out there

 

[Jim Macklin]

If you are off-line, the modem is turned off or set to not
answer, and the BIOS is not set to wake-on-LAN, they can't
get in. If there is a good firewall they probably can't get
in. But if you have a Trojan it might get out and let them
in.
If you have a UPS with auto-shutdown the computer is
probably safe from power failure, bet having the computer
turned off is probably safer because a sudden power failure
won't corrupt the hard drive.


--
The people think the Constitution protects their rights;
But government sees it as an obstacle to be overcome.


message | i've got conflicting opinions concerning leaving your
| computer on when you are away or overnight,etc.i'm not
| concerned about electricity issues,i'm concerned about
| security issues,whether or not someone could hack into
| your computer while you where away.it does't seem like
| anyone worrys about this.should i be? are there any other
| reasons why i should not keep it on?
|

 

[Guest]

-----Original Message-----

answer my question.-should people without afirewall which
includes most homeusers not leave their computers on
unattented for hours or days at a time because of
secutity reasons. is the risk high? thanks for your time!

 

[Guest]

-----Original Message-----
If you are off-line, the modem is turned off or set to not
answer, and the BIOS is not set to wake-on-LAN, they can't
get in. If there is a good firewall they probably can't get
in. But if you have a Trojan it might get out and let them
in.
If you have a UPS with auto-shutdown the computer is
probably safe from power failure, bet having the computer
turned off is probably safer because a sudden power failure
won't corrupt the hard drive.


--
The people think the Constitution protects their rights;
But government sees it as an obstacle to be overcome.


message | i've got conflicting opinions concerning leaving your
| computer on when you are away or overnight,etc.i'm not
| concerned about electricity issues,i'm concerned about
| security issues,whether or not someone could hack into
| your computer while you where away.it does't seem like
| anyone worrys about this.should i be? are there any other
| reasons why i should not keep it on?
|

thanks for the reply jim-i have always on cable internet

and i do have a ups.so i think what your saying is that
if your on-line then shut it off when your done and if
your off-line with no ups also shut it off! correct?

 

[Jim Macklin]

More or less, most cable modems have a power switch, turn
that off and hackers (anything outside your computer or LAN)
is of no concern. A UPS that can shutdown the computer if
the power fails will also protect the computer from hard
drive crashes and corruption.


--
The people think the Constitution protects their rights;
But government sees it as an obstacle to be overcome.


|
| >-----Original Message-----
| >If you are off-line, the modem is turned off or set to
| not
| >answer, and the BIOS is not set to wake-on-LAN, they
| can't
| >get in. If there is a good firewall they probably can't
| get
| >in. But if you have a Trojan it might get out and let
| them
| >in.
| >If you have a UPS with auto-shutdown the computer is
| >probably safe from power failure, bet having the computer
| >turned off is probably safer because a sudden power
| failure
| >won't corrupt the hard drive.
| >
| >
| >--
| >The people think the Constitution protects their rights;
| >But government sees it as an obstacle to be overcome.
| >
| >
| >message | >| i've got conflicting opinions concerning leaving your
| >| computer on when you are away or overnight,etc.i'm not
| >| concerned about electricity issues,i'm concerned about
| >| security issues,whether or not someone could hack into
| >| your computer while you where away.it does't seem like
| >| anyone worrys about this.should i be? are there any
| other
| >| reasons why i should not keep it on?
| >|
| >
| >thanks for the reply jim-i have always on cable internet
| and i do have a ups.so i think what your saying is that
| if your on-line then shut it off when your done and if
| your off-line with no ups also shut it off! correct?
| >.
| >

 

[sinbad]

Turn it off.
Why waste the energy?
Best reason though is... a freshly booted computer is
dragging less 'stuff' along with it and usually runs a
little better and faster.
sts --------------------------------------------------

 

[Hilary Karp]

If you go onto the internet at all, you should have a firewall active.
Otherwise you will get hit with all kinds of virus problems. If you
have XP then at the very minimum use their built in firewall. However
there are several free ones out there that are much better.

Take a look at Zone Alarm.

 

[Guest]

Rayman,

Actually, your original question was answered very
succinctly. The answer was "just install a good
firewall." Then you replied "should people without a
firewall..." You didn't ask that in your original
question. Still the answer stands. People without a
firewall should "just install a good firewall!"

Done

 

[Phil \(purplehaz\)]

I always say if you are not going to be around to use
your computer then why have it on ... It like your TV
would you leave your TV on if your not at home ???...

Do you unplug all your clocks when you leave the house. You're not using
them, why leave them turned on?
And many people leave their tv's on for security purposes. Looks like
someones home.

<snip>

 

[Phil \(purplehaz\)]

I leave mine on 24/7, 365. I use it all the time, probably more than
anything else in the house, why keep turning it on and off all the time.
Sometimes I've even gone 40+ days without rebooting or shutting it off.
So I say leave it on if its a pain to turn it on and off all the time. I
have a cable broadband connection that's always on. I use a good firewall
and don't worry much about hackers, virus, and spyware. Just stay protected
with anti-virus program, a good firewall(hardware firewall is even better),
and a spyware cleaner and you'll be fine. If you don't have an always on
conection then you really have nothing to worry about at all.

 

[Rick \Nutcase\ Rogers]

Hi,

If the system is on a broadband, or "always on" connection, then you should
not be connecting at all without firewall protection. A hacker will not wait
until you walk away, he/she will do it right while you are surfin'. If you
use a dial-up, then no one can hack in while you are not connected.

Whether or not you shut down an idle system is a matter of personal
preference. Personally, I never turn mine off. Something to think about:
Most hardware failures occur during startup/shutdown.

--
Best of Luck,

Rick Rogers aka "Nutcase" MS-MVP - Windows
Windows isn't rocket science! That's my other hobby!

Associate Expert - WinXP - Expert Zone

 

[Ken Blake, MVP]

In

i've got conflicting opinions concerning leaving your
computer on when you are away or overnight,etc.i'm not
concerned about electricity issues,i'm concerned about
security issues,whether or not someone could hack into
your computer while you where away.it does't seem like
anyone worrys about this.should i be? are there any other
reasons why i should not keep it on?

Whatever risk of hacking you have is identical whether it's
overnight or when you are there. You don't substantially lower
the risk by turning it off overnight.

The answer to such security issues is a good firewall, not
turning off the computer.

 

[wojo]

In


Whatever risk of hacking you have is identical whether it's
overnight or when you are there. You don't substantially lower
the risk by turning it off overnight.

The answer to such security issues is a good firewall, not
turning off the computer.

Exactly what Ken said.
The 4 computers I have on my network run 24/7 and have for years.
They get shutdown only when I need to reboot or when I'm going to be on
vacation and out for a week or better.
Outside of that I never shut them down, hibernate, or use sleep mode and
have not had a problem.
My electric bill isn't especially high either.

 

[Kenny]

Lots of people here are leaving their computers on, I do when I am home and
using it, but if you are not using it
you are contributing to global warming because the power you are consuming
(electricity) it probably created by burning fossil fuel.
Now you may say, will I alone destroy the earth? I will say no, but what if
each day thousands of more computers are produced (with they are)
and each of these computers stay on all the time what will happen? We will
be burning tons of coal and petroleum just because we are not careful or too
lazy to
press the shut down button!
I am surprised that no one here posted about this issue.... its the 10% of
the worlds population that has created all the environmental problems, and
with the
advancement of third world countries more and more people will contribute
into the destruction of our home, earth!.

I have my monitors (which are crts for the moment) shut down if I am more
than 5 minutes away from the computer ( I never use screensavers). I shut
down the computer when I leave or when I am sleeping, unless I am
downloading a big file from the internet. So its not that much about you
paying the electricity bill, its the ethical part of the whole situation.
If electricity was free, but its creation destroyed the planet, would you
just leave every appliance on?

In fact most "high tech" appliances (your monitor too if you don't push the
off button) never totally turn off because they are in "standby" which
consumes several watts of energy even when they appear off.
Now you may say there is no big problem if my video and TV is on standby,
but just think that ALL THE WORLDS videos and TV's are on standby and with
that energy
you could light up a whole city (or even more)! Some manufacturers now are
creating appliances that waste only a little electricity.

So my final answer is to you and all the other people reading this, is to
turn off ther computers when they are not in use.

Kenny
www.computerboom.net

 

[Michael P Gabriel]

Lots of people here are leaving their computers on, I do when I am home and
using it, but if you are not using it
you are contributing to global warming because the power you are consuming
(electricity) it probably created by burning fossil fuel.
Now you may say, will I alone destroy the earth? I will say no, but what if
each day thousands of more computers are produced (with they are)
and each of these computers stay on all the time what will happen? We will
be burning tons of coal and petroleum just because we are not careful or too
lazy to
press the shut down button!
I am surprised that no one here posted about this issue.... its the 10% of
the worlds population that has created all the environmental problems, and
with the
advancement of third world countries more and more people will contribute
into the destruction of our home, earth!.

I have my monitors (which are crts for the moment) shut down if I am more
than 5 minutes away from the computer ( I never use screensavers). I shut
down the computer when I leave or when I am sleeping, unless I am
downloading a big file from the internet. So its not that much about you
paying the electricity bill, its the ethical part of the whole situation.
If electricity was free, but its creation destroyed the planet, would you
just leave every appliance on?

In fact most "high tech" appliances (your monitor too if you don't push the
off button) never totally turn off because they are in "standby" which
consumes several watts of energy even when they appear off.
Now you may say there is no big problem if my video and TV is on standby,
but just think that ALL THE WORLDS videos and TV's are on standby and with
that energy
you could light up a whole city (or even more)! Some manufacturers now are
creating appliances that waste only a little electricity.

So my final answer is to you and all the other people reading this, is to
turn off ther computers when they are not in use.

Kenny
www.computerboom.net

wing environmentalist WACKO's to provide them what they believe to be
POWER! LOOK AT BOTH SIDES OF EVERY ISSUE!!! The other side disagrees
with the stu pid theory of global warming. IN FACT IT IS COOLING.
WAKE UP and smell the TRUTH!

 

[hermes]

Before the MVP (M$ Victim Poster) Hermes responded, Michael P Gabriel
typed:
:: ::: Lots of people here are leaving their computers on, I do when I am
::: home and using it, but if you are not using it
::: you are contributing to global warming because the power you are
::: consuming (electricity) it probably created by burning fossil fuel.
::: Now you may say, will I alone destroy the earth? I will say no, but
::: what if each day thousands of more computers are produced (with
::: they are)
::: and each of these computers stay on all the time what will happen?
::: We will be burning tons of coal and petroleum just because we are
::: not careful or too lazy to
::: press the shut down button!
::: I am surprised that no one here posted about this issue.... its the
::: 10% of the worlds population that has created all the environmental
::: problems, and with the
::: advancement of third world countries more and more people will
::: contribute into the destruction of our home, earth!.
:::
::: I have my monitors (which are crts for the moment) shut down if I
::: am more than 5 minutes away from the computer ( I never use
::: screensavers). I shut down the computer when I leave or when I am
::: sleeping, unless I am downloading a big file from the internet. So
::: its not that much about you paying the electricity bill, its the
::: ethical part of the whole situation. If electricity was free, but
::: its creation destroyed the planet, would you just leave every
::: appliance on?
:::
::: In fact most "high tech" appliances (your monitor too if you don't
::: push the off button) never totally turn off because they are in
::: "standby" which consumes several watts of energy even when they
::: appear off.
::: Now you may say there is no big problem if my video and TV is on
::: standby, but just think that ALL THE WORLDS videos and TV's are on
::: standby and with that energy
::: you could light up a whole city (or even more)! Some manufacturers
::: now are creating appliances that waste only a little electricity.
:::
::: So my final answer is to you and all the other people reading this,
::: is to turn off ther computers when they are not in use.
:::
::: Kenny
::: www.computerboom.net
:::
:::
:::
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::: FIRST, you can leave it on but just turn
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::: the monitor OFF!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
::
:::::::::::::: Second. global warming is a hoax, perpetrated by the left
:: wing environmentalist WACKO's to provide them what they believe to be
:: POWER! LOOK AT BOTH SIDES OF EVERY ISSUE!!! The other side disagrees
:: with the stu pid theory of global warming. IN FACT IT IS COOLING.
:: WAKE UP and smell the TRUTH!
::
::
::: :::: i've got conflicting opinions concerning leaving your
:::: computer on when you are away or overnight,etc.i'm not
:::: concerned about electricity issues,i'm concerned about
:::: security issues,whether or not someone could hack into
:::: your computer while you where away.it does't seem like
:::: anyone worrys about this.should i be? are there any other
:::: reasons why i should not keep it on?

If you take the appropriate security measures such as using a secure
password, keeping your AV up to date, using a firewall, locking your
machine, not using insecure OS like Windows, etc. You should have nothing
to worry about.
--
hermes
DRM sux! Treacherous Computing kills our virtual civil liberties!
http://www.cl.cam.ac.uk/~rja14/tcpa-faq.html

Windows XP crashed.
I am the Blue Screen of Death.
No one hears your screams.

Yesterday it worked.
Today it is not working.
Windows is like that.

 

[Jim Macklin]

Global warming is caused by the SUN. The Sun is not a
constant star. The old religions taught that the Sun was
perfect, like GOD or that it was GOD. We now have
instruments to monitor the Sun and it does change in output
of energy and the type of energy. So if the Sun has 11 and
22 year sunspot cycles we can see, it also has longer cycles
we can't see.

The Sun makes the ozone layer, lack of solar radiation will
alter the rate of ozone creation, volcanoes will destroy
some ozone in the upper atmosphere. But that Freon that
leaked out of your a/c unit last year won't get to the 30-50
km altitude where the ozone layer is for a few hundred
years, there is very little mixing of the lower and upper
atmosphere layers.


--
The people think the Constitution protects their rights;
But government sees it as an obstacle to be overcome.


| > Lots of people here are leaving their computers on, I do
when I am home and
| > using it, but if you are not using it
| > you are contributing to global warming because the power
you are consuming
| > (electricity) it probably created by burning fossil
fuel.
| SNIP
| >>>>>>>>>>>>Second. global warming is a hoax, perpetrated
by the left
| wing environmentalist WACKO's to provide them what they
believe to be
| POWER! LOOK AT BOTH SIDES OF EVERY ISSUE!!! The other
side disagrees
| with the stu pid theory of global warming. IN FACT IT IS
COOLING.
| WAKE UP and smell the TRUTH!
|
|
SNIP >

 

[Tom Lake]

Lots of people here are leaving their computers on, I do when I am home and
using it, but if you are not using it
you are contributing to global warming because the power you are consuming
(electricity) it probably created by burning fossil fuel.

Turning your computer on and off needlessly will cause it to wear out much
sooner than leaving it on all the time. This will require you to buy a new
one more often thereby creating a further depletion of resources and more
toxic waste for our landfills. The planet's ecosystem is much too complex
to attribute normal fluctuations to any one cause.

Tom Lake