I am using about one or two hr a day and want to know the durability and maintanance interval.

It’s not a car, it shouldn’t require ‘maintanance’. The only thing I would do is after 3 years or so, purchase a new battery and maybe a keyboard if the markings have worn down. If your battery still holds a decent charge, leave it be.

As for software maintanance, well, its really personal preference as to when you format and re-install your applications.

Computers are designed to be on, I leave my systems (not my notebook) on 24/7 and rarely do I restart them…my current server uptime is 6 months…I had to shut-down due to me moving.

Erik

1-2 hrs a day would be harmful than on for months?
I really dont know which is good for the computer.

pls tell me which is better or worse.

[quote author=“sp535”]1-2 hrs a day would be harmful than on for months?
I really dont know which is good for the computer.

pls tell me which is better or worse.

Its hard to tell. Parts can die after 2 hours or 2 years…just use your computer as much as you need…if your going to eat or something that will take 20-30 minutes, leave it on rather then shut-down and restart. Change your power management to shut the LCD after a set amount of time, have it shut down your hard drive…etc.

Don’t be afraid to use your PC.

Erik

+1

it is near impossible to prevent hardware failures.. if its going to fail..there’s nothing you can do about it. though turning the computer on and off frequently actually causes more wear and tear than leaving it for on for an extended period of time.

but doesn’t ‘ultraportable’ means you can carry anywhere?
Do you keep machine on while you are on the way?

I know this is stupid question….

[quote author=“sp535”]but doesn’t ‘ultraportable’ means you can carry anywhere?
Do you keep machine on while you are on the way?

I know this is stupid question….

Depends…if your moving from one place to another, short distance, you can suspend, anything longer, hibernate. Hibernate is essentially a full shutdown…in terms of hardware at least.

The basic point is your better off leaving it on for 10-15 minutes then to shut down and turn it on.

Erik

this is my second tr. i keep laptops on almost 24 hours a day. i take the tr everywhere, on a motorbike, trekking, whatever. (i am in bkk right now shopping for example).  the first one developed a hdd failure after about 9 months, but the laptop was on mt. everest after a 1500+km bike ride. i dont think you have to worry much about leaving it on a few hours a day. but due to mfg standards at sony factories, it’s all a roll of the dice. in general, i think the the thing that is likely to break is the screen. the things that will wear out are the hdd and cd/dvd rom. everything else seems very VERY solid. good luck.

system is on the whole day through ... no probs so far

I also hardly ever reboot.  One feature that I find indespensible is the standby mode.  Go for days on a single battery charge!  That’s Ultraportable!

Mine is on 24/7—since summer of 2003! When I do have to unplug it to travel, then I use the hibernation mode.

Hi,
Here’s my 2 cents worth based on 10 years experience working in IT…  hardware generally lasts longer with continuously connected to power, than connected/disconnected all the time.  However, in the real world the machine is likely to become obsolete well before this makes any difference.

Environmental factors are really what causes the most damage, #2 being heat, and #1 being power.  If you’re using your laptop in hot conditions, look into one of those giant heat-sink laptop stands; heat is evil.

I’ve lost count of number of machines I’ve looked at over the years that have had components fried by power fluctuations.  With laptops this is more of an issue, since unlike desktop pc’s you [often] can’t replace individual components.  Basic surge protectors are better nothing, but don’t provide much protection and are a waste of money in my opinion; not all power damage is caused by surges, and most surge protectors only block large-ish surges, and don’t do anything for ripples or brown-outs (the opposite of a surge).

I do have inline surge protector for when i’m traveling, but it was mainly to protect modem port from being fried than the ac side of things (it’s a AC & RJ-11 combo unit); especially since the modem is soldiered directly onto the motherboard

What you want is something that guarantees a clean power supply.  I’ve seen a lot of customers waste money buying UPS’s when they would have been better off with a power regulator instead.  UPS’s are important for server environments, were the box must stay up no matter what, however UPS’s don’t provide much [if any] in the way of power regulation, they just provide power when the mains are out; you’re paying for a large stack of lead acid batteries.

A good power regulator provides a clean AC sine wave at exactly 240v/110v. Regardless of the voltage at the outlet, the power supply to your machine stays rock solid at 110v (or 240v depending on your region).  They store power in large capacitors and use that to create the clean feed; generally speaking anyway.

  In high-end data-centers you’ll often see, power regulators and UPS’s connected in series (or a product especially designed to do both, often wired directly into the mains of the site).

For more information see:

APC Line-R (the 600VA unit is suitable for most applications):
http://www.apcc.com/products/family/index.cfm?id=67

I’ve been using APC Line-R units for 15 years, and have *never* had a hardware failure…  (though in the case of hard disks, i think i’ve just been lucky, sometimes they just go… but i’m sure clean power helped)

There are other brands out there, but it’s a bit like insurance—-is it really something you want to scimp on and hope you’ve got enough cover when the time comes?  Especially considering the APC unit retails for under $50?  (search for “apc line-r 600va” on amazon.com).  Btw, no i don’t work for APC, lol, i’m just a happy long-time customer of theirs (same goes for clients i’ve recommended their products to over the years )  I’d say the same about Wacom too; just got a silver graphire3 to use with my TR3 when i’m travelling

Hope that helps,
Matt.