Never Shutting Down
Never Shutting Down
Keeping your computer powered on is the more convenient option. It offers a few distinct advantages that can save you a bit of time and frustration, but it also has a few major downsides of its own.
Pros
Your machine is always ready to go: It’s nice to be able to sit down at your machine and just start working. Such a luxury comes at a cost — a higher electricity bill — but that may be worthwhile depending on your needs.
Your computer can work while you sleep: There are plenty of ways your computer can work while you sleep. It can perform tasks such as backing up, system maintenance, video encoding, software updates, downloading, uploading and virtually anything else it can do without your presence. This is a great opportunity to perform intensive tasks when they won’t encumber your work.
Run a server: If your computer is on all the time, you can use it to serve up whatever you want. Perhaps you just want the machine to be remotely accessible when you’re away from home.
Cons
Heavy power usage: Running your computer 24/7 draws a lot of power. If there’s any reason to turn your machine off with any regularity, it’s to avoid wasting resources and saving some money on your electricity bill.
Rebooting can be a pain: If you’re not used to shutting down regularly, the rare reboot can be pretty annoying. Aside from just feeling more like an inconvenience, you’ll never be prepared to shut down. If you have several documents, browser windows, applications and services running, you probably do not have a process in place to easily suspend everything. Mac OS X Lion and Mountain Lion users have the advantage of the Resume feature, which allows you to restore the computer to the working state it was in before shutting down, but that only works perfectly if all your apps support it. Rebooting isn’t some horrible, horrible thing, but it is an inconvenience if you’re not used to it.
As you can see, each option has its advantages and disadvantages. What works best for you will depend on your needs. But the idea that it’s automatically a bad thing is definitely a myth that’s worth busting.