On 6/20/02 1:11 PM, "Alan Sargent" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
> At 09:07 AM 20/06/02 -0500, Hamlin Krewson [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: >> On 6/19/02 8:11 PM, "[EMAIL PROTECTED]" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: >> >>> how does everyone powerdown there peripherals? > >> Yes, there is at least one reason not to flip that switch. Your mac (and in >> fact all computers) has a battery in it that keeps the current date & time >> as well as other settings for startup. When power is removed from the mac >> (ie. you flip the power strip/surge protector off or even unplug it) the mac >> has to rely on that battery to keep those settings intact. The more often >> you do this, the more depleted your battery becomes. It can quickly lose the >> power it needs to keep these settings, and is not recharged during use. > > Not "quickly". I believe these lithium batteries will last up to 10 years > in that mode. (I looked up some battery charts recently on a manufacturer's > site.) The power drain to keep the PRAM alive is minute. Unfortunately when > they finally do die the odd-sized batteries (3.6V, 1/2 AA) from Apple for > most Macs are absurdly priced, about five times a similar (but > incompatible) lithium camera battery. Haven't found any compatible > batteries where I live, so when I start up my old Quadra it's always 1956 > ... a new battery would be about half the going price of the whole machine. > > > Yes, when the system is powered down and plugged into a power source (preferrably a surge protector) the battery can last usually about 5 years. Sometimes longer. This is because, the system is not actually relying on the battery. So long as power is supplied, pram is protected by a small trickle from it. When the computer is unplugged, the battery is relied upon and drained. While it could take several years to completely drain the battery in this way, it doesn't take a complete drain to cause problems. I've seen batteries in systems that still had as high a charge left as 3.4v (out of the 3.6-3.7 they started off with) that had to be replaced. Other times, you might not notice anything until you get to a charge of 2v. Last week, I replaced a battery in a 1.5 year old iMac. The owner would leave it unplugged when he went home for the weekend from school, plus when he was transporting it back and forth. He stated he'd only done this a few times, but it was obviously not holding enough of a charge to maintain the pram. I can't count the number of customers that had this problem with their iMacs because they thought they'd save the price of a surge protector and simply unplug the computer when not in use. Hamlin -- G-List is sponsored by <http://lowendmac.com/> and... Small Dog Electronics http://www.smalldog.com | Refurbished Drives | -- We have Apple Refurbished Monitors in stock! | & CDRWs on Sale! | Support Low End Mac <http://lowendmac.com/lists/support.html> G-List list info: <http://lowendmac.com/lists/g-list.shtml> Send list messages to: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To unsubscribe, email: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> For digest mode, email: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Subscription questions: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Archive: <http://www.mail-archive.com/g-list%40mail.maclaunch.com/> Using a Macintosh? Get free email and more at Applelinks! <http://www.applelinks.com>
