Conference hydra::amiga_v1

    
    > 1) Should all components be left powered up or should some be off?
    
    Funny you should mention this 'cause I was thinking about it again
    recently when my Scholar modem's external power supply melted down for no
    apparent reason.  Fortunately I was in the house and noticed the
    smell shortly after it happened.  No damage to the Amiga 2000, but
    the modem was also fried.  It was DEC's property so I took a new one
    home a few days later.  My feeling is that the house is more important
    than the computer.  (i.e. I would rather have to get my Amiga fixed
    than have the house catch fire when I'm not around.)  Maybe I'm just
    being paranoid...
    
    Short of this excuse, I think it really depends on how often you use
    the machine.  In particular, the monitor phosphor only lasts so long.
    I believe even when the screen is blanked, some phosphor is being
    activated.
    
    > 2) Is it OK to use the power-strip switch to power everything on and
    > off or should each component be switched independently?
    
    I turn items on/off independently also.  If I remember correctly,
    flipping the power strip on and off can damage the Amiga power supply???
    
    > 3) Is there a rule of thumb about powering down if the system won't be
    > used for some extended period of time?
    
    Mine is "How long am I going to be gone from the house?" :-).  If I'm in
    the house, I usually leave it on after it has been turned on.
    
    regards,
    
    steve

    From "Introduction to the Commodore Amiga 500" that came with the
    computer: page 2-3:
    "DO NOT TURN THE AMIAG OFF BY PULLING OUT THE PLUG"....
    "We suggest getting a multi-outlet electrical power strip froma
    hardware store.  This would allow you to connect all the electrical
    plugs fromthe Amiga system components, and power them all on or
    off with a single on/off swithc-no plug-pulling, no deep-knee bends."

    I think the caveat may have to do with draining capacitors to ground,
    I'm not sure.  If so, then pulling the plug is different from turning
    off the socket strip, if the ground is still attached.  (I think
    DEC std requires power switches to disengage both neutral and hot,
    but not ground, for example).
    
    Every time you power up a linear power supply, there is an inrush
    current into the big low frequency filter cap after the rectifier.
     This cap is usually electrolytic, with a series resistance.  This
    series resistance heats up during power up becuase an uncharged
    cap is like a short, and the heat over time degrade capacitor's
    electrolyte and can cause it to short.  So turning off the computer
    all the time wears down the power supply.
    
    I turn things on and off separately and leave them off when I'm
    out to stop radio frequency interference and I'm afraid of electrical
    fires caused by faulty /old conduits and also worried about sudden
    lightning storms that could send a shock into the computer when
    I'm away.
    
    Tom
    
    

    Scholar quality:  I was very dissatisfied with my borrowed Scholar.
    It acted in what seemed a funny way, though when it made connections
    it was solid.  The Scholar Plus may be better, and has the Hayes
    standard command set, so it's compatible with your favorite terminal
    emulator program for dialing.  But with 2400 baud modems costing
    only about $100, why not just buy one?
    
    Phosphor burnout:  leaving the monitor brightness turned up will
    burn _in_ any steady pattern -- just look at old VAXmates running
    Windows.  Most screen blankers, on the other hand, set the screen
    brightness to minimum.  I suspect that the aging caused by leaving
    the monitor on but blanked is less than what's caused by other picture
    tube aging mechanisms.  (Can a real expert comment?)
    
    Power sequencing:  My A1000 manual recommends turning on the external
    peripherals before turning on the system unit.  But I've never had
    any problem if I forget the proper order.
    
    The Amiga in my basement stays on all the time except during
    thunderstorms or high winds, when the power company is likely to
    send momentary outages down the line.
    
    Wes

I've left everything on for the past few months, with a surge
suppressor in the line. That's a Samsung monitor and a 2000 with
a Seagate HD, and an old Epson JX80 printer. I have a screen
blanker, an old version of MACH 2, I think...

My experience has been that it's been the most trouble-free time
since I've had the computer. I used to turn the Samsung off, but
it developed a flyback-transformer whine that was really irritating.
Keeping it on all the time keeps it hot enough that the whine stops.

JO

    Even though this note is rather old, I thought I would add another
    thought for those who are considering leaving their systems ON for long
    periods of time.  My setup:
    
    A2000
    A1080 monitor
    2 internal 3 1/2" floppy drives
    A2300 internal genlock
    A2058 memory expansion (2Mb populated)
    A2088 Bridgeboard with 5 1/4" 360K internal floppy
    Microbotics HardFrame w/ ST157N (45Mb)
    Supra 2400 baud modem (external)
    20 watt amplifier for audio
    Panasonic KX1124 printer
    
    I have had horrible problems with the hard drive and V2.0 Janus
    software in particular.  For example, when copying a floppy to the
    hard drive, the hard drive activity lite will come on steady and
    the process will hang up the entire system.  Attempts to create
    files on the hard drive for use by the PC side quite often do the
    same thing.  However, these types of problems seem to be more
    frequent once the system has been up and running for a while.  I
    suspect that this is thermally related, as the problems seem to
    dissipate as soon as the heat does, i.e., I turn off the system
    for a couple of hours.
    
    At this point, I think that I have a combination of hardware and
    software problems.  As long as I am experiencing different results
    due to the heat level, though, I plan to turn off my system when
    not in use.
    
    Dave

    When not being used, my system is disconnected from the power lines.
    I have a very healthy respect for what a lightning power surge can
    do, and do not want it to happen to my machine.
    
    At one house we were unplugging appliances because a storm was rolling
    overhead.  I happened to be unplugging a lamp when lightning struck
    a tree a few feet from the house. There was a pretty arc between the
    socket and the plug I had just pulled from it (only an inch or two
    away at the time, but very impressive (I still wonder how close I came
    to being dead - if the plug had been in the wall would I not have
    noticed anything at all, or would I have gotten the full benefit?
    I was on a dry wood floor.  Oh well, doesn't matter now).  At another
    house a close strike literally blew a ceiling fixture out of the
    ceiling.  I know the grounds were good in that case 'cause I was
    there when they went in, three (3!) copper rods, driven 'till only
    an inch showed (and nice heavy woven copy grounding straps back to
    the system).  
    
    If something like this happens again (or just happens two houses down
    the street) I'd like the surge to go through something less important
    (the fridge, the stereo, NOT my computer).  
    
    As a side note, disconnecting from the power means that the Scholar
    modem is not able to keep its batteries charged, so it can't remember
    phone numbers for me.  Not a big deal for me.  But if you have
    something with rechargable battery backup and you use a power strip
    to disconnect it from the power line, you are going to have to use it
    a lot to keep the battery charged.
    
    Yours
    Erg
    

    re: -1
    I concure whole heartly. I lost a $1k+ TV set during a lightning
    storm. This was not from lightning, just power fluxuations.
    
    Most hi tech electronics uses switch mode power supplies.
    These are really to suceptalbe to low power condition.
    
    So if I even suspect power is going to be poor I disconnect every
    thing.
    
    .. Rich