Hi,

I want my powerbook G4 1.5 ghz 512 Ram to startup quicker. It takes about 40 spins to start up. This seems long. I do have a ton of apps, but is there something I can do (besides permissions)? Just got this laptop...and did notice a slow down after I installed everything.

[Brad]

Startup shouldn't be all that important anyway. If you're smart, you'll never shut down your computer unless you need to replace your battery or crack open the case for some other kind of hardware maintenance.

Sleep is a godsend! Just close the lid and you're done. When you open it, it'll be ready for use by the time you have the screen in position.

I honestly can't remember the last time I shut down my PowerBook. It was probably over six months ago when I added RAM to it. I've rebooted for the system software updates, yes, but I never just shut it down.

The same thing goes for iMacs and Mac minis and G5 towers. Sleep works wonderfully on them all.

[Mac+]

[EDIT] ^ Damn, he's quick ain't he?
----------------------------
I know this does not answer your question *specifically* - but did you know that you don't necessarily need to turn your PB off between uses? It has an instant wake-up feature. That should speed your start-up time significantly, if you know what I mean.

As for the 40 spin start-up, I'm pretty sure there was a thread similar to this a while back. maybe this will help

[BlueRabbit]

Wow, I'm surprised that PC's haven't moved more to having a faster wakeup time. Apple's had it since ~2000 or so. It kinda weird how whenever I see a new PC these days, I expect it to have these nice features, like the faster wakeup time, USB ports on the keyboard, and a power button that doesn't automatically turn the computer all the way off. That's not counting all the times I accidentally hit F9 or F11 on a PC, then realize it doesn't do anything.

[Franz Josef]

Originally Posted by BlueRabbit That's not counting all the times I accidentally hit F9 or F11 on a PC, then realize it doesn't do anything.

The most irritating thing is hitting F9 / F11 on a PC on a daily basis and nothing happening!! Minimising windows is soooooo passe.

[boxofjack]

When I go to sleep I tend to shut my PB down because the blinking light is not very accomodating. Either that or I throw a jumper on top of it. Then it sorta reminds me of ET.

[Kickaha]

The little bugger *is* bright, isn't it?

Try putting a piece of electrical tape over the LED. Not the whole latch button, just the LED. Or maybe a blob of finger nail polish? *shrug* Dunno, I just put mine in my laptop sleeve and then in my pack every night so it's ready to head out the door in the morning, so it doesn't bother me.

[Mugge]

I know sleep is a great feature. But I must admit I have the habbit of turning my ibook off when I go to sleep or need to take it to school. I guess this is mostly because I've been concerned about saving power

So how much does sleep afffect:
*Power usage?
*Heat issues, namely if you put it in your sleeve or bag?
*Hard drive safety when being moved around?

So am I a worry-wart?

[gsxrboy]

Yes

The hdd will be parked, the power usage is nothing and the heat isnt a problem either.. (unless its one of those hotcell pizza hut pizza transport things)

[autodata]

Just get a boot or sleeve if the light bothers you. I essentially never turn off my powerbooks or ibooks.

[nomorewindows]

My spouse nearly had a stroke when I just closed my PB and put it in my handy backpack, ready for a plane ride. "You didn't shut it down?!?!?" No need, I say. This is a mac.

I can count the number of times on one hand that I've actually shut down this baby. Brad is right (again). There's just no need to do so.

[DMBand0026]

I've had my PowerBook for a year now, and I have not ever shut it down. I installed the RAM before I booted it up the first time and other than restarts for software installs and system stuff, it has never been shut down.

[Performa636CD]

one thing that's really messed about OS X is the need to reboot every few weeks. After a reboot, i'll have like 200+ megs free in my 12" 1.33 PB (768 RAM). But after a few weeks, i'll notice the beachball more often and how programs bounce on the dock a few extra times before opening up. I'll check my available RAM and it will be basically zero.

[Kickaha]

That's normal... the virtual memory system is very aggressive and efficient at using the memory.

The slowdowns and beachballs are more often from lack of swap space on your disk.

FWIW, I go *months* between reboots. Actually, I only reboot when a Software Update install requires it.

[chucker]

Originally Posted by Mugge So how much does sleep afffect: *Power usage?

With a full battery, my iBook G3 stays in sleep mode for several days, preserving everything. Note that even with an 'empty' battery, it'll remain in sleep for at least multiple hours, as the battery isn't entirely empty (a safety feature).

[quote]*Heat issues, namely if you put it in your sleeve or bag?[/QUOTE[]

As activity goes close to zero (especially the warm components such as the hard drive, the optical drive and the CPU and GPU are all set to inactive or low-activity mode), so does heat dissipation. Putting it in a bag is not a problem.

*Hard drive safety when being moved around?

A hard drive in sleep mode can't destroy data; you're safe.

I've been through various plane trips with my iBook: turning it on at home, going to sleep, opening it back up at the airport, putting it back to sleep, opening it up inside the plane, etc. All the time carrying it around in a simple generic bagpack. No problems.

[chucker]

Originally Posted by Performa636CD one thing that's really messed about OS X is the need to reboot every few weeks.

There isn't one.

After a reboot, i'll have like 200+ megs free in my 12" 1.33 PB (768 RAM). But after a few weeks, i'll notice the beachball more often and how programs bounce on the dock a few extra times before opening up. I'll check my available RAM and it will be basically zero.

This sounds like a swapping issue, as Kickaha mentioned. Always make sure to have at least 30%* (yes, 30%) of each hard drive's partition free; this makes sure it will run at optimum performance.

*) This number applies to any modern operating system.

[Performa636CD]

my PB has always been like this. Even with like 30GB out of 80GB of my HD space used, i still had this problem.