My dad always wants me to turn off the computer. I can see how this helps us lower our electricity bills. BUT, I want to keep it on. It takes a while for it to startup and LogMeIn, the remote program I use, only works while the computers on. So questions. How different is Hibernation from Shutdown? Can Leaving the computer on 24/7 damage the parts even if the monitor is turned off? If I go into hibernate will the parts still be damaged? What's a good remote control program that can work in Shutdown/Hibernation mode? Thanks.
Turning parts on makes them get warm/hot, turning them off lets them cool. Too many cycles break the contacts and cause failures. The old CRT screens should be turned off when not in use to prevent burn-in, but most other devices do best if you never turn them off. The only possible exceptions are hard drives and fans (moving components).
The only parts of a PC susceptible to failure from hot/cold cycles are those listed in Killerbug's post, as these parts need a balance of not being turned on/off regularly, and not being left on forever. A CPU, RAM, Motherboard, graphics card and PSU should not care how long they are on for unless they are poorly made. Hibernate is the same as shutdown but makes startup quicker as the current RAM is saved to the hard disk - thus, when you turn the PC on again, all your open programs come back. No remote control program will work with the PC off unless it supports wake on LAN. None of the VNC programs I use to my knowledge support this.
