Q Sometimes a day or two can pass without anyone using our desktop computer. Should we leave it on or turn it off? Do we extend the life of the hard drive when the PC is turned off?
ALLAN BODENSTAB, ROSEMOUNT
A There are two issues involved: power consumption and component wear. On both counts, I think it's better to leave your computer on.
Computers don't require much energy, particularly when they're inactive. On a PC, you can set your screen to darken and your disk drive to stop spinning when the computer has been idle a certain number of minutes. You can find these settings under Power Options in the Control Panel.
Computers also tend to suffer less wear and tear if you leave them on. Turning a computer on and off creates tiny power surges which eventually can damage electronic components. You can also reduce wear by using the automatic disk drive power-saving option mentioned above.
Another benefit to leaving your PC on is that programs that run automatically, such as antivirus scanning software, aren't interrupted. For more about whether to leave the PC on, see www.5starsupport.com/tutorial/on-off.htm.
Q I'm having a problem with the size of Web pages on my new laptop. They appear about half-page size on my 22-inch screen. Can you tell me how I can reconfigure the page to appear full size?
EDWARD BERTELE, MINNEAPOLIS