We recently recommended against installing a flat-panel television above a fireplace, citing the danger of heat. A reader added this:
Your answer is incomplete. More important is neck fatigue while viewing. The centre of the screen should be 42 inches off the floor.
- Home theatre expert Mike Tilly
The next reader takes issue with my thought that it's not a big deal whether you leave a computer on all the time or turn it off when not in use:
Another take on leaving computers running.
The biggest enemy of hard drives is thermal cycling. That occurs every time a machine is turned on, then off, repeatedly.
The drive's delicate hardware heats/cools/heats etc. and suffers distortion, as do the internal electronics due to repeated usage, eventually failing.
The same thermal cycling of the other computer components is damaging to electronic component connections on circuit boards.
So it is better to let the machine run continuously.
- Pete Schuyler
Pete knows what he is talking about. We still suggest that a home user balance the risks between the problem he cites and the danger of a damaging electrical storm when the computer is unattended.
There's also the chance that the cooling fan will wear out and allow the machine to overheat. On balance, we still believe it's OK to turn a desktop computer off at night when going to sleep.
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