Okay to have my Wacom tablet on & Mac boot up with external monitor

Sossity · #1 11-04-2011, 06:08 AM

in another thread i have been discussing shut methods & power management for computers, & which peripherals to turn off etc.

my mac has a wacom tablet hooked up via usb to a usb hub. It has no on off button of it's own, so to turn it off, i would have to unplug it all the time from the usb hub.

is it ok to have it on? when my mac is shut down, I notice it's little blue light still glowing. will this wear it out?

Also in discussing power up & shut down of the dell pc, got me thinking about how my mac is hooked to an external monitor & how i have been leaving the monitor on & having it on when my mac laptop boots up. I did not realize I have been leaving the external monitor on. Even though I saw a little light in the bottom corner of my apple display, because the screen went black after shutdown, I thought it was off, until I touched the sensor off button along the side of the monitor. when I did this, the light went off & i knew then that monitor was actually turned off.

so i thought for less strain on the laptop & monitor, I will tun off the external monitor after powering down my mac, & when booting my mac, turn on the monitor after the mac has booted up for less power for the mac to have to do when booting up & booting the monitor as well. Is this a good idea?

kpmedia · #2 11-04-2011, 06:38 AM

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will this wear it out?

It could, in theory.

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have to unplug it all the time

However, this is just as bad. I have USB ports and USB cables wearing out here. One of my thumb drives has about had it. On my laptop, I've resorted to using to six-inch USB2 extension cables. The one in the computer always stays in the computer. The one in the devices is always in the device. What I separate are the two short extensions. And those have given out, and were cheap/easy to replace. That's my suggestion for you. You want short cables.

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i have been leaving the monitor on

Wastes power, reduces lifespan. When not in use, turn it off.

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when booting my mac, turn on the monitor after the mac has booted up

Turn on monitor first, as many systems require it. The computer "senses" the resolution of the LCD.

Sossity · #3 11-04-2011, 04:27 PM

So I turn on the external monitor first? even though it is hooked up to a laptop with it's own monitor? it is ok for the mac laptop to be booting up both monitors, it's own laptop one & the external one?

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss...xtension+cords

And get a usb extension cable? like the ones I linked to above & plug & unplug the wacom tablet from this each night when I shut down?

kpmedia · #4 11-04-2011, 04:33 PM

My main computer is a laptop with Windows XP. If the monitor is not turned on before the laptop, and connected via VGA, the resolution on the monitor is fubar. Sometimes I forget, and have to reboot. Mac notebooks are no different. Some of it really depends on the monitor (mine is an IPS LG). There's no problem having a monitor turned on first.

You want a pair of these: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...SIN=B002KNI796

Sossity · #5 11-04-2011, 04:59 PM

Ok, thanks, I see a pair for the wacom, one goes into my usb hub & the other one goes onto the end of the wacom usb cord? This would work well as the usb cord on my wacom tablet is molded into or wired into the tablet, if it goes I cannot easily replace the wacom's usb cord.

I have 2 usb thumb drives that I had been using with a usb extension cable on my usb hub, but I did not have a usb extension cable on the thumb drives, should I have a usb extension cable on my thumb drives as well? so as not to wear them out plugging & unplugging from the usb extension cables that are attached to my usb hub?

the trouble with having the usb extension cables on my thumb drives is that it would be a little bulky, as I carry my thumb drives on my key chain that I carry in my pockets. They have content on them that I dont want to go with them if my purse gets stolen or lost. Hence I do not carry them in my purse but on my key chain that has my house keys & ATM cards.

lordsmurf · #6 11-04-2011, 05:02 PM

Wacom > extension >> extension > computer.

Disconnect at the >> when needed.

Wacom tablet is not cheap. USB drives are cheap, so don't worry about those wearing out.
Maybe use an extension in the computer, to protect its slot.

Computer > Extension >> USB flash drive

Sossity · #7 11-04-2011, 06:14 PM

when I have my laptop on, & have booted up with both monitors; laptop monitor & external, is it a good idea to turn off the external one while I am doing something like a backup where I a may not be at the laptop using it while it is doing a backup or format of a hard drive? I don't think I would really need the external on while doing this. Then when I am ready to use the laptop, I could turn the external back on as needed, would that work?

lordsmurf · #8 11-05-2011, 06:10 AM

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is it a good idea to turn off the external one while I am doing something like a backup where I a may not be at the laptop using it while it is doing a backup or format of a hard drive?

If overnight, yes.

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Then when I am ready to use the laptop, I could turn the external back on as needed, would that work?

That works fine.