Taking care of my Mac

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Hey everyone! :)

I got a 13 inch macbook pro in Sept for uni, which also happens to be my first laptop andI'm having trouble taking care of it. :(

Ever since I turned it on in Sept, I have never shut it down instead I always put it on sleep, this is because in the user guide it said that you should only shut down your mac when you are not using it for a couple of days, this is strange for me since I am always using my mac on a day to day basis and when I'm not using it, its on sleep and its slightly worrying me now, i mean even if I use it daily, should there be a time when I should let my mac rest and I should shut it down?

Also, the strangest thing just happened today, I was just browsing the internet and all of the sudden, the fan in my macbook just ran on high gear like a helicopter, personally it doesn't seem normal to me all (Im also not knowledgable in computers) but should i be worried about that fan?

After that fan incident happened, I downloaded istat, still taking a while for me to understand it but I think i'll get around it :p also, when I downloaded Istat, it said that my fan was spinning at some 3000 rpm and also my CPU's temperature was 80 degrees Celsius, now its in the 50's and the fan is around 2000 rpm.

anyways, i guess what I'm looking for is just ways in which i can take good care of my mac? :)

i appreciate your help! thank you :)
 
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Your Mac's Specs
MacBook Pro 15" 2014, 2.2GHz i7, 16GB RAM, 250GB SSD, OSX 10.9.5 - iPhone 5s 16gb
I generally only put my mac to sleep, maybe once a month or when an update requires it do I shut it down/ restart.

As for the fans, they can reach a mind-blowing 8000+rpm so I wouldn't worry about that too much at all.
Flash seems to crank the heat up a little so there could have been some flash on that website that made the fans go up.

As for that, to keep good care of your mac, update it regularly, keep drinks away from it, and don't delete anything you are unsure about deleting, don't download anything you're unsure about and generally keep it in a clean state and it should be with you for a long time to come. :)

Hope this helps a little

- Simon
 

BrianLachoreVPI


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March 2011 15" MBP 2.3GHz i7 Quad Core 8GB Ram | Mid 2011 27" iMac 3.4 GHz i7 16 GB RAM 2 TB HDD
Your Mac is 'resting' when it's asleep :) The reality is - you can just sleep your Mac without a restart until you feel like performance may be degrading - then give it a restart. I haven't restarted my MBP since the last SW update.

Your fans may have cranked up due to some flash loading on a particular website. Not uncommon.

Take good care of your Mac by not spilling anything on it, don't drop it, keep it up to date - and periodically - as in 6 mos or so if you feel performance is degrading - use a maintenance tool like Onyx.

While I don't see a problem running iStat, although others here may disagree, just make sure you don't artificially set your fans to a low speed. There's a fan controller governing the fan speed for a reason. :)
 
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Way... way too many specs to list.
I don't have a probelm with iStat, although it doesn't show anything you can't get in other methods. I generally don't believe people need to be obsessed about fan speeds or CPU/GPU temps. Fan speeds will increase with CPU/GPU utilization, so will their temps.
 
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chas_m

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Macs do not require the "management" that Windows PCs do. Isn't that nice?

I agree with all the advice given above, and will add only this: Mac OS X likes to have LOTS of free space available, particularly if you start getting ambitious with what you are doing with it (like large image files and HD video). So be sure to keep LOTS of free space available on the drive at all times (like, we're talking a few dozen GBs). OS X also likes as much RAM as you can afford to give it -- I'd recommend 4GB for normal uses, 8GB if you're into prosumer stuff, and more if your machine can take it or you're doing some pro-level work.
 
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rMBP 3.06Ghz, MBP 2.2Ghz, Mini G4, B/W G3 (Media Server), LCII, Beige G3
Since I've been used to laptops not having a sudden motion sensor I've always been cautious about leaving the system turned on when moving it. I always completely shut down my MacBook Pro when putting it in my bag or moving it between classes.

When you put it in sleep or close the screen the computer hasn't fully gone into sleep mode until the light on the front edge starts pulsing, plus theres always a chance some program you had open is preventing the computer from entering sleep mode and really just turning off the screen. So if your putting it in a bag or carrying it around theres always the chance that the system may overheat (in the bag) or the hard drive is still spinning and you're causing damage.

I may be wrong, but in my situation I've fried a logic board before because I thought it was in sleep mode and some app kept it running and it overheated in my InCase sleeve.
 

Bcn


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When putting it to 'sleep', should I leave the power cable connected?
 
M

MacInWin

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When putting it to 'sleep', should I leave the power cable connected?
You may, but you don't have to. The sleeping MBP will have a low draw on the battery, but it should last days before you need to worry.
 
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Too many...
Hey everyone! :)
Hi! :)

Ever since I turned it on in Sept, I have never shut it down instead I always put it on sleep, this is because in the user guide it said that you should only shut down your mac when you are not using it for a couple of days, this is strange for me since I am always using my mac on a day to day basis and when I'm not using it, its on sleep and its slightly worrying me now, i mean even if I use it daily, should there be a time when I should let my mac rest and I should shut it down?
I usually turn my computer off when only maybe 3 times a month(actually had to think hard about that one. I let it sleep every other time. I have the first gen 15" uni 2008 model, and when I don't use it, I just close the screen, even when I'm in school...I just close the lid and let it sleep in my belkin bag. Honestly, I've owned this computer(which was a refurb by the way) for 29 months, and the battery is still at 91% health, and hasn't skipped a beat(with exceptions to my own stupidity:) )

Also, the strangest thing just happened today, I was just browsing the internet and all of the sudden, the fan in my macbook just ran on high gear like a helicopter, personally it doesn't seem normal to me all (Im also not knowledgable in computers) but should i be worried about that fan?
I wouldn't worry about it. It was probably just a random, quick fluctuation.

After that fan incident happened, I downloaded istat, still taking a while for me to understand it but I think i'll get around it :p also, when I downloaded Istat, it said that my fan was spinning at some 3000 rpm and also my CPU's temperature was 80 degrees Celsius, now its in the 50's and the fan is around 2000 rpm.
When I first got my MBP, I was doing the same thing that you are doing now. I monitored temps like a hawk...for stupid reasons to be honest. The MBP is designed drastically different from any computer you've used before. It is designed to accept heat differently than other laptops in the market because it has separation between interior and exterior body components. The interior is also the exterior. This means that the aluminum will dissipate the heat as far as it will go before it cools. In almost all other laptops, you can't feel the heat as much from the outside because the exterior is usually made of plastic, which is resistant to temperatures in the computer. Inside, the temperatures are really not that much different.

Since then, I've learned to trust in Apple's engineering ability, and have removed all apps that monitor and control fans. Completely useless in my opinion. I think you will eventually understand what I'm saying.

anyways, i guess what I'm looking for is just ways in which i can take good care of my mac? :)
The best thing I've ever done to my MBP is install a clear film on the bottom and top. I have my own stuff, but you can get it from ZAGG. My MBP is absolutely scratch less because of it. In my opinion, the price is steep from ZAGG, but being the guy that I am, I'm sure the price will make it worth it even if it only protects it from 1 possible scratch!

i appreciate your help! thank you :)
You're welcome!
 
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Too many...
Oh my...that's a big post. o_O
 
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Backing up what iggibar has said, Zagg shield is superb, I have used their kits on my phones and they last really well and that includes dropping phones outside and not even a mark on the sheild. I'm a firm believer in "you get what you pay for" and Zagg have proved this the case with their film.
 

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