If your computer is ATX, that is when you click on..
Start -> Shutdown
your computer automatically switches off without you having to press the power button. Then you may find this program useful.
It is designed to be used when you are doing something on your computer and what to go away and leave it unattended. Then the program will then shutdown when the operation is completed.
Despite the misleading name you can Restart and Log-Off aswell as Shutdown and now select from 4 triggers....
1. Time
2. Countdown
3. CPU
4. Internet
1. Time
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When the computer clock reaches the time specified then the computer is Shutdown. This does have a flaw that if the operation your doing isn't finished (you don't put in a long enough time)....the computer will shutdown regardless, which may result in data loss. Enter the time in 24 hour format, so 12:00 at night would be represented as 00:00:00.
2. Countdown
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This is very similar to the Time Trigger but the programs works out what time to shutdown from the time delay you enter. For example you could set it to Shutdown after 5 minutes. The program would then work out the current time, say 01:43:00 so the Shutdown time is set for 01:48:00. This has the same disadvantages as the Time Trigger.
3. CPU
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If your doing something which is very processor intensive like encoding audio or video then you may want to choose this trigger. When encoding your CPU usage will be very high. When your encoding stops though your processor usage should go down dramatically. This drop can be detected by Timed Shutdown and then it can carry out the Shutdown command. If you set the right values this can be very effective as you can be sure that the operation is complete. You want to take into account the processor usage before and the processor usage during the operation. Make sure that the processor is working above the limit during the operation and yet returns below it afterwards. I found that 75% is a good value as when encoding my processor goes right up to 100% then it shoots back down when done. If your CPU usage is low when your not doing anything then you may want to lower this value to 50% or maybe even less. The processor usage when not doing anything will vary from computer to computer because people may have programs working in the background. You may have to experiment to get a value that's best for you. The time out option is in case your processor usage varies while doing the operation. This means that if you set the usage to say 75% and the time to 60 seconds then the processor usage will have to stay below 75% for 60 seconds. If it was to go back up after 30 seconds then the timer would be restarted and you would have to wait another 60 seconds. I would recommend keeping this on 60 seconds.
NOTE: In Windows 9x the processor usage may not return back to the place where it started before the operation. I THINK this is due to the way Windows 9x works, it is still possible to use this function effectively, just be warned. This is not an issue with Windows 2000.
4. Internet
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This option is for people who are still using dial-up connections where their ISP (Internet Service Provider) disconnects them after a certain amount of time online e.g.. Every 2 hours........this includes me :(
You can start a file downloading then load Timed Shutdown and select this option. Then you can go away and when you get disconnected your computer will shutdown. Then when you come back later you turn on your computer re-connect and resume the file from where you left off (if your downloading software allows of course). I successfully use this with WinMX on a regular basis.
I would keep the time out on 60 seconds in order to give your download software time to properly close the transfers.
Using Force
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This option is has always been used in previous versions but it's only now I have given you the choice as to weather or not you want to use it. When a Shutdown is in process, some programs when asked to close refuse. This means the Shutdown is automatically aborted. This could be a way to ensure there is no data loss from preemptive shutdowns (like a to shorter timer was set). However, not all programs refuse to close even if they are in the middle of something like writing to the hard disk and on the other hand some which you may not want to, do. Let me try and explain this better with an example.
Once, I set a Internet Disconnect Trigger to Shutdown without using Force. I came back later only to find my computer was still on. It seemed that when asked, ICQ refused to close as there was an un-answered message. If force was Enabled then it would have shutdown regardless and I would have got the message later as they stay stored online. From this point on I have always had Force enabled. I thought I would give you the choice though as I'm sure there are going to be certain situations when you don't want to use it.
Final Countdown
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I recommend using the Final Countdown option all the time regardless of the trigger. This means that if you go away, comeback later and forget about the Shutdown, then you will get some warning before your machine switches of.
I think that's pretty much it, if you have any problems then please visit the website.
