For the sake of practicality and savings, it is often best to turn your computer off when you aren't using it, especially for the many hours that you spend sleeping at night.   Sometimes, however, there are situations in which you can benefit greatly by leaving your computer on to run a few tasks while you sleep or any other time that you aren't using it.  The main idea is to save time, energy, and computing power by running CPU-intensive and time-consuming tasks at times when they won't interfere with your regular computer use.  In this article, you will find a number of tasks that you can automate while you sleep.

Updating your operating system or other applications

One of the easiest tasks you can run on your computer while you sleep are software update tasks.  Whether you download and install updates for your operating system or any other program, you will often have the option to automate everything from downloading to the installation processes.  Just make sure that you allow for ample time before having your system automatically shut down, or it may shut down during an important installation step, causing software problems.

Running anti-virus and anti-malware scans

Another great way of using your computer while you sleep is to run anti-virus and anti-malware scans.  Most of the anti-malware software these days have scheduling functions that even allow you to automate what action the application will take if it finds any infection.  You may also find an auto-shutdown function on your anti-malware software.  If there is no auto-shutdown feature, you can find one of the many programs that shutdown your computer at specific times.

Backup

Backing up your data can be very time-consuming and, in most cases, stressful on your processor, causing your computer to bog down while copying files.  If you want to avoid this dilemma, find software that will help you schedule and automate the backup processes.  You may not be able to automate large backups onto CDs or DVDs, but if you back up your information to the Internet, to a separate hard drive, or to a large removable memory device, then it should be easy enough to "set-and-forget" your backup process.

Other options

Downloading and uploading - Downloading and uploading large files can easily eat up your bandwidth, making it hard to surf the Net or use any function that rely on your Internet connection.  You can use a download manager or any other similar software to schedule large downloads and uploads to be completed when you are away from your computer.

Video encoding or 3-D rendering -  Video encoding and 3-D rendering are extremely CPU-intensive, eating up your computer's resources, and making it difficult to run even the simplest of tasks.  If you can't afford to run your rendering and encoding tasks while you use your computer, then you may want to use a program that will allow you to schedule these tasks for times when you are asleep or AFK.

Shutting it down -  Finally, perhaps the most cost-effective way of using your computer while you are asleep is to shut it down so it doesn't leech off of your electricity, raising your bills without actually achieving anything productive.

For those of you who aren't already aware of Apple's newest operating system, it's time to get up-to-date.  Snow Leopard, also known as Mac OS X v10.6, was released on August 28, 2009, and the new operating system boasts of loads of updates and upgrades over its predecessor, Mac OS X v10.5 Leopard.  Aside from offering 64-bit technology, Snow Leopard also increased the efficiency of multiple-core processor management, improved security, and enhanced usability.  The good thing is, you can get these updates and many more for the low price of US$29, which will allow you to upgrade from your current Leopard system.  Here's how to upgrade your Mac from Leopard to Snow Leopard in three easy steps.

1.  Prepare your system

The first step in any OS installation is to prepare your system.  First, make sure that you back up all of the important information that you do not want to lose.  It would be best to backup your files to an external hard drive or to some form of removable media.  Second, clean up your system by deleting unnecessary files.  If you want to ensure that nothing can go wrong, you may want to make a bootable backup of your Mac.  A bootable backup will allow you to restore your system to the state it was in before you start your Snow Leopard installation.  Finally, make sure that you have the necessary media to install Snow Leopard, such as the Snow Leopard upgrade disc.

2.  Option A:  Install over your existing Leopard OS

Apple gives you two options for upgrading your system to the Snow Leopard OS and the first is to do a direct upgrade over your existing Leopard setup.  This is perhaps the easiest way to get your system running on Snow Leopard.  All you have to do is insert your Snow Leopard upgrade disc, click "Install Mac OS X", and follow the on-screen instructions to get your system running.

3.  Option B:  Do a clean install of the Snow Leopard OS

For power users who want full control over the setup and a brand new operating system, option B is the best way to go.  Basically, this will wipe out all of the data on your hard drive partition, installing Snow Leopard on a clean machine.  Insert your Snow Leopard upgrade disc and click on "Install Mac OS X" when you are prompted.  Click on the Utilities menu and choose the "Disk Utility..." option and you will be prompted to format and repartition your hard drive.  Finish up your installation as you normally would by following the on-screen instructions.

Remember, throughout the Snow Leopard installation, you will get a few chances to restore a Time Machine backup that you have previously made.  If you choose not to restore a backup during the installation, you can always do so after Snow Leopard is up and running.  Congratulations on your new Mac operating system!