# My co-worker did not know how to reboot a computer (things a certain age group should know). **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [January 2, 2012, 2:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-co-worker-did-not-know-how-to-reboot-a-computer-things-a-certain-age-group-should-know/608104 "2012-01-02T02:02:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![GusNSpot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gusnspot/32/436_2.png) [@GusNSpot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GusNSpot)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2012, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-co-worker-did-not-know-how-to-reboot-a-computer-things-a-certain-age-group-should-know/608104/21 "2012-01-02T18:45:49Z")
I am old, 68 to be exact, and I think that re-start is totally different from re-boot or total power down. There are several ways to do it but I normaly got through the ‘start’ button / menu and chose re-start because the 100,037th Adobe patch / revision wants me to or chose ‘shut down’ because I want to re-boot or actually shut it ( computer )down. And since I pay for the electricity around here & there are 7 working computers, I do not leave them all on 24/7… The solid state hard drives do not seem to wear out faster from this. YMMV ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2012, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-co-worker-did-not-know-how-to-reboot-a-computer-things-a-certain-age-group-should-know/608104/22 "2012-01-02T18:46:32Z")
> [@Lasciel](#): > > How likely is it that force-restarting will cause damage to the disk? (I don’t give much of a shit about the work computers. They’re not my problem, and if they won’t let me have the tools to help solve things, then screw them) However, I have had to do my own two computers a few times, and I always worry about it. ☹ Theoretically, just about anything could happen if the voltage/signal to the drive is irregular or not to specifications. But in 30 years of computing, I’ve had very few failures that could be blamed on a manual shutdown except for occasional file corruption, and I’ve had more file corruption due to Windows bugs than unexpected shutdowns. Windows is not a robust system and most home PCs are not robust in the hardware department, either. And again, theoretically, if a write operation to the directory of the disk is what is interrupted, all or part of the directory could become unusable. Chkdsk/scandisk may or may not fix it. It all points to the importance of backup, backup and backup, the three most important things about computer operation. > [@aceplace57](#): > > ymmv but I rarely see it damage anything by pulling the plug. Windows fusses at the restart. True, and the worst part about the “fussing” is it often enables what it thinks is future self-protection, like turning on (without warning) many options that I never want to use – internal checks that I deliberately disabled. Maddening when it’s an Opsys error that caused the needed shutdown in the first place. ---
**Author:** ![Gusano](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gusano/32/9091_2.png) [@Gusano](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gusano)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2012, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-co-worker-did-not-know-how-to-reboot-a-computer-things-a-certain-age-group-should-know/608104/23 "2012-01-02T18:46:52Z")
Working for a help desk facing a wide range of user experience levels, I usually just tell my caller to power down fully, then power the system back on. If the user tells me it won’t power down, I advise proving the superiority of humans over computers by unplugging the machine from the wall. The user’s resulting sense of empowerment usually allows me to better guide him/her through whatever fix might be necessary. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2012, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-co-worker-did-not-know-how-to-reboot-a-computer-things-a-certain-age-group-should-know/608104/24 "2012-01-02T18:50:08Z")
> [@Gusano](#): > > If the user tells me it won’t power down, I advise proving the superiority of humans over computers by unplugging the machine from the wall. May I steal that idea, Gusano? 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Gusano](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gusano/32/9091_2.png) [@Gusano](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gusano)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2012, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-co-worker-did-not-know-how-to-reboot-a-computer-things-a-certain-age-group-should-know/608104/25 "2012-01-02T19:24:52Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > May I steal that idea, Gusano? 🙂 Certainly! ---
**Author:** ![Canadjun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/76d3ee/32.png) [@Canadjun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Canadjun)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2012, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-co-worker-did-not-know-how-to-reboot-a-computer-things-a-certain-age-group-should-know/608104/26 "2012-01-02T20:37:22Z")
> [@Gusano](#): > > Working for a help desk facing a wide range of user experience levels, I usually just tell my caller to power down fully, then power the system back on. If the user tells me it won’t power down, I advise proving the superiority of humans over computers by unplugging the machine from the wall. The user’s resulting sense of empowerment usually allows me to better guide him/her through whatever fix might be necessary. Don’t most PCs force a power off if you hold in the power button for 10 seconds or so? I thought that was marginally safer than pulling the plug since you’d be less likely to get power spikes. Those few times when my computer was absolutely hung I’ve been able to knock it out that way (also easier than finding the right power cord in the maze behind my stuff). ---
**Author:** ![Lasciel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e79b87/32.png) [@Lasciel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lasciel)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2012, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-co-worker-did-not-know-how-to-reboot-a-computer-things-a-certain-age-group-should-know/608104/27 "2012-01-02T20:57:52Z")
> [@Canadjun](#): > > Don’t most PCs force a power off if you hold in the power button for 10 seconds or so? I thought that was marginally safer than pulling the plug since you’d be less likely to get power spikes. Those few times when my computer was absolutely hung I’ve been able to knock it out that way (also easier than finding the right power cord in the maze behind my stuff). That’s what I was referring to by forcing it off, at least. I can’t remember the last time I actually had to unplug any machine to get it off. I always assumed that using the power button to override the shut-down process was just as bad as unplugging it - it was just easier to get to the power button. That would make me feel better to know that it wasn’t actually as bad. ---
**Author:** ![johnpost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f17d59/32.png) [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2012, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-co-worker-did-not-know-how-to-reboot-a-computer-things-a-certain-age-group-should-know/608104/28 "2012-01-02T21:47:02Z")
depends on the OS and version; restart isn’t as visible as an option as it used to be. a person may have never used it and be unaware of it with recent versions. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2012, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-co-worker-did-not-know-how-to-reboot-a-computer-things-a-certain-age-group-should-know/608104/29 "2012-01-03T00:04:28Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > I was not aware of that. I don’t recall any technical people using “restart” instead of “reboot”, although I’ve always seen it in over simplified “documentation for dummies.” 🙂 Depends on how old you are, but “reboot” is only used by the old farts in most computer contexts. It’s like calling something an LPT port or parallel port – the usual term for them (where they do exist) is “Printer port.” Older techies might know the older term, but they are fading away. ---
**Author:** ![Taomist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/53a042/32.png) [@Taomist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Taomist)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2012, 12:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-co-worker-did-not-know-how-to-reboot-a-computer-things-a-certain-age-group-should-know/608104/30 "2012-01-03T00:26:53Z")
Since I’ve started playing SW:TOR, I’ve had to hardboot every single day, as the game totally hangs up Windows sometimes. But I’ve never had a problem with a forced boot, and can’t remember the last time I did a checkdisk. Maybe it’s time I did a checkdisk… 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Ibanez](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/a4c791/32.png) [@Ibanez](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ibanez)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2012, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-co-worker-did-not-know-how-to-reboot-a-computer-things-a-certain-age-group-should-know/608104/31 "2012-01-03T00:41:25Z")
> [@CatherineZeta](#): > > I was under the impression that using the on/off button to shut the computer down was bad for it. If I have to do that my computer usually says Windows didn’t shut down properly when I turn it back on. Yeah it is, and should be the last resort. Here’s the funny part. That’s called a coldboot. There’s also the warmboot, and another one I’m forgetting. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2012, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-co-worker-did-not-know-how-to-reboot-a-computer-things-a-certain-age-group-should-know/608104/32 "2012-01-03T01:26:27Z")
> [@Ibanez](#): > > Here’s the funny part. That’s called a coldboot. There’s also the warmboot, and another one I’m forgetting. Apparently only by Old Farts. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![CatherineZeta](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e95f7d/32.png) [@CatherineZeta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CatherineZeta)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2012, 1:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-co-worker-did-not-know-how-to-reboot-a-computer-things-a-certain-age-group-should-know/608104/33 "2012-01-03T01:33:14Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > Apparently only by Old Farts. :rolleyes: My dad who’s an old fart calls it a “hard shutdown.” He’s also probably where I picked up the term “reboot,” although I’ve also heard other random people say it, which is why I didn’t realize it’s becoming obsolete. ---
**Author:** ![SeaCanary](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e274bd/32.png) [@SeaCanary](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SeaCanary)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2012, 4:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-co-worker-did-not-know-how-to-reboot-a-computer-things-a-certain-age-group-should-know/608104/34 "2012-01-03T04:03:50Z")
> [@CatherineZeta](#): > > Re-boot/re-start- she didn’t know how to turn the computer on and off from the start menu is what I mean. > > I wasn’t a jack ass to her about it, I just showed her how to do it. > > I don’t expect anyone to be a genius, but given that all of my friends and co-workers use computers, I would think that turning it on and off from the start menu would be something one would encounter. My comment came out harsher than I meant it. Apologies all around. ---
**Author:** ![chappachula](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/d2c977/32.png) [@chappachula](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chappachula)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2012, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-co-worker-did-not-know-how-to-reboot-a-computer-things-a-certain-age-group-should-know/608104/35 "2012-01-03T19:58:10Z")
> [@Gusano](#): > > , I usually just tell my caller to power down fully, then power the system back on. what does “power down” mean ? Why not use straighforward English? Like— just tell me to turn the machine off, okay? Like every other machine in the house. If I’m trying to sleep and want some quiet, I don’t ask my wife to “power down” the ceiling light, or “power down” the TV. If the casserole is finished baking, I don’t “power down” the oven. I turn them off. But if it’s a computer— everybody uses funny words for simple concepts… ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2012, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-co-worker-did-not-know-how-to-reboot-a-computer-things-a-certain-age-group-should-know/608104/36 "2012-01-03T20:36:03Z")
When you turn it off and back on, make sure you have a boot disk in floppy drive A:. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2012, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-co-worker-did-not-know-how-to-reboot-a-computer-things-a-certain-age-group-should-know/608104/37 "2012-01-03T20:42:37Z")
(duplicate post) ---
**Author:** ![mhendo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mhendo/32/3159_2.png) [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2012, 9:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-co-worker-did-not-know-how-to-reboot-a-computer-things-a-certain-age-group-should-know/608104/38 "2012-01-03T21:34:55Z")
> [@GuanoLad](#): > > Many people have pointed out elsewhere online the absurdity of calling the button where you turn the computer **off** as “the _Start_ menu.” Though I am pro-Windows generally, I have to agree it’s counter-intuitive. But it hasn’t been called the Start button since at least the introduction of Windows 7, and possibly since Vista as well (i don’t know, because i skipped Vista). It is simply a blue button with the Windows symbol in it. To be honest, even when it was actually called Start, i think it took some real dancing to argue that this somehow made it counter-intuitive as a place to turn the computer off. The start button, as anyone who spent more than about 20 seconds on the computer would realize, was simply the place you went when you wanted to make the computer do something. Shutting down was just one of the many things you could make it do. Frankly, anyone who can’t work that out after a minute of investigation should step away from the keyboard and stick to watching television, because actually using a computer will probably turn out to be too complicated for them. ---
**Author:** ![johnpost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f17d59/32.png) [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2012, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-co-worker-did-not-know-how-to-reboot-a-computer-things-a-certain-age-group-should-know/608104/39 "2012-01-03T22:18:46Z")
> [@mhendo](#): > > But it hasn’t been called the Start button since at least the introduction of Windows 7, and possibly since Vista as well (i don’t know, because i skipped Vista). > > It is simply a blue button with the Windows symbol in it. if you hover the mouse cursor over it it says START. ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2012, 10:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-co-worker-did-not-know-how-to-reboot-a-computer-things-a-certain-age-group-should-know/608104/40 "2012-01-03T22:23:58Z")
> [@CatherineZeta](#): > > My dad who’s an old fart calls it a “hard shutdown.” He’s also probably where I picked up the term “reboot,” although I’ve also heard other random people say it, which is why I didn’t realize it’s becoming obsolete. I call it hard boot/soft boot. But that’s because I’m an old fart. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-co-worker-did-not-know-how-to-reboot-a-computer-things-a-certain-age-group-should-know/608104.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-co-worker-did-not-know-how-to-reboot-a-computer-things-a-certain-age-group-should-know/608104.md?page=3)