I frequently put my laptop into standby mode instead of shutting it down completely. This allows quick access to my computer when I have idle time waiting for a flight or sitting in a taxi. On Leveno laptops, the keystroke is Fn+F4 (look for the half moon). Some people have problems with the laptop returning from standby mode. You can minimize the chances of this happening by going through a few steps before hitting standby.
Steps to Improve Laptop Standby Reliability
- Close down unnecessary applications - yes one of the benefits of standby mode is to return to your open applications, but the memory footprint of applications are saved to your hard disk; this is why it takes so long to load up when coming out of standby
- Unplug devices BEFORE you enter standby mode, not after - the laptop expects things to be the same way when it returns, even hardware; if you remove a USB mouse or EVDO card after going into standby mode (and forget to insert it before waking up the laptop), you put the laptop in an unknown state
- Reboot once in a while - while I’ve gone several weeks without shutting down, it’s good practice to give your laptop a memory refresh; I usually reboot it right before I goto bed so it’s ready for me in the morning
- To return from standby mode, hold down the Fn key until your hard disk light begins to flicker - that is the signal your laptop has heard your wake-up call; just relax and wait for the wake-up process to complete - have patience and don’t reboot!
Getting yourself up and running is important so you can use your idle time wisely. As travelers we have plenty of that. Happy travels.