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Windows XP/Home allows you to have more than one person logged on to a PC simultaneously. This ability is called Fast User Switching, and it has advantages and disadvantages:
- On the plus side: Fast User Switching lets you keep all your programs going while somebody else pops onto the machine for a quick jaunt on the keyboard. When he is done, he can log off, and you can pick up precisely where you left off before you got bumped.
- On the minus side: All the idle programs left sitting around by the inactive ("bumped") user can bog things down for the active user. You can avoid the overhead by logging off before the new user logs on.
 | To disable Fast User Switching, choose Start --> Control Panel and click User Accounts. In the lower-right corner, click the User Accounts icon. At the bottom of the Pick a Task list, click Change the Way Users Log On or Off. Then deselect the Use Fast User Switching check box. |
You probably won't be surprised to find that you have to click Start to log off or switch users. Simply choose Start --> Log Off and then click Switch User or Log Off.
To further confuse matters, many computers — especially portables — can go into Hibernate or Standby mode (variously called Suspend, Suspend to File, or any of a handful of out-to-lunch synonyms). The primary differences between the two modes are as follows:
- In Standby mode, the PC shuts off the monitor and hard drives but keeps everything in memory so it can "wake up" quickly.
- In Hibernate mode, the PC shuts off the monitor and hard drives and shuffles a copy of everything in memory to the hard drive before going night-night. It takes longer to wake up from Hibernate mode because the contents of memory have to be pulled in from the hard drive.
If your portable runs out of power while in Standby mode, you're up the creek without a paddle. If it's in Hibernate mode (and Hibernate mode is working properly), running out of juice poses no problem: Plug the PC back into the wall and it comes out of Hibernate mode, brings its memory back from the hard drive, and picks up where you left off.
Not all computers support Standby mode or Hibernate mode. Some older computers don't handle either mode. Other computers can do both. If you have a choice, the guidelines are quite simple:
- If there's any chance that your PC will run out of power while in Standby mode, don't use it. Hibernate instead.
- If you have to bring your machine back up quickly (say, for a presentation or to take sporadic notes), use Standby mode.
To go into Standby or Hibernate mode, choose Start --> Turn Off Computer. You see a dialog box with the recommended mode as your first option (see Figures 1 and 2).
Figure 1: Go into Standby mode.
Figure 2: Or use Hibernate mode.
 | If your PC supports both Standby and Hibernate mode, hold down the Shift key while the Turn Off Computer dialog box is on the screen. Windows obliges by changing back and forth between Standby and Hibernate. |
You should always turn your computer off the "official" way, by choosing Start --> Turn Off Computer --> Turn Off. If you just flip the power switch off, Windows can accidentally zap files and leave them unusable. Windows needs time to make sure that everything is in order before turning the lights off. Make sure that it gets the time it needs by using the official method for shutting down.
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