Copyright: Copyright (C) 1996-1997. Toshiba corporation.


Power Save Settings Utility
Power Save Utility

This utility is a power management program for your Toshiba computer.

The program gives you the ability to control your computer’s battery power consumption and power on sequence through a series of customizable settings.

You can choose one of five power saving modes.

Starting the Power Save utility

There are two ways you can start the Power Save utility in Windows 95.

1. From the task bar.

(1) Double click the power save tray icon on the task bar.

2. From the control panel.

(1) Open the Windows 95 Control Panel.

(2) Double click the Power Saver icon.

Using the Power Save utility

Preset power save modes

You can choose between battery and external power supply.

There are four preset Power Save modes and one which can be customized.

See also: Power Save Modes Tab

Customizing the power save modes

Select the Details button if you want to change the settings for the chosen power save mode. It is possible to change settings for the Display, the HDD, the CPU, the System (Boot mode) and various miscellaneous items.

See also: Detailed Settings


Power Save Modes Tab

The following Power Save Modes are available:

Full Power Mode

High Power Mode

Medium Power Mode

Low Power Mode

User Setting

Battery Charge

This part of the screen displays your current battery charge as a percentage remaining.

Power Save Indicator

Select this check box if you want the tray icon to be shown on the task bar of Windows 95.

Power Save Tray Icon

Double click the power save tray icon on the taskbar to start the Power Save utility.


Detailed Settings

The following detailed settings are available:

Display Auto Off

HDD Auto Off

Processor Speed

System

Miscellaneous


Full Power Mode

This mode utilizes the full power of your PC.

When the machine is idle, the HDD and the display will change to standby mode.

Full Power Mode is the default when using an external power supply.

You can check and/or change the settings in the detailed settings screen.


High Power Mode

This mode gets good performance from your PC.

When the machine is idle, the HDD and the display will change to standby mode sooner than in Full Power Mode.

You can check and/or change the settings in the detailed settings screen.


Medium Power Mode

This mode is a compromise between performance and power consumption.

Medium Power Mode is the default when using the battery.

You can check and/or change the settings in the detailed settings screen.


Low Power Mode

This mode is for minimum power consumption.

In this mode the PC may be used for longer than in any of the other modes. However, response times will be slower because the display and other parts of the PC are shut down earlier than in the other modes.

You can check and/or change the settings in the detailed settings screen.


User Setting

This mode gives you control of all the power saving settings.

You can use the user setting mode to fine tune the four preset modes.

You can check and/or change the settings in the detailed settings screen.


Display Auto Off Settings

The Display Auto Off tab controls the display power saving modes. You can adjust the Display Auto Off time and the LCD brightness level for various battery charge levels.

Attention

When the display is powered off, it appears as if the PC will actually shut down and any work-in-progress on the computer may be lost. Remember if you press the power switch, the PC will actually shut down and any work-in progress on the computer may be lost.

To determine if the main power supply is On or Off, check the LEDs on the PC:

Power LED is off

The main power supply to the PC is disconnected. Connect a power supply to use your PC.

Power LED is on, and DC IN LED flashes

This is the standby state. Essential information has been stored in memory before the PC was shut down. This information is restored when the PC is switched on again.

Power LED is on, and DC IN LED switches from on to off

The power supply of the display has been cut, but the main PC power supply is still on. To switch on the display press a key on the keyboard or move the mouse.


HDD Auto Off Settings

The HDD Auto Off tab controls the HDD power saving modes. You can adjust the HDD Auto Off time for various battery charge levels.

Additional Functions

The HDD will not power off if the keyboard or mouse is in use. When you select the “Keyb./Mouse” checkbox under any battery charge level, the power supply for the HDD will be out when the mouse or keyboard has been idle for the specified HDD Auto Off duration.

Note

Setting the Power Off delay to a very short time slows the PC down. This is because of the time it takes to restart the HDD.


Processor Speed Settings

The Processor Speed tab controls the CPU power saving modes. You can adjust the CPU processing speed for various battery charge levels.

Note

The CPU management settings are ignored if the CPU is overheating. If the CPU does overheat, the system will automatically shut down the power supply for the PC. Store the PC in a cool for a while before using it again.


System Settings

The System tab controls the restart mode and standby timing.

(1) Startup method of the PC

You can select either Boot mode or Hibernation mode. If the Boot mode is selected, the PC will start and shut down in the normal way. If the Hibernation mode is selected, the PC will resume from the power where you left off. For example, this could be in the middle of editing a document in a word processor.

The hibernation function copies the contents of the computer's memory to the hard disk when the power supply is cut. When you set up the hibernation function, the PC goes into suspend mode if the power supply is cut.

The benefits of the Hibernation mode are:

1. If the power supply to the PC is disconnected, the data will be retained.

2. System settings can be restored in a short time.

3. Power saving is maximized because the power is cut off every time.

Note

The Hibernation function saves the contents of the memory to the HDD. If you suspend the PC using the "Suspend" command on the "START" button, or switch off, the data in the memory will be saved to the HDD. If you set up the Standby time, after a period of time the PC will switch OFF. If you switch on during the Standby time period, the system will return to the state it was left in before it was suspended. If you don't set up the Standby time, the power supply for the PC will be shut down at the end of the Hibernation period.

Two options are available to you when using the hibernation function: panel switch function (2) or system automatic Off time function ( 3 ).

Attention

If you restart the PC in Hibernation mode, the data saved on the HDD before the PC was powered off is copied back into memory to reproduce the same display. If the Disk LED is on, or the DC IN LED flashes, don’t remove the battery pack or the AC adapter. This will result in the loss of data.

(2) Panel switch function

If you choose this function, the PC switches off in suspend mode when closing the Panel. When you open the Panel again, the PC resumes from where you left off.

(3) System Auto Off Time

This allows you to specify how long to wait after a period of inactivity before the PC is switched off in suspend mode. This is only available when the Hibernation mode is selected.

(4) Standby Time

The standby time is the interval between writing data from memory to the HDD and shutting down the system. Available settings are 0,…,60 minutes and unlimited. This is only available when the Hibernation mode is selected.


Miscellaneous Settings

The Miscellaneous tab controls the power saving modes of the following: sound, serial ports, PC card modems (communication only), and multi-function PC Card modems.

Sound Control

Off: disables sound.

Auto1: enables sound and uses power whenever sound is produced. If there is no sound produced power to the sound card is cut.

Auto2: as in Auto1 but activating the sound function takes longer.

On: fully enables sound.

Turn off serial ports when not in use

Checked: the serial port or a PC card is supplied with power only if you use it.

Unchecked: the power supply for this device is always on.

Turn off PC-card modems when not in use

Checked: PC Card modems or compatible devices are supplied with power only when you use them. If you use PC Cards which are not compatible with modems or serial ports, this setting has no effect.

This setting has no effect when running applications from the MS-DOS prompt.

Turn off Multi-Function PC-Card modems when not in use

Checked: Multi-Function PC Card modems are supplied with power only when you use them.

The Multi-Function PC Card modems doesn't use any power if you are not using the modem. This function does not control the power management of PC network cards.

This setting has no effect when running applications from the MS-DOS prompt.


How to best use the Power Save utility

Tip 1:

The tabs that appear when you click ‘Details’ (Display Auto Off, HDD Auto Off, Processor Speed, System and Miscellaneous) are ordered in terms of power saving possibilities. This means that power saving settings on the first tab (Display Auto Off) have the greatest effect. Power saving settings on the last tab (Miscellaneous) have the least effect.

Tip 2:

When you insert a PC card (except a network card), the PC will supply power to the PC card. When you remove the PC card, the power supply is cut.

In Windows 95 the power save tray icon and the “usage status” is shown on the taskbar when the PC card is inserted. If you don’t use the PC card and leave it in the PC, you can save power by double clicking the power save tray icon on the taskbar to stop power to the PC card.

Tip 3:

Windows 95 provides some screen saver programs. A screen saver program prevents the display from burning out. It will run when the system is idle: i.e., the Keyboard/Mouse are not used. Screen savers use the CPU and keep the display active. Which is counterproductive to power saving. Use the Display Auto Off function rather than the screen saver to protect your screen.


Specifies that the power save mode setting is for the battery. The default power save mode for this setting is “Medium Power Mode.”


Specifies that the power save mode setting is for the AC power supply connection. It is best to use the “Full Power Mode” with this setting.


In this mode the full performance of your PC is used. When the machine is idle, the HDD and the display will change to standby mode. This is the default mode when starting your PC with an external power supply.

Select the “Details…” button to customize this mode.


In this mode the priority of the settings is to get good performance. When the machine is idle, the HDD and the display will change to standby mode sooner than in Full Power Mode.

Select the “Details…” button to customize this mode.


This mode is a compromise between performance and power consumption.

Medium Power Mode is the default mode when starting your system with a battery supply.

Select the “Details…” button to customize this mode.


This mode is for minimum power consumption.

In this mode the PC may be used for longer than in any of the other modes. However, response times will be slower because the display and other parts of the PC are shut down earlier than in the other modes.

Select the “Details…” button to customize this mode.


This mode gives you control of all the power saving settings.

You can use the user setting mode to fine tune the four preset modes.

Select the “Details…” button to customize this mode.


Click this to make changes to the following detailed settings: Display Auto Off, HDD Auto Off, Processor Speed, System and Miscellaneous Settings.

Select the “Details…” button to customize this mode.


Select this to display the power save tray icon on the taskbar.

The color of the power save tray icon indicates which mode is in use as follows.

  Full Power Mode	White

  High Power Mode	Yellow

  Medium Power Mode	Orange

  Low Power Mode	Brown

  User Setting	Pink


If this checkbox is selected, all of the settings on this tab are used. If this checkbox is not selected, none of the settings are used.


Adjusts the Display Auto Off Time for the various battery charge levels. You can set this from 1 to 60 minutes, or disabled. When the display power is turned off, the screen display is blank.

Attention

When the display is powered off, it appears as if the PC is shut down. Remember if you press the power switch, the PC will actually shut down and any work in progress on the PC may be lost.


Adjusts the LCD Brightness for the various battery charge levels.

The brighter the display, the more power is used. For longer battery life, use a darker LCD setting.


Returns all the Display Auto Off settings to their initial values.


If this checkbox is selected, all of the settings on this tab are used. If this checkbox is not selected, none of the settings are used.


Adjusts the HDD Auto Off Time for the various battery charge levels. This is timed after the end of reading or writing to the HDD. You can set this from 1 to 60 minutes.

Note

Setting the Power Off delay to a very short time slows the PC down. This is because of the time it takes to restart the HDD.


Specifies if the HDD should power off while the keyboard or mouse is being used. Normally the HDD will not power off while the keyboard or mouse is being used. By selecting this checkbox, the power supply for the HDD will be cut when the mouse or keyboard has been idle for the specified HDD Auto Off duration.


Specifies if the HDD should power off while the display is being refreshed. Normally the HDD will not power off while the display is being refreshed. By selecting this checkbox, the power supply for the HDD will be cut after the display has been idle for the specified HDD Auto Off duration.

Note

If the HDD auto power off is dependent on the Display power off and the Display power off delay is too short (such as 1 minute), the HDD will stop too often. This will lead to poor system performance.


Returns all the HDD Auto Off settings to their initial values.


If this checkbox is selected, all of the settings on this tab are used. If this checkbox is not selected, none of the settings are used.

Note

The CPU management settings are ignored if the CPU is overheating. If the CPU does overheat, the system will automatically shut down the power supply for the PC. Store the PC in a cool for a while before using it again.


Adjusts the CPU processing speed for various battery charge levels.


Returns all the Processor Speed settings to their initial values.


Specifies that the PC will start up and shut down normally using the Boot mode. This is the default mode for starting the PC. At start up the Boot mode initializes the PC and loads Windows 95.


Specifies that the PC will suspend and resume for the shut down and start up operations. Resume restores the environment from when you last used the PC

This benefits of this mode are:

1. If the power supply to the PC is disconnected, the data will be retained.

2. System settings can be restored in a short time.

3. Power saving is maximized because the power is cut off every time.

Note

In Hibernation mode, the system can be suspended using “Suspend” from the Windows 95 Start menu or the System Auto Off Time setting on this tab.


Specifies if the PC should switch off in suspend mode when you close the LCD panel. When you open the Panel the PC resumes from where you left off.


Adjusts how long to wait after a period of inactivity before the PC is switched off in suspend mode. The preset delays are: 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60 minutes and disabled.


Adjusts the interval between writing data from memory to the HDD and shutting down the system. Available settings are 0,…,60 minutes and unlimited. This is only available when the Hibernation mode is selected.


Returns all the System settings to their initial values.


Adjusts the sound setting to one of the following values:

Off: disables sound

Auto1: enables sound and uses power whenever sound is produced. If there is no sound produced power to the sound card is cut

Auto2: same as Auto1 but activating the sound function takes longer

Full On: fully enables sound


Specifies if power should be supplied to the serial port or a PC card when they are not in use.


Specifies if power should be supplied to the PC card modems or compatible devices when they are not in use. If you use PC cards which are not compatible with modems or serial ports, this setting has no effect.

This setting has no effect when running applications from the MS-DOS prompt.


Specifies if power should be supplied to Multi-Function PC card modems or compatible devices when they are not in use.

This setting has no effect when running applications from the MS-DOS prompt.


Returns all the Miscellaneous settings to their initial values.


This section display the residual battery charge level as a percentage.