Best Computer to Leave On All the Time

[trope]

I have a Python program I want to program to run at the same time every day (btw, what would be the best way to do this - can I open IDLE and run a program in there or should I use the terminal?) and want to get a computer that I can leave on all the time for this purpose. What should I choose? I guess the 2 considerations are energy usage and how long the computer would last? I will of course be using linux. Desktop or laptop would be okay, although a laptop might be more convenient.

[jimallyn]

The cron command can be used to run a program at the same time every day. You can read about it by opening a terminal and entering man cron, but the syntax is a little odd, so you'll probably also want to do a google search for 'cron examples.' There are a bunch of good sites for that on the web. If you don't need a particularly powerful computer to run your Python program, a Raspberry Pi might be a good choice for you. You can get them for 35 dollars, but you'll probably want to buy a starter kit for about 60 or 70 dollars. A Raspberry Pi is also a low power computer, so you don't have to worry about that. I have one here that has been on for 3 years or so, and it still runs fine.

[catweazel]

Raspberry Pi

+1

I was going to write exactly that.

[Pat D]

I don't understand the issue of leaving a computer on all day?
Is it electricity costs? Not meaning to be economically offensive, but I've actually checked my hydro (as we call it here) usage with and without computers.
The result is that I basically leave all of them on all of the time except for what I call (tongue firmly in cheek) "Stress Relief Reboots."
No issues.

[michael louwe]

I do not leave my TV, lights, radio, etc on all day. So, I do not leave my computer on all day = save on electricity costs. My 2008 HP Compaq/Intel Core2Duo computer is still running OK.

Nevertheless, a few gadgets need to be left on all day, eg refrigerator, heaters in winter, etc.