Page 472 - Windows 10 May 2019 Update The Missing Manual: The Book That Should Have Been in the Box

Power Options manages your computer’s power consumption. That’s

crucial when you’re running off a laptop’s battery, but it’s also important if
you’d like to save money (and the environment) by cutting down on the
juice consumed by your desktop PC. The options you see depend on your
PC’s particular features.

A power plan dictates things like how soon the computer goes to sleep, how
bright the screen is, what speed the processor cranks at, and so on. Right up
front, you get three premade power plans:

Balanced, which is meant to strike a balance between energy
savings and performance. When you’re working hard, you get all

the speed your PC can deliver; when you’re thinking or resting, the
processor slows down to save juice.

Power saver slows down your computer but saves power—a
handy choice for laptop luggers who aren’t doing anything more

strenuous than word processing.

High performance (click “Show additional plans” to see it) sucks
power like a black hole but grants you the highest speed possible.

Tip
You don’t have to open the Control Panel to change among these canned plans. On a laptop, for
example, you can just click the battery icon on your system tray and choose from the pop-up
menu.

But creating your own power plan can be useful, not only because you gain
more control, but also because you get to see exactly what a plan is made

of. For step-by-step instructions, see the free downloadable appendix
“Creating a Power Plan” on this book’s “Missing CD” page at
missingmanuals.com.

Programs and Features