SETI delay timer (possible?)

[ECUHITMAN]

I was using the GUI but I would rather use the SETI driver but I really dont want it running all the time (I am not sure how good it is for the CPU to be at 100% all the time) but if it is required for me to start the program each time it will never get started (it is not the type of thing I think about all the time). Is there anyway to have a delay (kind of how the screensaver works) before it starts to process? If there is no way to have a idle delay I guess I will have to leave it running all the time, but how does that work? Right now the driver is set up for the idle priority. This may be a dumb question, but does that mean that if I do something else (lets say start to play a game) which uses a lot of the CPU I will assume the SETI driver will turn over CPU usage to the game? Or do I need to shut down the SETI driver first?

On a side note, how hot should the chip get (running XP 2700+ on an Nforce 2 MOBO, nothing oc'ed)? Right now I am running about 27 C (system) and 42 C (cpu) running at 100% usage. Thanks!

 

[Jeff7]

Those are pretty good temps.
I wouldn't worry about running the CPU at full all the time. The biggest concern in my mind would be the effect on your electric bill, which I wouldn't consider to be excessive. It is a processor. It's designed to process. Let it do what it's good at. 🙂
And that whole Low-priority thing, I've never liked that. I've found that setting apps to lowest priority can still impact the performance of games noticably, especially ones like Homeworld 2, which can really tax a system. Everytime something in the background needs the hard drive, I get a mild slowdown. (And yes, DMA is enabled on all drives.)

 

[titanmiller]

Not sure about a program to do what you want, but 100% load should have no adverse affects on a normal CPU. Many of us run our CPUs overclocked and have no problems.

As for the priority level, when SetiDriver is set to Low priority, any task besides Seti that has a higher priority will get the processor power. So in theory if you run a game while seti is running you should get the exact same performance as if it were not running (try 3dMark or something to test it out).
As the post above says, if another process is set at "very low" at the same time seti is, then they will share 50%/50% therefore reducing performance. If you game (or whatever) is set to "low" (or anything above "very low") then it should recieve 100% processor dedication.
Note: to change the priority of any process, open the task manager and go to the processes page, right click on any running process and you should see "set priority" on the menu. I will warn you though, if you set a process (especially one that frequently uses alot of power) to "high" or "realtime", your computer will become nearly unuseable until you restart (priority resets on restart).


Your temps are very good.

 

[Spacehead]

Yes, when SETI is set in idle priority it will give up the CPU for other processes at a higher priority, such as gaming. Occasionally i'll notice just a little lag playing certain games on my computer so sometimes i turn SETI off. But i remember to turn it back on afterward 😉

Running your CPU at 100% won't hurt it. You just need adequate cooling.
My XP1800's run about 50-55C under full load, higher in the summer.

There's a SETI Driver screensaver you might want to try. I've never used it but you can take a look here.