Miscellaneous laptop discussions forum: Gateway M320 processor fan

Is it normal for the processor fan to be running all the time?! Part of
the reason I bought a system with a Pentium M processor (I have a Gateway M320
XL/1.7GHz Pentium M/500MB RAM/100GB memory) was that I thought these don't overheat as easily. However, my processor fan
usually starts working about a couple of minutes after I turn the
computer on. It will not switch off until I turn the computer off even
if it's cold in the room and even if I leave the computer for a long
period of time without any programs running. I do set my system
to hibernate mode whenever I don't need it (and I
always turn it off for the night). But it is not
unusual for me to leave it turned on for several (i.e.
4-5) hours at a time and use it only every once in a
while (for emails, messenger, online dictionary,
online library etc.) I figure this is better than
putting it on standby and then turning it on every
half an hour... That's when I'd expect the processor
fan to stop working.

I am using the "minimal
power scheme" from the power management options, and am using an external monitor, so my notebook monitor is never on. The computer
is placed on a computer desk with nothing near it to
obstruct air flow, it is runnning on AC power, I use
neither PC cards, nor docking stations/port
replicators - which, I understand, would cause heating.
I'm worried that working several hours a day, puts too much strain on the fan, and
that it might break down sooner. (Also, in a really quiet room, it provides a
clearly discernible low background noise even if it's running at the slowest speed...)

A friend of mine has an older notebook with a celeron
processor, but his processor fan turns off whenever he's not using the
computer - which is what I would've expected from the Centrino Technology.

I would like to emphasize that my computer DOES NOT overheat, I've never had any problems with it, and the fan runs at the slowest speed when I am not doing any work on it - but it still runs... It has always been like this ever since I bought it from Gateway last March. The only reason I'm a bit worried is that I'd just like to take good care of it and prevent any future problems.

If you own a similar system, do you have the same "problem"? Is this something in the design of this model, or should I be worried that there's something wrong with mine? Thanks, and sorry for the long post,
L.T.