I'm pretty well uneducated when it comes to computers, so apologies if this is a stupid question.

I know the simulation doesn't end when I shut the program down. But is it constantly running in the background, or does the computer calculate everything that would have happened while the game was off when you turn it back on (hence my little issue with 48 4 year olds)?

My computer has been running really choppy lately, and I am trying to nail down the culprit.

Also-is there any way to disable the shoutbox, I know that is slowing this site up for me tremndously.

Thanks