I play with my computer

Question

I play with my computer

I play on my computer

Are both of them possible?.

Thank you.

Answer 1

Yes, and with only a subtle difference in meaning.

I play with my computer could mean that I'm adding peripherals, hardware, etc. (externally). The computer could be turned off.

I play with my computer, at least, once a month.

I play on my computer means that the computer is turned on and that you are using the OS, software, online, etc.

I play on my computer, at least, once a day.

I have accepted your answer, Qfreed. But I think it is a strange way to play with the computer. I mean, changing the parts and so on. - nila45, Mar 18, 2010

It's kind of tongue-in-cheek, nila... the computer is like a toy for big folks. Also.. "play with" as quentin is using it can also mean "fine tune" or "get the details just right" . - Valerie, Mar 18, 2010

We use "play around with" to mean tinker with, to fiddle with, to update, to improve, to consider "I played with several ideas, before I settled on that one"". - 0074b507, Mar 18, 2010

to toy with, good analogy, Valerie - 0074b507, Mar 18, 2010