Is it ok to remove the battery for long periods of time?
No, the battery powers the RTC (Real Time Clock). You should never remove the battery except when replacing it or upgrading the memory chips. The above answer is not completely technically correct. You can remove the battery for long periods, however, if you do this, the NVRAM (RTC clock chip) will start using it’s built in battery to keep the clock going. IMHO, this is a very bad thing. The NVRAM battery is actually built into the chip, IT IS NOT REPLACEABLE. You have to replace the whole NVRAM chip (or drill out the battery and hook up wires to it). I have just replaced and programmed a NVRAM chip in a really old Sun 3/80 (circa 1989) and it is not for the faint of heart.
