Does it matter if I leave the 16x lens attatched to the XL1 all the time (ie. sitting on a tripod in my office for a month), or will this put extra strain on the mount over time?

Alternately, does mounting the lens repetedly (a few times a day, continuously) create extra wear on it?

THanks.

Shouldn't be a problem. Most folks leave theirs on all the time. You won't hurt the mount by changing out a couple times per day. Hope this helps,

Thanks!

I could swear I read something in the manual about leaving it on vs. leaving it off, one was good, one was bad. I looked again but couldn't find it. I couldn't see how it would make a difference.

Because the XL1s is such a long beast with the lens on, I remove it when it's not in use. Of course, the protective caps go on, and it all goes into my camera bag till next time. I haven't noticed any adverse results yet.
Keith

I just realized I spelled "attach" wrong both in my topic and in my post. Must have been drunk. :)

If I was transporting it often, yes, I would leave the lens off too, but most of the time it sits on its tripod.

I prefer to leave it on, so that I minimise getting any dust on
either my lense or inside my camera. I have a hard plastic
case which can take the camera completely assembled
(including viewfinder and microphone) and I can even fit it
inside a backpack (then I need to remove the viewfinder
and microphone).

I leave my lens on all the time, but in my camera bag. The only problem I could see with leaving your camera assembled and on its tripod is dust.

I had a piece of dust/hair on the inside of my viewfinder once... I went nuts trying to clean my lens until I finally realized where it was. Duh!
Keith