Please don't laugh to hard at this question ok so a long time ago I herd that if an artifact is tap it is turned off. Example if you tap say {pithing needle} it loses it's ability is this rule still in affect or was it a rule at all.
As far as I know, this was never a rule. If it was, it certainly isn't now!
The only thing tapping an artifact will do is prevent any activated abilities that involve tapping the artifact, and it will stop any "as long as this artifact is untapped..." effects. Otherwise, it's good to go!
And to clarify with your example, a tapped {Pithing Needle} will still work, as weird as it may seem.
One of the great R&D reworks changed this. The best example is {howling mine}.
Looks like anything older than 6th edition implied this rule where as updated versions of this card specify untapped.
Yeah. That's an old ruling from when I started playing. Back then, if a continuous or poly artifact was tapped, it's abilities were turned off. Not so now.