To show the electron configuration for an atom when would it be better to use an orbital notation than to use a written configuration with numbers letters and subscripts

It is more convenient to use an orbital diagram when you want to show the number of unpaired electrons.

For example, the electron configuration of N is 1s² 2s²2p³.

The orbital diagram (see image below) gives the same information, but it also shows that the three 2p electrons are unpaired.

The number of unpaired electrons is useful when you are trying  to discover the magnetic properties of an atom or ion.

yes

explanation:

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alkaline metals are lithium, sodium, rubidium, potassium, cesium and francium.

alkali metals have electronegativity from 0.7 to 1, lowest in periodic table of elements, which means that alkali metals (i group in periodic table) has positive oxidation number in compounds.

electronegativity is a chemical property that describes the tendency of an atom to attract a shared pair of electrons towards itself.

alkaline metals (far left in main group) have lowest ionizations energy and easy remove valence electrons,

for example, potassium is the alkali metal and has a single valence electron in the outer electron shell.

electron configuration of potassium is: ₁₉k 1s²2s²2p⁶3s²3p⁶4s¹.

they can not exist alone in nature, because they are very reactive.