Eric:
It sounds like those eager little electrons came in on the telephone
line and then, in their search for the earth, took several paths in
their quest for the earth. Bear in mind that once they get inside the
computer, they have all sorts of options available as to where they go
next. It sounds like they took out more than the modem on the way. It
happened to me, but I was luckier than your friend and only lost the
modem (a cheapie), a very nice telephone and an answering machine. Your
friend may have learned a tough lesson. My recommendation is to buy an
upscale surge protector that includes a circuit for the phone line and
an insurance policy against any losses that may occur. Keep the
packaging and other paper work! I'm sure that there are others on the
List who are much more expert on this subject than I am, but my
recollection of the research that I did shortly after my loss is that
these devices lose effectiveness as they age, and should be replaced
from time to time (24 months??). Hmmm... how old is that thing?
Not much help, I know, but that's my take.
Carroll Grigsby

Eric Johnson wrote:
>
> A good friend just called me this morning saying his computer (an
> HP Pavilion Pentium III) won't start. There was a whopper of a
> lightning storm last night. You've heard the story before, right?
>
> I asked if he had it plugged in to his UPS - no. Was the modem
> connected too?, I asked - yes. The phone on the same desk was
> destroyed, he told me. He's going to check guarantee coverage.
>
> I haven't seen the toast yet and know that lightning is a very
> mysterious thing, but . . . What have you all seen of this sort of
> damage? Could it be that it only fried the power supply and the
> modem? It'd be a shame if the MB and/or processor and/or monitor
> got cooked.
>
> Gracias,
>
> Eric

            Do you want to signoff PCBUILD or just change to
                    Digest mode - visit our web site:
                    http://nospin.com/pc/pcbuild.html