On Jun 3, 8:56*pm, wrote:
On Wed, 3 Jun 2009 16:22:57 -0700 (PDT), Frogwatch

wrote:
Last year, I stopped using computer during a storm even though we have
a surge protector. *FLASH-Bang and a huge spark jumps from the
computer housing to the grounded outlet, HUH? *made no sense to me but
it cured me of wanting to use computer during storms.

Beef up your point of entry surge protection and make sure the cable
and telephone company are bonding to your electrical service ground
electrode system.
When I was working for IBM (Ft Myers) we designed protective systems
for our customers who were not willing to stop working just because it
was raining outside.
We went from a half dozen lightning damage calls a day to less than 3
a summer.
Grounding, bonding and surge protection is the difference.

Take a look at the products at:
http://www.deltala.com/products.htm

We use them to protect the building at work (an electronics design,
manufacturing and software house), and a lot of us have used them to
protect our houses and wells. Reasonably priced, easy to install, and
they work.

Like others have pointed out, nearly nothing can protect you from a
direct hit.

I have been to the top of a mountain in northern California, where
there was a three story fire watch building with a bunch of radio
equipment and a microwave shot back down to the valley. The top the
building was pretty much wrapped with metal fencing that was all
bonded together, with wires running down all four corners. These
wires continued out from the building and into a big grounding scheme
that covered a large area. The idea is that not if, but *when* the
building was struck, everything in the building rose up to the same
potential, and then bled off into the mountain. It's the difference
in potential (voltage) that kills equipment.

Oh yeah, this thing was manned during the summer. Wow!!