One of the most common causes of death for computers is lightning. If a bolt strikes your house, it will likely fry every piece of electronic equipment in it. Even if a strike hits down the street, a high voltage surge can travel over the telephone lines and power lines, wreaking havoc with any of your equipment that is connected.
You can protect yourself against this disaster by unplugging all your equipment when an electrical storms comes near… if you're at home. The best "life insurance" against lightning is a good surge suppressor. A good surge suppressor suppresses (puts down) the surge of voltage that a lightning strike sends across the power and telephone lines to your house. Did you notice that I used italics twice for the word good? That's because all surge suppressors are not created equal, and only the better ones provide any protection against lightning.
Companies that make good surge suppressors include Panamax, APC, and Tripp Lite. For example, a Panamax SP8T will cost $40 plus shipping. It provides protection against surges over power and telephone lines, and the company provides a $50,000 insurance policy against any damage to your equipment.
An even more useful kind of "life insurance" for your computer is a UPS. No, not the shipping company, an uninterruptible power supply. A UPS is basically a big rechargeable battery with a charger and some controlling electronics. A less serious change in your house's electricity is when the power goes off. Sometimes it can go off and on repeatedly, and this is not good for any electronic devices that are on at the time. The power also has a bad habit of going off while you're creating a prize-winning novel and have forgotten to save your work recently. Well, a UPS protects you against just such hazards. It keeps your computer going when the electricity goes off, and if the power outage lasts any time, it provides you with the opportunity to save your work and shut your computer down properly.
I would recommend the APC Back-UPS ES 500 watt unit for $60 plus shipping. It provides power and telephone protection, and has a $75,000 equipment warranty. It would give you around 10 minutes to see if the power's coming back on, and if not, to shut your computer down.
