One huge strike, and BOOM!!! the thunder was deafening.
Power went out. Got the modem, and the LAN card.
Local ISP sent company truck out with new modem, programmed it, and got it going on their computer. But it would not work with mine. Put a new LAN card in it and it now works. Anyway, the ISP repair guy said he was quite busy from lightening storms last weekend.
Just interesting.
N
Keep a close eye on that computer. Lightning hit a tree behind my house several years back and fried most of the electronics in the house. Phone line and DSL modem and lan card were toast. The computer booted but gave a message that it had been shut down due to thermal overload. A look under the hood revealed that several of the capacitors around the CPU had dome shaped ends (should be flat) and a few were leaking brown stuff. From then on, I kept the computer shut off unless I was right there in front of it (concerned about fire) and it lasted for another year before dying but was prone to lock ups and blue screens for most of that time.
This happened to a colleague of mine a few years ago. My computer sat right next to his, but it fried his and not mine for some reason.
It was enough of a worry that we upgraded all our power strips to also cover the ethernet, phone and cable lines running into the office rather than just the power cords.
We ended up having to replace his network card, modem, router, and the cabling at first. His motherboard went a few weeks later, and we assume it was because of the surge.
[sarcasm]Lightning, not lightening[/sarcasm]
A year ago I lost my whole office electronics, 3 computers, 3 monitors, printer, phone, router and a tv because of hard wiring.
It overheated a module on my win98 motherboard and that wiped out an entire office system that was not replaceable, at least the data it created was backed up.
Since then all my computers are connected to each other and the internet by wireless routers.
The only wires connected to my computers are the monitor/s and the power cord from battery backup system.
OK, we go "lightning" now!
Lightened my load!
BOOM!
N
Nate, try this...
I have read that one can tie a loose overhand knot in the power cables and lightning cannot negotiate the knots. Supposedly, lightning can't handle the curves. Of course, this is unsubstantiated by any real proof.
Nate, try this...
I doubt a knot has any more effect than a simple loop, although I've never tried to calculate it. I suspect you would be better off making a multi-turn coil on a broomstick or plastic bottle. Such a coil has inductance that restricts the rise-time on the voltage and current that is conducted through your equipment to a network line or other connection, but won't block the majority of the power.
Note that a knot or coil will do nothing about the voltage between the hot power conductor and the neutral or ground conductors. The current through the hot and other wires go in opposite directions through the coil, so their magnetic/inductive effects cancel out and the result for the round-trip via this path is the same as a straight power cord.
Nate, try this...
What does this have to do with the fine art of human reproduction?
(thanks for the help)
N