[1gynRat258]

Folks,
My wife and I both have desktop PCs + I-Phones. In addition to these gadgets I also have an I-pad. Is it necessary for us to continue using a landline?
We understand that landlines are good if you want to use your desktop during thunderstorms and rain.
Thanks in advance.

[LiveBrianD]

Due to the risk of power surges and lightning, you should NOT use your computer during a thunderstorm. Besides, the power might go out anyway.

You're just talking about landline phone service, right? I guess it's ok to do that, though if a storm comes though the cell towers might be down or overloaded. Don't rely on a cellular connection as your main internet connection, because of the data caps.

[coastie65]

Hi. Rain isn't necessarily a problem, Thunderstorms are. I am on a UPS ( Universal Power Supply ) just for that eventuality ( we do get a few T'storms here in Va. ). You didn't say what kind of internet service you had. I have known of lightning hitting a powerline, then the resulting surge coming through a phone line and frying an internal modem on a computer. If a T'storm does come up and we lose power, then the UPS gives me time to finish what I was doing, save it and shut down.

[LiveBrianD]

The other day, I had a power blip for a half second (the entire neighborhood, not just me). That caused my PC to shut down. I turned it back on, and there was another blip before it got to POST. I then powered it on again, and got a message that my overclock failed. (for now, I reverted back to stock speed, as I needed to finish some homework stuff and didn't want to spend a bunch of time messing with the overclock) Still, that's quite rare, and I don't see a need for a UPS. We really don't get thunderstorms much here though, and the power is pretty reliable.

This post has been edited by LiveBrianD: 26 February 2012 - 05:25 PM

[mjd420nova]

I have two adult children at home, you can imagine the amount of RF traffic throughout this home. I still have a land line (double L, twisted pair) The phone system runs of 48 volts DC and they keep warehouses full of batteries to keep it running in event of a major incident. Earthquakes can take out power for huge areas but those phones will still ring. Cell phones, cordless phones and all manner of smart phones, pads and tablets will be blank.

[1gynRat258]

Folks,

I like the comments you are all providing me. My internet system is with AOL. I use a Windows 7 operating system. I will no longer use my computer in a thunder storm. From all of your responses I take it that there are no other reasons that I should continue to have a land line phone in that we have no kids or any one else living with us. If there are additional considerations for using a land line phone please inform me.
Thanks in advance.

[coastie65]

1gynRat258, on 26 February 2012 - 07:19 PM, said:

Folks,

I like the comments you are all providing me. My internet system is with AOL. I use a Windows 7 operating system. I will no longer use my computer in a thunder storm. From all of your responses I take it that there are no other reasons that I should continue to have a land line phone in that we have no kids or any one else living with us. If there are additional considerations for using a land line phone please inform me.
Thanks in advance.

All I have is a landline as I feel that I am over connected as it is ( two desktops and two laptops ). At home, a landline is good to have because of the 911 service. They immediately have your location when you call an dispatch emergency services while getting the info ( worked well when I had my heart attack ). A UPS can save a lot of aggravation from those power spikes that you can occasionally get. What i meant as to the internet service , was it dial up, DSL, cable, fiber, or satellite.

[compnovo]

My son and his wife have never used POTS (plain old telephone service). They rely on their cell phones for voice and texting, and their computers for everything else, and have never had a problem. We've considered dropping the land line in our house but we still use a fax machine, and we like the unlimited long distance. Ironically, our phone service is with Comcast, it comes through the cable as a digital signal, so we lose the phones when the power goes down (as it did this weekend. I had to use my cell to call in the power outage ).

This post has been edited by compnovo: 27 February 2012 - 08:28 AM

[mjd420nova]

After many days of searching through event logs I have found the cause for a multiple system failure by two machines and a blown ground fault fuse. It doesn't matter what protection you use on your systems, isolation is the only sure way to keep lightning events from affecting your hardware. By isolation I mean to unplug them. Turning off switches on strips only isolates the hot and common leads. Ground potentials can do far more damage and even elevates other potentials in opearating systems. It only takes a fifth of a second, power companies can respond in far quicker but are based only on high line potentials. A land line has been known to carry lightning strikes into the home and were a hazard until standard boxes and entry points were established along with protection/termination elements and lightning arrestors. I have a DSL and the cable drop is not in use. The DSL uses the incoming pair and then filters for phone lines. In a pinch I could use my buds set and clip on. No power is needed for simple handsets, they get it from the incoming line. It will surely work when nothing else is, some think it would become overloaded but it is more likely the opposite, no cell phone service will leave the lines wide open for hard line users.

[compnovo]

mjd420nova, on 27 February 2012 - 08:47 AM, said:

By isolation I mean to unplug them. Turning off switches on strips only isolates the hot and common leads. Ground potentials can do far more damage and even elevates other potentials in opearating systems. It only takes a fifth of a second, power companies can respond in far quicker but are based only on high line potentials.

Thanks mjd, I didn't know that piece of information.

[1gynRat258]

Folks,

I would like to thank all of you for your comments. They were helpful in arriving at my decision. In that we have unlimited long distance call service with the Land line my wife & I will keep the land line. However I will incorporate many of your comments when using my computer.