Now I think I know why I like to hang on to things. Early Saturday morning I was awoke by a very loud crack of thunder. Maybe you can already see where I'm going with this.
Anyway, later in the day when I wanted to turn on the computer I noticed my cable modem's PC Activity light wasn't turning on.
Then I get another computer from the back room, and it didn't turn on for that, either. I called a relative and took the cable modem over there (Motorola SurfBoard 5100). No PC Activity light for that, either. I borrowed their modem. It is almost identical except it is a 5101. Called the ISP today and gave them the MAC address off this modem. It can connect to the Internet now, but won't load webpages. I reboot and get limited connectivity. The PC Activity light goes on and off. My computer's network port must have taken a hit, too. I try the other computer and it works just fine.
Luckily, though, I had kept a network card I got for my old computer but never used it (bought in 2004). The old computer had Windows ME and the drivers conflicted with it. With Windows XP it installed automatically. I can now use the Internet and it seems ok so far. Just a few days before my computer got zapped, my cousin's laptop took a hit. I guess I like desktops better because you can switch parts out. The laptop had to be sent in to HP under warranty. It feels good to be back online. I haven't been so bored in quite a while.