"Please....NOT now", you beg.

"Hold on just a little longer and I promise I'll be a better owner."

Or worse, your computer completely dies, leaving you without access to all your essential documents.

I'm here to tell you how to protect yourself.

You have insurance for your car, your home, your life and maybe even for your pet, but do you have a UPS for your computer?

No, I'm not talking about the courier in the brown suit.

A UPS (aka Uninterruptible Power Supply), according to Wikipedia is "an electrical apparatus that provides emergency power to a load when the input power source, typically main power, fails".

(source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uninterruptible_power_supply)

It's not a generator, rather it's designed to be a safeguard against power failures, power surges and its sole purpose is to allow you to safely shut down your system in case of a power outage.

But Bob....where do I start? You ask.

Well, my friend, that's where I'm here to help.

First you want to determine the electronics you have to protect and how much backup you need.

Perhaps you just want a few minutes of battery so that you can safely turn off your machine.

Or, do you live in a rural area that may be prone to electrical spikes or brownouts?

These gadgets aren't sexy. They aren't a "fun" purchase (unless you're an IT geek, like me) but you'll thank me when it saves your butt.

You've spent hundreds, if not thousands on your electronics. UPS will safeguard your precious commodities from any nasty little gremlins.

And when your new UPS is bought and installed, be sure to let your insurance company know about your new protective hardware. You might be able to get a discount on your home insurance.

Let the gremlins invade your neighbor's house. You know, the guy who mows his lawn at 7 a.m. on a Saturday.

Any IT, AV or "techie" questions, be sure to email me at AlphaStarr or tweet me at @alphastarr