Brownouts, shorts, explosions and the unix pc.

[Rob Stampfli]

>And for those electronics hobbiests amongst you, don't play with Tesla coils
>within 400m (1/4 mile) of computers ... you WILL zap CMOS ICs.

I am a ham radio operator.  I have gone to numerous hamfests where various
individuals were actively operating tesla coils in order to garner interest
in a potential sale of tesla coil kits.  Now, I always carry a handheld
ham radio transceiver with me.  It is like a walkie-talkie, complete with
tuned circuits, ICs, a control microprocessor, and even a rubber duck antenna.
I must admit I was and am quite leary of these active displays, but I have
never suffered a burned out radio because of it, and I have never known
anyone who has.  Many of the observers are carrying hand-helds literally
within feet of the tesla coil.  In the same building, there is usually
someone hawking computers.  I don't dispute that it is possible to zap a
computer with a tesla coil, but why doesn't their use at these hamfests
cause a major catastrophe?
-- 
Rob Stampfli, 614-864-9377, res at kd8wk.uucp (osu-cis!kd8wk!res), kd8wk at n8jyv.oh