LOL, My switches actually work both ways, but the off part is only for emergencies & anesthesia purposes during hardware transplants.
I have a UPS for my machine, but not for all of them.
And Vista doesn't support my UPS/serial port controller/AUTO shutdown software. I'm not upgrading my UPS just because MS doesn't want to support legacy hardware.

All my work PC's crunch non-stop. My home PC's crunch non-stop, except during severe weather.

Last couple of storms we had fried my MB's.

That is why I put a lightening arrestor in the breaker box and have every machine on a surge protector.

If you've thought about getting a UPS (uninteruptible power supply) but thought they were too expensive, try putting a "wanted" post on your local freecycle group (www.freecycle.org). A lot of times people will just chuck their UPS when the sealed lead acid battery inside finally dies (about 3-5 years). If you pick up one that isn't working, the odds are extremely good that the only problem is the battery. All you need to do then is to www.froogle.com or other shopping search engine and search for the battery you need.

The best way to do this is to search on the brand name and model number of the UPS.

If that doesn't work, search on the battery's model number - if you can locate it.

If you still have no luck, take the exact measurements - all 3 dimensions - make a note of how many amp hours (ah, e.g., 30ah) it's rated at and the exact voltage. With that you should be able to get a matching battery. Call the vendor to double check that it's compatible.

Almost all use spade connectors so that shouldn't be a problem, but check to be safe.

I have several UPS's. Four of them are 900watt Conext brand. I couldn't find the battery specifically for my brand and model, but I found another battery that was exactly the same size and specs. I think each one cost about USD30. Four new UPS with that rating would have cost about $600. Not bad for a little online searching.

BTW, a UPS will solve your problem because it takes the alternating current from your wall jack, converts it to DC, charges the internal battery and then takes DC from the battery and converts it back to AC. That way you get nice clean power all the time - even during storms and brown outs. A surge suppressor won't do that for you. If the power fluctuates or drops below 110 volts, the suppressor doesn't care. Plus, many only protect the hot wire and give no protection for the neutral or ground. So if you get a lightning strike or get a short to the neutral - you're still screwed.

In short, a suppressor is better than nothing, but not by a lot.