[PLUG] UPS Advice needed

[John Jason Jordan]

So now that I have my desktop computer set up as an audio center
playing mp3s and streaming radio stations to the stereo, everything is
cool in JJJ-land. Except that sometimes I come home and no tunes greet
me as I come in the door. And when I look at the computer I realize it
is no longer even running. Worse, my laptop (which sits in a docking
station) has locked up in suspend mode.

Yep, PGE has scorched my ass again. It used to be that I could go for
years without the slightest power glitch, but lately it's been every
couple of months. The outages aren't long - mostly they're just long
enough to kill the desktop and lock up the laptop. (I have worked long
and hard to figure out the laptop problem - it should just
automatically switch to the battery, but instead it goes into suspend,
and I cannot get it back.)

So I have decided it's time to get a UPS. I have an old APC, but it has
sat unused for a number of years. It won't even take a charge. And it's
probably not worth fixing. I'd rather just get a new one. 

I'm thinking of 1500 VA, but I could be convinced to go higher. I'd
rather err on the high side. And years ago I had a great one (before
the APC) that ran everything off the batteries which were continuously
recharged from the mains. Sadly it died and is no longer with me. And I
think that kind is rather expensive and hard to find in stores these
days. I'll probably be OK with the automatic kick-in type.

So in that size range, what is currently a good brand / model? And
those things are too heavy to ship, so who should I buy it from locally?