[OT] US laptop in Germany

[bxf4@psu.edu (Brian P. Flaherty)]

Hello,

I'm travelling to Jena, Germany in a couple weeks and I'd like to use
my laptop there.  I have an IBM X31 and the transformer says input is
100 - 240 V, 1.2A-0.7A, and 50/60Hz.

According to
http://users.pandora.be/worldstandards/electricity.htm, Germany is 230
V and 50 Hz.  So, it seems to me that all I need is a plug adapter,
not an additional transformer.  However, someone I work with said that
if I wanted to use it a lot there (several hours continuously plugged
in), I should bring a transformer too.  Does anyone know if this is true?

Also, if I use the laptop in Jena, should I leave the APC surge
protector in-line or remove it?  The surge protector information says
that 100V to 240V are acceptable, but I was in Belgium a couple years
ago and the moment I plugged in, the surge protector blew.

Thanks for your time, thoughts, and patience.

Brian