forums/message boards/websites/etc go down all the time. i highly doubt they're not doing anything to get them back online. steampowered.com being down is not news to anyone, but i hadn't realized it's been down for that long.
as for steam, it's not perfect. sure, when it's not working...
i had the same thing happen to me in both places you mention, fido, on my first time through the game. second time through, and her doppleganger hasn't shown up at the first location/incident, so i doubt *KNOCK WOOD* that she'll show up in the combine flare scene.
i DO have screenies of...
kleiner does say how he made upgrades to your suit, if i remember correctly. doesn't he also say something along the lines of "it still fits you like a glove ... well, at least the gloves do"?
it would've been nice for them to have some sort of defensive/offensive mechanism to do harm to gordon, but the flash is a nice subtle way of disorienting and blinding you ESPECIALLY in the heat of battle (like when you gotta destroy that strider and the scanners keep buggin you).