XPost: rec.arts.comics.strips   
   From: psperson@old.netcom.invalid   
      
   On Tue, 30 Dec 2025 18:34:08 GMT, scott@slp53.sl.home (Scott Lurndal)   
   wrote:   
      
   >Paul S Person  writes:   
   >>On Mon, 29 Dec 2025 20:19:49 GMT, scott@slp53.sl.home (Scott Lurndal)   
   >>wrote:   
   >>   
   >>   
   >>>>Same here in the USA, but they are usually polarized (one pin longer   
   >>>>on top than the other).   
   >>>   
   >>>The wider blade identifies the neutral (grounded) conductor.   
   >>   
   >>Well, hopefully grounded, anyway.   
      
   You missed the last line:   
      
   >>Old houses ...   
      
   Ours was built in the late 1920's. I doubt very much that it conforms   
   to the standard -- so far as the older two-wire ciruits are concerned.   
      
   The additional 3-wire circuits plus grounding stakes are probably   
   closer to the standard in the mid-80s.   
      
   I say closer because, when discussing "Ground Interrupt Circuit   
   Protectors" (or some similarly-named item intended to protect the user   
   while using an electric cord to mow a lawn outdoors) with a person   
   over the phone, she was very insistent that the outside sockets should   
   have that built in and that the standard required back then.    
      
   Still, this is basically irrelevent to old houses' original wiring:   
      
   >if the neutral conductor is not grounded, then you aren't using   
   >a standard north american center-tapped single-phase 240VAC service which   
   >provides two 120VAC circuits.   
      
   --    
   "Here lies the Tuscan poet Aretino,   
   Who evil spoke of everyone but God,   
   Giving as his excuse, 'I never knew him.'"   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)