

Back in the 70's I was a service technician for a cash register company.
The cash registers used microprocessor circuits and back then they were
VERY susceptible to electrostatic discharge and line noise.  The biggest
problems came from outlets that were not properly grounded.

In almost every place we went to do an installation, we found outlets
with the ground connected to the neutral.  For 99.9% of the things you
can plug into one of these, they work fine.  For our cash registers they
were a nightmare -- line noise tended to scramble the memory
periodically.

With modern electronics using switching power supplies this should be
less of a problem.  Even the company I used to work for is no longer
recommending a dedicated line with a seperate ground for their
equipment.  I imagine if you check MOST household wiring you will find
that the ground and neutral are connected.  Although not ideal, it
should be o.k. for most applications.

---
 . SLMR 2.1 . My reality check just bounced.
                                