denber.wbst@XEROX.COM.UUCP (03/11/87)
"is the line polarized or does it just act like two wires with A/C electricity" Yes, the phone line is polarized, and no it *usually* doesn't matter which way your phone is hooked up. I've heard some older model touch-tone phones won't dial if they're connected backwards. Ordinarily, the colors should match - red to red, green to green. One is at ground and the other is something like -48 vdc (I forget which is which). By the way, AC lines are polarized too. The white wire is always ground (technically "neutral") and the black wire is hot. Black always runs to the smaller slot of electrical outlets, (the coppper colored screw terminal). Never trust this of course - you'd be surprised how many houses have wiring errors. Unlike phones, the penalty for a mistake here can be death. You can buy cheap polarity testers for both phone outlets and AC outlets from Sears or Radio Schlock. - Michel