When all else fails...

[Ironclad Alibi]

My neighbor wanted me to come look at her computer and figure out why it has not been working for several weeks. She had called Geek Squad but they wanted over $200.00 to make a house call. So I go over there.

I press the computer power button, but nothing happened. I notice there was no power to the monitor either, but the router has power. Everything but the router is plugged into a power strip, the router being plugged into the wall outlet next to the power strip plug. I swap the plugs. Now the computer works, and the router doesn't. So I plug the router into the power strip and everything is running just fine.

I look at the outlet and wonder why one would work and the other wouldn't. As I turned away, I noticed the light switch is in the off position. I turn it on, test the outlet, and it has power. She was two weeks without her computer because someone had turned off a light switch, which incidentally did not control any lights.

In our houses, wall switches control one half of an outlet for use with a table or floor light in the rooms with no ceiling light fixtures.

[Kristev]

Oh my word.

[Aethian]

The boyfriends apartment is like that. Two switches control a half a outlet each. One in the living room and one in the bedroom. I was proud of myself for making the discovery when I was bored one day.

[Merriweather]

Your neighbor owes you a bottle of something nice for saving them $200 and the embarrasement of having a stranger paid tech find that, LOL.

I've lived in several places with similar set up. The house we have now is an older (1940s)
house, with two additions over the years. Plus, the last owner was a DIY nut. It's..... interesting, LOL. We still have a couple of switches we have yet to identify what they do, and we've lived here five years.

[Ironclad Alibi]

Your neighbor owes you a bottle of something nice for saving them $200 and the embarrasement of having a stranger paid tech find that, LOL.

She insisted on paying me $20. Her parents have provided us a number of nice bottles over the years (usually Johnny Walker Black Label, but occasionally wine). Her dad used to own a well-known restaurant in DC.