On 8/28/2008 3:07 PM Steve Barker DLT spake thus:

Ground down. the other way looks stupid.

That's probably as good as answer as any (basically, "it's completely
arbitrary, so orient it the way 99% of other outlets are oriented".)

However, there are good reasons to put them in "upside down" (i.e.,
ground pin up). Last time I was in a hospital, I noticed that almost all
the outlets were "upside down", and later heard/read that this is to
prevent sparks and shocks should a metal implement fall down along the
wall and contact a plug in an outlet. Makes sense. I'm even starting to
put in some outlets this way.

Oh, and I've also noticed that having the ground pin on top tends to
hold 3-prong plugs in the outlet more tightly and resist the plug
falling out, like when you're using an extension cord and tug on it.


--
"In 1964 Barry Goldwater declared: 'Elect me president, and I
will bomb the cities of Vietnam, defoliate the jungles, herd the
population into concentration camps and turn the country into a
wasteland.' But Lyndon Johnson said: 'No! No! No! Don't you dare do
that. Let ME do it.'"

- Characterization (paraphrased) of the 1964 Goldwater/Johnson
presidential race by Professor Irwin Corey, "The World's Foremost
Authority".