Steve M. Taylor wrote:

...and if you lived somewhere as habitually damp and temperate as Lancashire, England, the chances of static zapping are also close to zero -

Sounds nice actually. Here the air is so dry, especially in winter, that I am constantly getting zapped whenever I touch something metal. And I still haven't gotten used to it. If our stuff keeps working in spite of the constant application of sparks on the bench, there's a good chance it will keep working when it leaves the production floor.

Dennis