| Gender Of Connectors And Fasteners |
Article Index for Gender |
Website Links For Gender |
Information AboutGender Of Connectors And Fasteners |
| CATEGORIES ABOUT GENDER OF CONNECTORS AND FASTENERS | |
| gender in language | |
| vocabulary | |
| electrical connectors | |
| fasteners | |
| plumbing | |
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Due to the perceived political incorrectness of ''male'' and ''female'', "slot", "socket", "receptacle", "outlet" and "jack" are used for female connectors, and "plug" or "pin" for male connectors. In many cases these terms are more common than ''male'' and ''female'', especially in documentation intended for the non-specialist. It also causes a fair amount of confusion when those names are shortened in labels. For example, the male component of an HD15 connector can be named either HD15M or HD15P (HD15F or HD15S for female versions), both of which mean the same thing but could be confused for different items when there is no accompanying picture. In electrical connections where Voltage is sufficient to cause Injury , the part connected to the power source is invariably female, so that hazardous voltage is not exposed to inadvertent contact. A plug is connected to the device drawing the power. In low-voltage use, such as for Data Communications , this is less important, and male or female connectors are used based on other engineering factors such as convenience of use or ease of manufacturing. For example, the common "patch Cables" used for Ethernet hookups (and the similar cords used for Telephone s) typically have Plugs on both ends, to connect to jacks on equipment or mounted in walls. A device called a Gender Changer may be used to join two connectors of the same gender, for example, to extend one video cable with another. The gender of a connector is determined by the structure of its primary functional components — i.e., the conductors of an electrical connector, or the load-bearing parts of a fastener — and not by secondary features such as covers, shields or handles that may be installed for environmental protection, safe operation, etc. Certain connector designs involve paired identical parts each containing both protrusions and indentations. The term hermaphrodite (or '''hermaphroditic''') is used for such devices, along with '''combination''' (and '''combo'''), '''two-in-one''', '''two-way''', and others. EXAMPLES .]]
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