On Wed, 17 January 2001, Matt Clauson wrote:

PG&E started with "block 3" (look on your power bill for what block number you are) -- assuming 1 hour per blackout, and they go through the block numbers in sequence, you have an idea of when you'll get hit. Anyone have an idea of how many PG&E blocks there are?

PG&E has divided its service area into 14 blocks of 550 megawatts. Other utility companies, such as City of Palo Alto ( http://www.cpau.com ), have their own blocks. If you share a circuit with a "critical action" (i.e. hospital, fire station) you will not have a rolling blackout code. The utility avoids interrupting service to those facilities. However, they may still experience an uncontrolled blackout if the grid fails. All Internet facilities in California, which I checked, appear to be operating normally. Calling around, some folks are or have been on emergency generator power, but this has not affected customer service so far.