I noticed when looking at the wiring sticking out of the end of one of my laptop power cables (the end that enters the battery), that of the green, grey and pink cables there, the green one had snapped. However, my laptop power still works fine, so what does that green wire do exactly?? Is it dangerous to use it even with that wire snapped?
Power requires two wires, but a third wire called a ground wire is sometimes added. Usually the plug that goes into the wall has two or three prongs. If it has two prongs, no ground wire added. If it has three prongs, the ground wire is added. The ground is usually used when metal frames or cases are used. The purpose is to ground or short out the live (hot) wire should it accidentally come into contact with the metal frame, causing the circuit breaker to trip. If the ground wire was not there, it would allow a person to get shocked should they touch the metal frame.
