[bradleysmith]

I've also heard 'smoke testing' refer to sending power to a device or component to see if any magic smoke comes out.

But... I've also seen smoke testing used in automotive and engine diagnostics which could predate or parallel this usage in electronics.

https://mechanics.stackexchange.com/questions/26749/what-is-...

I should imagine this method of troubleshooting sealed hollow-body systems of any kind have been around for a long time.

a quick search yielded a wiki article stating the method being used for sewers since at 1875.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smoke_testing_(mechanical)#cit...

edit: format