> One other thing: IIRC, smoke alarms are required by law in Canada. I find it interesting that this is not the case in Australia... Of course, I could be wrong about it in Canada. Any other Canadians know? How about Americans? Are smoke alarms required by law in the US?

I can tell you about Norway: It's not required by law here, but you get lower insurance fees if you have them, and you can also get discount on electric power.

Travholt.