B is probably Normal.  A is for Pots & Pans.  Are you able to post a picture of the control panel?  Are there push buttons for various cycles or is there just heated dry & air dry? 

And you used to have to set the cycle then push the timer knob in to start the machine.  At the end of the drying cycle, the knob would pop back out.

Fun.

Malcolm

You may be correct.  My memory is fuzzy.  I never had one of these dishwashers so I don't have direct experience with it.  I knew that you had to do something funky to get it to start, though.

Malcolm

OK, here we go.  If yo have B button pushed in and turn the dial to B position, you will get a prewash, main wash, and two rinses.  That would be referred to as Normal Wassh cycle.  Button B pushed in and the timer dial moved mini-wash, you will get the main wash and two rinses.  That would be referred to as light soil or low energy cycle.  Now, with the two buttons over A  The left button is for Pots and Pans.  If this machine follows teh standard whirlpool cycle sequence, A with Pots and Pans button selected, you will get a PreWash that will heat the water to a certain temperature, then a rinse, then the main wash and will be eated to a set temperature; after the main wash will be the two rinses.  The 2nd of those two rinses will also heat the4 water to a set temperature.  While the machine is heating the water on the Pots and Pans cycle, it will continue to circulate the water and wash the load and the timer will be paused until the temperature is set.  The left of the two buttons over is for Heavy soil.  It's the sequence of the Pots & Pans cycle, but no cycle delay for heating wateer.  So its Prewash, ri8nse, main wash, and two rinses.  There is another little cycle between the two words "off" on the dials.  Taht is a rinse & hold cycle to prewash a partial load dirty dishes and hold them until you are ready to run a full load through a complete usual cycle.  If the machine is functioning properly, this is probably the best cleaning dishwasher ever made, particularly with the Pots & Pans cycle.  The joke is that it would take the chrome off a trailer hitch or the chrome off a truck bumper.  Would llvoe to see a picture of the interior. 

...the control scheme of a circa-1978 Whirlpool with its A=Super Scour, B=Super Wash, C=Short Cycle configuration.

A +Pots & Pans, remember it's delaying progeress through the cycles so it heats the wateer in the prewash (1st fill), main wash, and final rinse.  Those heating delays can take 20 to 30 minutes each depending upon your water heater temp and water cooling down in the supply pipes.  As for the utelsils not getting clean, try nort to put pots and pans and big items such as that at the front of the lower rack cuz that will block the water getting to the basket on the door.  Put your large dinner pots and similar items in the front. (Although, it just occurred to me your utensil basket may be in the bottom rack and not mounted on the door--which is the case for the Whirlpool produced Kenmores in the U.S.)  Just make sure your mixing items in the baskets and not letting them all nest tog4ether with identical items only in the same compartment.

And you are very welcome.  Glad I could contribute to the problem solving.